Frequently Asked Questions

Question: Why does XL2CAD create named ranges in my spreadsheet?
Answer: Because without named ranges, there is no way to know if you have inserted/deleted rows/cols. Because of named ranges, our software has the ability to shrink or expand the results on update!
Question: Why are some of my spreadsheet cells shifted vertically?
Answer: The problem is that XL2CAD creates Mtext objects and AutoCAD has no baseline justification for mtext objects. That means we have to use a bottom, middle, or top alignment. The shift problem occurs if you use bottom justification and the cell contains lowercase letters with descenders like "g". This problem can also occur if using top justification and the cell contains tall characters like "(".

The best approach is to format the cells in Excel using the vertical center option. Select the data range in Excel, choose the Format menu, then Cells, then on the Alignment tab set the vertical alignment to center.
Question: Why are lines drawn through my merged rows and/or columns?
Answer: Sometimes Excel will report incorrect merge information. There is a possibility that some Excel spreadsheets were created (or modified) in a spreadsheet product other than Microsoft Excel. This can usually be fixed by this procedure:
  1. Place your cell cursor in the merged area.
  2. Click the ↔ Merge & Center button to unmerge the cells.
  3. Click the button again to remerge the cells.
  4. Repeat at step 1 for additional areas.

After this change to the spreadsheet, Excel will report the correct merge information and XL2CAD will not draw lines through the merged areas.
Question: XL2CAD is not wrapping the lines at the same place that Excel is.
Answer: Keep in mind that XL2CAD does not determine where the line wraps. It creates mtext objects with a specified width, and AutoCAD determines where the words wrap. Excel will often wrap on a dash in a string with no spaces where AutoCAD won't.

Here is the proper way to achieve in-cell carriage returns:

To push contents down to the next line, some Excel users have inserted spaces until Excel Word wraps. This approach does not port well. The proper way is to place your cursor at the point you want to begin a new line, and press ALT+ENTER to insert the carriage return.
Question: Why do my truetype fonts look "thick & grainy" on the drawing?
Answer: At various zoom levels (especially zoomed out) AutoCAD can make truetype fonts look this way. However if you zoom in close it should look better. It should also plot correctly.

This is usually caused by manually scaling the block placed by XL2CAD. A better approach is to determine the best scale factor for XL2CAD to use, so that subsequent scaling using AutoCAD is not needed.
Question: How do I create a named range in Excel?
Answer: Use this procedure to create a named range. Note that XL2CAD functions look for its special name in processing.
  1. Choose the sheet by clicking the appropriate tab at the bottom.
  2. Highlight the desired rectangular area using the mouse or keyboard.
  3. Choose the Insert pulldown, then Name, then Define.
  4. Type in a valid name like "MYRANGE", then choose OK.
Question: Is there a limit to the number of named ranges that can be created?
Answer: The limit appears to be slightly more than 65,000, certainly more than should be needed.