HELP needed

Jeff Potter said:

I inherited a number of .DGN drawings. I run a PC with windows 10 OS and not a MAC which the drawings were originally drafted in

If those files were created on a Macinstosh it was unlikely to have been by MicroStation.  MicroStation has been a Windows-only product since 2001.

Can't the originator of those DGN files save in another format?

Depending where in the world you are, you could contact a local MicroStation user group.  Perhaps someone would be kind enough to help you to convert those files.  Alternatively, you might try to obtain a trial version of MicroStation, which would enable you to do the conversion in the limited time before the demo license expires.

Once you have MicroStation, the  conversion process is extremely simple.  MicroStation can read/write DWG directly, so you just open the DGN and then Save As DWG.  MicroStation lets you export to DXF format.

Thanks Jon. The originator is sadly no longer with us. They were most definitely created on a MAC in the 1990's. I will look into obtaining a trail version as once the drawings are converted I have no needs to open them in Microstation. I am not sure if all the layers etc will be transferred over though so its a trail and error situation.

Jeff Potter said:

They were most definitely created on a MAC in the 1990

In that case they are in MicroStation V7 (IGDS) format.  You may be able to find a freeware translator that can convert those.  Alternatively, AutoCAD should also be able to open them.

Here are some untested suggestions...

• Safe Software
• AutoDWG

The program used was Microstation 95 and I have just discovered all the original files on the originators G4 Powerbook so I can save as .DWG from there. It would also be very useful to export as a PDF file for printing purposes. Thanks for your rapid response Jon its really appreciated.

Jeff Potter said:

It would also be very useful to export as a PDF

I'm no longer familiar with MicroStation 95, particularly on a Mac, but I believe that it should be able to print to PDF.  Choose the File|Print menu and see what plot drivers are available.

Microstation 95 was one of the last versions to be supplied for Apple and Unix.
Pdf creation was only available a couple of years after the V8 format came out, wich was around the turn of the century.
So pdf is not going to work from within Microstation 95, unless that G4 came with a pdf-driver.

Try what Jon said

You *should* be able to open the DGN files with Bentley View and Print to PDF from there.

You *should* be able to open the DGN files with Bentley View and Print to PDF from there.