How To: Make Autocad solid entities lines display in a converted shapefile

Summary

When the autocad dxf or dwg line files are converted into a shapefile the solid entities are not displayed in the view. However the entities' attributes are retained in the shapefile attribute table.

Procedure

The following illustrates the steps needed to create a line shapefile from an autocad layer with solid entities:

1. Add .dwg or .dxf file to an ArcView View.
   

   Note:
   Make certain the Cad Reader Extension is turned on.

   
   
2. Select only solid entities, and click Theme > Convert to Shapefile. Specify the name and location for the new file, and click Ok.
   
3. Select all entities except solids, and click Theme > Convert to Shapefile. Specify the name and location for the new file, and click Ok.
4. Convert the polygon shapefile to a polyline shapefile using the sample script, "cvtplypl.ave", located in the $AVHOME/samples/scripts directory.
   
5. Merge both polyline shapefiles together using the merge function provided in the Geoprocessing Wizard.
   
   For more information, refer to "CAD drawings and Arcview feature classes" in the Arcview on-line help.