McGraw-Hill just agreed to publish a book of our details (the same as are in the CD [ at amazon.com ] ) in time for the AIA convention in Denver. Problem is, they want computer files that they can play out to negatives there. They've asked for PDF files, but if I go to the Print command and select Print to File (PDF file), I get the equivalent of a PostScript conversion which loses all the textures or patterns. They have to have 600 dpi files, so saving as Photoshop doesn't work because the patterns are tiny. I want some method that will give me the exact product I get when I print to my LaserWriter 8500: smooth, 600 dpi lines, curves & text but with 72 dpi patterns or textures.

Help, please?

Steve Mouzon

Try to get the shareware PRINTtoPDF. Install the shareware.

Goto Chooser and select PRINTtoPDF as your printer. Now, in PCAD do Print.

The file is now a .pdf.

Open with Acrobat reader.

Jean-Guy Vermette

The most satisfactory way to convert to PDF is to first save the files as a postscript files (I include all fonts) and then let ADOBE DISTILLER convert them. It will do this in a batch process if all the files are in the same folder and you designate that folder as a "watched" folder in DISTILLER.

In PowerCADD:
- select Print
- In the dialog box, select " file" from the Destination menu in the upper right hand corner. (driver is LaserWriter 8.6.5)
- Select "Save as File" from the settings menu. (the one that has "General" as the first choice.)
- Under "Save as File", Format is "Postscript Job", any level of postscript is OK; I leave ASCII checked; and select "all" for font inclusion.
- Make any other setting changes you normally would.

When you click "Print" you are prompted for a file name and location, I have a folder called "PS to PDF".

In Distiller there are a few ways to make the translation:
- Use the "Open" command from the file menu or
- Drag the file to the DISTILLER dialog box or
- Set up a "watched folder" under the "Settings menu". There is an "In" folder and an "Out " folder inside of the main "watched folder". DISTILLER will monitor the "in" folder, translate any postscript files it finds there to pdf and move them to the "Out" folder.

A note of caution, to properly translate large drawings a new job option needs to be defined for the larger paper size.

Do this in Settings>Job Options>Advanced.

Other notes: as usual, selecting a lower output dpi will create significantly smaller files.

Good Luck!

David Honan

In addition to PowerCADD and WildTools, Adobe Acrobat has changed everything. I used to labor for hours putting together bid packages for installation contractors, machinery vendors, etc. A typical installation bid package would contain from 20 to 50 drawings. These would have to be printed (by me) and collated into sets. If we go out to say 10 installation contractors with two sets (minimum) each, that's somewhere between 400 to 1,000 drawings I have to handle. This used to drive me crazy, because it is work I hated and didn't do very well.

Now I send all drawings for review by our clients and bid via the Internet in a Adobe Acrobat PDF format. Using Acrobat, I only have to electronically print one copy of each drawing. I can then create master documents and sent them to the bidders or our clients. The drawings are all 17 x 24 size. I use an Epson 3000 printer, and many of the companies I deal with now have the same printer.

A real life example:

The job shown here was put together recently for an installation bid. There were 21 of PME's drawings and 31 associated vendor drawings. That is 52 drawings. To create the PDFs I open the files to be "printed", press the Control key and select Page Setup (my Adobe control panel is set up to respond to Control, but you can use Option or whatever) enter the page parameters just like any printer. Then I press the Control key and select Print, click OK then I get a screen to give a file name and location for the PDF. This done I click OK and the drawing is now saved as a PDF. It takes less time to do than to explain.

When I'm done doing this to all the files, I open one (usually the first I want to appear in a master document) and do "save as". I give it a master document name and save it. Then I select "Insert Pages" from the "Document Menu" and proceed to insert all the pages that I would like to have in my master document.

For this example project, I created two master drawings, one for the our drawings and one for the vendor drawings. These master documents are then E-mailed along with a PDF copy of the specifications to the contractors. This all takes far less time than it would take to print just one set of hard copy drawings. This package went out to eight contractors so I avoided printing and handling at least 816 drawings. The client saves money on my time and the cost of express mailing hard copies to all the vendors. I believe in putting the responsibility on the vendor/contractor for absorbing the cost of the bidding process, not my clients. They print the drawings at their end. They can print as many copies as they need thus eliminating the need to call me and ask for an additional set for a new sub-contractor they want to try. Changes and revisions can be handled in a few minutes. No waiting for the next days express mail. Quicker turn around of info can be priceless.

We do industrial design so most of our clients are at the site where the work is done. Making revisions and E-mailing to the clients site is very powerful stuff. We can execute revisions in literally minutes from engineer to welder/fitter, etc. with NO CAD expertise required.

Ron Gillespie

When you print to PDF and have a print shop print them, you MUST CHECK THE SCALE of the hardcoppy output. We have had PDF's printed and they are at something like 94% of true scale. I know there is a setting somewhere, but BE CAREFUL. hate to have a 200,000 square foot roof project messed up because the contractor scaled the prints...I know they aren't supposed to, but reality is they do....

I recommend that you do some test prints with your service bureau BEFORE the deadline is upon you. AND ALWAYS INCLUDE A GRAPHIC SCALE!!

Matt Arnold

I fought with the problem of PDFs printing too small and I wasted a lot of time fighting with Acrobat Distiller, thinking that the problem lay in the creation of the PDF file. In my case, it didn't have anything to do with the problem.

The problem was in Acrobat, while printing. The steps are:

With the PDF file open in Acrobat, choose Print.

In the Print dialog, select Acrobat from the popup menu that usually says 'General' when you first see it.

Turn off "Shrink Oversize Pages to Paper Size" and "Enlarge Small Pages to Paper Size". THAT'S where the problem is!

Then print the sucker.

Alfred Scott