Safari's PDF shit is fucked, especially iOS 16+. Spent 3 hours debugging this on iPhone 14 Pro.
Quick fix:
Right-click PDF preview, "Save Page As" or Cmd+S. Works 80% of time.
Still broken? Safari blocking blob URLs. Preferences → Privacy → uncheck "Prevent cross-site tracking" temporarily. Download PDF, turn back on.
Just use Chrome. Safari PDF handling garbage since iOS 16, Apple doesn't care. Chrome handles blob URLs correctly.
Long Job Titles Crash Into Dates
Issue #148 open since April, still not fixed. Open source timing.
Long title crashes into date in PDF. Preview fine, PDF fucked. My resume said "Senior Software Engineer2020-2024" no space.
Fix:
- Keep titles under 50 characters
- "Sr. Software Engineer" not "Senior Software Engineer"
- Extra details in description
PR #165 fixes CSS overflow, sitting in review 3 months. Shorten titles or PDF looks like garbage.
PDF Export Fails Completely
Browser times out or blank page. Happens on older MacBooks, 3-page resumes. Seen on 2019 MacBook Pro 8GB RAM.
Debug:
- Dev tools F12
- Console tab, look for red errors
- Check for "PDF.js", "memory", "canvas" errors
Fixes:
- Clear cache Cmd+Shift+Delete
- Close tabs - PDF eats 500MB+ RAM
- Incognito mode
- Restart browser if running 3+ days
RangeError: Maximum call stack size exceeded:
Resume too long. Generator chokes on 3+ pages. Cut content. Never seen 4-page resume that wasn't 50% fluff.
Resume Import Creates Word Soup
Import Canva resume, parser thought email was job title "gmail.com, Senior Engineer."
Why breaks:
- Two-column read left-to-right, sidebar mixes with main text
- Adobe fonts confuse extraction
- Unicode shit from copying between apps
- Custom text boxes break reading order
What works:
- Single-column Google Docs (90% success)
- System fonts: Arial, Helvetica, Calibri
- No graphics, text boxes, custom layouts
- Word/Google Docs exports better than Figma/InDesign
Import fails? Start over. Spent 2 hours untangling import, rebuilt from scratch in 45 minutes. Parser is PDF.js + regex, not magic.
International Phone Numbers Broken
Issue #162, fix in PR 4 months in review. Open source life.
+91, +44, +33 numbers show confidence 0.0. Tested UK +44 and Indian +91 - both failed.
Workaround:
Format +1 (555) 123-4567 not +1 555 123 4567. Parentheses help regex match somehow.
Parser hardcoded for US format. Classic American software assuming world is just US.
Text Flows Off Page
Issue #157 - no character limits on form fields.
Long summary extends beyond page. Preview fine, PDF broken.
Fix:
- Summary under 400 characters
- Shorter bullet points
- Break paragraphs into bullets
Paste into word counter, cut if over 400 chars.
Dev Setup Fails
npm run dev sometimes breaks.
npm ERR! code ELIFECYCLE:
rm -rf node_modules package-lock.json
npm cache clean --force
npm install
npm run dev
Cannot find module 'react-pdf':
Node version. Need 18+.
node --version
nvm use 18
Port 3000 in use:
lsof -ti:3000 | xargs kill -9
## Or different port
npm run dev -- -p 3001
Browser Issues
Safari: PDF broken, use Chrome
Firefox: Works
Chrome: Works
Edge: Works
Mobile Safari: Don't try, use desktop
Random issues? Try Chrome first. Safari has too many PDF bugs.
Parser Shows Wrong Info
Built-in parser extracts wrong text.
Common failures:
- "Senior Software Engineer" → "Senior Soft.ware Engi..neer"
- Skills mixed with experience
- Contact info wrong
Means:
- PDF has weird formatting
- ATS systems fail same way
- Rebuild from scratch
Don't fix parser. Shows what real ATS sees. Can't parse here = Greenhouse/Lever can't either.
Memory Issues / Crashes
Big resumes crash tab.
Signs hitting limits:
- Tab unresponsive
- PDF never finishes
- "Page Unresponsive" dialog
Fix:
- Close other tabs
- Restart browser
- Shorten content
- Use desktop not mobile
PDF in browser memory. Long resumes hit JS memory limits.
Lost Resume Data
Browser cleared data.
Prevent:
- Export JSON backups (Settings → Export)
- Don't use incognito for real work
- Don't clear browser data without backup
Recovery: Gone. No server backups - privacy tradeoff.
Still Broken?
- Try different browser
- Check GitHub Issues
- Clear cache
- Use live demo not self-hosted
Simple tool, does one thing. Need complex features? Use paid service. Tradeoff for free + privacy.