Linking to AutoCad files

How do I make the link download the file rather than opening it.

[mistah]

This is probably a bit of a basic question for this forum, but I can't find an answer anywhere else.

I have lots of links on my website to detailed information in PDF format. To do this I just place a link to the PDF file and when someone clicks on it, the PDF file opens up in their browser.

I now want to place some links to AutoCad (DWG) files, but these are not supported by Internet Explorer. How do I link to these so the link works like a "Save As" option, rather than trying to open the file?

[DrDoc]

Simply link directly to the file... <a href="filename.dwg">Download AutoCad file</a>

The browser will automatically prompt the user with an Open/Save as option.

[limbo]

I would zipup any files of this type - autocad files are typically large - therefore will take longer to download so the more compression the better. Users prepared to download files from your site will almost certainly be used to zip files.

Ta

Limbo

[mistah]

Thanks for your replies.

As a matter of interest, I am using the HREF link that DrDoc suggests. I have now tested it on my laptop at home, and I get the "open / save as" option that I expected. However on my PC at work, I get a blank screen with the message "file format not supported."

I guess that I'll just have to put a note on the download page directing people to right click on the link if they encounter problems.

[grahamstewart]

Might be an idea to check what MIME type your web server reports for a *.dwg file. That could account for the differing behaviour (thoug h IE tends to ignore mime type anyway!)

[bull]

mistah,
what browser gives you the error message?

[mistah]

The computer that gives the error message is Internet Explorer 6.0. However, I have just tried it on another computer with IE6.0 and get no error message. The only difference is that the computer that gives the message has the Google and Alexa toolbars loaded.

I should point out that teh error message is not a normal Windows error message. It is just a white screen in the Expolorer window with "file format not supprted" centred on the screen.

[mistah]

I just tried to download some DWG files from other sites, and the same thing happens. So it must be something to do with the settings on my computer. Could it be something to do with IE security settings?

[bull]

any plugin to view dxfdwg in IE installed? perhaps improperly? there are some around on the net.

[choster]

If you only get the message at work, and get a non-standard error message, I suspect your proxy server may be configured to reject them. Unlike, say, .jpg or .zip files, most websites don't have .dwg content, and AutoCAD is not an everyday office application for most people in most industries, so it may not be in the proxy's default list of "known" file types to allow. Check with your administrator.

[mistah]

Thanks for your replies everyone. To be honest, I just can't figure out what is causing the problem. I'm not aware of any DWG or DXF plugin, but it is possible that It could have been installed automatically by something.

The lesson to be learned, though, is to inform users to right click and select "save target as" if they have problems downloading DWG files. If it's causing problems on my computer, the chances are it will cause problems on the computer of one of my target customers.