Have you experienced a GsDraw error (1): GenericError?

This week many users experienced a GsDraw error (1): GenericError. This error began occurring following the installation of security updates KB3045171 and KB3057110 released by Microsoft. These two security updates affect Microsoft font drivers and TrueType fonts, both of which are used by Golden Software products to draw text and symbols. Golden Software products convert the text ‘glyphs’ to polygons in order to create symbols. During this conversion, the GsDraw error prevented our software from properly drawing symbols in Surfer, Grapher, MapViewer, Didger, and Strater. You may have experienced the GsDraw error when attempting to draw a symbol, create a plot containing symbols, or open an existing project containing symbols.

Our programmers were able to isolate the cause for the recent GsDraw error (1): GenericError messages to an error in the code released in the Microsoft security updates mentioned above. The error has been reported to Microsoft, and you can follow its progress here. This error has also affected font files not specific to Golden Software products, so you may have experienced errors in other programs when using particular fonts or characters. However, during further investigation, our programming team discovered that we could change the Golden Software TrueType font files to get around the error in Microsoft’s code and prevent the Golden Software GsDraw error from occurring in our products.

As an interim solution, we provided new Golden Software font files that could be downloaded and installed from our website. Microsoft has since released an update patch that will resolve the error without the need to install new fonts. To install this update, please navigate to https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/kb/3065979, download the appropriate package for your operating system, install the patch, and reboot your computer. Rebooting is required for the changes to be applied.

After installing the Microsoft Windows update and rebooting the computer, if you experience any errors, please send the full text of the error to jennifer@goldensoftware.com. If any of your graphs/maps do not appear correct, please send the appropriate files (and data files) to jennifer@goldensoftware.com. We will work to correct the issue.

We sincerely apologize for any inconvenience this has caused, and we thank you for your patience as we worked to provide a solution for the GS Draw error (1): GenericError.