Why does CAD sometimes show boxes or strange symbols instead of normal text?

[indiancad]

 

How many of you have opened a DWG and found that some text looks completely different from the original!

 

A common cause is a missing SHX or font file, which makes CAD use a substitute font. This can change the text appearance and sometimes affect the drawing layout.

 

I usually check the text style, assigned font, and missing SHX/font files first.

 

How many of you have faced this problem, and what did you do to fix it?

 

[CyberAngel]

Typically, if AutoCAD can't find a text file, it will substitute the Standard font. Otherwise you'll get an error message: "One or more SHX files are missing." Here's a page about how to handle that error.

 

Here's a page with a fairly complete list of ways to troubleshoot fonts.