WD6X: Printers and Printing Q & A

ID: Q104603


The information in this article applies to:
  • Microsoft Word for Windows, version 6.0
  • Microsoft Windows 3.1

This article contains questions and answers about printers and printing in Word for Windows.

MORE INFORMATION

  1. Q. Why doesn't background printing work when I print from Word 6.0 to my Hewlett-Packard(R) (HP(R)) DeskJet(R) printer?

    A. Word turns off the Background Printing option and makes the option unavailable under the Printing tab of the Tools Options dialog box when you use certain versions of the HP printer drivers for the HP DeskJet printer. Word does this for the following HP printer drivers because they sometimes fail to print small portions of text when the Background Printing option is turned on:

    • DJ500C.DRV versions 2.x for the DeskJet printer series


    • DESKJETC.DRV version 3.1 for the DeskJet printer series


    With background printing turned off in Word, these printer drivers print reliably and lose no text.

    You can turn on the Background Printing option for these printer drivers by setting a printer heuristic in the WINWORD6.INI file using the following procedure. However, keep in mind that some portions of text in your Word document may not print.

    1. From the File menu, choose Print.


    2. Choose the Printer button.


    3. From the Printers list, select your DeskJet printer, and then choose the Set As Default Printer button.


    4. In the Print Setup dialog box, choose the Close button. In the File Print dialog box, choose the Close button.


    5. Open the MACRO60.DOT file, supplied with Word. This file is located in the <WINWORD6>\TEMPLATE subdirectory (where <WINWORD6>is the name of your Word 6.0 directory).


    6. From the Tools menu, choose Macro.


    7. From the Macros Available In list, select Macro60.dot (Template).


    8. From the Macro Name list, select SetPrintFlags and then choose the Run button.


    9. In the Set Printer Flags dialog box, clear the Disable Background Printing, +64 option and then choose OK.


    10. When the following message appears, choose Yes:


    11. Do you want to replace current settings with these options?
      This will change printing behavior!


  2. Q. How do I change the formatting for the envelopes I print in Word?

    A. When you use the Envelopes And Labels command on the Tools menu to create envelopes in Word 6.0, you can change the font formatting and address position by doing the following:

    1. From the Tools menu, choose Envelopes And Labels.


    2. Select the Envelopes tab and then choose the Options button.


    3. In the Envelope Options dialog box, select the Envelope Options tab.


    4. Modify the font and position settings for the delivery and return addresses and then choose OK.

      NOTE: If you want to change the default font settings, choose the Default button in the Envelope Return Address and Envelope Address dialog boxes.


    5. Print your envelope or add it to your document.


    For more information on the Envelopes And Labels command, see Chapter 23, "Printing," in the "Microsoft Word User's Guide" or search for "envelopes" using the Help menu.


  3. Q. Why doesn't my graphic print in Word?

    A. Graphics may not print for a variety of reasons, including the following:


    1. Your printer may not be able to print a graphic image that you scaled in Word. To print the graphic in Word, do one of the following:


      1. Scale the image in the original application.


      2. -or-
      3. Remove the scaling formatting from the graphic in Word and then try printing again. To remove scaling, choose Picture from the Format menu, choose the Reset button, and then choose OK.


    2. You may have an old or incompatible version of your printer driver. You should always print using the latest version of the Windows driver for your printer. To determine your printer driver version, do the following:


      1. From the File menu, choose Print.


      2. Choose the Printer button, then choose the Options button.


      3. Choose the About button. The version of your printer driver should appear in the About dialog box. If there is no About button in the Options dialog box, look for a version number in the Options dialog box, near the OK button.


    3. The Draft Output check box may be selected in the Print Options dialog box. To print graphics, clear this check box by doing the following:


      1. From the Tools menu, choose Options.


      2. Select the Print tab.


      3. Clear the Draft Output check box and then choose OK.


    4. The Drawing Objects check box may not be selected in the Print Options dialog box. To print drawing objects you created in Word, select this option using the following steps:


      1. From the File menu, choose Print.


      2. Choose the Options button.


      3. Select the Drawing Objects option and then choose OK.


    5. If your graphic is an encapsulated PostScript(R) (EPS) file, you must print it to a PostScript printer. If you do not have a PostScript printer, you cannot print an EPS graphic. If you have a PostScript printer, use the following steps to make sure you are using the PostScript printer driver:


      1. From the File menu, choose Print.


      2. Choose the Printer button.


      3. Select your PostScript printer in the Printers list and then choose the Set As Default Printer button.

        NOTE: If your PostScript printer does not appear in the Printers list, you must install the printer driver using the Printers icon in the Windows Control Panel.


  4. Q. How can I increase the printing speed of Word for Windows?

    A. Here are five things you can do to increase the printing speed of Word:


    1. Use a printer font instead of a downloadable font.


    2. Make sure there is a SET TEMP statement in your AUTOEXEC.BAT file and that it points to a valid directory with at least 2 megabytes of free disk space.


    3. In Windows Print Manager, choose the High Priority setting to allocate more computer processor time to Print Manager. Your documents print faster, but you must wait longer for the hourglass to disappear in Word when you print.


    4. Make more conventional memory available by doing any or all of the following:


      1. Remove unnecessary device drivers and memory-resident software, such as screen savers and virus-detection software, from your CONFIG.SYS and AUTOEXEC.BAT files.


      2. In Word, switch to draft view. To do this, choose Options on the Tools menu, select the View tab, and select the Draft Font option.


      3. Maximize both the Word application and all document windows.


    5. From the Tools menu, choose Options, select the Printing tab, and clear the Background Printing check box. When this option is not selected, your documents print faster, but you must wait longer for the hourglass to disappear in Word when you print.


  5. Q. I am using a Hewlett-Packard (HP) LaserJet(R) IIP with Word and my envelope does not print or it prints incorrectly. What can I do?

    A. If you are running under Windows version 3.1, choose Print Setup from the File menu, and make sure the printer selected is the IIP, not the Series II. If the Series II is selected, the envelope address prints in the wrong position.


  6. Q. In Word 2.0, I use the Page Setup command on the Format menu to change the paper size, paper source, paper orientation, and margin settings. How do I change these settings in Word 6.0?

    A. In Word 6.0, you can change these settings by choosing Page Setup from the File menu. For more information, see Chapter 11 in the "Microsoft Word User's Guide."


  7. Q. How do I change to a different printer in Word 6.0?

    A. When you switch to a different printer in Word, you also change the default printer setting for Windows. Use the following steps to switch to a different printer in Word 6.0:


    1. From the File menu, chose Print.


    2. Choose the Printers button.


    3. Select the printer you want to use and then choose the Set As Default Printer button.

      NOTE: If your printer does not appear in the Printers list, you must install its printer driver using the Printers icon in the Windows Control Panel.


  8. Q. How do I get my document to print from a different tray on my printer?

    A. Use the following steps to switch to a different paper tray:


    1. From the File menu, choose Page Setup.


    2. Select the Paper Source tab.


    3. Select the printer bin you want to use in the First Page and Other Pages boxes, then choose OK.


  9. Q. When I try to print, nothing happens. What should I do?

    A. First, use the steps in the "Troubleshooting" section of Chapter 23, "Printing," in the "Microsoft Word User's Guide." If you still can't print, use the following additional troubleshooting steps:


    1. Check the status of your print job in Windows Print Manager. If the print job is stalled, choose the Resume button.


    2. Try printing a file supplied with Word, such as README.DOC. If that file prints, the problem may be related to your document. To rule out this possibility, save your file in rich-text format (RTF) using the following steps:


      1. From the File menu, choose Save As.


      2. From the Save File As Type list, select Rich Text Format.


      3. In the File Name box, type a new filename with an RTF extension, and then choose OK.


      4. From the File menu, choose Open.


      5. In the List Files Of Type box, select Rich Text Format.


      6. Select the file you saved in step c above and then choose OK. If Word prompts you to convert the file, choose OK.


      7. Try printing the document.


    3. If you are printing over a network, make sure your network connection is intact. Check with your network administrator for assistance.


    4. If you still can't print, try to print a file from the Windows Write program. If you cannot print from Write, the problem is probably affecting all your Windows-based applications. Contact Microsoft Product Support Services for Windows at (425) 637-7098.


  10. Q. How can I get my table gridlines to print?

    A. Table gridlines do not print. Word uses table gridlines to display the table on the screen. To print lines between table cells, add borders to the table. You can use the Grid preset border in the Borders And Shading command to place a border around each cell in your table, as described in the following procedure:


    1. From the Table menu, choose Select Table to select the entire table.


    2. From the Format menu, choose Borders And Shading.


    3. Select the Borders tab.


    4. In the Presets box, select Grid and then choose OK.


  11. Q. What can I do if the text on my envelopes is printing in the wrong location?

    A. When the text on your envelopes prints in the wrong location, the settings in the Envelope Printing Options dialog box may not be correct for your printer. To change these settings, do the following:


    1. From the Tools menu, choose Envelopes And Labels.


    2. Choose the Options button.


    3. Select the Print Options tab.


    4. Select the Feed Method icon that matches the envelope feeding direction your printer uses. Change the other settings if necessary and then choose OK.


    5. Print your envelope or add it to your document.


  12. Q. How do I put an envelope button on my toolbar?

    A. You can use the Customize command on the Tools menu to add any command to a toolbar in Word. Use the procedure below to add an envelope button to your toolbar. See Chapter 31 in the "Microsoft Word for Windows User's Guide" for more information.


    1. From the Tools menu, choose Customize.


    2. Select the Toolbars tab.


    3. From the Categories list, select Tools.


    4. In the Buttons box, locate the Envelope button.


    5. Drag the Envelope button and drop it where you want it to appear on the desired toolbar.


    6. If you want the Envelope button to be available globally, select NORMAL.DOT from the Save Changes In box, then choose the Close button.


Additional query words: fast tips voice script msav q and a

Keywords : kbprint kbdta kbenvelope winword word6
Version : WINDOWS:3.1,6.0
Platform : WINDOWS
Issue type : kbinfo


Last Reviewed: November 4, 1999
© 2000 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved. Terms of Use.