Posted by cdoty_IL on 5/4/09 7:51pm
Msg #287254

PDF Printing issue

I am somtimes noticing that the very left and very bottom margin of the docs are sometimes being cut off on my printer when printing from PDF format. I am choosing "pick page by PDF size" and scaling to "none". I notice this only on the HUD in most cases because this doc in particular goes all the way to the edge of the page with text, and maybe the first letter in their name is being cut off.

I have printed the HUD out by scaling to "shrink to print area", and it looks okay and did not shrink it by much at all. However, I am a little nervous "shrinking" docs when printing. I am not exactly shrinking legal to letter (nothing drastic), but I wonder if there is something in my printer settings I need to change.

Other Info (printer is an HP 4000 TN, Running on Windows Vista, PDF prog. Adobe Reader 9)

Any suggestions??

Reply by Jim/AL on 5/4/09 7:57pm
Msg #287257

You got it right Cody, shrink to print area is the best

option I have found when it drops some margins off.

Reply by CopperheadVA on 5/4/09 8:13pm
Msg #287260

I have done that with HUD's too when necessary. Never had a complaint about it yet.

Reply by davidK/CA on 5/4/09 8:48pm
Msg #287263

I often see that the payoff info from Wells Fargo will print cut off on the top and bottom. Changing it as suggested to "shrink to printable area" fixes the problem.

Reply by MW/VA on 5/4/09 8:48pm
Msg #287264

That's why it's important to check the docs we print. I had a DOT this week that was cutting off on the right margin. I adjusted to "fit to print area" and it was ok. It comes up every now & then.

Reply by Frenchie/TN on 5/4/09 9:19pm
Msg #287270

I always use "fit to print area". There is no significant difference in the output and it prevents the problem of having some documents (hud) not printing the margins.

Reply by cdoty_IL on 5/4/09 9:28pm
Msg #287273

Thanks....

for all your input, I believe going forward I will change the scaling to "fit to print area", just to avoid this. I do not see but a minor change in the margin. Better that than missing text.

I just keep seeing the print instructions from all of these companies stating "set scaling to "none" ", so I was second guessing myself and/or wondering if my printer was the culprit.

Glad to see others have had the same issue, and have changed the "scaling" setting without issue from the lender or T/C.

Thanks again.

Reply by PAW on 5/4/09 10:19pm
Msg #287275

You should always use "Shrink to Printable Area"

If you use "Fit to Printable Area", smaller pages will be enlarged. Using "Shrink to Printable Area" will only reduce pages that are larger than the selected paper size, but will not enlarge pages that are smaller than the selected paper size.

The following is form the Adobe "help" manual based on version 9:

Page Scaling
Reduces, enlarges, or divides pages when printing.

** None
Prints the upper left or center of a page (if auto-rotated and centered) without scaling. Pages or selections that don’t fit on the paper are cropped.

** Fit To Printable Area
Reduces or enlarges each page to fit the printable area of the currently selected paper size. For PostScript® printers, the PPD determines the printable area of the paper.

** Shrink To Printable Area
Shrinks large pages to fit the currently selected paper size but doesn’t enlarge small pages. If an area is selected and is larger than the printable area of the currently selected paper, it’s scaled to fit the printable area. This option is always active during N-up printing.l

** Tile Large Pages
Applies tiling to pages that are larger than the selected paper size at the specified scale. These pages are mapped to multiple sheets of paper. If this option is selected, you can also specify settings for Tile Scale, Overlap, Cut Marks, and Labels.

** Tile All Pages
Applies tiling to all pages, regardless of size. However, only the pages that are larger than the selected paper size at the specified scale are mapped to multiple sheets of paper. If this option is selected, you can also specify settings for Tile Scale, Overlap, Cut Marks, and Labels.

** Multiple Pages Per Sheet
Enables N-up printing, where multiple pages print on the same sheet of paper. If this option is selected, you can also specify settings for Pages Per Sheet, Page Order, Print Page Border, and Auto-Rotate Pages.
Note: N-up printing in Acrobat is independent of the N-up printing features of printer drivers. The Acrobat print settings don’t reflect the N-up settings of the printer drivers. Select N-up printing either in Acrobat or in the printer driver, but not both.

** Booklet Printing
Prints multiple pages on the same sheet of paper in the order required to read correctly when folded. The printer must support duplex printing (printing on both sides of the sheet). Acrobat automatically enables duplex printing, if available, for booklet printing.

Reply by Susan Fischer on 5/5/09 12:02am
Msg #287278

Wow. Perfect question, perfect answers. And I'll add my

two cents about 'instructions:' Sometimes, they just either don't make any sense, or they're just flat out wrong. I suspect some of those instructions re formatting, i.e. font size, printer options, etc, may derive from people who have dealt with legal filing experience. Some courts actually measure margins and font size, and when there's a page limit, squishing is not uncommonly attempted - but I do not believe it would apply to this tool to include the edges of text.

We all have different systems, and the people who generate docs all have different scanners, programs, and levels of training - and, we've all seen some doozies.

Since there have been no reported problems with the 'shrink to fit print area,' (in our totally official poll ) I'd say those 'instructions' are generic, and aren't a 'one size fits all' imperative. (pun intended.)

Thanks so much for your excellent question, Cdoty, and kudos to all the answerers.

Reply by cdoty_IL on 5/5/09 11:56am
Msg #287299

"Shrink to fit print area" is the way to go....

Thanks PAW and Susan for your feedback, I also printed out the Page Scaling descriptions for future reference also, it gives a great definition of the difference between "Fit" and "Shrink" to print area. I will use this next time I am rushing to print and having a "brain fart". :-)