Tuesday, January 11, 2011

Print multiple PowerPoint slides per page

Hi, again!
I am busy because of final exams, so I can update less frequently.

Yesterday, I was trying to print 4 slides per page without noticeable quality loss.
I know two ways to do this :
  1.  Using PowerPoint options
    1. Open slides in PowerPoint. Open print dialog.
    2. Under "Print What:" choose "Handouts"
    3. As you will see you can choose how many slides will be printed per page. (default=6)
    4. Under "Color/grayscale" choose "Grayscale" if you are printing on monochrome printer.
    5. Click on "OK" and it is done!
  2. Using Foxit Reader or Adobe Reader (or other PDF viewers) options
I describe details for Foxit Reader, but it will be similar for the other viewers (if they are really capable of it)
    1. Convert PowerPoint slides to PDF.
      1. I suggest using a PDF printer driver. It registers itself as a printer and you can print documents on it! and save them as PDF.
      2. You can also use "Save as PDF or XPS" addon. Then under "Save as" menu choose "PDF or XPS" and save a copy of presentation as PDF.
    2. Open the PDF file. Open print dialog.
    3. Under "Page Arrange:" choose "Multiple pages per sheet"
    4. Under "Page Scaling:" choose "Fit to Paper"
    5. Under "Pages per sheet:" you can choose how many pages will be printed on paper.
    6. If you are printing Portrait(horizontal) I suggest you to check "Auto-Rotate"
    7. Check "Print as Grayscale" if you are printing on monochrome printer.
I suggest method two because method one will waste a lot of space on every sheet.

Foxit Reader and Adobe Reader are freeware PDF viewers for Windows.
Bullzip PDF Printer is a PDF printer driver free for individual use.
You can download "Save as PDF or XPS" for Office 2007 here.

This is my first post on 2011. So HAPPY NEW YEAR!