Print something — and only page two

Print exactly the pages you want, on the printer you meant, without wasting a sheet.

Nearly everybody prints eleven pages when they wanted one, because the box that appears is crowded and the eye slides straight to the big Print button.

There are only two lines in that box worth reading, and they are both near the top.

Key points

• Print one page, a run of pages, or a scattering of them
• Check which printer a job is going to before you send it
• Recognize Microsoft Print to PDF as the reason a print job vanished
• Print on both sides, and see how many sheets it will use first

What to remember

• The Pages box takes 2, or 2-4, or 1,4 — a single page, a run of pages, or a scattering.
• Silence usually means the page went somewhere. Check the printer name first, and look in Documents for a new PDF.
• If a printer you no longer own is still in the list, it can be removed from Settings — but choosing the right one each time works perfectly well.

Try this

Open anything and press Ctrl+P on your own computer. Read the top line and the preview, then press Cancel. Nothing is printed, and you now know what your own print box looks like.

Practice: Print something — and only page two. Your first lesson is free, with no account or card; the rest are part of a Lantern plan. Interactive lessons require JavaScript.

Related guides

• Only page three, or two to a sheet
• Printing, and when nothing comes out
• Open a PDF and make the writing bigger
• Telling the computer where downloads should go
• Scan a document with your phone