Troubleshoot printing

When I try to print, nothing happens.

Try one of the following:

Make sure your printer is turned on and is online. There might be a button or switch labeled "Online."
Check both ends of the cable between your computer and printer to verify that the connections are tight.
Verify that the printer has paper.
Verify that the print range selected in the Print dialog box corresponds to the slides you want to print. Then, on the File menu, click Print.
Verify that the printer name in the Print dialog box matches the printer you're using. Then, on the File menu, click Print.
Check the status of your print job in the Microsoft Windows Printers folder.
Try printing another presentation. If that presentation prints, the problem might be related to content in your original presentation.
If you're printing over a network, make sure your network connection is intact. Check with your network administrator for assistance.

Why aren't my slides showing in color in print preview?

If you are printing to a grayscale printer, your slides will show in grayscale in print preview.

When I print-preview my slides in grayscale, the slide background shows as white instead of a shade that reflects a color background.

Microsoft PowerPoint shows you a preview of the printed slide in a modified grayscale because sometimes that produces a more readable printed version than you would get with color printed in true grayscale (in PowerPoint, you see true grayscale when, if printing to a grayscale printer, you preview the slide in Color mode as opposed to Grayscale mode). For example, if your slide background is a dark color, it will print black or dark gray on a grayscale printer, and text on top of it might not be easy to read. The Grayscale mode shows you how it would look with some of the background switched to white. To view the slide in true grayscale in print preview, on the Views menu, point to Color/Grayscale, and then click Color.

The gridlines in my embedded Microsoft Word table don't appear in my printed document.

If you have an embedded Microsoft Word table, gridlines appear only on the screen. To print vertical and horizontal lines between cells, you need to apply borders to the table.

The easiest way to apply borders in Word is to use the Table AutoFormat command on the Table menu in Word, which automatically applies predefined borders and shading.

You can also create a table directly in Microsoft PowerPoint. To insert a table, click Tables and Borders and draw your table. Gridlines are displayed, and will print.

Printing is too slow.

If you feel that the printing is taking too long, try the following:

Make sure your hard disk has at least 2 megabytes of free space.
If you have several programs open, close any programs you don't need.
If printing is still too slow, try turning off the Background Printing. On the Tools menu, click Options, and then click the Print tab. Clear the Background Printing check box.

Text runs off the edge of the page.

If text runs off the edge of the paper when you print, one of the following may be the problem:

The wrong printer is selected. Click Start on the Microsoft Windows taskbar, point to Settings, and then click Printers. Select the correct printer, and then on the File menu, click Set as Default.
There could be a problem with the printer driver, or you might have an incorrect version of the driver installed. To install the correct drivers, reinstall your printer.

Fonts on the printed slides, notes, or handouts look different than those I see on the screen.

Some fonts that you see on the screen are not available in print form. When this happens, the printer substitutes fonts. To fix the problem, change the fonts in your presentation to TrueType fonts, or use a printer font that has a matching Microsoft Windows screen font. To make font changes, click Start on the Windows taskbar, point to Settings, and then click Printers. Select the printer, and on the File menu, click Properties, click the Fonts tab, and then click the options you want.

Slides aren't centered or the right size on the printed page.

The settings in the Page Setup dialog box may not be correct. On the File menu, click Page Setup. Click the correct option in the Slides sized for box. If you click Custom, make sure the measurements in the Width and Height boxes are correct.

Consult your printer documentation for information about the print areas your printer supports.

I get a "too many fonts" message when I print.

You might be using fonts that are installed on your computer, but not on your printer.

Try reducing the number of fonts in your presentation.
Consult your printer documentation for information about your printer's memory, the number of fonts it can support, and how to download the fonts.

When I print my presentation in black and white, it doesn't look good.

You can print in either grayscale or in pure black and white. Pure black and white hides all shades of gray, including object fills. Before you print, try the following:

Set up your presentation to print in black and white

This process does not change colors or design in the original color presentation.

On the View menu, point to Color/Grayscale, and then click Grayscale or Pure Black and White.
Do one of the following:
- To adjust the look of any object, right-click the object, point to Grayscale or Black and White Setting on the shortcut menu, and then click the option you want.
- To select multiple objects, hold down SHIFT while you right-click each object, point to Grayscale or Black and White Setting on the shortcut menu, and then click the option you want.

Note You can apply different grayscale or black-and-white settings to different objects on the same slide.

Some of my text does not appear when I print in grayscale.

If you have text that overlaps an object that has a black fill, the text and object fill both print black; so the text doesn't show up.

To have your text appear over a black background, do one of the following:

Print in pure black and white. On the View menu, point to Color/Grayscale, and then click Pure Black and White. When you select this option, your objects will not have a fill when they are printed.
Adjust the grayscale setting for specific objects. On the View menu, point to Color/Grayscale, and then click Grayscale. Right-click the object that has the dark fill, point to Grayscale settings, and then click Light Grayscale. When you select this option, your object may not look as you had intended and may be inconsistent with other objects that have the same fill.

These changes will not affect the colors in the original color presentation.