.dwg file - What Program/App to purchase?

[MacHead84]

Hello,

A customer has send me a email containing .dwg (drawings) and I need to know what Program or App I have to purchase from the app store to open this files and make a PDF copy.

Can you please suggest me something that could do the trick?
Thank you

-MacHead84

 

[DeltaMac]

There's a few converters, and some listed on this page:
http://formac.informer.com/any-dwg-to-pdf-converter

And, .dwg is a native format for AutoCad.
Autocad can save out files as PDF, rather than .DWG
Maybe your customer can have those files saved from Autocad as a PDF, which would solve the question more elegantly, I think.
Autodesk also has some other help for viewing .dwg without Autocad.
http://usa.autodesk.com/adsk/servlet/item?id=17691769&siteID=123112

 

[IHelpId10t5]

Hello,

A customer has send me a email containing .dwg (drawings) and I need to know what Program or App I have to purchase from the app store to open this files and make a PDF copy.

Can you please suggest me something that could do the trick?
Thank you

-MacHead84

DraftSight Free
http://www.3ds.com/products-services/draftsight-cad-software/

 

[MacHead84]

Hey Guys,

Thanks alot for your help. I downloaded the Any DWG to PDF converter. However I think I am to "noobish" for this.
The converted PDF file is very pale.

What I am doing wrong?

Thx

 

[DeltaMac]

Maybe you are expecting too much from a file conversion.
Try the Draftsight software (post #3) to see if that makes any difference (it is free, too!)

 

[dwig]

Hey Guys,

Thanks alot for your help. I downloaded the Any DWG to PDF converter. However I think I am to "noobish" for this.
The converted PDF file is very pale.

What I am doing wrong?

Thx

Autocad drawings very often use thin lines and are laid out on large paper sizes. When these are converted to other formats and scaled to letter sized paper the line widths may scale down as well. This can results in very fine lines that render very light on screen or when printed.

 

[MechaSpanky]

The solution to this problem is incredibly simple. Just ask or tell the customer to send you a PDF file instead of a .dwg, as DeltaMac suggested. Autocad can export PDF files so it shouldn't be a problem for the customer. As well, if you have a copy of Illustrator (sometimes other vector apps can also open .dwg files too) you can open a .dwg file in Illustrator and then thicken the lines and mess with the colors (granted that they are vectors). As dwig pointed out, Autocad drawings are often very thin lines and light colors.

Mecha

 

[campyguy]

I'm late to this thread, maybe I can also help, from a longtime AutoCAD and Mac user. My go-to solution is to use the eDrawings Viewer app - eDrawings is a product of SolidWorks, which is owned/published by Dassault Systèmes. OP, you did not indicate whether the DWG files are 2D/3D. Either way, I pass on asking for PDF files or DWG files - I want DXF files, and open them in eDrawings Viewer on the Mac I travel with that does not have Parallels Desktop/Win 10/AutoCAD 2016 installed. There's so much more that I can do with a DXF file, and that's what I demand of my consultants as a deliverable. DraftSight is a nice tool, also published by Dassault Systèmes, but it's 2D-only and has a different purpose than the eDrawings applications.

Regardless, the eDrawings Viewer app also opens DWG files and allows for manipulation and printing/plotting.

Regarding linetypes, I tell my sub-consultants to install the printers/plotters that I use so that they can export an optimized DXF file so that my printing/plotting is foolproof - and the line color/thickness/properties match the devices I use, and those that the client uses. Cheers!

Links, localized to US EN:
http://www.edrawingsviewer.com/ed/products.htm
http://www.edrawingsviewer.com/ed/download.htm

 

[MacHead84]

This is what I see on my screen when opening the file with eDrawings.app
I guess it is 2D.

I can zoom in and see all the dimension which is great. But how can I convert this now to PDF and see the dimensions too?

Thanks for your kind support.

 

[campyguy]

Start the "Print" Command (Command-P) - then, from the Print Dialog box, in the lower left is a pull down menu labeled PDF - I set up my desired print options in the Print Dialog box (layout, pages, etc.), choose the PDF pull down menu, and select Save as PDF…

I create a file name and save it to my desired location in the Finder. QED.