OL98: Outlook Does Not Print Forms as Expected

• Microsoft Outlook 98

SYMPTOMS

You want to print an Outlook form in a specific format, but there doesn't appear to be a way to do this.

CAUSE

Outlook can only print forms with the options that are available in the Print dialog box. For programmers, the Outlook object model does not provide additional ways of directly changing the print format of a form.

MORE INFORMATION

IMPORTANT: This article requires knowledge of creating custom Outlook forms and using Visual Basic Scripting Edition. It provides a basic example of how to begin implementing a solution and will most likely require considerable customization to suit a specific need. If you do not have a background in programming and implementing a custom solution, you may wish to seek the assistance of a Solution Provider. For more information on how to contact a Microsoft Solution Provider, please consult the Knowledge Base article listed in the References section of this article.

The following methods provide an overview of possible approaches you can use to solve this problem. These approaches should be evaluated based on factors such as:

• Whether you are using a custom form, or would consider using one to receive additional functionality.



• Whether you need a custom print format, or just want to print the form exactly as it appears on the screen.



• Your programming background. If you are familiar with Visual Basic-type programming, you could develop a solution yourself. If not, you may want to obtain the services of a developer who could provide the solution for you.

Method 1: Use ALT+PRINT SCREEN

1. With the Outlook form currently displayed, press ALT+PRINT SCREEN. You will not see or hear anything happen.



2. Switch to or start Word.



3. Make sure you have a new document open. You may want to reduce the margins of the document to allow more room for the image to fit on the page.



4. On the Edit menu, click Paste.



5. Resize the image as appropriate. To do this, click the image once to select it. Click the Format menu, and then click Picture. Click the Size page of Format Picture. On the Size tab, set the Height and Width of the picture.



6. To print the document, on the File menu, click Print.

Method 2: Use VBScript To Automate the ALT+PRINT SCREEN Method

http://www.microsoft.com/mcsp/

http://www.microsoft.com/support/supportnet/overview/overview.asp

1. On the Tools menu, point to Forms, and click Design This Form. Click the (P.2) page of the form.



2. On the Form menu, click Control Toolbox. Drag a CommandButton control to the P.2 page of the form. Right-click the control, and then click Properties. On the Display tab, set the Name to cmdPrint, and the Caption to Print. Click OK, and then close the Control ToolBox.



3. On the Form menu, click View Code. Enter the following VBScript code into the Script Editor and then close the Script Editor:




Sub cmdPrint_Click()
   Set oWordApp = CreateObject("Word.Application")
   If oWordApp Is Nothing Then
      MsgBox "Couldn't start Word."
   Else
      Dim oWordApp
      Dim oWordDoc
      Dim oBMs
      Dim bolPrintBackground

      ' Open a new document
      Set oDoc = oWordApp.Documents.Add

      ' Set a page setup object variable
      Set oPS = oDoc.PageSetup

      ' Reduce the margins to .5" (36 points)
      oPS.TopMargin = 36
      oPS.BottomMargin = 36
      oPS.LeftMargin = 36
      oPS.RightMargin = 36

      ' Paste in the screen shot
      oWordApp.Selection.Paste

      ' Center the screen shot
      Const wdAlignParagraphCenter = 1
      oDoc.Paragraphs(1).Alignment=wdAlignParagraphCenter

      ' Get the current Word setting for background printing
      bolPrintBackground = oWordApp.Options.PrintBackground

      ' Turn background printing off
      oWordApp.Options.PrintBackground = False

      ' Print the Word document
      oDoc.PrintOut

      ' Restore previous setting
      oWordApp.Options.PrintBackground = bolPrintBackground

      ' Close and don't save changes to the document
      Const wdDoNotSaveChanges = 0
      oDoc.Close wdDoNotSaveChanges

      ' Close the Word instance
      oWordApp.Quit

      ' Clean up
      Set oPS = Nothing
      Set oDoc = Nothing
      Set oWordApp = Nothing
   End If
End Sub 

4. On the Tools menu, click Forms, and then click Publish Form. The window should default to storing the contact form in your Contacts folder. Enter Print Test as the Display Name and then click Publish.



5. Close and do not save changes to the form.

To Test the Form

1. On the Actions menu, click New Print Test.



2. Press ALT+PRINT SCREEN.



3. Click the P.2 page of the form and click Print.

Method 3: Generate a Custom Report

To Create the Sample Word Template

1. Open a new document in Word.



2. On the View menu, click Toolbars, and then click Forms.



3. Click the Text Form Field button on the Forms toolbar to insert a form field. Press ENTER twice, and then click the Text Form Field button again to insert a second form field. Note that the form fields have default bookmark names of Text1 and Text2.



4. Click the Protect Form button on the Forms toolbar to protect the template.



5. On the File menu, click Save As. Change the Save As Type setting to Word Template, change the Save In setting to C:\, type MyForm as the name of the template, and click Save.



6. Close the template.

To Create the Outlook Form

1. Open a new, default contact form. On the Tools menu, click Forms, and then click Design This Form. Click the (P.2) page of the form.



2. On the Form menu, click Control Toolbox. Drag a CommandButton control onto the P.2 page of the form. Right-click the control, and then click Properties. On the Display tab, set the Name to cmdPrint, and the Caption to Print. Click OK, and then close the Control ToolBox.



3. On the Form menu, click View Code. Enter the following VBScript code into the Script Editor and then close the Script Editor:




Sub cmdPrint_Click()
   Set oWordApp = CreateObject("Word.Application")
   If oWordApp Is Nothing Then
      MsgBox "Couldn't start Word."
   Else
      Dim oWordApp
      Dim oWordDoc
      Dim bolPrintBackground

      ' Open a new document
      Set oDoc = oWordApp.Documents.Add("C:\MyForm.dot")

      ' Set the first bookmark to the contact's full name
      oDoc.FormFields("Text1").Result = CStr(Item.FullName)

      ' Set the second bookmark to the contact's birthday
      oDoc.FormFields("Text2").Result = CStr(Item.Birthday)

      ' If the form contains user-defined fields, you can use
      ' the following syntax to transfer the contents of a
      ' user-defined field (FieldName) to Word:
      ' strMyField = Item.UserProperties.Find("FieldName")
      ' oDoc.FormFields("Text3").Result = strMyField

      ' Get the current Word setting for background printing
      bolPrintBackground = oWordApp.Options.PrintBackground

      ' Turn background printing off
      oWordApp.Options.PrintBackground = False

      ' Print the Word document
      oDoc.PrintOut

      ' Restore previous setting
      oWordApp.Options.PrintBackground = bolPrintBackground

      ' Close and don't save changes to the document
      Const wdDoNotSaveChanges = 0
      oDoc.Close wdDoNotSaveChanges

      ' Close the Word instance
      oWordApp.Quit

      ' Clean up
      Set oDoc = Nothing
      Set oWordApp = Nothing
   End If
End Sub 

4. On the Tools menu, click Forms, and then click Publish Form. The window should default to storing the contact form in your Contacts folder. Type Send Fields as the Display Name, and then click Publish.



5. Close and do not save changes to the form.

To Test the Form

1. On the Actions menu, click New Send Fields.



2. Enter a full name for the contact, and on the Details page of the form, enter a birthday.



3. Click the P.2 page of the form, and click Print.

Method 4: Use the XPrint Control or Add-in

Q238778 OL2000: General Information About the XPrint Control and Add-in

REFERENCES

For more information about creating solutions with Microsoft Outlook 98, please click the article numbers below to view the articles in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

Q180826 OL98: Resources for Custom Forms and Programming

Q182349 OL98: Questions About Custom Forms and Outlook Solutions

Additional query words: OutSol OutSol98

Keywords :
Version : WINDOWS:
Platform : WINDOWS
Issue type : kbprb