Troubleshooting Printing Problems in Tabs3 and PracticeMaster Software
Last reviewed: 10/13/2003
Article ID: R10820
The information in this article applies to:
- All Windows Versions of Tabs3 and PracticeMaster Software
Summary
This article discusses common causes and resolutions for problems that may
occur when printing from Windows versions of Tabs3 and PracticeMaster programs.
Some users have reported problems printing when using screen savers in
conjunction with Windows versions of Tabs3 and PracticeMaster software. KB
Article R10061, "Screen Saver Conflicts", has more
information regarding these problems.
The following are some troubleshooting steps that can be taken if you are
having problems with reports, checks or statements not printing properly or not
printing at all.
- If you are using an HP4000 and getting a blank page after each print job,
see KB Article R10027, "Printing with an HP4000
Printer".
- If a statement doesn't print at all, see KB Article
R10004, "My Statement Doesn't Print".
- Try using a different printer driver. Many problems can be attributed to
the printer driver. Certain drivers, such as the IBM Proprinter III for dot
matrix printers and the HP LaserJet 4 for laser printers, are widely emulated
and should work for most printers. (Note: In order to use a different
printer driver, you may need to install it if it has not already been added to
Windows.)
- It is possible that the printer driver is damaged. Reinstall the printer
driver. Refer to the section of this article titled
Is the Printer Driver Damaged?.
The following are some examples of miscellaneous printer, font and
driver-related problems that may occur when printing from Windows versions of
Tabs3 and PracticeMaster software. Recommended troubleshooting procedures are
provided for each situation.
- If you receive an "Out of memory" error:
- Specify a font that is internal to your printer. A report printed on a
printer with less than 512K memory may receive this error when a non-internal
font is specified. If you change the printer font to an internal font that was
included with the printer, the report should print successfully.
- If the printed output is too wide for the page:
- From the menu in the Tabs3 and PracticeMaster program, select File
| Print Setup. If the Manual option is selected for the
Font Selection Mode, select the Automatic option instead.
Note: If you select an internal printer font that is non-scalable
(i.e., the font size is shown in the font's description), the font will print
using the specified point size regardless of the width of the report. Do not
select a non-scalable font when using automatic font selection.
- If the printed output is being clipped, overprinted or has other spacing
issues:
- From the menu in the Tabs3 and PracticeMaster program, select File
| Print Setup | Advanced Printing Features. If the
Font Size Adjustment % is set to anything besides 100%, then set it to
100%.
- Random font sizes appearing on the report:
- From the menu in the Tabs3 and PracticeMaster, select File |
Print Setup. If the Manual option is selected for the
Font Selection Mode, select the Automatic option instead. If you
want to use manual font selection mode select a smaller font size and possibly
a different font because proportional font can vary.
- Gray text is too light to read:
- From the menu in the Tabs3 and PracticeMaster program, select File
| Print Setup | Advanced Printing Features.
Increase the percentage of the Gray Text and Line Density by using the
slider bar.
- Gray shading is so dark that I can't read the text:
- From the menu in the Tabs3 and PracticeMaster program, select File
| Print Setup | Advanced Printing Features.
Decrease the percentage of the Gray Shade Density by using the slider
bar.
- System will print short (one or two page) reports, but seems to freeze or
stop responding when printing larger reports or multiple statements.
- Changing the Spool Settings to "Print directly to Printer"
can address this issue. Open the Control Panel on your computer, (for Win98
machines, click Start | Settings | Control Panel; for Windows XP
or 2000, click Start | Control Panel.) Double click the
Printers/Faxes icon,) then right click the printer you are using, choose
Properties from the pop-up menu. Not all printers are the same, however
you should have Spool Settings options somewhere within your printer
configuration. Increasing your Timeout Settings can also address these
types of issues.
Note: The Timeout Settings will not be available unless the printer is
a local printer.
- If your printer output contains "garbage":
- Try printing from the Windows WordPad or Notepad applications. Open the
application and type a few lines of text. Highlight the text and change the
font so that it matches the Font, Size and Style you are trying to use in the
Tabs3 and PracticeMaster application. Next, print the text using the same
printer driver you are using in the Tabs3 and PracticeMaster application. If
the text prints correctly in WordPad or Notepad, reports and statements should
print correctly in Tabs3 and PracticeMaster applications. If the text does not
print correctly, try another printer driver.
- If you are printing on a dot matrix printer that is printing slowly:
- Use the following steps to attempt to resolve the issue:
- Make sure you are using a font that is internal to your printer and not
a TrueType font.
- Try changing the printer's properties so it uses draft mode instead of
letter quality.
- Try using the Windows Generic or Standard printer driver. (Note: Most
dot matrix printers cannot use draft mode when TrueType fonts are used.)
- If you are having problems trying to print using TrueType fonts:
- You may need to use Windows to change the printer's properties or options.
Many Windows printer drivers have a special option for printing TrueType fonts
as graphics. If this option is disabled, Windows will recognize the font size
and font type specified (i.e., normal, italics, etc.), but will not recognize
the actual font specified; instead it will use Courier as the default font.
Many printer drivers have this option disabled by default because the printer
prints faster when it is disabled.
- General tips for troubleshooting printing problems:
- The following are some general tips for troubleshooting printing problems.
If none of the items listed above describes your situation, there are a few
things you can do to try to resolve the problem:
- Try using a different printer driver. Many problems can be attributed to
the printer driver. Certain drivers, such as the IBM Proprinter III for dot
matrix printers and the HP LaserJet 4 for laser printers, are widely
emulated and should work for most printers. (Note: In order to use a
different printer driver, you may need to install it if it has not already
been added to Windows.)
- Try specifying Courier as the font.
- Make sure you have the most current printer driver for the printer and
the operating system you are using. For example, many Windows 95 printer
drivers that were included with the Windows 95 CD-ROM (circa Aug. 1995) are
no longer the most current printer drivers available. Various printing
problems may have already been addressed by a more recent printer driver.
Refer to the Printer Driver Downloads
section of this article for information on downloading the most current
printer drivers for your printer.
- Increase the amount of memory in your printer.
- See KB Article R10008, "Troubleshooting
Performance and Speed", for additional information.
Tabs3 and PracticeMaster applications frequently query the printer driver for
information needed when processing a report. A damaged printer driver
could cause an error or other unexpected results. For example, if you preview a
print job and the preview looks good but the printed output is different than
the preview, the most likely cause is a problem with the printer driver.
Note: The following steps may require your Windows CD
or the printer driver files supplied by the manufacturer of the printer. To
remove and reinstall a printer driver, follow these steps:
- Exit all instances of Tabs3 and PracticeMaster software.
- From the Windows taskbar, select Start | Settings
| Printers.
- Right-click the printer that has the problem and click Delete.
- Click Yes to confirm the deletion. The following message may be
displayed: "Some files were used only for this printer and are no longer
needed. Would you like to delete these files now?"
- Click Yes.
- Double-click the Add Printer icon to run the Add Printer Wizard.
Follow the instructions in the Wizard to install the printer again, or follow
the instructions that came with your printer. Once the printer is
installed, you may want to right-click its icon and click Set As Default
on the shortcut menu.
The following table provides Internet addresses for various printer
manufacturers. You can visit the Web site for your printer's manufacturer if
you need to download the most current version of the printer driver software
for your printer.
Postscript Versus Non-Postscript Printer Drivers
Most printer drivers use a common core file. The common core file that is
used depends on whether you are using a non-Postscript driver or a Postscript
driver. If you are using a non-Postscript (PCL) printer driver, then the common
core file is called Unidrv.dll. This includes the Microsoft Fax and
Generic/Text Only drivers. A Postscript driver uses a common core file called
Pscript.drv. Therefore, if you are experiencing errors when printing
and you are using a Postscript printer driver, it may be helpful to install a
non-Postscript printer driver. Likewise, if you experience errors printing with
a non-Postscript printer driver, it may be helpful to install a Postscript
printer driver to troubleshoot errors when printing (provided your printer has
Postscript capabilities).
References
- KB Article R10061 - "Screen Saver Conflicts"
- KB Article R10027 - "Printing with an HP4000
Printer"
- KB Article R10004 - "My Statement Doesn't Print"
- KB Article R10008 - "Troubleshooting Performance
and Speed"
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