Expert: Bill DeShawn - 8/5/2005

Question
I made a new text style called dutch
Under Font name i picked Dutch801RmBt
Under font style i used Bold
When i used CHTEXT lisp & changed all the text
in a drawing i got from an architect it didn't work properly.
The text changed to dutch,but when i checked it in the m-text editor
the text was dutch but the style was Romans
Why won't it change to the correct style i made? ( Dutch801RmBt)

Answer
There are a very many issues with MTEXT and SHX fonts.  One of the things that it won't do is provide support for any SHX fonts.  I like SHX fonts because they display quickly.  TTF fonts take a long time to regen.  The ROMANS that you see displayed is a TTF substitute for the display you picked.  For other problems associated with MTEXT go here:
http://usa.autodesk.com/adsk/servlet/ps/search?la=en&siteID=123112&catID=2334116...
you will see a bunch of them.  Out of the bunch I tried to find one that matches your problem best:

From Autodesk:
Issue


When you use multiline text (mtext), third-party and custom fonts do not appear in the drop-down list on the Character tab, even though you have placed the fonts in the Fonts folder in the AutoCAD install location.


Solution


These fonts will only appear in the Mtext drop-down list on the Character tab if there is a registered TrueType equivalent font in the \Windows\Fonts folder.  

To format characters with third-party or custom fonts that do not have a registered TrueType equivalent, create a text style that uses the font, then apply that text style to the characters.

From Bill:
I prefer to use TEXT created by DTEXT and then convert to MTEXT using a LISP routine I found to do just that.  Then I get exactly what I expect - font and everything.

From Autodesk:
Issue

You copied TrueType® fonts onto your system, but the fonts are not listed in the STYLE command or available in the MText editor. Also, when you open a drawing, some text is displayed in a font other than what you expected.

Solution


TrueType® fonts must be installed by the operating system so that they are listed in the system registry.

To install TrueType fonts:

On the Start menu (Windows), click Settings > Control Panel, and then double-click Fonts.
In the Fonts dialog box, click File > Install New Font.
Browse to the drive and folder containing the fonts that you want to install.
Select the font or fonts that you want to add, and then click OK.
An alternative method is to open Windows Explorer and drag the appropriate files into the Windows\Fonts folder.

Notes:

If you move TrueType fonts from one location to another, you will have to repeat this procedure.
It is not advisable to store TrueType Fonts in a drawing directory.

From Bill:
Not knowing really if you created an SHx font or a TTF font, I'm including the following:

From Autodesk:
Issue


When you open a drawing from an outside source that uses an unregistered TrueType® font, the alternate font defined by the FONTALT setting is displayed instead. Sometimes in this situation, the Autodesk software shuts down unexpectedly and no error message is displayed. This problem occurs if the drawing file is currently open and the unregistered TrueType fonts are located in the same folder.


Solution


You must register the unregistered TrueType® font in Windows® to display the font that is specified in the drawing. Windows has a Fonts item in Control Panel that you can use for registering TrueType fonts. After the TrueType font is registered with the operating system, the font is displayed when the drawing is opened.

To register a TrueType font:

On the Windows Start menu, click Settings > Control Panel.
In Control Panel, double-click the Fonts item to open the Fonts window.
On the File menu, click Install New Font and navigate to the location of the font.
Select the fonts to load and click OK.
For help on registering TrueType fonts in Windows, refer to Help in Windows Explorer.

Important: It is your responsibility to comply with any copyright restrictions that apply to the third-party TrueType fonts that you use.

From Bill:
This is all the help I can give you with respect to Font issues in MTEXT.  I hope you can find a solution within this message.  Otherwise try:
news://discussion.autodesk.com/autodesk.autocad.2006
for more help.
Keep in touch
Bill DeShawn
http://my.sterling.net/~bdeshawn