Printing on USPS supplied labels

KaptainKen · Newbie Joined: 22 Dec 2009 Posts: 2

How do I use OpenOffice Write to print on U.S. Postal service supplied Priority Mail labels? These are 5 1/4" wide and 4" tall. They are individual labels and not on a full size letter size sheet. I use an elderly DeskJet 842C printer with an envelope feed slot.

pitonyak · Posted: Tue Dec 22, 2009 9:09 pm Post subject:

If it were me, I would probably define my own page size, and then enter frames on the page that represent the areas where I wanted text to appear. Finally, I would save this document as a template so that I could use it when I wanted it.

For other types of labels, the sizes already exist. In fact, i suppose that you may be able to create your own label size and use that directly.... that may actually make more sense.

use File > New > Labels to open the label dialog.
For the type set "User" so that you can define your own types.

I have not done this in a while, but there are different tabs that you can use to configure a specific label. I hope that this is sufficient to get you started. If not, be certain to post.
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Andrew Pitonyak
http://www.pitonyak.org/oo.php

KaptainKen · Newbie Joined: 22 Dec 2009 Posts: 2

Andrew;

Thanks for the prompt reply and your suggestions. I tried them with no joy.

OOWrite allowed me to create a label with the proper dimensions, proper indents to position the sender and recipient addresses but nothing would print ... nothing. (A test document full letter size prints OK so I know my computer/printer connection is OK.)

It seems that no matter how I specify the print job ... manual feed or paper tray, landscape or portrait, "envelope" or label or plain paper, I get nothing. A sheet of paper (or the actual label itself) feeds through the printer but nothing (no ink) appears on it.

If you have any further suggestions I would be glad to try them. Thanks for your support in this matter.

(Sidebar ... I formerly used MS Word for this purpose and got it to work, so I know it can be done. Printing on USPS labels is a common enough task. Surely someone in the OO universe has encountered and solved this problem.)

pitonyak · Posted: Wed Dec 23, 2009 6:24 am Post subject:

If you think about it, there is no difference between a label and a piece of paper, it is just the mechanism that is used to generate the desired format. For testing, I would cut a few pieces of paper to the correct size and print on those.

I rarely use labels myself... I will see if I can perform an experiment (unless someone else knows the magic sauce to make this work).

Using a straight Write document would certainly solve the problem, but then you need to do some other work on your own.

Heading to work then leaving town for a bit...
_________________
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Andrew Pitonyak
http://www.pitonyak.org/oo.php