Files from Etsy won't load on my Mac

I purchased a file from Etsy and cannot load it on my Mac. It is not too large - just some cell phone holders. I’ve communicated with the vendor and he has sent me multiple options, but none work. Any ideas?

What format are the files? SVG?

In what software are you trying to open them? Inkscape? Adobe Illustrator? The web-based Glowforge UI (GFUI)?

If the GFUI, what browser are you using? Are you running an ad blocker?

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Is the file name really long? Sometimes if the folder or file name is long just rename it and that might help

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They are SVG and I was using Glowforge to open them. I am new to this, so I don’t know all the technical stuff.

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I was using Safari and not running an ad blocker

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No, the file name is not long. I am not able to separate the different designs, so there is a group of 6 and they won’t all fit on the material.

Have you tried dragging and dropping the file onto the Glowforge interface? You should be able to then drag off the file parts that you can’t fit. It should not matter what computer (Mac or PC) you are using.

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Oh, I see: the problem is not that the file won’t open in the GFUI. It is that it won’t all fit on one sheet. Is that correct?

One thing you could do for that is open the file in the GFUI, delete parts of it by dragging a selection box around stuff or clicking on objects and, pressing the delete key. Go back to the GFUI dashboard, drag the file in again, delete different things the same way, drag them onto the material.

If things are grouped, you can ungroup them in the GFUI by right-clicking on a group and selecting “ungroup” from the context menu.

You can rename the different versions in the dashboard so you can tell them apart.

Dragging the file to the GFUI will create a copy on the Glowforge servers and, won’t change the file on your local drive.

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I don’t mean to be stupid, but what is GFUI?

Yes

GFUI Glow Forge User Interface

commonly called the GaFooie

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That’s the space you are using when you look at the screen of the Glowforge…

And, if you have all the files on the screen if there is ANY part of the file that extends over the boundaries, it won’t cut (the lines stay perforated). You would ungroup them like @evermorian said and drag off the ones that are outside the area of the cut. You can cut them after you get the first ones cut. When they ‘light up’ and turn i.e. red for cuts, you are within the cutting area…

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That’s the Glowforge User Interface, the web app you are talking about using in Safari. That’s why I spelled it out in my first response. Most people just abbreviate it to GFUI here.

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I’ve tried to ungroup them, but it didn’t work

I tried that but it didn’t work

Frustrating.

Your responses don’t have a lot of detail. So, we are doing a lot of guessing. When you say “it didn’t work,” do you see the ungroup option in the context menu when you right-click on one of the pieces? Is it disabled (greyed out)? Or something else?

If you don’t want to let one of us look at the file, can you provide a screen shot showing the design in the GFUI? On Mac, that’s cmd+shift+4, then draw a box around what you want an image of with the crosshair cursor. That should save to your desktop and, you can drag that in to a post here to share it.

If everything is set up as a single path, that could cause the ungroup option to be disabled (greyed out). That’s something that could be a design choice or, possibly, the result of the designer exporting from some particular design software.

If that’s the case, you could open it in a vector editor like Inkscape, Adobe Illustrator, Affinity Designer, Corel Draw, etc. and, edit similarly – if you are familiar with one of those programs or, willing to start learning it.

You could also ask the designer you bought it from if they can provide separate files for the pieces, laid out for 19.4" x 10.8" sheets.

Unfortunately, a lot of files people are selling on Etsy are not very well done and, may not be suitable for use on a Glowforge without a lot of editing.

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I apologize for not being clearer. I clicked on ungroup and nothing happened. I am perfectly willing to send you the file. Please let me know where to send it.

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No worries. I sent you a direct/private message you can respond to with the file.

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[[/Users/marypullara/Downloads/Phone Stands B2 Files PART2-2](https:///Users/marypullara/Downloads/Phone Stands B2 Files PART1-2)](https:///Users/marypullara/Downloads/Phone Stands B2 Files PART2-2)

This didn’t work to share the files. Try zipping the files before dragging into a reply box.

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