Print drawings without AutoCad

[scott.70827]

I need to be able to email drawings to a co-worker in the field who does not have AutoCad, but needs to be able to view them & print them on an HP 1220 ink jet printer.
What is the best format to send these drawings?
What do I need to do to specially prepare them?
What about the print size? Is it adjustable at the remote site?
What about layers? Can they be turned off/on at will?
Thanks for your help,
Scott

[Glenn Pope]

Your cheapest & easiest choice would be DWF. AutoCAD already comes with the ability to make these files. Plus the viewer is free and is a real small download. PDF is another choice. You can get cheap or free PDF writers. IMHO, DWF is a better choice. You can set it so that the person receiving the file can freeze layer (can also be done in PDF using the newest version), You can do measurement using the viewer, DWF file sizes are smaller compared to PDF, and I think the drawing look better in DWF then in PDF.

Pretty much all print drivers give you the ability to scale down a print to fit on any size paper. No matter the source.

[Mike.Perry]

Hi

Take a look at Autodesk DWF format -

Autodesk DWF Viewer (http://usa.autodesk.com/adsk/servlet/index?siteID=123112&id=2787358)

Autodesk DWF Composer (http://usa.autodesk.com/adsk/servlet/index?siteID=123112&id=4086277)

Volo View 3 (http://usa.autodesk.com/adsk/servlet/index?siteID=123112&id=3239384)

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Check out the following Technical Documents on the Autodesk web site under the Knowledge Base section -


ID: TS25215 - Change background color of DWF file (http://usa.autodesk.com/adsk/servlet/ps/item?siteID=123112&id=2868798&linkID=2475323)

ID: TS66050 - DWF Classic.pc3 compared to DWF ePlot.pc3 (http://usa.autodesk.com/adsk/servlet/ps/item?siteID=123112&id=2887256&linkID=2475323)

ID: TS32244 - Layers which exist in the drawing (DWG) are not included in the DWF file (http://usa.autodesk.com/adsk/servlet/ps/item?siteID=123112&id=2870632&linkID=2475323)

ID: TP00138 - Using DWF Composer (http://usa.autodesk.com/adsk/servlet/ps/dl/item?siteID=123112&id=4247103&linkID=2475176)

ID: TS69226 - DWF™ output file does not show layer information (http://usa.autodesk.com/adsk/servlet/ps/item?siteID=123112&id=2890661&linkID=2475323)

ID: TS76691 - View DWF™ files without AutoCAD® software (http://usa.autodesk.com/adsk/servlet/ps/item?siteID=123112&id=2962662&linkID=2475323)

ID: TS32983 - Use Batch Plot utility to automate creation of DWF™ files (http://usa.autodesk.com/adsk/servlet/ps/item?siteID=123112&id=2870747&linkID=2475323)

ID: TS34252 - DWF™ files (http://usa.autodesk.com/adsk/servlet/ps/item?siteID=123112&id=2892651&linkID=2475323)

ID: TS70026 - DWF file size limitation (http://usa.autodesk.com/adsk/servlet/ps/item?siteID=123112&id=2866419&linkID=2475323)

ID: TS69295 - Wipeout and Textmask are not shown in DWF file (http://usa.autodesk.com/adsk/servlet/ps/item?siteID=123112&id=2891471&linkID=2475323)

ID: TS21425 - Sharing drawings with users of non-AutoCAD based products (http://usa.autodesk.com/adsk/servlet/ps/item?siteID=123112&id=2897634&linkID=2475323)

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Check out the following Articles on the Autodesk web site -

Publish to Web (http://usa.autodesk.com/adsk/servlet/item?siteID=123112&id=2395146&linkID=2475176)

Dear Lynn: June 2003 (http://usa.autodesk.com/adsk/servlet/item?siteID=123112&id=3365664&linkID=2475176)

Why You Need DWF (http://usa.autodesk.com/adsk/servlet/item?siteID=123112&id=3579839&linkID=2475176)

AutoCAD: Using the New PUBLISH Command to Create DWF Files and for Batch Plotting (http://usa.autodesk.com/adsk/servlet/item?siteID=123112&id=3574968&linkID=2475176)

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Further searching on the Autodesk web site (http://usa.autodesk.com/adsk/servlet/usearch?siteID=123112&id=2088334) will turn up a lot more info on DWF.

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Further searching within the AUGI Forums (http://forums.augi.com/search.php?) will turn up more info on DWF and other suitable Viewers.

Have a good one, Mike

[Maverick91]

Is the use of Adobe .pdf files a possibility? I've had good experiences with them.

[dbronston]

O.K., so I'm still thinking I might plot some drawings at a commercial shop.
From what I've read around here, it seems like the best solution may be the pdf writer.

[Baghera]

Used to use PDF for this kind of thing but have to say that I've changed over to DWFs.
They look just as good and are smaller in size. You can also plot them to a given paper size.

[treb]

whats wrong with ploting to a high res jpeg?
then anyone can print it.

[acad]

I have done a lot of sending of drawings to print shops over the years and still do on the side when someone needs something and is out of town. That being said, I think I can give you some information from my experience.

First, never send a print shop a CAD dwg and ask them to plot it. The cost will be much more because they have to open the drawing and plot.

Second, not everyone can plot drawings. Kinko's certainly cannot!

Third, prices vary. I've paid from $12-18 depending on the part of the country per sheet. A really good shop will plot one set at those costs and then only charge you $.90-$1.50 per sheet to copy them on a large scale copier in b/w.

Fourth, each shop will have their own type of plotter so you should inquire as to how they want you to send them .plt files.

My most recent experience was last weekend. I sent .dwf files and the shop complained that they were taking forever to plot. After doing some testing to my home plotter and searching the Adesk site, I found that this is an issue with .dwf. It's fine to plot A-size, but the larger the sheet the longer it takes. After 5 minutes of spooling I hit cancel. This is an issue they are working on. They say version 5 is better, but it's still not there. I do have contact with Adesk about this and will report their findings here. They're doing some testing of my drawings and .dwf files now.