[Dsgnr pro9] Can I ditch the print page setup, and use the printers dialog?

[HarryPutnam]

Designer pro 9
Being totally dependent on other windows programs for experience in printing, I've been unable to digest how the pro 9, print setup page is supposed to work... I've screwed up enough paper now to need to either be told how to do this, or to ditch that setup altogether and use the printers own dialog. Is that even possible?

My project is on an art board, or whatever xara folks call the backing screen where work is done, of these dimensions:
11in X 35in.

The images I've places on the backing board consist of 4 partial windows screen grabs, side by side, and leaves only about 1/8 border all around between images and backing board.

I want to print it on 8.5x11 letter size paper and allow the tools to shrink it as necessary to fit on
a landscape orientation.

I've tried Auto fit, best fit, and custom where I set the the dimensions 11in x 35in

I've selected `landscape' every where I saw the opportunity but still the darn thing is getting printed in portrait mode
and only getting a small part of the composite image. It seems there is now way to preview what my settings are going to do, short of actually printing something. That seems a little primitive... but maybe its all my lack of understanding.

No doubt, I'm bungling it up at every opportunity but still, the dialog is quite confusing (to me).

Can anyone tell me how to print this composite on 1 page, 8.5x11 in landscape mode and have the whole thing shrunk as necessary to fit?

[mwenz]

Export to PDF at full size (don't try setting page sizes or scaling), then in Reader or Acrobat, choose to tile the print. You'll see a preview.

[Gamerprinter]

Well especially since PDF is what you'd send to a printer, I agree with Mwenz that creating a PDF from Xara, then opened with Acrobat Reader and print from there works fine. However, I print to my laser printers and inkjet printers straight from Xara all the time. And I never do print setup, I just hit print, when the Print Dialog Box opens, I set parameters there and print away. For small size documents (letter size and smaller) I always print straight from Xara. When I print large format (like my maps, 24" x 36" and larger) I always create a PDF and print from PDF, but only for large stuff.

[gwpriester]

If I understand your question correctly, and there is no reason to believe I understand anything correctly , you want to print images that are not on, or entirely on the page. Is this correct? Images that are either overlapping the edge of the page or are on the pasteboard area?

Xara will only print what is on the page (the white rectangle). And even then, within the area defined by your printer. In the Window menu, select Show Print Borders.

If you need to print anything that is larger than the page size for your printer, you will need to either reduce the objects to be printed to fit within the page size for your printer, or print in sections, and assemble the sections after all have been printed.

[PhilM]

Xara Designer is a WYSIWYG application.

Set your page size in Designer to be what you want to see printed out, fit your images onto the page, Print.

Phil

[mwenz]

...Can anyone tell me how to print this composite on 1 page, 8.5x11 in landscape mode and have the whole thing shrunk as necessary to fit?

Sorry, Harry. I misread this portion.

I would still export to PDF, then in Reader or Acrobat, tell it to fit to the single page. All very easy and you do not need to change anything in XDP as regards page size.

I rarely print direct from any application for a couple reasons. One is it can be a waste of paper if there is an issue. If it hits the PDF properly, it will print to any of my printers and or to a service bureau.

Mike

[Albacore]

Sometimes you can get conflict between the page set up in Xara and the printer drivers orientation and that what causes the partial print on a page. Set up through the control panel and then into your printer preference for your page size and orientation (8.5 x 11, landscape). Then go into Xara and set up the same page size & orientation, also at the same time go into "printer setup", "preference" from Xara file menu to just check orientation is still correct & has not set to default (portrait). Then bring in your larger page doc. and scale to fit, with padlock on, you can use import or copy & paste. If you printer driver has "Preview before Printing" I would turn that on so you don't waste any more ink or paper so that you can see what your're about to print. Mike's way would be simple to do but PDF changes the colour output from RGB to CMYK so colours may look washed out.

[mwenz]

...Mike's way would be simple to do but PDF changes the colour output from RGB to CMYK so colours may look washed out.

If'n one desires RGB in a PDF, just make it that way. One can change the output color model in the PDF export.

Mike

[Acorn]

Having wasted paper and ink lots, I always use Window > Show Print Borders.
When it is really important I create a separate layer and copy all the objects set to no fill and a thin line and print that onto plain paper to save time and ink to be really sure it fits as I want it.

Acorn

[Gamerprinter]

I've been doing digital printing since 1994 professionally, and even longer on my own, but I have essentially never wasted paper nor ink/toner. I guess my understanding of page size, print area, deletion areas (areas around the edge that a printer cannot print), and designing documents intended for print - I've never really encountered a problem printing what I intended based on a given design. I find all of the mentions of wasted paper and ink kind of surprising, as what a given printer can and cannot do, and what steps need to be taken at the design stage to insure a minimal of printing errors. I find it easy and obvious - I can't imagine how one could screw that up...?