Printing and saving your paper: PDF, sizes and copies

Pick the paper size first

Choose the paper size before you finish the layout, because the size decides how much fits on a page. Changing it at the end moves everything.

• A4 is the common size in Pakistan for school and college papers.
• Letter is shorter and a little wider, used mainly in North America.
• Legal is longer than A4, so it holds more questions on one page, but it needs a printer and a photocopier that take it.

Use the size of the paper you will actually load in the machine. Paper Desk lets you choose A4, Letter or Legal.

Fit more questions on a page

Fewer pages mean less paper and less photocopying. A compact layout uses tighter spacing so more questions fit on each page.

Compact is good for a paper where students write answers in separate answer sheets. It is not good if students write on the question paper, because there is not enough space. For those, add answer lines or room under the questions and accept more pages.

Do not shrink text too far. If the smallest text is hard to read from a normal desk distance, make the layout less tight. Students lose marks to unreadable questions.

Paper Desk has a compact layout that fits many questions on a page.

Two copies on one page

For a short paper, you can print two copies on one sheet and cut the sheet in half. You save paper and photocopying time. This works well for a one-page test and for quizzes.

Check that the half-size text is still readable, and that the cutting line leaves enough margin on both halves. Paper Desk can place two copies on a page for you.

Print at 100 percent

The most common printing mistake is letting the printer shrink the paper to fit. Then the margins change and text becomes smaller than you planned. In the print window, look for the scale or size setting and choose 100% or Actual size, not "Fit to page" or "Shrink to fit".

Also check that the paper size in the print window matches the size you chose in the paper maker. If they differ, the printer will scale the page.

Print one page first and look at it, with the margins and the bottom edge, before printing a hundred copies.

Save as PDF or as pictures

A PDF is the best file to keep and to send to a print shop. It looks the same on every computer. You can download a PDF from Paper Desk, or choose "Save as PDF" in your browser's print window.

You can also download the pages as pictures in PNG or JPG, together in one ZIP file. Pictures are useful for sharing a page in a message or putting it in a presentation. For printing, a PDF is usually the better choice, because it stays sharp at any size.

Keep a copy of the PDF with the date and class in the file name, so you can find it next year.

Margins and the last page

Most printers cannot print right up to the edge of the sheet, so leave a margin of at least a centimetre on every side. If you plan to staple or punch holes, leave a little more on that side. Check the bottom margin on the first page, because that is where text is most often cut.

Look at the last page too. If it holds only a single line or the final mark total, tighten the layout or trim a little space so the paper ends neatly. One lonely line on a page costs a whole sheet for every student.

Greyscale and photocopying tips

• Print in black and white (greyscale) when you will photocopy. Coloured text and light grey boxes may turn to dark patches or vanish.
• Use a good original. A photocopy of a photocopy loses detail fast. Print the master on a laser or good inkjet printer.
• Check thin lines. Answer lines and table borders can break up on a poor copier. Look at the first copies before running the whole set.
• Print a few extra copies for absent students, and one for the file.
• Keep the master safe until the test is over, and do not leave the file where students can open it.

When you are done, open the paper maker to print or download your paper, or see how to use for each step. For papers in Urdu, read making Urdu and bilingual papers.