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"Page Break" printing?

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15 replies

by wordworker

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I am supporting a remote user who SWEARS that the manual page breaks (dotted line, plus the words Page Break) in a document I sent him are printing. He is using Word 2002 (XP). I don't have a copy of W02 handy to test this on. Isn't it unheard of for the Page Break to print? I mean it sends a new-page command to the printer and should only be visible onscreen, right? He claims he is not using PrintScreen but is in fact using File | Print. He's nine states away and I'm waiting for a fax of "proof" of this. Looking for a quick answer from TR-folks if any of you have seen it. (Couldn't find any mention of it on searching support.microsoft or google.)

15 replies

by jennifer.gardner

Have him click File, Print, and check the "Print what" box. Make sure it's set to just "Document". Some of the other settings may print the Page Break lines.

by wordworker

Poster rated this answer.
Thanks JWiggins - that was one of the first things I thought of too.

by sixfourtykilo

From what I understand of Word (regardless if its 95 or 2002), page breaks are functions that are part of Word. They can occur naturally or inserted manually. Regardless of what option you select in the printing options or tools - options, it does not seem possible to print the "Page Break" line in the document. You should have the user do two things.

1. Have the user change his/her view to Print Layout view. If you see the words "Page Break", they have been added and don't actually function as a page break. In fact, the only way that you actually see the words "Page Break" is when you're in Normal View.

2. Have the user look at the document in Print Preview. If the document has the words "Page Break", they are somehow manually entered into the document and do not constitute an actual page break.

The only break that you will ever see in the "Print Layout" view is "Section Break", even then you won't be able to send it to the printer.

by sixfourtykilo

If all else fails, delete the user's NORMAL.DOT file to recreate his Word Profile. It could be that it has somehow become corrupt. Any weird settings that the user may have added or changed will be wiped out and restored to the default. You have to be sure he is completely out of any word document. Be sure to do a search for *.DOT and DELETE ANY NORMAL.DOT related file (including the temp file ~ORMAL.DOT).

by sixfourtykilo

FYI - Before I posted, I tried various methods to add page breaks to a document. This included manually selecting Insert - Page Break. It does not print.

by wordworker

Poster rated this answer.
Thanks for your help in confirming the results of my experiments, SixFour'. (I was a ThirteenEcho in my service days.) I had deleted Normal.dot but hadn't thought of ~ormal.dot. I had him go ahead and search for ~*.* and nuke those too.

by jschein

SixFourtyKilo is correct. If you have done all the above, then just close out of office prog's and delete any normal.dot file.

Page breaks DO NOT print regardless of what office client is being utilized.

by joseph moore

What about a Manual Page Break? Do those print also? Can the user add a Manual Page Break, and see if it works as it should, or if it prints another Page Break message? Just curious if that at least works.
But I think 64Kilo has it right in suggesting to delete the Normal.dot file.

Good luck.

by wordworker

Poster rated this answer.
Great question! (I assume you mean automatic page breaks, since the words Page Break only appear on manual breaks.) You'd think that if the dotted line + Page Break would print, so would the automatic page break's dotted line.

by dklippert

Great problem!
Renaming/deleting Normal.dot is always a first suggestion.
What happens when your user turns Show/Hide () off and on?
Are they viewing in Normal View or Print Layout?
Have they made the mistake of using the file type "Recover text from any file (*.*)"
Make sure they are opening with the file type Word documents.
Can they use
^m
in Edit>Find to select the entry? Or
^b
for a section break.
What's the printer set up?
Good Luck!
Please post your solution.

by wordworker

Poster rated this answer.
DKlippert - great questions! I hadn't asked about recoverying from any file, nor confirmed what type he's opening. I'm going to go ahead and award points to everyone (because I like to reward fast posters) and I'll post the solution in the Q&A section when/if one appears. I'm still waiting on the fax of the printout so I can see it with my own eyes.

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