Offending command: Startdata

Startdata is a PostScript operator that is font-related. PostScript errors Offending command Startdata can show up if your RIP cannot handle the way in which fonts are embedded in a PostScript or PDF file. This seems to happen for instance when PDF files containing CID (composite) fonts are printed to a PostScript level 1 or level 2 RIP.

Solutions

• Send your file to a PostScript 3 RIP.
• Try to find a way in which the fonts are not encoded as composite fonts. InDesign 1.0, for instance, has the annoying habit of encoding fonts as composite fonts when a PDF file is created straight from InDesign. Avoiding PDF and printing directly to the RIP might get you around this problem.
• I have read reports of people getting rid of a PostScript error IOerror, offending command Startdata when printing PDF files by updating their printer drivers. If you are printing to a server queue which forwards the data to the printer, try updating the drivers on the server as well.
• On some occasions, such errors are caused by the application generating the print file. If possible, try printing the data from another computer program.
• For a PostScript error rangecheck or  PostScript error undefined when printing an Adobe PDF file or from Adobe Acrobat or InDesign: create a PostScript file, convert it to PDF with ‘Acrobat 3 compatibility’ activated, and print this PDF.