All of these suggestions are fine, but each one involves changing internal settings (like layer colors...) or plotting to a file (wmf), writing a macro, or some such. In r-14 the total instruction would be "...click the checkbox "monochrome vectors". This would require no scripts or macros.
Oh and by the way, Word will receive ^c'ed vectors as native entities (wmf style vectors), for further use any way you wish (hint- ever try passing a series of small blocks to another user in a format they could "read" before dragging and dropping them into a target drawing?)
Yes, within the ACAD context, an arc would be considered a vector. Any object defined as a single discrete entity is considered a vector (this includes text but for different reasons), within the ACAD context. See how interesting such a simple question can be?
On secretaries: Yes a secretary can do this. That's kind of the point. He or she can do this without learning a new viewer... Also, I can format the figure any way I want it and pass it to the customer for their down-stream publication needs. This includes shaded or photo-rendered images as well, altho admittedly this is where we'd expand beyond the monochrome vectors issue, on into many other things that can be done with this basic starting approach. (hint: ever wanted to format and print a photo-rendered image with complete sheet position, print quality and typed annotation control without having to file translate to an image processing program as intermediate? Imagine being able to disregard tif,jpg,bmp translation and all similar issues?...)
On hand-marking a received fax: I've yet to find apractical approach to reinserting a hand-sketched markup back into attachable formats. Yes it can be written on and faxed back, but I have a requirement that as far as practical, my people keep electronic track of their correspondence, including faxable and attachable check-prints to their client contacts, and where possible directly re-integrate customer comments into the original drawings. Granted, this "WORD" approach only supports this process, but that's kind of the point. And where this becomes a sellable feature to the client as part of "their input to the design process", remember, paychecks...!
Smcadman: good suggestion, but the text, blocks, and colors limitations disqualify it. Yes, a 2-kestroke approach seems attractive, until you add the limitations.
Oh well. Win some, lose some.
Thanks anyway.
C. Fee