Excel: Charts Print Very Slowly to PostScript Printer

• Microsoft Excel for Windows, version 4.0

SUMMARY

In version 4.0 of Microsoft Excel for Windows, printing a chart to a PostScript printer may be very slow when using automatic color settings for the data markers on your chart.

MORE INFORMATION

Excel uses colors to differentiate between data markers (for example, pie slices in a pie chart) when displaying a chart on a color monitor. When Excel prints the chart to a non-color printer, it replaces each color with a different pattern. These patterns are sent to the printer as bitmapped images, which results in the chart printing slowly.

Note: This is most noticeable in charts that have a large number of different colors and shapes. For example, a 3-D pie chart that uses separate patterns for the 3-D edges of some slices as well as the slices themselves.

If you use custom colors rather than automatic, Excel uses the printer's built-in gray-scaling to differentiate data markers in the printed chart. Using the printer's built-in gray-scaling results in your chart being printed much faster.

You may be able to speed up printing of your charts by changing the colors of the data markers to custom colors from the default Automatic setting.

To set custom colors:

1. Bring your chart up in a chart window. If your chart is embedded on a worksheet, double-click the chart to bring it up in a chart window.

2. Select a data marker (for example, a pie slice in a pie chart) by clicking once on the marker you want to select.

3. From the Format menu, choose Patterns.

1. In the Patterns dialog box, select the Custom option for the Area color.

1. Repeat steps 2 through 3 for all the data markers in your chart.

2. Choose the OK button to close the Patterns dialog box and try printing your chart again.

REFERENCES

"Microsoft Excel User's Guide 1," version 4.0, pages 479-481