NIM103873 for ArcGIS for Desktop

Bug ID Number	NIM103873
Submitted	July 30, 2014
Last Modified	June 5, 2024
Applies to	ArcGIS for Desktop
Version found	10.2.2
Operating System	Windows OS
Operating System Version	7
Status	Known Limit

Additional Information

Arial Unicode MS doesn't have a bold or italic face available, thus the appearance in arcMap is "faux" bold created by increasing stroke width. This is a trick supported by Microsoft GDI, and that's why it works in JPEG or PNG. For vector formats, we convert the symbols into PDF records/dictionaries. At that time there's no way to emulate the "faux" bolding. You can also see this problem if you try to use Arial Unicode MS "bold" in annotation or labels served in a map service. The workaround is to use a font that actually has bold and/or italic faces, such as Arial.

Workaround

Print the map to Adobe PDF, and save the PDF document to the desired location. 1. File > Print > Setup > select Adobe PDF as printer > OK > OK.2. Browse to the desired location, and save the PDF.