How do I print a whole excel file in colour when the default is mo

[Chris C]

Our printer defaults are set to print all docs in monochrome.

On a multi sheet excel file, If I click print then choose entire workbook
and then change my print options to colour, it prints the first worksheet in
colour, and all the others in mono.

How can I get them all to print in colour?

Thanks

 

[Gord Dibben]

Chris

Print options are sheet-related, not book-related.

First group the sheets by right-click on the first sheet tab and "select all
sheets".

File>Page Setup>Sheet. Uncheck "black and white".

Ungroup the sheets by right-click and "ungroup sheets"

Now File>Print>Entire workbook.


Gord Dibben MS Excel MVP

On Wed, 11 Jan 2006 08:45:03 -0800, "Chris C" <Chris

 

[Chris C]

Thanks for your help.

The Black and White check box was not selected when I did this. It is on
the print server that we set the default to be mono, and it is within the
print settings that we change it to colour. Is there a way to apply this to
all sheets quickly without having to go into each sheet and do
file..print..properties to set each to colour before printing the workbook?

Thanks for the info it has been most helpful.

 

[Gord Dibben]

Chris

"Group" the sheets as per my first post.

What you do to the active sheet will be done to all in the group.


Gord

 

[wjohnson]

With the print menu selected - Next to the "PRINTER NAME" there should
be a selection named "PROPERTIES" select it and under one of the
various tabs you should be able to select "COLOR" - my guess is that
the "PRINTER PROPERTIES box for color or monochrome, has the MONOCHROME
or box checked.

 

[Chris C]

This is correct.

That is how I'm changing the print option to colour. We default this to
mono on the print server as a cost saving measure so people only print in
colour when required and not as the default.

My problem is that I can't get it to apply to all sheets in a workbook.
Just the current active sheet. Even after grouping them as Gord asked, this
still has no effect.

I'm starting to believe that this is an Excel 'feature'. We use Excel 2000,
so I'm not sure if this behaviour exists in newer versions.

Thanks for your comments.

 

[Chris C]

Gord,

Thanks again for your comments.

Unfortunately, following your instructions has no effect for me. This is
what I did.

1. Right click on Sheet 1. Select All Sheets
2. File.. Print
3. Properties
4. Change to Colour
5. Press OK.

The 3 sheets in my excel doc now print, but the first one is in colour, the
rest are not. This is even backed up by the print preview. I've tried this
on HP and Lexmark printers so It's not a driver issue. Looks like an Excel
thing. We run Excel 2000 here so maybe it doesn't do this in a later version?

Thanks

 

[Gord Dibben]

Chris

Try this.........

1. Select all sheets

2. File>Page Setup>Sheet

3. Uncheck "black and white"

I think that's where your problem lies.


Gord

 

[Chris C]

Gord,

I have tried this. The check box was not checked. My prints still behave
in the same way.

Thanks

 

[dup]

Same problem for me.

I use Office 2003 SP2.

Gord,

I have tried this. The check box was not checked. My prints still behave
in the same way.

Thanks

 

[BizMark]

This is because Excel flushes all print-job specific settings betwee
sheets, even when in a group selection. This is evidenced in anothe
way that users of Adobe Acrobat will know. If you select a group o
sheets and print to PDFWriter, you get asked for a filename for eac
SHEET (not just for one filename and then it prints all sheets to tha
same file). Therefore, each sheet is being sent as a separate job
just that Excel automatically sends all the jobs at once when in
group selection.

However, there is no way to stop the Printer Preferences getting in th
way between the jobs - so whatever you have set over and above that i
Properties will only hold for the first sheet in the selection.

It's not a bug as such because that's what you would expect to happe
if printing the sheets separately anyway; it's just that Microsoft hav
obviously never got around to making group selections spool to print a
if they were one job - probaby because there are too many counters
pointers, indexes and handles calculated and incremented whils
rendering one worksheet to the spooler to allow other worksheets t
follow on in the same job. Probably too demanding memory and resource
wise.

However, I agree that it is annoying. It is possible to write VB
routines that use a load of SendKeys to access the printer propertie
box, get to the settings required and change them (manufacture
permitting), looping this after selecting each sheet in the boo
individually to print, but it would be of no use posting an exampl
here for one printer, because for another model (even sam
manufacturer), the whole SendKeys string will almost always need to b
different

 

[dup]

OK

Thanks to you

But, is it normal that when I print 'Entire Workbook', only the first sheet
use the printing options that I have specified, and other sheet with default
printing options ?