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Poor results with DWG to PDF for review


Quik&Easy

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Good morning, all. Using AC LT2011, I'm trying to convert from DWG to PDF to email to clients the dimensioned drawing for confirmation. My problem is when I zoom in to areas to read the dimensions in PDF, the lettering is very "balloon-y" and illegible.

Can zoom fine in the DWG but not PDF. I wanted to keep the drawing clean without huge notes and details. I've tried by export to pdf, publish, plot; all give the same results. Files attached I hope.

 

I'd appreciate someone telling me what I'm doing wrong. Thank you! Ken

wine cellar revised 1-25.dimensioned-Model.pdf

wine cellar revised 1-25.dimensioned.dwg

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Think of the PDF as a ordinary paper. It's not a file format designed to be zoomed into, it's just a dumb paper.

 

You can try changing the color (if you plot with CTB-style) to a thinner color, or change the font to a thinner font.

 

But if I where you, I would change the size of the text to something that is readable.

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Short of increasing the dpi to the max there isn't much in the way of improving the quality of the output from directly within AutoCAD. I've read that some users swear they get better quality if they first publish to a DWF format then convert from that. Unfortunately how many of us want to add an extra step.

 

Keep in mind the PDF file format was never meant to be a way of sharing vector based drawings. You expected AutoDesk to include a top notch DWG-to-PDF converter in AutoCAD? It's there only because users complained about the lack of the feature.

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I asked the question because I thought I was missing something simple in my conversion process. So now that I know, I will try to save it in a different manner, such as closeups of the top and bottoms for review, and an overall with huge dimensions for the vertical and horizontal dimensions.

 

Thank you both for your input.

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Why does it have to be a PDF? If it is for review then send a PNG or a DWF.

 

Here is what AutoDesk has to say about the PDF format in AutoCAD:

 

http://usa.autodesk.com/adsk/servlet/item?id=17691769&siteID=123112

 

Don't believe everything you read. But then again, why do I have to tell you this. You've seen the results first hand.

 

I've read that AcroPlot works quite well. Check it out at....http://www.cadzation.com/index.htm

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I don't know that the folks I'm doing this for can open or want to track down how to open either a PNG or a DWF file. I know that they can open and deal with a PDF. Heck, I've never used either of those files either. Usually, they prefer a fax so they can make adjustments easily. Based on your recommendation of those 2 file types, I'm going to save the overall view and send that along, too, to see if they can deal with it, as well as for my own experience. I don't have any type of CAD on my home computer so I'll send those there as well to see what it takes to work with.

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I think that you are missing something. If you were to print out your drawing onto A4 paper, you would not expect to be able to read the text. However, if you were to print out your drawing onto an A0 sheet, you would be able to read your text.

 

This is a screen shot of a PDF of your drawing, but using an A0 sheet. You can read the text very well.

PDF-A0.jpg

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PNG is an image file format along the lines of TIFF.

 

DWF files can be viewed with AutoDesk's free (to anyone) viewer. Read about/download AutoDesk Design Review here...http://usa.autodesk.com/design-review/

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Eldon, that worked perfectly for me as well. I was saving it as you posted the actual file you created and Voila! I get all the detail I need for viewing and confirming stuff all in one file. In my version of AC, it was from the plot menu, paper size ISO A0 option; plot extents. I think we have a winner for the future here.

 

ReMark, as I was typing, I heard from one of my clients; he had no trouble with the DWF; opened up fine in Photoshop and he loves it and hopes I can send stuff like that to him in the future.

 

All in all, a very educational morning here in the pouring rain!

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At least you had something to brighten up this drab day.

 

Better rain than snow.

 

Connecticut too? LOL I hadn't even noticed. Now, where did I put my glasses?

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Amen to the better rain than snow. We got 28" back in October and only about 7" since which is FINE WITH ME! I'm in the NW hills.

 

 

Edit to add: I've been tinkering with this saving as pdf a bit and find that if I try to preview it, it will crash and shut down AC. If I simply save it without previewing, I'm fine. HHmmmmm. A question of if it ain't broke, don't look for trouble, accept what works.

Edited by Quik&Easy
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  • 3 weeks later...
I don't know that the folks I'm doing this for can open or want to track down how to open either a PNG or a DWF file. I know that they can open and deal with a PDF. Heck, I've never used either of those files either. Usually, they prefer a fax so they can make adjustments easily. Based on your recommendation of those 2 file types, I'm going to save the overall view and send that along, too, to see if they can deal with it, as well as for my own experience. I don't have any type of CAD on my home computer so I'll send those there as well to see what it takes to work with.

 

I wouldn't want to receive a png or dwf file either. I'd simply reply back asking them to send a pdf (or alternatively native cad files) if someone sent me those.

 

As a reference, on a A1 I have all text as 3.5mm high. That is perfectly readable on an A1 and still pretty decent on an A3.

 

2mm (A1) is still readable on A3 I find.

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Since AutoDesk Design Review is a free DWF viewer with the capability to view, markup and print DWF files I would highly recommend its use for companies/clients that do not have access to a program like AutoCAD. The PDF file format was never meant to be a means of sharing drawings as its intended purpose was to make sharing documents between word processing programs easier. CAD users took a good idea and tried to shape it to fit their needs and they did a pretty terrible job of it. That's evident by the fact that although AutoDesk did finally incorporate the ability to plot to a PDF it does only a mediocre job and AutoDesk has failed to make substantive improvements to it. Case in point: look at all the threads here at CADTutor about poor quality or PDFs that cannot be scaled correctly. These two problems are not encountered with the use of a DWF.

 

http://usa.autodesk.com/design-review/

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I've never had a request from a company for a .dwf. They either want pdfs (100% of the time) or CAD files also (20% of the time maybe). Everyone basically has Adobe Reader installed on their computer. Whether you are sending it to a client, a lawyer, the receptionist to print etc, everyone has the capability to print it already pretty much. It is far easier than trying to get all those people to install other less common (dwf viewer such as design review) software that (unless they are in the industry) they probably do not have.

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Of course you haven't and neither have I. It's up to us to educate our clients in the technologies that will best meet their needs. Sometimes it might take some persuasion. Once they see that they can markup, print and even get accurate measurements off a drawing with relative ease they soon become converts. If all they want to do is see a pretty picture and be able to print it without regard to scale, quality, or have a need to mark it up or do a take-off then by all means send them a PDF. Everybody's happy, right?

 

Remember when your mother would say, "If all your friends jumped off a bridge (no bungee cord) would you do the same?" Just because "everybody" does it does not mean it is right.

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