symbols DISSAPEAR when I save my .ai document!?

[e79]

I made a design in illustrator. It contains a jpg, a trace layer of the jpg and various other illustrator shapes and text.
I finished it by making a symbol and spraying it on my design.

NOW, I saved it as both a .ai document and pdf file, but both times my symbols are MISSING when I open them up to view them in acrobat reader, photoshop or preview.

Anyone know what's going on?

 

[zekesdad]

You didn't say how you created the symbols, but if you used the Carta or Zapf Dingbats fonts to create them, these fonts are a problem in all Adobe programs it seems...some licensing thing.

If you did create symbols using these fonts, try converting the symbols to outlines, using the Create Outlines feature under TYPE in the AI menu.