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printing Word doc changes the formatting

My document is in Word. When I open it in Preview or print it the formatting changes. How can I print exactly what I see on the monitor?

MacBook Pro 13″, macOS 12.0

Posted on Oct 15, 2023 7:30 AM

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Posted on Oct 15, 2023 5:39 PM

if you go to print the file, then instead use [print to PDF} option in the Print pane, the PDF you get from that should not change in the slightest wherever you print it, even on a completely different system.


But if you still have the original on hand, you must take care to print the PDF version, NOT the original.

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Question marked as Top-ranking reply

Oct 15, 2023 5:39 PM in response to carolagate

if you go to print the file, then instead use [print to PDF} option in the Print pane, the PDF you get from that should not change in the slightest wherever you print it, even on a completely different system.


But if you still have the original on hand, you must take care to print the PDF version, NOT the original.

Oct 15, 2023 3:11 PM in response to carolagate

Preview is for reading PDF files, and doing some other minor graphics conversions. it was never intended to read Microsoft Word native formats directly. if you get something readable that way, that is quite remarkable.


Pages can open most Microsoft word documents directly.


If you find yourself having to read such documents often, there are several 'walk-alike packages that are free or donation-ware, but quite high quality. OpenOffice, LibreOffice, and NeoOffice, in no particular order.

Oct 15, 2023 3:19 PM in response to Grant Bennet-Alder

I don't know whether I explained this clearly. I have a document on Word that is in an outline format. There are lines starting at the left margin with the major point I'm making. A subsidiary point is indented. Another point subsidiary to that is further indented. On the monitor it looks perfect. But when I print it the indents are all changed. I tried opening it in Pages and it opened way out in the corner of my screen, with a part of the page cut off. I don't know how to use Pages and to start learning it now when I have to get this document printed isn't feasible. No one else has had a problem with printing a Word document that is in an outline format?

Oct 15, 2023 5:52 PM in response to Grant Bennet-Alder

This is weird. After trying to print it in pdf, I found the pdf had reformatted, just like the printed version. I then tried printing it in Preview, and it was the same as the pdf. But just before getting this message I tried again in Preview and it opened as I had typed it. I don't understand what could have been different, but as long as this doesn't revert, I'm set to go.

Thanks.

printing Word doc changes the formatting

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