When transferring AutoCAD drawings between various parties, it is important to understand that not every dwg is created equally. With the assortment of Autodesk products in use today, one must consider the version used to create the file, and the version used by the party receiving the file. Here are some options for converting files between different versions of Autodesk software.

Converting regular AutoCAD or AutoCAD LT 2004 or 2005 drawings back to a 2000 format dwg is a piece of cake. Simply go to the File pull-down menu->Save As and set the Files of Type at the bottom to AutoCAD 2000/LT 2000 Drawing (*.dwg). The party using AutoCAD 2000 2000i, or 2002 will be able to open the drawing, view it as intended, and work with it. Certain objects that are new in later releases like tables and fields will appear as proxy entities in the drawing. If these objects need to be manipulated, they can be exploded into regular text and lines, but then they lose their intelligence if the drawing is subsequently opened in 2005.

If you have a large number of drawings to convert, you may consider using the Batch Drawing Converter. This allows you to convert a set of drawings to 2004, 2000, or even release 14 drawings. Be sure to make a copy of the drawings before you do this. Otherwise it will overwrite your existing files in the chosen format.

Etransmit is another method of converting files to a previous release, with the added bonus of packing up all the files that another party would need to properly view and print your drawings into a tidy zip file. This includes any xref's, raster images, fonts, ctb files, etc. You can choose which files you want to send, the drawing format you want to send them in, and a bevy of other options. The command is available under the File menu->Etransmit.

Due to the custom objects in Land Desktop like points and contours, saving a Land Desktop drawing back to a prior release is a different animal. If you are saving back to a 2000 format drawing and do not need to work with the drawing again in Land Desktop 2004 or 2005, use the Export to AutoCAD routine (File menu->Export to AutoCAD->2000 format). This converts all custom Land Desktop objects into entities that can be viewed in any flavor of AutoCAD. Civil Point Objects, Civil Contours, and Curve Text will be converted to anonymous blocks.

If it is necessary to open the drawing back up in 2004/2005 and work with the Land Desktop objects, use the File menu->Save As command and set the Files of Type to 2000 format. Note that you must install the Save As 2000 Enabler to have this option in Land Desktop 2004. If you chose to migrate your settings when installing 2005 side-by-side with 2004, this option may be disabled. Call our technical support line for information on how to enable this. This method converts the custom objects to proxy entities which retain their intelligence when opened back up in Land Desktop, as long as they don't get exploded.

During the export to AutoCAD routine, you have the option to bind your xref's, and thus convert them all to a 2000 format by bring all the xref's into one drawing. Otherwise, you have to open each xref and perform the export to AutoCAD individually. The option for whether or not you want to bind the xref's is under the Tools menu->Options->AEC Editor tab. Note that this option is not available in Land Desktop 2004 if service pack 1 is not installed.

.

The project files have not changed from Land Desktop 3. Therefore, it is possible to create a project in Land Desktop 2004 or 2005, latch onto to that project in a Land Desktop 3 drawing, and work with surfaces, alignments, profiles, etc. You can also send your entire project to someone using Land Desktop 3, and they will be able to work with it.

Cadlantic has created a utility which allows you to keep your AEC objects (points, contours, etc.) intact when you save back to the 2000 format dwg. This is very useful if you are using Land Desktop 2004/2005 and are sending the files to someone who needs to execute Land Desktop related tasks in release 2, 2i, or 3. We have not performed extensive testing on the program, but it seems to be a viable option for maintaining your drawing's integrity. The key is that both you and the party you are sending the files to need the program, or you need the version of Land Desktop they are using in order to perform the conversion before you send it to them.

Saving Architectural Desktop 2004/2005 DWG's back to 2000/2002:

Architectural Desktop 2004 and 2005 have similar issues as Land Desktop in saving back to a 2000 format due to the custom objects like walls, doors, and windows not native to vanilla AutoCAD. If you do a regular save as and choose the 2000 format, AEC objects will be converted to proxy entities. When you open the file back up in Architectural Desktop the proxy entities revert back to ADT doors, walls, windows, etc, as long as they weren't exploded. Use this option if you want to maintain the drawing's integrity when reopened in Architectural Desktop. If you don't mind having your ADT objects exploded into standard AutoCAD lines and arcs, and want to make sure the person you are sending the file to can properly view and work with the drawing, use the File menu->Export to AutoCAD routine instead. In Architectural Desktop 2005, the etransmit feature also has the option to explode AEC objects, converting them to lines and arcs.

Object enablers allow regular AutoCAD and AutoCAD LT to understand custom objects from Land Desktop and Architectural Desktop. If sending the files to someone using AutoCAD 2004 or 2005, be sure they have the correct object enabler installed to avoid problems viewing the files.