Zengobi Forums

[dzec]

When I create a mathematical expression in MathType and then COPY-PASTE or drag and drop it into Curio, it arrives HUGE! This happens even when I paste it into a text figure.

Is there anyway for a MathType expression to be pasted into Curio using the size in which it was created?

[george]

We don't have MathType here but I googled for "mathtype huge" and found that you may have to use MathType's Define command under its Size menu to set a more reasonable font size for your equations.

Here's a link to MathType's site for more info:
http://www.dessci.com/en/support/mathtype/tips/fontsize.htm

[dzec]

I did a small experiment.

I created a simple expression using MathType and placed it into a Pages document. Then I copied it from pages into Curio. Worked fine - the expression was the correct size in Curio.

When I copied the same expression from the same MathType window directly to Curio, it arrived huge.

Clearly, something is happening when the expression moves between MathType and Pages that is not happening when it moves between MathType and Curio.

I guess I have a workaround, but it is puzzling behaviour. Has anything like this happened with other software?

[dzec]

Checked the asset descriptions in the library. Interesting differences between the asset that came via pages and the one that came directly from MathType.

The expression that was copied from MathType to Pages to Curio is a 7KB TIFF Image. The expression that was copied from MathType to Curio directly is a 20KB TIFF Image.

[jjweimer]

[george]

I bet I just fixed that one. In the next point release Curio is better at handling existing images that are resized outside of Curio.

By the way, here's a nice shortcut: you can just hit the n key on the keyboard if the image is selected to make it its natural size.

[dzec]

When I tried the suggestions provided by jjweimer and george, the size of the expression actually increased, so I assume the natural size of the copied image in Curio is bigger than it ought to be.

The MathType preferences indicate that when I copy an expression, it's placed on the clipboard as a PICT image, but when Curio receives it, it's appears as a TIFF in the library. Might Curio be translating the image file format and thus modifying the display size of the image?

[dzec]

I found the following tech note on the MathType web site. Guess I have to wit for the next iteration of their software and George can worry about one less issue.

Issue:
When copying and pasting MathType equations the resulting equation is a very large TIFF image. Once pasted, equations are no longer editable with MathType.

Reason:
Apple has deprecated support for the PICT format. With Snow Leopard (Mac OS X 10.6), when an application such as MathType copies a PICT image to the clipboard, the operating system will add the TIFF image to the clipboard as well, and in the majority of cases, the TIFF format will be pasted into a receiving application. This is necessary to support interoperability between Snow Leopard applications that do not have PICT support with applications that still generate PICTs for compatibility with older versions of Mac OS. However, such images consume an inordinate amount of system resources, and are no longer editable.

Solution:
We will address the PICT file format issue in future versions of MathType. For those using Apple iWork applications, upgrading to iWork 09 will eliminate the need for using copy/paste since each of the applications (Pages, Keynote and Numbers) includes a "MathType Equation" command under their Insert menu.

[george]

Great news! Thanks for the info, dzec!