[cairo-surface] Introduce _cairo_surface_create_in_error().

Unexport all the static error surfaces and use a function to select
the appropriate error surface for the status.

22 files changed, 185 insertions, 323 deletions

diff --git a/src/cairo-array.c b/src/cairo-array.c
index 0313caa9..470b327c 100644
--- a/src/cairo-array.c
+++ b/src/cairo-array.c
@@ -396,8 +396,7 @@ _cairo_user_data_array_get_data (cairo_user_data_array_t     *array,
     int i, num_slots;
     cairo_user_data_slot_t *slots;
 
-    /* We allow this to support degenerate objects such as
-     * cairo_image_surface_nil. */
+    /* We allow this to support degenerate objects such as cairo_surface_nil. */
     if (array == NULL)
 	return NULL;
 
diff --git a/src/cairo-glitz-surface.c b/src/cairo-glitz-surface.c
index 05e80dbf..04084e14 100644
--- a/src/cairo-glitz-surface.c
+++ b/src/cairo-glitz-surface.c
@@ -88,20 +88,16 @@ _cairo_glitz_surface_create_similar (void	    *abstract_src,
     gformat =
 	glitz_find_standard_format (drawable,
 				    _glitz_format_from_content (content));
-    if (!gformat) {
-	_cairo_error_throw (CAIRO_STATUS_NO_MEMORY);
-	return (cairo_surface_t*) &_cairo_surface_nil;
-    }
+    if (!gformat)
+	return _cairo_surface_create_in_error (_cairo_error (CAIRO_STATUS_NO_MEMORY));
 
     surface = glitz_surface_create (drawable, gformat,
 				    width <= 0 ? 1 : width,
 				    height <= 0 ? 1 : height,
 				    0, NULL);
 
-    if (surface == NULL) {
-	_cairo_error_throw (CAIRO_STATUS_NO_MEMORY);
-	return (cairo_surface_t*) &_cairo_surface_nil;
-    }
+    if (surface == NULL)
+	return _cairo_surface_create_in_error (_cairo_error (CAIRO_STATUS_NO_MEMORY));
 
     crsurface = cairo_glitz_surface_create (surface);
 
@@ -2456,13 +2452,11 @@ cairo_glitz_surface_create (glitz_surface_t *surface)
     glitz_format_t *format;
 
     if (surface == NULL)
-	return (cairo_surface_t*) &_cairo_surface_nil;
+	return _cairo_surface_create_in_error (_cairo_error (CAIRO_STATUS_NULL_POINTER));
 
     crsurface = malloc (sizeof (cairo_glitz_surface_t));
-    if (crsurface == NULL) {
-	_cairo_error_throw (CAIRO_STATUS_NO_MEMORY);
-	return (cairo_surface_t*) &_cairo_surface_nil;
-    }
+    if (crsurface == NULL)
+	return _cairo_surface_create_in_error (_cairo_error (CAIRO_STATUS_NO_MEMORY));
 
     format = glitz_surface_get_format (surface);
     _cairo_surface_init (&crsurface->base, &cairo_glitz_surface_backend,
diff --git a/src/cairo-image-surface.c b/src/cairo-image-surface.c
index cf19a8fc..8787185b 100644
--- a/src/cairo-image-surface.c
+++ b/src/cairo-image-surface.c
@@ -37,101 +37,6 @@
 
 #include "cairoint.h"
 
-static const cairo_image_surface_t _cairo_image_surface_nil_invalid_format = {
-    {
-	&cairo_image_surface_backend,	/* backend */
-	CAIRO_SURFACE_TYPE_IMAGE,
-	CAIRO_CONTENT_COLOR,
-	CAIRO_REFERENCE_COUNT_INVALID,	/* ref_count */
-	CAIRO_STATUS_INVALID_FORMAT,	/* status */
-	FALSE,				/* finished */
-	{ 0,	/* size */
-	  0,	/* num_elements */
-	  0,	/* element_size */
-	  NULL,	/* elements */
-	},				/* user_data */
-	{ 1.0, 0.0,
-	  0.0, 1.0,
-	  0.0, 0.0
-	},				/* device_transform */
-	{ 1.0, 0.0,
-	  0.0, 1.0,
-	  0.0, 0.0
-	},				/* device_transform_inverse */
-	0.0,				/* x_resolution */
-	0.0,				/* y_resolution */
-	0.0,				/* x_fallback_resolution */
-	0.0,				/* y_fallback_resolution */
-	NULL,				/* clip */
-	0,				/* next_clip_serial */
-	0,				/* current_clip_serial */
-	FALSE,				/* is_snapshot */
-	FALSE,				/* has_font_options */
-	{ CAIRO_ANTIALIAS_DEFAULT,
-	  CAIRO_SUBPIXEL_ORDER_DEFAULT,
-	  CAIRO_HINT_STYLE_DEFAULT,
-	  CAIRO_HINT_METRICS_DEFAULT
-	}				/* font_options */
-    },					/* base */
-    PIXMAN_a8r8g8b8,			/* pixman_format */
-    CAIRO_FORMAT_ARGB32,		/* format */
-    NULL,				/* data */
-    FALSE,				/* owns_data */
-    FALSE,				/* has_clip */
-    0,					/* width */
-    0,					/* height */
-    0,					/* stride */
-    0,					/* depth */
-    NULL				/* pixman_image */
-};
-static const cairo_image_surface_t _cairo_image_surface_nil_invalid_content = {
-    {
-	&cairo_image_surface_backend,	/* backend */
-	CAIRO_SURFACE_TYPE_IMAGE,
-	CAIRO_CONTENT_COLOR,
-	CAIRO_REFERENCE_COUNT_INVALID,	/* ref_count */
-	CAIRO_STATUS_INVALID_CONTENT,	/* status */
-	FALSE,				/* finished */
-	{ 0,	/* size */
-	  0,	/* num_elements */
-	  0,	/* element_size */
-	  NULL,	/* elements */
-	},				/* user_data */
-	{ 1.0, 0.0,
-	  0.0, 1.0,
-	  0.0, 0.0
-	},				/* device_transform */
-	{ 1.0, 0.0,
-	  0.0, 1.0,
-	  0.0, 0.0
-	},				/* device_transform_inverse */
-	0.0,				/* x_resolution */
-	0.0,				/* y_resolution */
-	0.0,				/* x_fallback_resolution */
-	0.0,				/* y_fallback_resolution */
-	NULL,				/* clip */
-	0,				/* next_clip_serial */
-	0,				/* current_clip_serial */
-	FALSE,				/* is_snapshot */
-	FALSE,				/* has_font_options */
-	{ CAIRO_ANTIALIAS_DEFAULT,
-	  CAIRO_SUBPIXEL_ORDER_DEFAULT,
-	  CAIRO_HINT_STYLE_DEFAULT,
-	  CAIRO_HINT_METRICS_DEFAULT
-	}				/* font_options */
-    },					/* base */
-    PIXMAN_a8r8g8b8,			/* pixman_format */
-    CAIRO_FORMAT_ARGB32,		/* format */
-    NULL,				/* data */
-    FALSE,				/* owns_data */
-    FALSE,				/* has_clip */
-    0,					/* width */
-    0,					/* height */
-    0,					/* stride */
-    0,					/* depth */
-    NULL				/* pixman_image */
-};
-
 static cairo_format_t
 _cairo_format_from_pixman_format (pixman_format_code_t pixman_format)
 {
@@ -213,10 +118,8 @@ _cairo_image_surface_create_for_pixman_image (pixman_image_t		*pixman_image,
     cairo_image_surface_t *surface;
 
     surface = malloc (sizeof (cairo_image_surface_t));
-    if (surface == NULL) {
-	_cairo_error_throw (CAIRO_STATUS_NO_MEMORY);
-	return (cairo_surface_t*) &_cairo_surface_nil;
-    }
+    if (surface == NULL)
+	return _cairo_surface_create_in_error (_cairo_error (CAIRO_STATUS_NO_MEMORY));
 
     _cairo_surface_init (&surface->base, &cairo_image_surface_backend,
 			 _cairo_content_from_pixman_format (pixman_format));
@@ -432,16 +335,13 @@ _cairo_image_surface_create_with_pixman_format (unsigned char		*data,
     pixman_image = pixman_image_create_bits (pixman_format, width, height,
 					     (uint32_t *) data, stride);
 
-    if (pixman_image == NULL) {
-	_cairo_error_throw (CAIRO_STATUS_NO_MEMORY);
-	return (cairo_surface_t*) &_cairo_surface_nil;
-    }
+    if (pixman_image == NULL)
+	return _cairo_surface_create_in_error (_cairo_error (CAIRO_STATUS_NO_MEMORY));
 
     surface = _cairo_image_surface_create_for_pixman_image (pixman_image,
 							    pixman_format);
-    if (cairo_surface_status (surface)) {
+    if (cairo_surface_status (surface))
 	pixman_image_unref (pixman_image);
-    }
 
     return surface;
 }
@@ -473,10 +373,8 @@ cairo_image_surface_create (cairo_format_t	format,
 {
     pixman_format_code_t pixman_format;
 
-    if (! CAIRO_FORMAT_VALID (format)) {
-	_cairo_error_throw (CAIRO_STATUS_INVALID_FORMAT);
-	return (cairo_surface_t*) &_cairo_image_surface_nil_invalid_format;
-    }
+    if (! CAIRO_FORMAT_VALID (format))
+	return _cairo_surface_create_in_error (_cairo_error (CAIRO_STATUS_INVALID_FORMAT));
 
     pixman_format = _cairo_format_to_pixman_format_code (format);
 
@@ -490,10 +388,8 @@ _cairo_image_surface_create_with_content (cairo_content_t	content,
 					  int			width,
 					  int			height)
 {
-    if (! CAIRO_CONTENT_VALID (content)) {
-	_cairo_error_throw (CAIRO_STATUS_INVALID_CONTENT);
-	return (cairo_surface_t*) &_cairo_image_surface_nil_invalid_content;
-    }
+    if (! CAIRO_CONTENT_VALID (content))
+	return _cairo_surface_create_in_error (_cairo_error (CAIRO_STATUS_INVALID_CONTENT));
 
     return cairo_image_surface_create (_cairo_format_from_content (content),
 				       width, height);
@@ -541,10 +437,8 @@ cairo_image_surface_create_for_data (unsigned char     *data,
     /* XXX pixman does not support images with arbitrary strides and
      * attempting to create such surfaces will failure but we will interpret
      * such failure as CAIRO_STATUS_NO_MEMORY.  */
-    if (! CAIRO_FORMAT_VALID (format) || stride % sizeof (uint32_t) != 0) {
-	_cairo_error_throw (CAIRO_STATUS_INVALID_FORMAT);
-	return (cairo_surface_t*) &_cairo_image_surface_nil_invalid_format;
-    }
+    if (! CAIRO_FORMAT_VALID (format) || stride % sizeof (uint32_t) != 0)
+	return _cairo_surface_create_in_error (_cairo_error(CAIRO_STATUS_INVALID_FORMAT));
 
     pixman_format = _cairo_format_to_pixman_format_code (format);
 
@@ -560,10 +454,8 @@ _cairo_image_surface_create_for_data_with_content (unsigned char	*data,
 						   int			 height,
 						   int			 stride)
 {
-    if (! CAIRO_CONTENT_VALID (content)) {
-	_cairo_error_throw (CAIRO_STATUS_INVALID_CONTENT);
-	return (cairo_surface_t*) &_cairo_image_surface_nil_invalid_content;
-    }
+    if (! CAIRO_CONTENT_VALID (content))
+	return _cairo_surface_create_in_error (_cairo_error (CAIRO_STATUS_INVALID_CONTENT));
 
     return cairo_image_surface_create_for_data (data,
 						_cairo_format_from_content (content),
@@ -1382,7 +1274,7 @@ _cairo_image_surface_clone (cairo_image_surface_t	*surface,
 
     if (status) {
 	cairo_surface_destroy (&clone->base);
-	return (cairo_image_surface_t *) &_cairo_surface_nil;
+	return (cairo_image_surface_t *) _cairo_surface_create_in_error (status);
     }
 
     return clone;
diff --git a/src/cairo-meta-surface.c b/src/cairo-meta-surface.c
index 5b4f4ffa..51ed3829 100644
--- a/src/cairo-meta-surface.c
+++ b/src/cairo-meta-surface.c
@@ -83,10 +83,8 @@ _cairo_meta_surface_create (cairo_content_t	content,
     cairo_meta_surface_t *meta;
 
     meta = malloc (sizeof (cairo_meta_surface_t));
-    if (meta == NULL) {
-	_cairo_error_throw (CAIRO_STATUS_NO_MEMORY);
-	return (cairo_surface_t*) &_cairo_surface_nil;
-    }
+    if (meta == NULL)
+	return _cairo_surface_create_in_error (_cairo_error (CAIRO_STATUS_NO_MEMORY));
 
     _cairo_surface_init (&meta->base, &cairo_meta_surface_backend,
 			 content);
@@ -498,10 +496,8 @@ _cairo_meta_surface_snapshot (void *abstract_other)
     cairo_meta_surface_t *meta;
 
     meta = malloc (sizeof (cairo_meta_surface_t));
-    if (meta == NULL) {
-	_cairo_error_throw (CAIRO_STATUS_NO_MEMORY);
-	return (cairo_surface_t*) &_cairo_surface_nil;
-    }
+    if (meta == NULL)
+	return _cairo_surface_create_in_error (_cairo_error (CAIRO_STATUS_NO_MEMORY));
 
     _cairo_surface_init (&meta->base, &cairo_meta_surface_backend,
 			 other->base.content);
diff --git a/src/cairo-os2-surface.c b/src/cairo-os2-surface.c
index 86ab82c2..f3824849 100644
--- a/src/cairo-os2-surface.c
+++ b/src/cairo-os2-surface.c
@@ -722,6 +722,7 @@ cairo_os2_surface_create (HPS hps_client_window,
                           int height)
 {
     cairo_os2_surface_t *local_os2_surface;
+    cairo_status_t status;
     int rc;
 
     /* Check the size of the window */
@@ -729,15 +730,13 @@ cairo_os2_surface_create (HPS hps_client_window,
         (height <= 0))
     {
         /* Invalid window size! */
-        _cairo_error (CAIRO_STATUS_NO_MEMORY);
-        return (cairo_surface_t *) &_cairo_surface_nil;
+	return _cairo_surface_create_in_error (_cairo_error (CAIRO_STATUS_NO_MEMORY));
     }
 
     local_os2_surface = (cairo_os2_surface_t *) malloc (sizeof (cairo_os2_surface_t));
     if (!local_os2_surface) {
         /* Not enough memory! */
-        _cairo_error (CAIRO_STATUS_NO_MEMORY);
-        return (cairo_surface_t *) &_cairo_surface_nil;
+	return _cairo_surface_create_in_error (_cairo_error (CAIRO_STATUS_NO_MEMORY));
     }
 
     /* Initialize the OS/2 specific parts of the surface! */
@@ -749,8 +748,7 @@ cairo_os2_surface_create (HPS hps_client_window,
                             FALSE);
     if (rc != NO_ERROR) {
         /* Could not create mutex semaphore! */
-        _cairo_error (CAIRO_STATUS_NO_MEMORY);
-        return (cairo_surface_t *) &_cairo_surface_nil;
+	return _cairo_surface_create_in_error (_cairo_error (CAIRO_STATUS_NO_MEMORY));
     }
 
     /* Save PS handle */
@@ -769,8 +767,7 @@ cairo_os2_surface_create (HPS hps_client_window,
         /* Could not create event semaphore! */
         DosCloseMutexSem (local_os2_surface->hmtx_use_private_fields);
         free (local_os2_surface);
-        _cairo_error (CAIRO_STATUS_NO_MEMORY);
-        return (cairo_surface_t *) &_cairo_surface_nil;
+	return _cairo_surface_create_in_error (_cairo_error (CAIRO_STATUS_NO_MEMORY));
     }
 
     /* Prepare BITMAPINFO2 structure for our buffer */
@@ -788,8 +785,7 @@ cairo_os2_surface_create (HPS hps_client_window,
         DosCloseEventSem (local_os2_surface->hev_pixel_array_came_back);
         DosCloseMutexSem (local_os2_surface->hmtx_use_private_fields);
         free (local_os2_surface);
-        _cairo_error (CAIRO_STATUS_NO_MEMORY);
-        return (cairo_surface_t *) &_cairo_surface_nil;
+	return _cairo_surface_create_in_error (_cairo_error (CAIRO_STATUS_NO_MEMORY));
     }
 
     /* Create image surface from pixel array */
@@ -800,14 +796,14 @@ cairo_os2_surface_create (HPS hps_client_window,
                                              height,     /* Height */
                                              width * 4); /* Rowstride */
 
-    if (local_os2_surface->image_surface->base.status) {
+    status = local_os2_surface->image_surface->base.status;
+    if (status) {
         /* Could not create image surface! */
         _buffer_free (local_os2_surface->pixels);
         DosCloseEventSem (local_os2_surface->hev_pixel_array_came_back);
         DosCloseMutexSem (local_os2_surface->hmtx_use_private_fields);
         free (local_os2_surface);
-        _cairo_error (CAIRO_STATUS_NO_MEMORY);
-        return (cairo_surface_t *) &_cairo_surface_nil;
+        return _cairo_surface_create_in_error (status);
     }
 
     /* Initialize base surface */
diff --git a/src/cairo-paginated-surface.c b/src/cairo-paginated-surface.c
index 6af4be6e..98ec061c 100644
--- a/src/cairo-paginated-surface.c
+++ b/src/cairo-paginated-surface.c
@@ -74,10 +74,11 @@ _cairo_paginated_surface_create (cairo_surface_t				*target,
 				 const cairo_paginated_surface_backend_t	*backend)
 {
     cairo_paginated_surface_t *surface;
+    cairo_status_t status;
 
     surface = malloc (sizeof (cairo_paginated_surface_t));
     if (surface == NULL) {
-	_cairo_error_throw (CAIRO_STATUS_NO_MEMORY);
+	status = _cairo_error (CAIRO_STATUS_NO_MEMORY);
 	goto FAIL;
     }
 
@@ -97,7 +98,8 @@ _cairo_paginated_surface_create (cairo_surface_t				*target,
     surface->backend = backend;
 
     surface->meta = _cairo_meta_surface_create (content, width, height);
-    if (cairo_surface_status (surface->meta))
+    status = cairo_surface_status (surface->meta);
+    if (status)
 	goto FAIL_CLEANUP_SURFACE;
 
     surface->page_num = 1;
@@ -108,7 +110,7 @@ _cairo_paginated_surface_create (cairo_surface_t				*target,
   FAIL_CLEANUP_SURFACE:
     free (surface);
   FAIL:
-    return (cairo_surface_t*) &_cairo_surface_nil;
+    return _cairo_surface_create_in_error (status);
 }
 
 cairo_bool_t
diff --git a/src/cairo-pdf-surface.c b/src/cairo-pdf-surface.c
index 29c2c419..9ad9e1a1 100644
--- a/src/cairo-pdf-surface.c
+++ b/src/cairo-pdf-surface.c
@@ -240,8 +240,7 @@ _cairo_pdf_surface_create_for_stream_internal (cairo_output_stream_t	*output,
     if (surface == NULL) {
 	/* destroy stream on behalf of caller */
 	status = _cairo_output_stream_destroy (output);
-	_cairo_error_throw (CAIRO_STATUS_NO_MEMORY);
-	return (cairo_surface_t*) &_cairo_surface_nil;
+	return _cairo_surface_create_in_error (_cairo_error (CAIRO_STATUS_NO_MEMORY));
     }
 
     _cairo_surface_init (&surface->base, &cairo_pdf_surface_backend,
@@ -316,7 +315,7 @@ BAIL0:
     /* destroy stream on behalf of caller */
     status = _cairo_output_stream_destroy (output);
 
-    return (cairo_surface_t*) &_cairo_surface_nil;
+    return _cairo_surface_create_in_error (CAIRO_STATUS_NO_MEMORY);
 }
 
 /**
@@ -351,7 +350,7 @@ cairo_pdf_surface_create_for_stream (cairo_write_func_t		 write_func,
     output = _cairo_output_stream_create (write_func, NULL, closure);
     status = _cairo_output_stream_get_status (output);
     if (status)
-	return (cairo_surface_t*) &_cairo_surface_nil;
+	return _cairo_surface_create_in_error (status);
 
     return _cairo_pdf_surface_create_for_stream_internal (output,
 							  width_in_points,
@@ -388,9 +387,7 @@ cairo_pdf_surface_create (const char		*filename,
     output = _cairo_output_stream_create_for_filename (filename);
     status = _cairo_output_stream_get_status (output);
     if (status)
-	return (status == CAIRO_STATUS_WRITE_ERROR) ?
-		(cairo_surface_t*) &_cairo_surface_nil_write_error :
-		(cairo_surface_t*) &_cairo_surface_nil;
+	return _cairo_surface_create_in_error (status);
 
     return _cairo_pdf_surface_create_for_stream_internal (output,
 							  width_in_points,
diff --git a/src/cairo-png.c b/src/cairo-png.c
index b76b525b..a78da3f8 100644
--- a/src/cairo-png.c
+++ b/src/cairo-png.c
@@ -382,7 +382,7 @@ static cairo_surface_t *
 read_png (png_rw_ptr	read_func,
 	  void		*closure)
 {
-    cairo_surface_t *surface = (cairo_surface_t*) &_cairo_surface_nil;
+    cairo_surface_t *surface;
     png_struct *png = NULL;
     png_info *info;
     png_byte *data = NULL;
@@ -398,20 +398,23 @@ read_png (png_rw_ptr	read_func,
                                   &status,
 	                          png_simple_error_callback,
 	                          png_simple_warning_callback);
-    if (png == NULL)
+    if (png == NULL) {
+	surface = _cairo_surface_create_in_error (_cairo_error (CAIRO_STATUS_NO_MEMORY));
 	goto BAIL;
+    }
 
     info = png_create_info_struct (png);
-    if (info == NULL)
+    if (info == NULL) {
+	surface = _cairo_surface_create_in_error (_cairo_error (CAIRO_STATUS_NO_MEMORY));
 	goto BAIL;
+    }
 
     png_set_read_fn (png, closure, read_func);
 
     status = CAIRO_STATUS_SUCCESS;
 #ifdef PNG_SETJMP_SUPPORTED
     if (setjmp (png_jmpbuf (png))) {
-	if (status != CAIRO_STATUS_NO_MEMORY)
-	    surface = (cairo_surface_t*) &_cairo_surface_nil_read_error;
+	surface = _cairo_surface_create_in_error (status);
 	goto BAIL;
     }
 #endif
@@ -460,12 +463,16 @@ read_png (png_rw_ptr	read_func,
 
     pixel_size = 4;
     data = _cairo_malloc_abc (png_height, png_width, pixel_size);
-    if (data == NULL)
+    if (data == NULL) {
+	surface = _cairo_surface_create_in_error (_cairo_error (CAIRO_STATUS_NO_MEMORY));
 	goto BAIL;
+    }
 
     row_pointers = _cairo_malloc_ab (png_height, sizeof (char *));
-    if (row_pointers == NULL)
+    if (row_pointers == NULL) {
+	surface = _cairo_surface_create_in_error (_cairo_error (CAIRO_STATUS_NO_MEMORY));
 	goto BAIL;
+    }
 
     for (i = 0; i < png_height; i++)
         row_pointers[i] = &data[i * png_width * pixel_size];
@@ -490,9 +497,6 @@ read_png (png_rw_ptr	read_func,
     if (png)
 	png_destroy_read_struct (&png, &info, NULL);
 
-    if (surface->status)
-	_cairo_error_throw (surface->status);
-
     return surface;
 }
 
@@ -538,17 +542,19 @@ cairo_image_surface_create_from_png (const char *filename)
 
     fp = fopen (filename, "rb");
     if (fp == NULL) {
+	cairo_status_t status;
 	switch (errno) {
 	case ENOMEM:
-	    _cairo_error_throw (CAIRO_STATUS_NO_MEMORY);
-	    return (cairo_surface_t*) &_cairo_surface_nil;
+	    status = _cairo_error (CAIRO_STATUS_NO_MEMORY);
+	    break;
 	case ENOENT:
-	    _cairo_error_throw (CAIRO_STATUS_FILE_NOT_FOUND);
-	    return (cairo_surface_t*) &_cairo_surface_nil_file_not_found;
+	    status = _cairo_error (CAIRO_STATUS_FILE_NOT_FOUND);
+	    break;
 	default:
-	    _cairo_error_throw (CAIRO_STATUS_READ_ERROR);
-	    return (cairo_surface_t*) &_cairo_surface_nil_read_error;
+	    status = _cairo_error (CAIRO_STATUS_READ_ERROR);
+	    break;
 	}
+	return _cairo_surface_create_in_error (status);
     }
 
     surface = read_png (stdio_read_func, fp);
diff --git a/src/cairo-ps-surface.c b/src/cairo-ps-surface.c
index 93c90555..f8c3f8cf 100644
--- a/src/cairo-ps-surface.c
+++ b/src/cairo-ps-surface.c
@@ -1012,8 +1012,7 @@ _cairo_ps_surface_create_for_stream_internal (cairo_output_stream_t *stream,
  CLEANUP:
     /* destroy stream on behalf of caller */
     status = _cairo_output_stream_destroy (stream);
-    _cairo_error_throw (CAIRO_STATUS_NO_MEMORY);
-    return (cairo_surface_t*) &_cairo_surface_nil;
+    return _cairo_surface_create_in_error (_cairo_error (CAIRO_STATUS_NO_MEMORY));
 }
 
 /**
@@ -1051,9 +1050,7 @@ cairo_ps_surface_create (const char		*filename,
     stream = _cairo_output_stream_create_for_filename (filename);
     status = _cairo_output_stream_get_status (stream);
     if (status)
-	return (status == CAIRO_STATUS_WRITE_ERROR) ?
-		(cairo_surface_t*) &_cairo_surface_nil_write_error :
-		(cairo_surface_t*) &_cairo_surface_nil;
+	return _cairo_surface_create_in_error (status);
 
     return _cairo_ps_surface_create_for_stream_internal (stream,
 							 width_in_points,
@@ -1097,7 +1094,7 @@ cairo_ps_surface_create_for_stream (cairo_write_func_t	write_func,
     stream = _cairo_output_stream_create (write_func, NULL, closure);
     status = _cairo_output_stream_get_status (stream);
     if (status)
-	return (cairo_surface_t*) &_cairo_surface_nil;
+	return _cairo_surface_create_in_error (status);
 
     return _cairo_ps_surface_create_for_stream_internal (stream,
 							 width_in_points,
diff --git a/src/cairo-quartz-surface.c b/src/cairo-quartz-surface.c
index 1990062a..3cb63898 100644
--- a/src/cairo-quartz-surface.c
+++ b/src/cairo-quartz-surface.c
@@ -1865,10 +1865,8 @@ _cairo_quartz_surface_create_internal (CGContextRef cgContext,
 
     /* Init the base surface */
     surface = malloc(sizeof(cairo_quartz_surface_t));
-    if (surface == NULL) {
-	_cairo_error (CAIRO_STATUS_NO_MEMORY);
-	return NULL;
-    }
+    if (surface == NULL)
+	return _cairo_surface_create_in_error (_cairo_error (CAIRO_STATUS_NO_MEMORY));
 
     memset(surface, 0, sizeof(cairo_quartz_surface_t));
 
@@ -1940,10 +1938,10 @@ cairo_quartz_surface_create_for_cg_context (CGContextRef cgContext,
 
     surf = _cairo_quartz_surface_create_internal (cgContext, CAIRO_CONTENT_COLOR_ALPHA,
 						  width, height);
-    if (!surf) {
+    if (surf->base.status) {
 	CGContextRelease (cgContext);
 	// create_internal will have set an error
-	return (cairo_surface_t*) &_cairo_surface_nil;
+	return surf;
     }
 
     return (cairo_surface_t *) surf;
@@ -1978,10 +1976,8 @@ cairo_quartz_surface_create (cairo_format_t format,
     int bitsPerComponent;
 
     // verify width and height of surface
-    if (!verify_surface_size(width, height)) {
-	_cairo_error (CAIRO_STATUS_NO_MEMORY);
-	return (cairo_surface_t*) &_cairo_surface_nil;
-    }
+    if (!verify_surface_size(width, height))
+	return _cairo_surface_create_in_error (_cairo_error (CAIRO_STATUS_NO_MEMORY));
 
     if (width == 0 || height == 0) {
 	return (cairo_surface_t*) _cairo_quartz_surface_create_internal (NULL, _cairo_content_from_format (format),
@@ -2011,18 +2007,15 @@ cairo_quartz_surface_create (cairo_format_t format,
 	 * cairo_format_t -- these are 1-bit pixels stored in 32-bit
 	 * quantities.
 	 */
-	_cairo_error (CAIRO_STATUS_INVALID_FORMAT);
-	return (cairo_surface_t*) &_cairo_surface_nil;
+	return _cairo_surface_create_in_error (_cairo_error (CAIRO_STATUS_INVALID_FORMAT));
     } else {
-	_cairo_error (CAIRO_STATUS_INVALID_FORMAT);
-	return (cairo_surface_t*) &_cairo_surface_nil;
+	return _cairo_surface_create_in_error (_cairo_error (CAIRO_STATUS_INVALID_FORMAT));
     }
 
     imageData = _cairo_malloc_ab (height, stride);
     if (!imageData) {
 	CGColorSpaceRelease (cgColorspace);
-	_cairo_error (CAIRO_STATUS_NO_MEMORY);
-	return (cairo_surface_t*) &_cairo_surface_nil;
+	return _cairo_surface_create_in_error (_cairo_error (CAIRO_STATUS_NO_MEMORY));
     }
     /* zero the memory to match the image surface behaviour */
     memset (imageData, 0, height * stride);
@@ -2037,9 +2030,8 @@ cairo_quartz_surface_create (cairo_format_t format,
     CGColorSpaceRelease (cgColorspace);
 
     if (!cgc) {
-	_cairo_error (CAIRO_STATUS_NO_MEMORY);
 	free (imageData);
-	return (cairo_surface_t*) &_cairo_surface_nil;
+	return _cairo_surface_create_in_error (_cairo_error (CAIRO_STATUS_NO_MEMORY));
     }
 
     /* flip the Y axis */
@@ -2048,11 +2040,11 @@ cairo_quartz_surface_create (cairo_format_t format,
 
     surf = _cairo_quartz_surface_create_internal (cgc, _cairo_content_from_format (format),
 						  width, height);
-    if (!surf) {
+    if (surf->base.status) {
 	CGContextRelease (cgc);
 	free (imageData);
 	// create_internal will have set an error
-	return (cairo_surface_t*) &_cairo_surface_nil;
+	return surf;
     }
 
     surf->imageData = imageData;
diff --git a/src/cairo-surface-fallback.c b/src/cairo-surface-fallback.c
index ef28d9d8..02a2e9d9 100644
--- a/src/cairo-surface-fallback.c
+++ b/src/cairo-surface-fallback.c
@@ -1043,8 +1043,8 @@ _cairo_surface_fallback_snapshot (cairo_surface_t *surface)
 
     status = _cairo_surface_acquire_source_image (surface,
 						  &image, &image_extra);
-    if (status != CAIRO_STATUS_SUCCESS)
-	return (cairo_surface_t *) &_cairo_surface_nil;
+    if (status)
+	return _cairo_surface_create_in_error (status);
 
     snapshot = cairo_image_surface_create (image->format,
 					   image->width,
@@ -1073,7 +1073,7 @@ _cairo_surface_fallback_snapshot (cairo_surface_t *surface)
 
     if (status) {
 	cairo_surface_destroy (snapshot);
-	return (cairo_surface_t *) &_cairo_surface_nil;
+	return _cairo_surface_create_in_error (status);
     }
 
     snapshot->device_transform = surface->device_transform;
diff --git a/src/cairo-surface.c b/src/cairo-surface.c
index f6f26c77..8860c953 100644
--- a/src/cairo-surface.c
+++ b/src/cairo-surface.c
@@ -78,10 +78,14 @@ const cairo_surface_t name = {					\
     }					/* font_options */	\
 }
 
-DEFINE_NIL_SURFACE(CAIRO_STATUS_NO_MEMORY, _cairo_surface_nil);
-DEFINE_NIL_SURFACE(CAIRO_STATUS_FILE_NOT_FOUND, _cairo_surface_nil_file_not_found);
-DEFINE_NIL_SURFACE(CAIRO_STATUS_READ_ERROR, _cairo_surface_nil_read_error);
-DEFINE_NIL_SURFACE(CAIRO_STATUS_WRITE_ERROR, _cairo_surface_nil_write_error);
+static DEFINE_NIL_SURFACE(CAIRO_STATUS_NO_MEMORY, _cairo_surface_nil);
+static DEFINE_NIL_SURFACE(CAIRO_STATUS_INVALID_CONTENT, _cairo_surface_nil_invalid_content);
+static DEFINE_NIL_SURFACE(CAIRO_STATUS_INVALID_FORMAT, _cairo_surface_nil_invalid_format);
+static DEFINE_NIL_SURFACE(CAIRO_STATUS_INVALID_VISUAL, _cairo_surface_nil_invalid_visual);
+static DEFINE_NIL_SURFACE(CAIRO_STATUS_FILE_NOT_FOUND, _cairo_surface_nil_file_not_found);
+static DEFINE_NIL_SURFACE(CAIRO_STATUS_TEMP_FILE_ERROR, _cairo_surface_nil_temp_file_error);
+static DEFINE_NIL_SURFACE(CAIRO_STATUS_READ_ERROR, _cairo_surface_nil_read_error);
+static DEFINE_NIL_SURFACE(CAIRO_STATUS_WRITE_ERROR, _cairo_surface_nil_write_error);
 
 static cairo_status_t
 _cairo_surface_copy_pattern_for_destination (const cairo_pattern_t *pattern,
@@ -228,7 +232,7 @@ _cairo_surface_create_similar_scratch (cairo_surface_t *other,
     cairo_format_t format = _cairo_format_from_content (content);
 
     if (other->status)
-	return (cairo_surface_t*) &_cairo_surface_nil;
+	return _cairo_surface_create_in_error (other->status);
 
     if (other->backend->create_similar) {
 	surface = other->backend->create_similar (other, content, width, height);
@@ -289,12 +293,10 @@ cairo_surface_create_similar (cairo_surface_t  *other,
 			      int		height)
 {
     if (other->status)
-	return (cairo_surface_t*) &_cairo_surface_nil;
+	return _cairo_surface_create_in_error (other->status);
 
-    if (! CAIRO_CONTENT_VALID (content)) {
-	_cairo_error_throw (CAIRO_STATUS_INVALID_CONTENT);
-	return (cairo_surface_t*) &_cairo_surface_nil;
-    }
+    if (! CAIRO_CONTENT_VALID (content))
+	return _cairo_surface_create_in_error (_cairo_error (CAIRO_STATUS_INVALID_CONTENT));
 
     return _cairo_surface_create_similar_solid (other, content,
 						width, height,
@@ -317,17 +319,14 @@ _cairo_surface_create_similar_solid (cairo_surface_t	 *other,
 
     surface = _cairo_surface_create_similar_scratch (other, content,
 						     width, height);
-    if (surface->status) {
-	_cairo_error_throw (CAIRO_STATUS_NO_MEMORY);
-	return (cairo_surface_t*) &_cairo_surface_nil;
-    }
+    if (surface->status)
+	return surface;
 
     if (pattern == NULL) {
 	source = _cairo_pattern_create_solid (color, content);
 	if (source->status) {
 	    cairo_surface_destroy (surface);
-	    _cairo_error_throw (CAIRO_STATUS_NO_MEMORY);
-	    return (cairo_surface_t*) &_cairo_surface_nil;
+	    return _cairo_surface_create_in_error (source->status);
 	}
     } else
 	source = pattern;
@@ -342,8 +341,7 @@ _cairo_surface_create_similar_solid (cairo_surface_t	 *other,
 
     if (status) {
 	cairo_surface_destroy (surface);
-	_cairo_error_throw (status);
-	return (cairo_surface_t*) &_cairo_surface_nil;
+	return _cairo_surface_create_in_error (status);
     }
 
     return surface;
@@ -1141,7 +1139,7 @@ cairo_surface_t *
 _cairo_surface_snapshot (cairo_surface_t *surface)
 {
     if (surface->finished)
-	return (cairo_surface_t *) &_cairo_surface_nil;
+	return _cairo_surface_create_in_error (_cairo_error (CAIRO_STATUS_SURFACE_FINISHED));
 
     if (surface->backend->snapshot)
 	return surface->backend->snapshot (surface);
@@ -2412,5 +2410,31 @@ _cairo_surface_set_resolution (cairo_surface_t *surface,
     surface->y_resolution = y_res;
 }
 
+cairo_surface_t *
+_cairo_surface_create_in_error (cairo_status_t status)
+{
+    switch (status) {
+    case CAIRO_STATUS_NO_MEMORY:
+	return (cairo_surface_t *) &_cairo_surface_nil;
+    case CAIRO_STATUS_INVALID_CONTENT:
+	return (cairo_surface_t *) &_cairo_surface_nil_invalid_content;
+    case CAIRO_STATUS_INVALID_FORMAT:
+	return (cairo_surface_t *) &_cairo_surface_nil_invalid_format;
+    case CAIRO_STATUS_INVALID_VISUAL:
+	return (cairo_surface_t *) &_cairo_surface_nil_invalid_visual;
+    case CAIRO_STATUS_READ_ERROR:
+	return (cairo_surface_t *) &_cairo_surface_nil_read_error;
+    case CAIRO_STATUS_WRITE_ERROR:
+	return (cairo_surface_t *) &_cairo_surface_nil_write_error;
+    case CAIRO_STATUS_FILE_NOT_FOUND:
+	return (cairo_surface_t *) &_cairo_surface_nil_file_not_found;
+    case CAIRO_STATUS_TEMP_FILE_ERROR:
+	return (cairo_surface_t *) &_cairo_surface_nil_temp_file_error;
+    default:
+	_cairo_error_throw (CAIRO_STATUS_NO_MEMORY);
+	return (cairo_surface_t *) &_cairo_surface_nil;
+    }
+}
+
 /*  LocalWords:  rasterized
  */
diff --git a/src/cairo-svg-surface.c b/src/cairo-svg-surface.c
index acddb161..df59ef74 100644
--- a/src/cairo-svg-surface.c
+++ b/src/cairo-svg-surface.c
@@ -179,7 +179,7 @@ cairo_svg_surface_create_for_stream (cairo_write_func_t		 write_func,
     stream = _cairo_output_stream_create (write_func, NULL, closure);
     status = _cairo_output_stream_get_status (stream);
     if (status)
-	return (cairo_surface_t *) &_cairo_surface_nil;
+	return _cairo_surface_create_in_error (status);
 
     return _cairo_svg_surface_create_for_stream_internal (stream, width, height, CAIRO_SVG_VERSION_1_1);
 }
@@ -214,9 +214,7 @@ cairo_svg_surface_create (const char	*filename,
     stream = _cairo_output_stream_create_for_filename (filename);
     status = _cairo_output_stream_get_status (stream);
     if (status)
-	return (status == CAIRO_STATUS_WRITE_ERROR) ?
-		(cairo_surface_t *) &_cairo_surface_nil_write_error :
-		(cairo_surface_t *) &_cairo_surface_nil;
+	return _cairo_surface_create_in_error (status);
 
     return _cairo_svg_surface_create_for_stream_internal (stream, width, height, CAIRO_SVG_VERSION_1_1);
 }
@@ -335,10 +333,8 @@ _cairo_svg_surface_create_for_document (cairo_svg_document_t	*document,
     cairo_status_t status;
 
     surface = malloc (sizeof (cairo_svg_surface_t));
-    if (surface == NULL) {
-	_cairo_error_throw (CAIRO_STATUS_NO_MEMORY);
-	return (cairo_surface_t*) &_cairo_surface_nil;
-    }
+    if (surface == NULL)
+	return _cairo_surface_create_in_error (_cairo_error (CAIRO_STATUS_NO_MEMORY));
 
     _cairo_surface_init (&surface->base, &cairo_svg_surface_backend,
 			 content);
@@ -389,8 +385,7 @@ CLEANUP_DOCUMENT:
     status = _cairo_svg_document_destroy (document);
 
     free (surface);
-    _cairo_error_throw (CAIRO_STATUS_NO_MEMORY);
-    return (cairo_surface_t*) &_cairo_surface_nil;
+    return _cairo_surface_create_in_error (_cairo_error (CAIRO_STATUS_NO_MEMORY));
 }
 
 static cairo_surface_t *
@@ -407,15 +402,14 @@ _cairo_svg_surface_create_for_stream_internal (cairo_output_stream_t	*stream,
     if (document == NULL) {
 	/* consume the output stream on behalf of caller */
 	status = _cairo_output_stream_destroy (stream);
-	_cairo_error_throw (CAIRO_STATUS_NO_MEMORY);
-	return (cairo_surface_t *) &_cairo_surface_nil;
+	return _cairo_surface_create_in_error (_cairo_error (CAIRO_STATUS_NO_MEMORY));
     }
 
     surface = _cairo_svg_surface_create_for_document (document, CAIRO_CONTENT_COLOR_ALPHA,
 						      width, height);
     if (surface->status) {
 	status = _cairo_svg_document_destroy (document);
-	return (cairo_surface_t *) &_cairo_surface_nil;
+	return surface;
     }
 
     document->owner = surface;
diff --git a/src/cairo-win32-printing-surface.c b/src/cairo-win32-printing-surface.c
index 3a5a3b88..d589f236 100644
--- a/src/cairo-win32-printing-surface.c
+++ b/src/cairo-win32-printing-surface.c
@@ -71,7 +71,6 @@
 #endif
 
 #define PELS_72DPI  ((LONG)(72. / 0.0254))
-#define NIL_SURFACE ((cairo_surface_t*)&_cairo_surface_nil)
 
 static const cairo_surface_backend_t cairo_win32_printing_surface_backend;
 static const cairo_paginated_surface_backend_t cairo_win32_surface_paginated_backend;
@@ -1467,15 +1466,12 @@ cairo_win32_printing_surface_create (HDC hdc)
     if (GetClipBox (hdc, &rect) == ERROR) {
 	_cairo_win32_print_gdi_error ("cairo_win32_surface_create");
 	/* XXX: Can we make a more reasonable guess at the error cause here? */
-	_cairo_error_throw (CAIRO_STATUS_NO_MEMORY);
-	return NIL_SURFACE;
+	return _cairo_surface_create_in_error (_cairo_error (CAIRO_STATUS_NO_MEMORY));
     }
 
     surface = malloc (sizeof (cairo_win32_surface_t));
-    if (surface == NULL) {
-	_cairo_error_throw (CAIRO_STATUS_NO_MEMORY);
-	return NIL_SURFACE;
-    }
+    if (surface == NULL)
+	return _cairo_surface_create_in_error (_cairo_error (CAIRO_STATUS_NO_MEMORY));
 
     surface->image = NULL;
     surface->format = CAIRO_FORMAT_RGB24;
diff --git a/src/cairo-win32-surface.c b/src/cairo-win32-surface.c
index 2342230d..881532b6 100644
--- a/src/cairo-win32-surface.c
+++ b/src/cairo-win32-surface.c
@@ -67,7 +67,6 @@
 #endif
 
 #define PELS_72DPI  ((LONG)(72. / 0.0254))
-#define NIL_SURFACE ((cairo_surface_t*)&_cairo_surface_nil)
 
 static const cairo_surface_backend_t cairo_win32_surface_backend;
 
@@ -333,10 +332,8 @@ _cairo_win32_surface_create_for_dc (HDC             original_dc,
     int rowstride;
 
     surface = malloc (sizeof (cairo_win32_surface_t));
-    if (surface == NULL) {
-	_cairo_error_throw (CAIRO_STATUS_NO_MEMORY);
-	return NIL_SURFACE;
-    }
+    if (surface == NULL)
+	return _cairo_surface_create_in_error (_cairo_error (CAIRO_STATUS_NO_MEMORY));
 
     status = _create_dc_and_bitmap (surface, original_dc, format,
 				    width, height,
@@ -346,10 +343,9 @@ _cairo_win32_surface_create_for_dc (HDC             original_dc,
 
     surface->image = cairo_image_surface_create_for_data (bits, format,
 							  width, height, rowstride);
-    if (surface->image->status) {
-	status = _cairo_error (CAIRO_STATUS_NO_MEMORY);
+    status = surface->image->status;
+    if (status)
 	goto FAIL;
-    }
 
     surface->format = format;
 
@@ -365,7 +361,7 @@ _cairo_win32_surface_create_for_dc (HDC             original_dc,
     _cairo_surface_init (&surface->base, &cairo_win32_surface_backend,
 			 _cairo_content_from_format (format));
 
-    return (cairo_surface_t *)surface;
+    return &surface->base;
 
  FAIL:
     if (surface->bitmap) {
@@ -373,10 +369,9 @@ _cairo_win32_surface_create_for_dc (HDC             original_dc,
 	DeleteObject (surface->bitmap);
 	DeleteDC (surface->dc);
     }
-    if (surface)
-	free (surface);
+    free (surface);
 
-    return NIL_SURFACE;
+    return _cairo_surface_create_in_error (status);
 }
 
 static cairo_surface_t *
@@ -1720,8 +1715,7 @@ cairo_win32_surface_create (HDC hdc)
     if (clipBoxType == ERROR) {
 	_cairo_win32_print_gdi_error ("cairo_win32_surface_create");
 	/* XXX: Can we make a more reasonable guess at the error cause here? */
-	_cairo_error_throw (CAIRO_STATUS_NO_MEMORY);
-	return NIL_SURFACE;
+	return _cairo_surface_create_in_error (_cairo_error (CAIRO_STATUS_NO_MEMORY));
     }
 
     if (GetDeviceCaps(hdc, TECHNOLOGY) == DT_RASDISPLAY) {
@@ -1738,18 +1732,15 @@ cairo_win32_surface_create (HDC hdc)
 	    format = CAIRO_FORMAT_A1;
 	else {
 	    _cairo_win32_print_gdi_error("cairo_win32_surface_create(bad BITSPIXEL)");
-	    _cairo_error_throw (CAIRO_STATUS_NO_MEMORY);
-	    return NIL_SURFACE;
+	    return _cairo_surface_create_in_error (_cairo_error (CAIRO_STATUS_INVALID_FORMAT));
 	}
     } else {
 	format = CAIRO_FORMAT_RGB24;
     }
 
     surface = malloc (sizeof (cairo_win32_surface_t));
-    if (surface == NULL) {
-	_cairo_error_throw (CAIRO_STATUS_NO_MEMORY);
-	return NIL_SURFACE;
-    }
+    if (surface == NULL)
+	return _cairo_surface_create_in_error (_cairo_error (CAIRO_STATUS_NO_MEMORY));
 
     surface->image = NULL;
     surface->format = format;
@@ -1837,7 +1828,7 @@ cairo_win32_surface_create_with_ddb (HDC hdc,
     HBITMAP saved_dc_bitmap;
 
     if (format != CAIRO_FORMAT_RGB24)
-	return NIL_SURFACE;
+	return _cairo_surface_create_in_error (_cairo_error (CAIRO_STATUS_INVALID_FORMAT));
 /* XXX handle these eventually
 	format != CAIRO_FORMAT_A8 ||
 	format != CAIRO_FORMAT_A1)
@@ -1853,7 +1844,7 @@ cairo_win32_surface_create_with_ddb (HDC hdc,
     ddb_dc = CreateCompatibleDC (hdc);
     if (ddb_dc == NULL) {
 	_cairo_win32_print_gdi_error("CreateCompatibleDC");
-	new_surf = (cairo_win32_surface_t*) NIL_SURFACE;
+	new_surf = (cairo_win32_surface_t*) _cairo_surface_create_in_error (_cairo_error (CAIRO_STATUS_NO_MEMORY));
 	goto FINISH;
     }
 
@@ -1866,7 +1857,7 @@ cairo_win32_surface_create_with_ddb (HDC hdc,
 	 * video memory is probably exhausted.
 	 */
 	_cairo_win32_print_gdi_error("CreateCompatibleBitmap");
-	new_surf = (cairo_win32_surface_t*) NIL_SURFACE;
+	new_surf = (cairo_win32_surface_t*) _cairo_surface_create_in_error (_cairo_error (CAIRO_STATUS_NO_MEMORY));
 	goto FINISH;
     }
 
diff --git a/src/cairo-xcb-surface.c b/src/cairo-xcb-surface.c
index 451cc8f4..2b1f888a 100644
--- a/src/cairo-xcb-surface.c
+++ b/src/cairo-xcb-surface.c
@@ -196,10 +196,8 @@ _cairo_xcb_surface_create_similar (void		       *abstract_src,
 	cairo_xcb_surface_create_with_xrender_format (dpy, pixmap, src->screen,
 						      xrender_format,
 						      width, height);
-    if (surface->base.status) {
-	_cairo_error (CAIRO_STATUS_NO_MEMORY);
-	return (cairo_surface_t*) &_cairo_surface_nil;
-    }
+    if (surface->base.status)
+	return surface;
 
     surface->owns_pixmap = TRUE;
 
@@ -1730,10 +1728,8 @@ _cairo_xcb_surface_create_internal (xcb_connection_t	     *dpy,
     const xcb_render_query_version_reply_t *r;
 
     surface = malloc (sizeof (cairo_xcb_surface_t));
-    if (surface == NULL) {
-	_cairo_error (CAIRO_STATUS_NO_MEMORY);
-	return (cairo_surface_t*) &_cairo_surface_nil;
-    }
+    if (surface == NULL)
+	return _cairo_surface_create_in_error (_cairo_error (CAIRO_STATUS_NO_MEMORY));
 
     if (xrender_format) {
 	depth = xrender_format->depth;
@@ -1873,10 +1869,8 @@ cairo_xcb_surface_create (xcb_connection_t *c,
 {
     xcb_screen_t	*screen = _cairo_xcb_screen_from_visual (c, visual);
 
-    if (screen == NULL) {
-	_cairo_error (CAIRO_STATUS_INVALID_VISUAL);
-	return (cairo_surface_t*) &_cairo_surface_nil;
-    }
+    if (screen == NULL)
+	return _cairo_surface_create_in_error (_cairo_error (CAIRO_STATUS_INVALID_VISUAL));
 
     return _cairo_xcb_surface_create_internal (c, drawable, screen,
 					       visual, NULL,
diff --git a/src/cairo-xlib-surface.c b/src/cairo-xlib-surface.c
index bd1a3e8e..93cd6f8b 100644
--- a/src/cairo-xlib-surface.c
+++ b/src/cairo-xlib-surface.c
@@ -176,10 +176,9 @@ _cairo_xlib_surface_create_similar_with_format (void	       *abstract_src,
 	cairo_xlib_surface_create_with_xrender_format (dpy, pix, src->screen,
 						       xrender_format,
 						       width, height);
-    if (surface->base.status != CAIRO_STATUS_SUCCESS) {
+    if (surface->base.status) {
 	XFreePixmap (dpy, pix);
-	_cairo_error_throw (CAIRO_STATUS_NO_MEMORY);
-	return (cairo_surface_t*) &_cairo_surface_nil;
+	return &surface->base;
     }
 
     surface->owns_pixmap = TRUE;
@@ -258,8 +257,7 @@ _cairo_xlib_surface_create_similar (void	       *abstract_src,
 						       width, height);
     if (surface->base.status != CAIRO_STATUS_SUCCESS) {
 	XFreePixmap (src->dpy, pix);
-	_cairo_error_throw (CAIRO_STATUS_NO_MEMORY);
-	return (cairo_surface_t*) &_cairo_surface_nil;
+	return &surface->base;
     }
 
     surface->owns_pixmap = TRUE;
@@ -1949,24 +1947,20 @@ _cairo_xlib_surface_create_internal (Display		       *dpy,
     cairo_xlib_screen_info_t *screen_info;
 
     screen_info = _cairo_xlib_screen_info_get (dpy, screen);
-    if (screen_info == NULL) {
-	_cairo_error_throw (CAIRO_STATUS_NO_MEMORY);
-	return (cairo_surface_t*) &_cairo_surface_nil;
-    }
+    if (screen_info == NULL)
+	return _cairo_surface_create_in_error (_cairo_error (CAIRO_STATUS_NO_MEMORY));
 
     surface = malloc (sizeof (cairo_xlib_surface_t));
     if (surface == NULL) {
 	_cairo_xlib_screen_info_destroy (screen_info);
-	_cairo_error_throw (CAIRO_STATUS_NO_MEMORY);
-	return (cairo_surface_t*) &_cairo_surface_nil;
+	return _cairo_surface_create_in_error (_cairo_error (CAIRO_STATUS_NO_MEMORY));
     }
 
     if (! _cairo_xlib_add_close_display_hook (dpy,
 	    _cairo_xlib_surface_detach_display, surface, surface)) {
 	free (surface);
 	_cairo_xlib_screen_info_destroy (screen_info);
-	_cairo_error_throw (CAIRO_STATUS_NO_MEMORY);
-	return (cairo_surface_t*) &_cairo_surface_nil;
+	return _cairo_surface_create_in_error (_cairo_error (CAIRO_STATUS_NO_MEMORY));
     }
 
     if (xrender_format) {
@@ -2096,10 +2090,8 @@ cairo_xlib_surface_create (Display     *dpy,
 {
     Screen *screen = _cairo_xlib_screen_from_visual (dpy, visual);
 
-    if (screen == NULL) {
-	_cairo_error_throw (CAIRO_STATUS_INVALID_VISUAL);
-	return (cairo_surface_t*) &_cairo_surface_nil;
-    }
+    if (screen == NULL)
+	return _cairo_surface_create_in_error (_cairo_error (CAIRO_STATUS_INVALID_VISUAL));
 
     CAIRO_MUTEX_INITIALIZE ();
 
diff --git a/src/cairo.c b/src/cairo.c
index 61365975..676aeb1f 100644
--- a/src/cairo.c
+++ b/src/cairo.c
@@ -3323,7 +3323,7 @@ cairo_surface_t *
 cairo_get_target (cairo_t *cr)
 {
     if (cr->status)
-	return (cairo_surface_t*) &_cairo_surface_nil;
+	return _cairo_surface_create_in_error (cr->status);
 
     return _cairo_gstate_get_original_target (cr->gstate);
 }
@@ -3352,7 +3352,7 @@ cairo_surface_t *
 cairo_get_group_target (cairo_t *cr)
 {
     if (cr->status)
-	return (cairo_surface_t*) &_cairo_surface_nil;
+	return _cairo_surface_create_in_error (cr->status);
 
     return _cairo_gstate_get_target (cr->gstate);
 }
diff --git a/src/cairoint.h b/src/cairoint.h
index c2847795..889862df 100644
--- a/src/cairoint.h
+++ b/src/cairoint.h
@@ -1476,10 +1476,8 @@ _cairo_stroke_style_fini (cairo_stroke_style_t *style);
 
 /* cairo-surface.c */
 
-extern const cairo_private cairo_surface_t _cairo_surface_nil;
-extern const cairo_private cairo_surface_t _cairo_surface_nil_read_error;
-extern const cairo_private cairo_surface_t _cairo_surface_nil_write_error;
-extern const cairo_private cairo_surface_t _cairo_surface_nil_file_not_found;
+cairo_private cairo_surface_t *
+_cairo_surface_create_in_error (cairo_status_t status);
 
 cairo_private cairo_status_t
 _cairo_surface_set_error (cairo_surface_t	*surface,
diff --git a/src/test-fallback-surface.c b/src/test-fallback-surface.c
index f56db45f..0bac87e0 100644
--- a/src/test-fallback-surface.c
+++ b/src/test-fallback-surface.c
@@ -76,13 +76,12 @@ _cairo_test_fallback_surface_create (cairo_content_t	content,
 
     backing = _cairo_image_surface_create_with_content (content, width, height);
     if (cairo_surface_status (backing))
-	return (cairo_surface_t*) &_cairo_surface_nil;
+	return backing;
 
     surface = malloc (sizeof (test_fallback_surface_t));
     if (surface == NULL) {
 	cairo_surface_destroy (backing);
-	_cairo_error_throw (CAIRO_STATUS_NO_MEMORY);
-	return (cairo_surface_t*) &_cairo_surface_nil;
+	return _cairo_surface_create_in_error (_cairo_error (CAIRO_STATUS_NO_MEMORY));
     }
 
     _cairo_surface_init (&surface->base, &test_fallback_surface_backend,
diff --git a/src/test-meta-surface.c b/src/test-meta-surface.c
index 4c08601e..e56efccc 100644
--- a/src/test-meta-surface.c
+++ b/src/test-meta-surface.c
@@ -74,21 +74,26 @@ _cairo_test_meta_surface_create (cairo_content_t	content,
 			   int		 	height)
 {
     test_meta_surface_t *surface;
+    cairo_status_t status;
 
     surface = malloc (sizeof (test_meta_surface_t));
-    if (surface == NULL)
+    if (surface == NULL) {
+	status = _cairo_error (CAIRO_STATUS_NO_MEMORY);
 	goto FAIL;
+    }
 
     _cairo_surface_init (&surface->base, &test_meta_surface_backend,
 			 content);
 
     surface->meta = _cairo_meta_surface_create (content, width, height);
-    if (cairo_surface_status (surface->meta))
+    status = cairo_surface_status (surface->meta);
+    if (status)
 	goto FAIL_CLEANUP_SURFACE;
 
     surface->image = _cairo_image_surface_create_with_content (content,
 							       width, height);
-    if (cairo_surface_status (surface->image))
+    status = cairo_surface_status (surface->image);
+    if (status)
 	goto FAIL_CLEANUP_META;
 
     surface->image_reflects_meta = FALSE;
@@ -100,8 +105,7 @@ _cairo_test_meta_surface_create (cairo_content_t	content,
   FAIL_CLEANUP_SURFACE:
     free (surface);
   FAIL:
-    _cairo_error_throw (CAIRO_STATUS_NO_MEMORY);
-    return (cairo_surface_t*) &_cairo_surface_nil;
+    return _cairo_surface_create_in_error (status);
 }
 
 static cairo_status_t
@@ -309,7 +313,7 @@ _test_meta_surface_snapshot (void *abstract_other)
 
     status = _cairo_surface_get_extents (other->image, &extents);
     if (status)
-	return (cairo_surface_t*) &_cairo_surface_nil;
+	return _cairo_surface_create_in_error (status);
 
     surface = cairo_surface_create_similar (other->image,
 					    CAIRO_CONTENT_COLOR_ALPHA,
@@ -319,7 +323,7 @@ _test_meta_surface_snapshot (void *abstract_other)
     status = _cairo_meta_surface_replay (other->meta, surface);
     if (status) {
 	cairo_surface_destroy (surface);
-	surface = (cairo_surface_t*) &_cairo_surface_nil;
+	surface = _cairo_surface_create_in_error (status);
     }
 
     return surface;
diff --git a/src/test-paginated-surface.c b/src/test-paginated-surface.c
index 7d341ad7..f640b606 100644
--- a/src/test-paginated-surface.c
+++ b/src/test-paginated-surface.c
@@ -77,13 +77,12 @@ _cairo_test_paginated_surface_create_for_data (unsigned char		*data,
 								stride);
     status = cairo_surface_status (target);
     if (status)
-	return (cairo_surface_t *) &_cairo_surface_nil;
+	return target;
 
     surface = malloc (sizeof (test_paginated_surface_t));
     if (surface == NULL) {
 	cairo_surface_destroy (target);
-	_cairo_error_throw (CAIRO_STATUS_NO_MEMORY);
-	return (cairo_surface_t *) &_cairo_surface_nil;
+	return _cairo_surface_create_in_error (_cairo_error (CAIRO_STATUS_NO_MEMORY));
     }
 
     _cairo_surface_init (&surface->base, &test_paginated_surface_backend,