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Opening an AutoCAD 2013 file

PostPosted: Tue Feb 05, 2013 5:09 pm
by dkdrake
I created a drawing in Datacad. I needed to send it to someone in DWG format and they then sent it back to me after adding something to it. (Just text from what I understand). They used Autocad 2013.
Now when I try to open it with DataCAD 14, it opens with no error message other than that it says at the bottom that the zoom window is not defined.
But there is nothing in the file at all. If I open layers, there is one layer and it has a 0 count.
Any ideas why it is not opening?
Thank you!

Re: Opening an AutoCAD 2013 file

PostPosted: Tue Feb 05, 2013 5:22 pm
by Roger D
v14 & v15 only support up to Acad2012, so they have to save it back to a 2012 or earlier version.

Re: Opening an AutoCAD 2013 file

PostPosted: Tue Feb 05, 2013 6:16 pm
by dkdrake
Ok That is what I was afraid of. Thank you!

Re: Opening an AutoCAD 2013 file

PostPosted: Tue Feb 05, 2013 6:28 pm
by dkdrake
Is there any hope in the future that we will be able to open 2013 files and beyond? Or was there a change (legally or otherwise) that will make it so that we cannot convert anymore from the new Autocad programs?
I know some of those I work with don't like that they cannot open files from older versions of AutoCAD, without saving it back to the older version from within the new AutoCAD first.

Re: Opening an AutoCAD 2013 file

PostPosted: Tue Feb 05, 2013 6:46 pm
by MtnArch
On another cadd forum the question was asked about Acad 2013 support and the answer was "The ODA recently announced support for the 2013 file format....", so the hope would be sometime in the next few months the translation libraries will be updated. DC LLC will have to comment more on it.

Re: Opening an AutoCAD 2013 file

PostPosted: Tue Feb 05, 2013 7:21 pm
by dkdrake
That is very encouraging! Thank you :D

Re: Opening an AutoCAD 2013 file

PostPosted: Tue Feb 05, 2013 9:26 pm
by Steve Baldwin
You might also look at AutoDesk's free DWG TrueConvert ... I think it's still free. I have needed to occasionally use that to convert down to a lower version, even though I'm currently working in an ACAD office.

If this (or the converter from ODA) works for you, then you don't have to bother those on the ACAD end ... having to remind them to save down for you.

Re: Opening an AutoCAD 2013 file

PostPosted: Fri Feb 15, 2013 7:08 pm
by dkdrake
Thank you Steve! That worked great :D

Re: Opening an AutoCAD 2013 file

PostPosted: Sun Mar 24, 2013 7:47 pm
by Nick Pyner
Further to the above, I downloaded TrueVIEW a couple of days ago. Looking here I thought I had made a mistake and should have used TrueCONVERT.

This is apparently not the case. TrueCONVERT is no longer available and TrueView incorporates its conversion features.

This does not make life much easier and TrueView clearly has quite a history of installation problems. The problem is to do with .NET 4.0 and its upgrades. The matter is apparently made worse because I use XP and .NET 4.5 is incompatible.

I salvaged the situation on the last card. I reinstalled dotNET v4.0 full version and added MS's KB2468871 v2 x86.

This was in the face of advice that it would not work. But it did.

TrueView can do a bulk convert to R2012, retaining the original R2013s as backup in the same subdirectory.

Re: Opening an AutoCAD 2013 file

PostPosted: Tue May 21, 2013 9:11 pm
by MtnArch
BricsCAD has added support for Acad 2013 translation now. If anyone needs help translating something and don't want to download TrueConvert/View feel free to PM me and I'll run it through for you.

Re: Opening an AutoCAD 2013 file

PostPosted: Fri Jul 26, 2013 4:29 pm
by Rodolfo Zepeda
I have a problem translating AutoCAD files in 2004 format to v12. I usually burst and explode the files in AutoCAD 2013 but when I save the files in AutoCAD the files expand to a ridiculous size that makes DataCAD freeze.
it seems that I can't delete or purge a lot of blocks that are some how still attach to the drawing file.

Re: Opening an AutoCAD 2013 file

PostPosted: Fri Jul 26, 2013 5:48 pm
by MtnArch
You may want to experiment with exporting to DXF instead of DWG - I believe that this will strip more of the unwanted stuff out of the file.