Please Note: This article is written for users of the following Microsoft Word versions: 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003. If you are using a later version (Word 2007 or later), this tip may not work for you. For a version of this tip written specifically for later versions of Word, click here: Adding a Horizontal Watermark with a PostScript Printer.

Adding a Horizontal Watermark with a PostScript Printer

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated October 14, 2017)
This tip applies to Word 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003


In other issues of WordTips you discovered how to print a diagonal watermark across a page if you are using a PostScript printer. There may be times, however, when you do not want the watermark to be diagonal. The following command, when placed in a field inserted in a header or footer, will print the word DRAFT in a 100-point font across the center of your page.

Print \p page " /Wmark (DRAFT) def /WSize 100 def wp$x wp$right sub
wp$left add 2 div wp$y wp$top sub wp$bottom add 2 div translate
/Helvetica-BoldOblique findfont WSize scalefont setfont .7 setgray
3 setlinewidth Wmark stringwidth pop 2 div neg WSize .4 mul neg
moveto Wmark true charpath stroke "

Remember that all the text shown here must be placed within a field. You can insert the field braces by pressing Ctrl+F9. The font used is bold italics Helvetica; if you do not have that font in your printer, you can change the font name in the code to a font you do have. You can also change the word that is printed by changing the word DRAFT on the first line.

Finally, don't forget that this tip will only work if you are using a printer that understand PostScript and are using a PostScript printer driver with that printer. Some printers understand multiple printer control languages, including PostScript, so it is important to determine which language the printer driver itself uses. If the driver uses a different language, such as the HP Printer Control Language (HPPCL), then the field will not display the watermark.

WordTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Word training. (Microsoft Word is the most popular word processing software in the world.) This tip (460) applies to Microsoft Word 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003. You can find a version of this tip for the ribbon interface of Word (Word 2007 and later) here: Adding a Horizontal Watermark with a PostScript Printer.

Author Bio

Allen Wyatt

With more than 50 non-fiction books and numerous magazine articles to his credit, Allen Wyatt is an internationally recognized author. He is president of Sharon Parq Associates, a computer and publishing services company. ...

MORE FROM ALLEN

Quickly Displaying the Tabs Dialog Box

Setting tabs in a paragraph is a common task. This is most easily done by using the Tabs dialog box. Displaying the ...

Discover More

Resizing Your Table

Need to make your table a different size? It's easy to do, using the same general technique you use when resizing a ...

Discover More

Exploded Pie Chart Sections

Want to change the groupings used by Excel when it creates pie charts? Your options are limited, as you learn in this tip.

Discover More

Create Custom Apps with VBA! Discover how to extend the capabilities of Office 2013 (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, and Access) with VBA programming, using it for writing macros, automating Office applications, and creating custom applications. Check out Mastering VBA for Office 2013 today!

More WordTips (menu)

Printing Copy Numbers

Copy 1, Copy 2, Copy 3... Do you want to mark your printouts so that they are numbered? Here's how you can do it.

Discover More

Printing Document Properties

Word maintains quite a bit of information about a document in a special collection of items called "properties." You can ...

Discover More

Sending Printer Commands

If you need to send a command directly to your printer, then you need to use the PRINT field. It allows you to send ...

Discover More
Subscribe

FREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in WordTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."

View most recent newsletter.

Comments

If you would like to add an image to your comment (not an avatar, but an image to help in making the point of your comment), include the characters [{fig}] (all 7 characters, in the sequence shown) in your comment text. You’ll be prompted to upload your image when you submit the comment. Maximum image size is 6Mpixels. Images larger than 600px wide or 1000px tall will be reduced. Up to three images may be included in a comment. All images are subject to review. Commenting privileges may be curtailed if inappropriate images are posted.

What is four minus 0?

There are currently no comments for this tip. (Be the first to leave your comment—just use the simple form above!)


This Site

Got a version of Word that uses the menu interface (Word 97, Word 2000, Word 2002, or Word 2003)? This site is for you! If you use a later version of Word, visit our WordTips site focusing on the ribbon interface.

Videos
Subscribe

FREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in WordTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."

(Your e-mail address is not shared with anyone, ever.)

View the most recent newsletter.