Troubleshooting

Something not working? Don't panic! Most issues have simple fixes. This guide covers the common "wait, why isn't this working?!" moments.

Animation Issues

"My animation isn't playing!"

Check these first:

1. Is the animation enabled?

   • Select animation block on timeline
   • Check Properties panel
   • "Enabled" checkbox must be checked

2. Is it on the timeline?

   • Look at the timeline at bottom
   • Animation blocks should be visible
   • If not there, it won't play

3. Are you previewing?

   • Press Spacebar to preview
   • Click the Play button
   • Timeline playhead should move

4. Is the speed too fast/slow?

   • Speed: 0.01s might be too fast to see
   • Speed: 100s might be too slow to notice
   • Try Speed: 1.0s as a test

5. Is the layer visible?

   • Check eye icon in Layers tab
   • Layer might be hidden
   • Or behind other layers

6. Are start/end values the same?

   • Start: 100, End: 100 = no change
   • They need to be different!

"My animation looks weird/wrong"

Common causes:

Jumpy motion:

• Try different easing function
• Avoid "None" for most animations
• Use Sine.InOut for smooth loops

Too fast:

• Increase Speed value (the duration in seconds - longer duration = slower animation)
• 1.0-2.0s is good starting point

Too slow:

• Decrease Speed value (shorter duration = faster animation)
• 0.5-1.0s for snappy UI

Doesn't loop smoothly:

• Enable Yoyo effect
• Or make end value connect to start value
• Check Loop is enabled

Wrong direction:

• Swap Start and End values
• Or use negative values

"My looping animation stutters"

Fixes:

1. Enable Yoyo:

   • Makes animation reverse instead of jump back
   • Smoother for most effects

2. Match start and end:

   • If Start: 0, End: 360 (rotation)
   • Next loop jumps from 360 back to 0
   • This can look smooth OR stuttery depending on speed

3. Adjust easing:

   • Linear (None) often better for constant loops
   • Or Sine.InOut for breathing effects

4. Check speed:

   • Too fast = noticeable stutter
   • Slower speeds hide the loop point better

"Animation plays once then stops"

Solution:

Enable Loop checkbox!

• Select animation on timeline
• Properties panel → Loop: Check it
• Animation will now repeat forever

If you WANT it to play once:

• Leave Loop unchecked
• That's the correct behavior!

Layer Issues

"I can't find my layer!"

Troubleshooting steps:

1. Is it hidden?

   • Check Layers tab
   • Eye icon should be open
   • Click to toggle visibility

2. Is it off-canvas?

   • Zoom out (Ctrl -)
   • Or Ctrl+0 to fit screen
   • Look for it outside visible area

3. Is it behind other layers?

   • Check layer order in Layers tab
   • Drag it higher (toward top)
   • Top = front, bottom = back

4. Is it too small?

   • Might be scaled to near-zero
   • Select in Layers tab
   • Check Scale in Properties

5. Is it the same color as background?

   • Change background color
   • Or change layer tint
   • Might be there but invisible

"I can't select my layer on canvas"

Solutions:

1. Click in Layers tab instead

   • Bypass canvas selection issues
   • Always works

2. Another layer is covering it

   • Temporarily hide top layers
   • Or select from Layers tab

3. Selection handles are in the way

   • Press Alt+H to hide handles
   • Try clicking again

4. Zoom in closer

   • Layer might be too small to click
   • Ctrl+ to zoom in

"My layer disappeared after I edited it"

Common causes:

1. Accidentally deleted:

   • Press Ctrl+Z to undo
   • Check Layers tab

2. Moved off canvas:

   • Ctrl+0 to fit screen
   • Look around

3. Set opacity to 0:

   • Check Properties → Opacity
   • Should be 1 for fully visible

4. Accidentally hid it:

   • Check eye icon in Layers tab

Timeline Issues

"My timeline is empty!"

Fixes:

1. Select a layer first

   • Timeline shows animations for selected layer
   • Click layer in Layers tab or on canvas

2. No animations added yet

   • That's normal!
   • Add animations from right panel

"I can't drag animation blocks"

Check:

1. Are you clicking the block?

   • Click directly on the colored block
   • Not the empty space

2. Is the layer locked?

   • Some layer types might restrict this
   • Try with a different layer

3. Browser issue?

   • Refresh the page
   • Try a different browser

"Animation block disappeared from timeline"

Reasons:

1. Different layer selected

   • Select the layer that had the animation
   • Each layer has its own timeline

2. Accidentally deleted

   • Ctrl+Z to undo

3. Moved off visible timeline area

   • Scroll timeline left/right
   • Might have dragged it too far

Preview Issues

"Preview isn't playing"

Solutions:

1. Press Spacebar

   • Most reliable way to start preview

2. Click the canvas first

   • Gives canvas focus
   • Then press Spacebar

3. Check if anything is animated

   • Need at least one animation
   • On a visible layer

4. Refresh the page

   • Sometimes preview gets stuck
   • Refresh and try again

"Preview is laggy/stuttering"

Performance fixes:

1. Too many animations running

   • Reduce simultaneous animations
   • Disable some to test

2. Too many shader effects

   • Advanced effects are resource-intensive
   • Try disabling shaders

3. Large image/video files

   • Optimize assets before uploading
   • Compress images and videos

4. Browser issue

   • Close other tabs
   • Restart browser
   • Try Chrome/Edge (best performance)

5. Hardware limitation

   • Lower-end device might struggle
   • Simplify theme for better performance

"Preview shows wrong thing"

Fixes:

1. Timeline playhead position

   • Drag playhead to start
   • Click Stop button to reset

2. Cache issue

   • Hard refresh (Ctrl+Shift+R)
   • Clear browser cache

3. Haven't saved recent changes

   • Press Ctrl+S
   • Wait for save confirmation

Asset Issues

"My uploaded image looks wrong"

Common problems:

1. Image is too large/small

   • Check image resolution
   • Resize before uploading

2. Wrong aspect ratio

   • Image might be stretched
   • Use Scale in Properties to fix

3. Image isn't loading

   • Wait a moment (might still be uploading)
   • Refresh page
   • Re-upload if needed

4. Image looks pixelated

   • Original image resolution too low
   • Upload higher-res version

"Can't upload files"

Solutions:

1. File too large

   • Compress before uploading
   • Check file size limits

2. Wrong file type

   • Images: PNG, JPG, GIF
   • Video: MP4, etc.
   • Audio: MP3, WAV, etc.

3. Browser issue

   • Try different browser
   • Check internet connection

4. Storage limit

   • Delete unused assets
   • Free up space

"Video won't play"

Checks:

1. Video format supported?

   • Try MP4 with H.264 codec
   • Most reliable format

2. File size

   • Very large videos may struggle
   • Compress if needed

3. Video layer enabled?

   • Check layer visibility
   • Check opacity

4. Browser codec support

   • Some formats aren't universally supported
   • Convert to MP4 if issues

Interface Issues

"Panel is missing/wrong"

Fixes:

1. Wrong tab selected

   • Left panel: Library vs Layers
   • Right panel: Properties vs Animations

2. Browser window too small

   • Maximize window
   • Some panels collapse at small sizes

3. Refresh the page

   • Interface might have glitched

"Can't see selection handles"

Solutions:

1. Handle opacity too low

   • Press Alt+H to cycle opacity
   • Settings → Handle Opacity

2. Nothing selected

   • Click a layer
   • Handles only show for selected layers

3. Holding Alt+H

   • Releases to show handles
   • You might be hiding them

"Zoom is weird"

Fixes:

1. Reset zoom

   • Press Ctrl+0
   • Fits canvas to screen

2. Too zoomed in/out

   • Ctrl+ to zoom in
   • Ctrl- to zoom out

3. Canvas seems frozen

   • Might be way too zoomed in
   • Ctrl+0 to reset

Saving & Publishing Issues

"Changes aren't saving"

Check:

1. Are you pressing Ctrl+S?

   • Auto-save exists but manual save is reliable
   • Wait for save confirmation

2. Internet connection

   • Cloud-based = needs internet
   • Check connection

3. Browser storage

   • Clear cache if full
   • Check browser settings

"Can't publish theme"

Common issues:

1. Required fields missing

   • Name, description, etc.
   • Fill out metadata

2. No changes made

   • Need to actually create content first

3. Internet connection

   • Publishing requires upload
   • Check connection

4. Account issue

   • Make sure you're logged in
   • Check account status

Import Issues

"PSD import failed"

Requirements:

1. All layers must be rasterized

   • In Photoshop: Layer → Rasterize → All Layers
   • Vector layers cause import errors

2. File size

   • Very large PSDs may timeout
   • Try simplifying or splitting

3. Layer complexity

   • Too many layers or effects
   • Flatten some layers first

4. File corruption

   • Re-save PSD
   • Try exporting again

"PSD layers are wrong"

Issues:

1. Layer order

   • Might import in different order
   • Manually reorder if needed

2. Effects not preserved

   • PSD effects don't transfer
   • Recreate using HyperTheme tools

3. Blending modes

   • Some might not match exactly
   • Adjust in Properties

Browser-Specific Issues

Chrome/Edge (Recommended)

• Best performance
• Best compatibility
• Use these if possible

Firefox

• Generally works well
• Might have minor performance differences
• Update to latest version

Safari

• Usually works
• Some effects might look different
• Try Chrome if issues persist

General browser fixes:

• Update to latest version
• Clear cache and cookies
• Disable extensions (might interfere)
• Try incognito/private mode

Error Messages

"Something went wrong"

Generic error. Try:

1. Refresh page
2. Ctrl+Z to undo last action
3. Save and reload project
4. Check browser console for details

"Failed to load"

Asset loading issue. Try:

1. Check internet connection
2. Refresh page
3. Re-upload asset
4. Try different file format

"Out of memory"

Too much loaded. Try:

1. Reduce asset sizes
2. Delete unused assets
3. Simplify theme
4. Close other browser tabs
5. Restart browser

Still Stuck?

Before asking for help:

1. Try the basics:

   • Refresh page
   • Ctrl+Z to undo
   • Ctrl+S to save
   • Clear cache

2. Document the issue:

   • What were you doing?
   • What did you expect?
   • What actually happened?
   • Can you reproduce it?

3. Take screenshots:

   • Show what's wrong
   • Include full interface
   • Highlight the problem area

4. Check browser console:

   • F12 to open dev tools
   • Look for error messages
   • Include in help request

Get help:

• Community forums: Other users may have had same issue
• Discord/Support: Official help channels
• Documentation: Re-read relevant sections
• Video tutorials: Visual guides might clarify

Prevention Tips

To avoid issues in the first place:

1. Save frequently (Ctrl+S)
2. Preview often (Spacebar)
3. Name your layers (know what's what)
4. Keep it simple (complex = more issues)
5. Optimize assets (before uploading)
6. Use Chrome/Edge (best compatibility)
7. Update browser (latest version)
8. Stable internet (cloud-based tool)

Emergency Recovery

If everything goes wrong:

1. Don't panic
2. Don't close browser (might lose work)
3. Try Ctrl+Z repeatedly (undo to last good state)
4. Take screenshot (document issue)
5. Refresh page (might load last save)
6. Check published version (might have older working version)
7. Contact support (with screenshots and details)

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Remember: Most issues have simple fixes. Take a breath, work through the checklist, and you'll probably solve it! 🔧

Still need help? That's what the community and support channels are for. Don't struggle alone! 💪