Mike Demers sends us a tip that shows how to insert text from a Microsoft Word file into mtext. This shortcut is great if a client sends you text in a Word document or if you're converting notes in a Word document into an AutoCAD drawing and you don't want to waste time or risk making mistakes by retyping into AutoCAD.

• Open the Word file that has the text you want to insert into mtext.
• Save the Word file as a TXT file or an RTF file.
• Go to the AutoCAD drawing where you want to insert the Word text. Enter the Mtext command.
• Right-click inside the Mtext Editor and choose the Import Text option. Then browse for and select the TXT or RTF file.

Notes from Cadalyst Tip Patrol: This is a great tip. Inserting text from a word processor has many advantages. Somebody else can type the notes (document), there is an outside source that is easily updated, you can take advantage of the typing tools in other software, and more. You might even want to consider linking to the text file as an OLE object instead of inserting the text. That way when the text file is updated, the CAD file is updated.