Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated October 3, 2020)
This tip applies to Word 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003
Joe indicated that he was having a problem opening and immediately printing a document in Word. If he opened and immediately tried to print a document, Word wouldn't do it. Instead, he had to open, make some small edit, and then print the document in order for it to work.
Some readers suggested that this could be due to Word being busy doing background tasks before coming "up to speed." When you open a document in Word, it takes time for the document to be examined (internally) by Word, for pagination to occur, and for the program to become "responsive." On slower systems, the startup delay can be noticeable—particularly with large or complex documents. If this is the problem, then it may be just a matter of not printing immediately, but allowing Word to complete its internal document-opening sequences (perhaps a few seconds) before actually printing.
There is another approach to printing that you may want to consider. If your only purpose in opening the document is to print, then you can right-click the document's name and choose Print from the Context menu. This works either in Windows Explorer or in the Open dialog box in Word. Printing in this way produces the output, without leaving the document open in Word.
WordTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Word training. (Microsoft Word is the most popular word processing software in the world.) This tip (3865) applies to Microsoft Word 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003.
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!
If you want to print a list of all the AutoCorrect entries in your document, Word doesn't provide a method. You can use ...
Discover MoreWant to print just a selection from within your document? It's easy to do when you print using the Print dialog box.
Discover MoreIf you have a printer that will print on both sides of a piece of paper, you may want to use that ability within Word. ...
Discover MoreFREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in WordTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."
There are currently no comments for this tip. (Be the first to leave your comment—just use the simple form above!)
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.
Visit the WordTips channel on YouTube
FREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in WordTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."
Copyright © 2025 Sharon Parq Associates, Inc.
Comments