When opening a pdf with Adobe Illustrator, the text is lost

[delta3554130858xs]

My Adobe Illustrator software encountered the following error:

- PDF file exported from AutoCAD, with text

- But when opened with AI, the text is not displayed, only the line is displayed

- I'm using the latest version of AI and tried reinstalling, but still having the same problem

Has anyone encountered this error and is there a way to fix it? Thanks a lot

[Bobby Henderson]

What kinds of fonts are being used in the AutoCAD layout? Are they standard TrueType fonts or the the proprietary SHX format? Are the fonts embedded into the PDF file? That can be checked by opening the file in Adobe Acrobat; if the text objects can be selected then the font data should be there. Otherwise the type objects may be outlined or even disregarded in the PDF.

[delta3554130858xs]

Thank you for your response,

The fonts used in AutoCAD are all standard fonts, and I can still select and edit them in Adobe PDF (according to the attached image).
- Only when I open this PDF file with Ai does the text completely disappear 🙂

[Monika Gause]

I hope you do not need to edit the text.

What you can do is place the file in a new Illustrator file and then Object > Flatten transparency. Check "Outline text"

[Bobby Henderson]

SHX fonts are "standard" in AutoCAD but do not work outside of AutoCAD. The number lists in the image you posted look like normal TrueType fonts though (they're not single stroked and have actual curves in them rather than a bunch of straight line segments). Outlining the fonts via the Flatten Transparency trick will retain the raw numeral shapes.

I still wonder why the numerals could be disappearing when the PDF is opened in Illustrator. Do you receive any missing fonts warnings? Illustrator has some of its required fonts stored in a program folder away from the operating system fonts folder. I would imagine AutoCAD does something similar (particularly for its proprietary fonts). Hopping a PDF output from AutoCAD across computing platforms (such as Mac to PC or vice versa) could also cause that disappearing fonts glitch.

[delta3554130858xs]

I really think this is a "mystery" with my laptop. This is the image when I open this pdf file with Illustrator, all strokes still appear normally, no error messages

What's even more strange is that with the same pdf file, when opened with Illustrator on another laptop, shows text 😄

[Anshul_Saini]

Hi @delta3554130858xs,

Thanks for reaching out. It seems like you're encountering a peculiar issue with Adobe Illustrator. To investigate this mystery further and potentially resolve it, could you please provide some additional information?

It would be helpful if you could share the PDF file that exhibits this behavior. This will allow us to analyze the file structure and content. Please confirm the version of Adobe Illustrator installed on both laptops where you've tried opening the PDF file. Knowing the exact versions will help us identify any version-specific issues. Also, provide details about the configuration of the laptops where the PDF file behaves differently. Include information such as the operating system version, hardware specifications, and any relevant software configurations.

By gathering this information, we can conduct a more thorough investigation into why the text disappears when opening the PDF file in Adobe Illustrator on your laptop.

Please feel free to reach out if you have any questions or need further assistance!

Best,

Anshul Saini