Everyday Computer Skills · Documents, PDFs & Printing · Lesson 2 of 5
Printing and Save as PDF
Use the Print box to pick copies and pages, or save a PDF instead.
The Print box
To print something, you open the Print dialog. A dialog is a small box that pops up and asks you to make choices.
In most apps, press Ctrl+P to open it. You can also open the File menu or the ... button and click Print. On a Mac, press Command+P.
The Print dialog has a few main choices:
- Printer: which machine will print it. Check the name matches the printer near you.
- Copies: how many of each page you want.
- Pages: which pages to print. Choose All, or type a range. "1-2" means pages 1 and 2. "1,3" means pages 1 and 3 only.
Most Print dialogs show a preview. A preview is a small picture of how the paper will look. Look at it before you click Print. It can save paper and ink.
Not sure about a setting? Leave it as it is. The usual choices work for most printing.
On the practice computer, open the Print dialog. Choose the printer, set copies to 2 and pages to 1-2. Then pick Microsoft Print to PDF, a pretend printer that makes a PDF file. Name the file and save it.
Saving a page as a PDF
Sometimes you want a copy of a page, but not on paper. Maybe you want to email a receipt, or keep a ticket on your computer. You can save it as a PDF instead.
On Windows, the trick is in the Print dialog:
- Press Ctrl+P to open the Print dialog.
- In the Printer list, choose Microsoft Print to PDF. This is a pretend printer built into Windows.
- Click Print.
- A Save box asks for a name and a place. Give it a clear name, like "Train ticket".
- Look at where it is going, such as Documents. Then click Save.
Nothing comes out of a real printer. You get a PDF file instead. Some apps, like web browsers, call this choice Save as PDF. It works the same way.
On a Mac, press Command+P. At the bottom of the Print dialog, click the PDF button or menu. Then choose Save as PDF.
A PDF made this way is easy to email, keep in a folder or print later.
Try it on the practice computer
This lesson has a lab on a pretend computer right in your browser: windows, menus and settings that behave like the real thing. Nothing you do touches your own computer.
Open the labCan you answer these?
- A recipe is five pages long. You only want pages 1 and 2. What do you type in the Pages box?
- You want a receipt saved as a file on your Windows computer, not on paper. Which printer do you pick?
Answer them in the app to earn 40 XP (Pro).
Answer in the app