See color choices and default commands in print preview

To see color choices and default commands in print preview in Microsoft® Office PowerPoint® 2003:

1. On the Standard toolbar, click the Print Preview button .
2. In print preview, click Options.
3. Point to Color/Grayscale and look at the commands on the submenu.
   • If your default printer is color, the default command is Color, and your slide preview is in color.
   • If your default printer is black and white, the default command is Grayscale, and your slide preview is in grayscale. The background is white.

     If your default printer is black and white, you can choose Color (On Black and White Printer) instead of the default Grayscale command. If you do, your slide preview shows the background, too, in grayscale.

   • To hide as much as possible for printing, choose Pure Black and White.

     (Note: Your default printer is determined by your Microsoft Windows® settings and can't be selected in PowerPoint.)

Difference between Grayscale and Pure Black and White

This table shows you how slide elements will print, depending on whether you use the Grayscale or Pure Black and White color command.

Specify a grayscale setting for the background

1. In normal view, select a slide thumbnail.
2. On the Standard toolbar, click the Color/Grayscale button and select Grayscale.

   (Or on the View menu, point to Color/Grayscale and click Grayscale.)

   Your selected slide appears in grayscale in the slide pane; the slide thumbnails on the left remain in color. Also, the Grayscale View toolbar appears near the slide.

3. On that toolbar, click Setting. If this command isn't enabled, click the slide background. Be sure not to click any placeholder or object; you don't want your grayscale setting to apply to anything on the slide, only to the background.
4. Choose a grayscale setting from the menu.
5. To return to color view, click Close Grayscale View on the toolbar.
6. To apply the setting when you print, in print preview or in the Print dialog box choose the Grayscale color command.

   Note    The Color/Grayscale button also includes Pure Black and White on the menu. You can use the Grayscale View settings to apply to the Pure Black and White command, too.

How the grayscale setting for the background applies to slides

If the background is on a master slide:

Changing the grayscale setting on any title slide will apply that setting to all title slides in the show (if they all use the same title master).

Changing the grayscale setting on any slide other than the title slide will apply that setting to all slides in the show (if they all use the same slide master) except the title slides.

Specify the grayscale setting for a slide object

1. In normal view, select the slide with the object you want to change the setting for, and click the object to select it.
2. Display the Grayscale View toolbar (click the Color/Grayscale button on the Standard toolbar, and click Grayscale).
3. Click the Setting button on the toolbar, and click a command, such as Don't Show.
4. In print preview or the Print dialog box, choose the Grayscale color command to see the grayscale setting in effect for printing.

   If you've used Don't Show to hide an object for printing, a way to redisplay it is to select it in normal view, then display the Grayscale View toolbar. On the Setting menu, click Automatic.

Change the setting for an object on master slides

Follow the same steps as above, except first open master view and work on the object there. To open master view, click the View menu, point to Master, and click Slide Master. If the object is on both the slide master and title master, apply the grayscale setting you want for it on both masters.

Omit background graphics when you print in color

1. If you want to hide graphics on selected slides, not on all slides, select the slides. (Press CTRL as you click to select multiple thumbnails.)
2. In normal view, on the Format menu, click Background.
3. In the Background dialog box, click the option at the bottom, Omit background graphics from master, to select it.
   • To hide background graphics on selected slides, click Apply.
   • To hide background graphics on all the slides, click Apply to All.

Tip    Remember, the Omit background graphics from master option hides the graphics when you present, too. To prevent that, before you apply this option, save the presentation. Then apply the option to the slide or slides you wish. After printing, close the presentation without saving it.

Use pure black and white when you print in Microsoft Office Word

To print slides in Word using the Pure Black and White setting in PowerPoint, you need to use PowerPoint 2000. Slides from PowerPoint 2002 and PowerPoint 2003 will print in Word in grayscale, even if you chose pure black and white.

1. Open the presentation in PowerPoint 2000.
2. In normal view, on the View menu, click Black and White.
3. On the File menu, point to Send To, and click Microsoft Word.
4. In the Write-up dialog box, select a layout option. If you're sending the presentation to Word 2002 or Word 2003, click Paste Link. (Otherwise, Word will print the slides in grayscale.)

   If you're sending the presentation to Word 2000, you can click Paste or Paste Link.

For details about using Word to print PowerPoint presentations, see Printing I: Know your options.

Additional resources

For more information, see what's at these links.

• Printing add-ins and resources for PowerPoint
• PowerPoint add-ins