Symbol fonts don't copy from AutoCAD to objects in Word 1

[EnglishMuffin]

System: XP Professional running Microsoft Word 2002, AutoCAD 2004 Mechanical
Problem: In writing a technical paper, I have been copying diagrams made using AutoCAD to the clipboard and pasting them into a Word document. Some of these diagrams incorporate Greek symbols. If I create the symbols in AutoCAD using a Times New Roman font, which is the same font that I am using in the document, they look fine in AutoCAD, but when I paste the diagrams into the Word document (as objects) the Greek symbols appear as question marks. However, if I use the UniversalMath1 BT font for the symbols, they come across OK. I prefer the look of the Times New Roman Greek symbols, because I can make those italic, but this feature is greyed out when using the UniversalMath1 BT font.
Question: Is this symbol incompatibility a bug, or am I doing something wrong? Is there a way round this ? I am also not sure if this is a Word problem or an AutoCAD one.

 

[RiBeneke]

Check whether your Times New Roman font that you use in AutoCAD comes from the Windows font library as a .TTF or whether it is an AutoCAD compiled font as a .SHX file that produces the same font from a different source. (use Text Style dialog box). Some font files contain only basic ASCII characters, but a few contain some special and foreign characters.

 

[EnglishMuffin]

Thanks. However, I don't know how to tell whether the font is a TTF or an SHX. I assume TTF means "True type font", but I'm afraid I don't really know what that means. However, I can tell you one thing - the font that does not work (Times New Roman- Symbol-Other) has the letter O in front of it. The Times New Roman regular font and the UniversalMath1 BT Font that both work OK when I copy them as objects both have the designation TT in front of them. So it looks as though your TTF suggestion has probably got something to do with it. There are also some fonts that have something like an AA symbol in front of them. Perhaps you could enlighten me as to the significance of these various font types.

 

[RiBeneke]

In the AutoCAD Text Style dialog box, you select the font definition under Font Name, and this font definition is then used by the corresponding Text Style Name within AutoCAD. The Font definitions that are prefixed by TT are True Type Fonts (the files are in the Windows/Fonts folder), and the definitions prefixed by a pair of dividers with and A are AutoCAD .SHX fonts (compiled .SHP files in the AutoCAD/Fonts folder). I have not seen the O prefix, cannot tell you what it is. The .SHX fonts are an older type that AutoCAD produced before the days of Windows and TTF, and they may contain many special characters. MS Word and similar software use mostly TTF fonts. Word cannot use the .SHX fonts so will substitute a TTF font when you cut and paste.

 

[EnglishMuffin]

Well, whatever the O prefix means, that font doesn't seem to copy over as part of a Word object. But thanks for info.