Print Designer FAQs

Print Designer Overview

Pro

Adding and Removing Elements from the Template

I see something on the screen that I want to remove, how can I do that?

How do I add a new section?

Besides my logo, what other images can I add to the template?

How do I know what information fields are available in the template?

Formatting Text and Element Properties

What options are available for formatting text and lines?

How do I change the text in a message or comment line?

Positioning and Sizing Elements and Sections

How do I know where or how something will appear when I print?

How do I get things to line up the way I want?

Can I resize column and field widths?

How do I resize or move a section?

How do I align elements and groups?

How do I turn on/off the rulers?

How do the X/Y coordinates work?

Printing and Viewing

I see an element in the template, why is it not there when I print?

Why is my new template not being used when I print?

How do I know where or how something will appear when I print?

Saving a Template

How do I save and use my template design?

How can I export my template so it can be used at another store or in another company data file?

Didnt find an answer to your question? Try these other resources:

Visit the Point of Sale User Community to ask questions and share ideas, solutions, and advice with other Point of Sale users and experts.

Check out our support website to search our online database of answers to frequently asked questions at www.quickbooks.com/support/pos.

I see something on the screen that I want to remove, how can I do that?

The easiest way to remove an element from a template in Print Designer is to select it and press the enter key on your keyboard. You can also use the remove button on the toolbar.

When a selected element displays a grey background, it is required and cannot be removed. However, a required group field may have components you can turn off so that they will not display.

Sections cannot be removed from a template. If you do not wish section to be printed, just remove the elements in that section.

Learn more about removing elements from a template.

Print Designer overview

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How do I add a new a section?

Each template has a predefined and unchangeable number of sections. The number of sections in a template will vary depending on the template and on whether you are using a 40-column printer.

Learn more about template sections.

Print Designer overview

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Besides my logo, what other images can I add to the template?

More than one image can be specified in company preferences. but one must be designated the default logo. When you select an image in Print Designer, you can select the image set as the default logo, specify a different image than the default, or use more than one image in a document template.

Learn more about adding a logo.

Print Designer overview

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How do I know what information fields are available in the template?

Though most information is available to be printed, specific data fields will vary from template to template, and from section to section within each template. To determine what fields are available to be added in a section of a template, select that section and then select Add and D ata field or Group of Fields. A dialog is displayed showing unused data fields that are available to be added to that section of the template. Data fields that are already in that section of the template will not be included in this list.

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How do I change the text in a message or comment line?

There are several different types of text messages. Some are defined in company preferences. Many documents in Point of Sale have comments fields that you can edit directly from the document.

Some text fields, such as the signature memo on credit card receipts, cannot be edited. This text message can be turned off however by accessing the properties of the group element containing the credit card transaction and signature line.

You can also add text to any section of a document template.

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Formatting Text and Elements

In Print Designer, text can be formatted in the same manner as it is formatted in most word processing programs, including font, size, bold, italic, underline and color. To change the formatting of text, access the properties of the element containing the text.

Specialized formatting of borders and graphic lines is not supported.

Learn more about changing font, line and border properties.

Print Designer overview

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How do I know where or how something will appear when I print?

The exact vertical placement of an element is dynamic based upon the other content in the printed document. More content or less content will cause elements to shift up or down the printed document. The template design window shows you what elements are assigned in each section, their general horizontal position, the sequence in which they will appear, and the space between them.

The Print Preview screen will provide a much closer approximation to the printed document. However, the preview screen does not have an actual transaction to use a basis for the display and therefore is still not a perfect example of the printed document.

The only way to see exactly how a document will print is to actually print a document from your history. However, you should bear in mind that not all fields are used in every document. For example, a receipt for a cash sale will not print the credit card signature lines.

Learn more about positioning elements.

Learn more about template sections and spacing.

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How do I get things to line up the way I want?

Elements can be aligned through various methods:

- Drag and drop positioning

- Using the alignment tools

- Using the status bar coordinates

It might also be necessary to resize an element in order to get it aligned in the way you prefer.

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Can I re-size Column and field widths?

Column widths, such as in the item list, can be re-sized. However, if you size the column and it becomes too narrow for the information that will appear in the column, the information will be cut off.

Field and element widths can also be re-sized. Again, it is important to ensure that you do not re-size the field to a size too small for the data that will be printed in the field.

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How do I resize or move a section?

Sections in the template and particularly at the end of the document will vary in vertical length depending upon the particular type of document and the printer being used. It is recommended that you build each section from the top down and then set the placement for the end of each section and the end of the document according to the lowest field placed in that section. The sequence of sections is predefined in each template.

The image below shows the divider at the end of the document moved to just below the end of the last field. This ensures that no wasted space is added to the printed documents. If more space is needed, the divider can be moved down.

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How do I turn on/off the rulers?

You can turn the rulers and set other interactive features in Print Designer preferences. These features give you choices for how you want to view and work with templates:

- Snap overlapping objects to their edges helps quickly align the vertical edges of adjacent elements. With this option selected, you can overlap the top or bottom edges of two elements and they will automatically "snap" the edges to align with each other.

- Show example text for data fields With this option selected, data fields display sample text instead of the field description.

- Show Top Ruler Helps position elements horizontally on the page.

- Show Side Ruler Helps position elements vertically on the page. Note that vertical positioning is relative, rather than absolute. When the document is printed, fields not populated with data are removed and lower fields on the template moved up to fill the blank space.

To set Print Designer preferences:

1. With a template displayed, select Preferences from the lower-left of the screen.

2. Select or clear the checkboxes for the preference options.

3. Select Save.

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How do the X/Y coordinates work?

The X and Y coordinates are, respectively, the current horizontal and vertical position of the top left corner of the selected element. While moving an element, the displayed coordinates show the position changes, allowing you to place the element exactly, whether you are using drag and drop, or the arrow keys on the keyboard.

Learn more about status bar coordinates.

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I see an element in the template, why is it not there when I print?

Some elements are conditional and are only printed when applicable. For example, a credit card signature line would not appear on a receipt for a transaction being paid with cash. In such cases, the unused element and the space it takes are removed from the printed document. Elements that appear below the unused element are moved up the document accordingly.

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Why is my new template not being used when I print?

Point of Sale uses whichever template is assigned in workstation preferences. When printing tags, you have the ability to change the template and/or printer directly from the print dialog.

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How do I save and use my template design?

Templates can be modified and saved with the same name, or they can be modified and using Save As can be saved with a different name. Once complete, the modified template will be available for use.

Point of Sale uses whichever template is assigned in workstation preferences. When printing tags, you have the ability to change the template and/or printer directly from the print dialog.

Learn more about modifying and saving changes to a template.

Learn more about recommended sequence for editing and saving templates.

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How can I export my template so it can be used at another store or in another company data file?

If you have created templates that you wish to use at another location or in another Point of Sale company file , use the import/export feature to export specific or all modified templates to an external file. Once you have copied the external file to the destination location, use the import/export feature at that location to bring the templates into that system.

Learn more about importing and exporting templates.

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