HTML printing problem
June 4, 2010 1:06 PM Subscribe
Can you help me with this HTML print-sizing problem? I have a 3x5 index card created in Word. When I convert it to PDF, it prints out full size, as in Word. But when I convert to HTML, either from Word or from the PDF, and then print the HTML page, it scales down. Is there a way to make it print full-size in HTML?
I don't know if I'd be able to help, but I'd like to see a copy of the HTML and PDF you've got.
This sounds like a job for CSS print media, which is not a subject I know a lot about. I'm pretty sure that Word's braindead HTML generator does not produce a print css stylesheet, so its output will only be intended for screen consumption.
posted by adamrice at 1:33 PM on June 4, 2010
This sounds like a job for CSS print media, which is not a subject I know a lot about. I'm pretty sure that Word's braindead HTML generator does not produce a print css stylesheet, so its output will only be intended for screen consumption.
posted by adamrice at 1:33 PM on June 4, 2010
As stated, Word is not ideal for creating html.
If you don't know HTML, it might just be best to use a .jpg for any web posting purposes.
But to begin to get at the problem, print size does not equal screen size, screen resolution does not equal print resolution. Designing with HTML for print is like designing a sandwich to be cooked by a clothing iron. It's fucking messy.
If we can get a better idea of what you need to accomplish, and maybe your source code, we might be able to suggest better workarounds. But I would just .jpg it and be done. Is there any reason a pdf can't be hosted as a printable file?
posted by fontophilic at 2:13 PM on June 4, 2010
If you don't know HTML, it might just be best to use a .jpg for any web posting purposes.
But to begin to get at the problem, print size does not equal screen size, screen resolution does not equal print resolution. Designing with HTML for print is like designing a sandwich to be cooked by a clothing iron. It's fucking messy.
If we can get a better idea of what you need to accomplish, and maybe your source code, we might be able to suggest better workarounds. But I would just .jpg it and be done. Is there any reason a pdf can't be hosted as a printable file?
posted by fontophilic at 2:13 PM on June 4, 2010
Response by poster: You know what? I think CSS print media is the way to go. But is there a way to control the width of the printable area when I do this—with a table or some other method?
posted by markcmyers at 2:16 PM on June 4, 2010
posted by markcmyers at 2:16 PM on June 4, 2010
Response by poster: If we can get a better idea of what you need to accomplish, and maybe your source code, we might be able to suggest better workarounds. But I would just .jpg it and be done. Is there any reason a pdf can't be hosted as a printable file?
It's a 3x5 recipe card with one table embedded in another. The text gets too small to be comfortable in .jgp. Posting a pdf is no problem, but I would at least like to give users the option of printing from html, since I believe (perhaps incorrectly?) that pdf is a turnoff for some people.
posted by markcmyers at 2:20 PM on June 4, 2010
It's a 3x5 recipe card with one table embedded in another. The text gets too small to be comfortable in .jgp. Posting a pdf is no problem, but I would at least like to give users the option of printing from html, since I believe (perhaps incorrectly?) that pdf is a turnoff for some people.
posted by markcmyers at 2:20 PM on June 4, 2010
CSS print media is much less for making your printed pages appear in perfect dimensions and more about making media that was designed for a screen printer friendly, like setting the background to white, text to black and fixing the flow of or removing other elements like navigation.
If you want absolute control over how something looks printed out, without using an image, pdf is pretty much your only option. The main problem with pdf is if someone doesn't yet have a reader installed, but most consumer PCs seem to come with Acrobat Reader already loaded up (in my experience) so I don't think it is a big deal.
posted by Famous at 2:39 PM on June 4, 2010 [1 favorite]
If you want absolute control over how something looks printed out, without using an image, pdf is pretty much your only option. The main problem with pdf is if someone doesn't yet have a reader installed, but most consumer PCs seem to come with Acrobat Reader already loaded up (in my experience) so I don't think it is a big deal.
posted by Famous at 2:39 PM on June 4, 2010 [1 favorite]
Best answer: CSS does support lengths specified in inches, which is sort of dumb and pointless on screen, but would be sensible in a print-only stylesheet. You could specify, for instance, your outer table (let's say with ID "main") as a 3×5 inch rectangle with a black border...
posted by letourneau at 3:23 PM on June 4, 2010
#main { width: 5in; height: 3in; border: 1pt solid black; }posted by letourneau at 3:23 PM on June 4, 2010
Response by poster: letourneau, it sounds like a plan. Thanks so much!
posted by markcmyers at 3:33 PM on June 4, 2010
posted by markcmyers at 3:33 PM on June 4, 2010
This thread is closed to new comments.
Easiest way I can think of would be to toss in a few CSS sizing attributes - a few fixed-position DIVS and fixed-point fonts will make the result somewhat more consistent. This doesn't take into account different browsers, printers, etc. ... but it's a damned sight more reliable than Word's Franken-HTML.
posted by julthumbscrew at 1:28 PM on June 4, 2010 [2 favorites]