Creating PDF files from AutoCAD R14 with Adobe Acrobat 6.0 1

[PhilippeSun]

We have a large number of old AutoCAD R14 drawings. We need to create PDF files of many of these.

If I open one of these drawings in AutoCAD, tell it to print, and select as a printer "Adobe PDF", I get a single page PDF file (either with just one page of the drawing or with all the pages of the drawing shrunk to fit on a single page of the PDF file).

If I attempt to open one of these drawings in Adobe Acrobat 6.0 Professional, I get an error message. I called Adobe and was told that although Adobe Acrobat 6.0 Professional says it can open AutoCAD drawings, it can only do so on computers with one of certain more recent versions of AutoCAD installed; it cannot do so on computers with AutoCAD R14 and no other version.

Our current method is to first use AutoCAD R14 to create separate PDF files of each page, one at a time, and then use Adobe Acrobat 6.0 Professional to combine the separate PDFs of the different pages into a single, multipage PDF.

This process takes more time than creating multipage PDF files of other types of documents (for example, Microsoft Word) because:
1. I need to do each page one at a time, instead of all at once
2. I need to use two programs (AutoCAD and Adobe Acrobat)

Without buying a newer version of AutoCAD, is there

a) a faster way to create multipage PDFs of AutoCAD files

or

b) a way to accomplish the entire process in a single program

or

c) a way to do all the pages at once, instead of one at a time

 

[cedarbluffranch]

Have you tried a different PDFwriter, such as CutePDF or any of a myriad of different software programs out there?

 

[KateDavis]

Yes, there are bunch of 3rd party programs that helps you to create PDF files, batch converts AutoCAD drawings into PDF file(s), very easy to use no need to learn, check it out here:

http://www.autodwg.com/PDF/

this is one of most helpful application that I've downloaded. Run the program and from the wizard first step it allows you select multiple AutoCAD dwg or dxf files, the second step it asks you if you need to convert them into multiple page pdfs or single pdfs files per page/layout, and also it even allows you embed entire drawings in a single PDF, this is much helpful for my project documentation.

 

[TerryScan]

If you are using Acrobat's print driver, I don't know why you would get an error when trying to open the PDF file. I used to use Acrobat to do this all the time.

It did get tiresome for batch drawings. A bigger issue for us was the handling of LINE MERGE. Acrobat and many others (including later Autocad built in PDF writer) did not handle line merge properly. So, we sought a 3rd party solution.

I highly reccomend Acroplot:

http://www.cadzation.com/acroplot_info.htm