Print Tips

Use the print button in the upper left corner OF THE ADOBE ACROBAT FRAME to print PRODUCT SPEC SHEETS -- not THE INTERNET browser print button AT THE TOP OF YOUR SCREEN.

PC/Mac: I just started to use Acrobat and notice that I can't get it to print correctly to my printer. What can I do?
There are several easy things you can do; what follows are some basic tips that will help you solve the most common printing problems. For more information, see the Acrobat 3.01 ReadMe files installed automatically in the Acrobat folder. If the information presented here and in the ReadMe files doesn't help, contact Adobe Technical Support.

Determine how extensive your problem is.
First, make sure Acrobat isn't the only application you're having problems with - if you can't print from any or most applications, you probably have a pretty basic, system-level problem (for instance, your printer might not be properly connected to your computer). If you can't figure out what the system-level problem is yourself, ask for help from your system administrator.

If it's just Acrobat that's having a problem, try printing a few different PDF files, including a few pages from one of the Help files that come with Acrobat, to see whether you're unable to print just one or several PDF files.

Try to pinpoint the cause of the problem. If you have trouble with more than one PDF file, try to imagine what they might have in common. Large graphics or especially complex pages? Certain fonts? Certain kinds of fonts (TrueType or PostScript; embedded or nonembedded fonts)? Try printing pages one at a time to zero in on the potential cause.

If you're able to isolate the problem to large graphics or complex pages, your printer simply may not have enough memory to print such pages (some laser printers, for instance, come with only 2MB of RAM, which often isn't enough to print graphically complex pages from Acrobat Reader, Exchange, or other graphics applications). If you think you might be suffering from too little memory and you have a Hewlett-Packard LaserJet printer that can switch between 600- and 300- modes, try 300-dpi mode (which is less memory-intensive). Or, if your HP LaserJet is equipped with a PostScript option, try PostScript mode for 600-dpi printing - again, this may be a little less memory-intensive than PCL mode at 600 dpi.

There are two other things you can try if you seem to be having trouble printing graphics to a PCL printer (for instance, an HP LaserJet III, 4, or 5 or a compatible device). First, try setting your printer driver to use raster mode (as opposed to vector mode) for graphics if it has this option. Second, for the best results printing halftone images to PCL printers, set your printer driver's Graphics/Dithering option to Fine or Coarse instead of None.

If you have a hunch the problem is related to a specific type-face, check to see if that typeface is installed on your computer. If so, it may have become damaged - try reinstalling it. If the printing problems seem to be related to TrueType fonts and you're printing to a PCL printer, we recommend that you use the printer driver's TrueType option (this option is called Download TrueType Fonts as Bitmap Soft Fonts in the LaserJet III and 4 drivers; in the LaserJet 5 drivers, it's called TrueType as Bitmaps). If you still have problems, try the Print TrueType as Graphics option instead (if your printer driver offers this option).

If you have difficulty printing only one PDF file, you may still be running into a problem with a particularly complex page or problematic font - try printing the pages of the PDF separately to narrow down possible causes.

Ensure that you're using a current printer driver. If the troubleshooting steps above don't point you to the cause of the problem (or a solution), make sure that you have the most current printer driver available for your printer - using an outdated driver can cause any number of problems. Most printer manufacturers have the most current drivers available for free from their online systems or Web sites.