Plot offset problems in 2005

I am preparing to migrate our office from ACAD 2002 to ACAD 2005. In doing so I have come across some plotting problems that I could use some help with. I am running Windows XP and plotting to a JDL 5000E-II. Our standard border for a D size (24 x 36") sheet does not plot in the same place on the sheet as it did in 2002. We have "targets" in the four corners of the border (in paperspace) to window in on as the plot area. These targets are on a "no plot" layer, as we do not want them to actually show up on the plot. It appears to me that in ACAD 2002 the plotter was recognizing these targets and positioning the plot based on them. In ACAD 2005 as long as these layers are set not to plot, the plotter ignores them and positions the plot based on the border itself. The result is a plot that is incorrectly positioned and measures 23.4" x 36". Any suggestions as to why this may be happening and what I might do about it?

 

You could try creating a 0% pen and assign that color to the layer for
noplot. That way, Autocad should see the objects as your extents, but the
plotter will lay down "invisible" ink, preserving the sheet offsets... Just
a quick and dirty workaround, don't have 2005 handy to test the noplot
issues.

Mark Evinger

so I have come across some plotting problems that I could use some help
with. I am running Windows XP and plotting to a JDL 5000E-II. Our standard
border for a D size (24 x 36") sheet does not plot in the same place on the
sheet as it did in 2002. We have "targets" in the four corners of the border
(in paperspace) to window in on as the plot area. These targets are on a "no
plot" layer, as we do not want them to actually show up on the plot. It
appears to me that in ACAD 2002 the plotter was recognizing these targets
and positioning the plot based on them. In ACAD 2005 as long as these layers
are set not to plot, the plotter ignores them and positions the plot based
on the border itself. The result is a plot that is incorrectly positioned
and measures 23.4" x 36". Any suggestions as to why this may be happening
and what I might do about it?

 

Thanks for the reply - I've tried that as well. I've used color 51, set to plot by object color with a linewieght of 0.01. Setting the screening to 0% produces the same result as the "no plot". When I screen it down to 50% it is still too fine for the plotter to print and the plot comes out incorrect. As soon as I bump the screening up to 60%, the plotter will print the targets and the plot comes out the correct size and the border is in the right place. Any other thoughts?

 

We had a similar problem to what you are having. We has specific layout settings and borders tied to HP Deskjet 1220's for 8.5x11 and 11X17s. Switching to 2005 shifted the location on the page for them. Did affect anything setup for our 1050 (thank goodness)

I never could find any way to "fix" the problem, so as a workaround, I wrote a script file to "move" the titleblock and viewports to the correct location on the layout for drawings that we already had setup.

 

Are you using windows system printers or pc3? If pc3, what drivers are you using?
I am having the same problem with the paper size. Also I am having problem selecting the different trays from the pc3.
If you find a solution, please let me know.