[Help] Text Tool problem

[Shrub]

I searched the forums and several other people seem to have experienced this same idiotic behavior, but no thread I found explained how to fix the problem. Here's the behavior:

I open a .jpg file. I select the Text Tool and any size font. I click in the workspace and start typing, and nothing is displayed. If I hit the checkmark and accept the text, the layer is named according to what I typed. If I click in the workspace again, it highlights the existing text layer and sdds text to that.

I've tried two complete reinstallations.
The Reset Tool and Reset All Tools are greyed out.

Here's an example of the problem. There should be black text within the black circle:

http://www.mustangmods.com/ims/u/932/2404/182441.jpg

Any help would be duly appreciated, as my patience has run out. Next step is FNS - Find New Software.

[RobertSchuldenfrei]

Hi Shrub,

Welcome to the friendliest newsgroup (NG) on the web. Before I launch into the "exotic" reasons, what is your foreground color? I can't count the times I have tried to type white text on white background:).

Cheers,

Bob

[AngelicKim]

Hi and welcome, my initial thought was the same as Bob's. Your example does not show up for me but you say black text within black circle. Makes me think even more that you foreground is also set to black. Change the text color and see what happens, if you see it then, change your foreground color and then change the text back to black.

[emkayess65]

Hi, there is another possibility.
If you have a very low resolution image depending what your units are set to.

Here is a thread that discusses this problem.

http://www.photoshopelementsuser.com/forum/showthread.php?t=24899&highlight=type+problems

""I hope it will help with your type size.Check your resolution - I bet it is abnormally low. Change it via the Image Size dialog.

If you require a low PPI, then go into your Preferences for fonts and change the units to Pixels.

(This is because "points" are directly related to "inches", so when you have a low resolution, your pixels-per-inch is small, so the number of pixels assigned to a point is low, so text appears miniscule)""


More info:
Font size can be designated in "points". 12 points = 1 pica. Six picas = 1 inch.

So, let's say you have chosen a font at 72 points. (72/6)/12 = 1 inch, so your text will PRINT at 1 inch high.

Displaying the text on a monitor is a different story, though...

Let's say you are placing this 72-point text on a document with a 100ppi resolution. At 100% zoom, the 72-point text will be 100 PIXELS tall.

What if your resolution is 300ppi? That makes the text 300 pixels tall.

What, then, if the document resolution is very low? The text is proportionately small. For instance, if the document is set at 10ppi, 72-point text is only 10 pixels tall.

In almost every case with symptoms like this, it turns out that the document has somehow been set with an unusually low resolution.

Of course, if you go into your Preferences and change your Type units from Points to Pixels, you won't have to worry about this conversion from points to inches to pixels.
HTH
MKS

[Byron Gale]

Marie,

I couldn't have said it better, myself! :D

Byron

[Wendy]

Hi Shrub ...

... and welcome to the forum :)

Do let us know if any of those suggestions sorted it out for you :)

Wendy

[lindajay]

And one final possibility -- your text layer is beneath another layer, which is hiding it. All three of these things have tripped me up at one time or another (color, size, and position of the layer). Let us know if you got it all worked out!

[Shrub]

Of course, if you go into your Preferences and change your Type units from Points to Pixels, you won't have to worry about this conversion from points to inches to pixels.

This was the key piece of information for me.

I used to have several graphic artists reporting to me, and I've watched them work. So, I had been through all of the obvious causes that some suggested above (text under different layer, text color on same background, etc).

I thought emkayess65 was on the right track, though, because everything that PhotoShop was doing indicated to me that the text was there. So, I went back in and switched the units to pixels and then created a 1024 x 768 pixel background, with 300 ppi resolution, and started using the Text Tool set at 12 pixels. Lo and behold, my text was small, but I could see it!

Let me also add that once I made the change in Preferences to pixels, the Reset All Tools option was enabled (previously greyed out). I also did that.

Thank you to everyone who responded, and I hope this thread will be of similar assistance to others who encounter this problem.

[emkayess65]

Hi Byron,
sorry I did not give explicit credit to you.
I did link to the threat - but I will make sure in future that I make it clear from where and from whom my info comes.
Again - sorry!
My understanding of the concept is very fuzzy and my own words would confuse people even more - so I quote.
Will make use of the quote option in future.
MKS
Edit: Oh boy. Somehow I thought all the quotes where from the same thread. They are not and right now I can't find the other one.
Sorry again.

[Byron Gale]

Marie,

No worries!! I was laughing how I came into the thread to try to answer the question - then reading your post I was saying to myself, "hey, this is good stuff!" Then I recognized it!!! :D

Byron

[emkayess65]

Hi Byron,
glad you didn't take offence. Thanks!
I didn't mean to represent the work as mine.
I firmly resolve...
to use the quote feature.
Peace!
MarieS