Printer page size setting stuck on A4

[adam_hardy]

Hi All

I have a problem printing. I have A6 format paper but despite setting the Writer document page setting to A6 and also the printer properties setting in the Windows Devices and Printers, I still see that it wants to print A4.

When I call up the print menu, the little print preview shows the size of the page. For every other printer e.g. CutePDF, it shows A6 correctly. When I select the Epson P50 Series printer, it switches to A4.

If I then go into the Epson P50 Series printer properties and select A6 and then OK it, it ignores my selection! It seems A4 is somehow jammed in there if I try to select A6.

Strangely, it is only A6 which it doesn't like. I set it to A5 or Letter and it was fine and the print preview showed the corresponding page size.

I tried to be clever and set a user defined page size to the same measurements as A6 but that also was rejected and it displayed A4 instead!

I tried this with a new document, but it didn't work.

I also tried deleting my OpenOffice user profile. That didn't work.

I also tried opening the document in Microsoft Word 2010 - that did work. No problem there. Unfortunately Word makes the styles go crazy so I can't use that with this document.

Thanks if you can help,

regards
Adam

[RoryOF]

I've just carried out a trial, using Epson WP-4535.

Any changes to the default printer settings (such as, in my case, setting to A6, feed from MP tray) need to be made before OpenOffice is started. If they are made after OO is started, OO doesn't see them. I was able to make such changes, then print from OpenOffice. I would doubt that doublesided printing (duplex) is available for such a size (I haven't tried it). My preferred way of printing A6 is to set OO to a page size of A6, then tell it to print 4 pages per A4 sheet.

I am running printer using CUPS on Ubuntu. May try Windows later, if time - sorting papers at present - ugh!

[adam_hardy]

Hi Rory,

that would be no problem for me, since I closed Writer and rebooted a couple of time since this arose a few days back. It's definitely not that simple unfortunately.

[RoryOF]

I got a chance to try printing from Windows XP to A6 paper on an Epson printer (Wp-4535 using OpenOffice 3.4.1). The printer driver recognised that A6 was set in the MP tray, and AOO printed OK to that size. I did check and adjust settings in /File /Print and in /File /Print : Printer Properties (turning off Duplex printing and setting for Greyscale rather than colour).

[adam_hardy]

Thanks for having a go, Rory. Does this have any implication for my situation?

[RoryOF]

All I have shown is that on my Windows OpenOffice is able to print to A6 on an Epson WP-4535 printer, so printing to A6 is certainly within OO's capabilitiies. Not having an Epson P50 printer I cannot test with that.

Have you tried adjusting the Printer settings from Control Panel / Printers, rather than from OpenOffice's /File /Print : Epson P50 Properties? This adjustment needs to be done before starting OpenOffice (remember the Quickstarter!).

[adam_hardy]

Yes, the Control Panel printer properties are set to A6, and have been for a few days so there have been some reboots in-between that would have ironed out any OpenOffice stop/start issues. It really is as bad as I write in my original post above.

[RoryOF]

Can you not select to print 2-up on an A5 or 4-up on an A4? (Page Layout tab on the print dialogue).

Alternately /File /Export as PDF and print from your PDF application.

[adam_hardy]

OK Rory, thanks for your help. I'll go with the work-around.