How can you design when you can't print?

The next biggest bane in the design world is the tools we are forced to work with. Yes the shoemakers’ kids have no shoes and all that, but what I’m talking about here is the main evil of them all. The Printer.

We live in a paper world. 50% of my deliverables are in paper format. So why, why is it such a huge production to get things printed out? Today I had to deal with printing to plotters in particular.

What did I learn? A computer can set custom print sizes and that the magic difference between Portrait and Landscape is not apparent to everyone.

Setting custom print sizes for PCs in not difficult. Just follow these simple steps:

1. Start Menu > Settings > Printers and Faxes
2. RT-Click PLOTTER NAME > Properties >
3. Printing Preferences > Basic Setup tab
4. In the Paper section:
5. Choose << Edit paper list >> at bottom of Size pull down menu
6. Paper Sizes dialog box pops up
7. From the Custom Paper Sizes box choose “Custom 1”
8. Enter width and height. (X” is the width of the plotter paper)
9. Select OK for Paper Sizes dialog
10. Repeat steps 5 – 9 for each Custom size needed.
11. Select radio button called Roll
12. Confirm that custom page sizes are set in Size pull down


For Macs, do the following:

1. Open the document you want to print, and choose File > Page Setup.
2. Choose Manage Custom Sizes from the Paper Size pop-up menu.
3. Click the Add (+) button.
4. Enter values in the Paper Size
5. Either choose your printer's default margins from the pop-up menu, or enter your own values for margins in the Left, Right, Top, and Bottom fields.
6. If you want to change the custom size's name, double-click the name in the list and enter a new name.
7. Click OK.



Now for love of design here is a breakdown of Portrait and Landscape:


Keep these tips in mind when dealing with oversized print issues. Just tell the computer how big to print & which direction to print the computer will do it correctly.