Outlook 2007 printing broken - how to fix?

[Mike]

Although I don't print emails, I understand the reason for wanting to do
this. I've yet to find a straightfoward explanation regarding why Outlook
makes this all but impossible. I've tried some of the workarounds, most of
which are either too convoluted or don't work. Example - changing a
text-only email to HTML; doesn't work (I even tried using the "display in
browser" option in Outlook 2007 - the email shows as blank). Besides, why
should I have to jump through hoops to accomplish what should be a simple
task?

My 83 year old mother simply wants to be able to print one page of an
email - maybe it has an address or something she wants to keep handy when
she's not at the computer. Sorry, no can do - have to print out the entire
email and toss what you don't want. All she wants to be able to do is
select either the current page or a given page to print - why is using what
should be a feature of the OS (the print dialog) so difficult in Outlook?

I really do enjoy Office 2007 but am deeply concerned by the seeming lack of
interest in the results of the beta by Microsoft. Since the first beta
users have complained bitterly about the lack of customization in the UI but
were completely ignored; I've mentioned this failure to consider the user
will make Office 2007 all but impossible for the visually impaired to use.
It appears as if Microsoft is attempting to make a rigid one-size fits all
product for a world that requires flexibility.

Mike

 

[Diane Poremsky [MVP]]

Print Q's answered in your earlier thread. Visually impaired comments below.

MS does care about making it accessible and Outlook 2007 has better
accessibility than earlier versions. The UI is not customizable because
adding customization adds bugs and cost at the expense of features and very
few users do any customization to the UI (often prevented by corporate help
desks, as it makes assisting users very difficult when no one has the same
look and feel).

Having an 84 yr old mother myself, there is no way in hell I would even
think to have her (or other younger family members) use outlook. They all
use OE because it's simpler and less confusing and meets their email needs.
They don't need all the other features in Outlook. My one sister uses
outlook at work and OE at home because OE more than meets her needs and is
faster.

BTW -I am on the beta and I don't recall any bitter complaints about it -
some asked for the ability to customize some parts of the interface, but
they also asked for NNTP support and other features that won't make it into
Outlook.

 

[Mike]

Sorry about delay in answering ...

I've seen the MS page on how 'accessible' 2007 is supposed to be, but it
really isn't. Tiny icons that cannot be changed, shading (on contextual
tabs) that may be difficult for color-impaired users to see, and numerous
other 'features' that are locked down tight mean that while some
accessibility features may have been tacked on to 2007, the complete lack of
*adaptability* makes it unsuitable for numerous users who cannot change how
they interact with Office. The idea that customization adds bugs is
ludicrous - to me that sounds like an excuse for bad programming. I work at
a corporate help desk and while we (and several vendors) provide custom
toolbars (oops, can't have those anymore), we do allow users to customize
their UI - telling them how to best do their job is not what we do.

Having seen many of the threads regarding the lack of customization in early
beta's of 2007, I'm not sure how you can say that there were no complaints
about this. Several users pointed out they complained loudly to Microsoft,
but gave up after (as one user put it) realizing beating a dead horse wasn't
going to bring it to life. I'm also curious how the mostly pointless home
toolbar in Word is going to make me more 'efficient'. Taking up space I
could use for other tools (if I could add them) are the clipboard group,
2/3rds of the font group, and about 1/2 of the paragraph group. I'd
probably get rid of the editing group as well. And having to go back &
forth between ribbons means tasks that may have taken a few clicks before
will now take 2 to 3 times as many steps; if I could organize the home
ribbon (or create my own ribbon) this could be avoided, but apparently
making Office more efficient for how individual users work (as opposed to
making everybody work the same way Office thinks you should) is not what
Microsoft wants.

Office 2007 does have some cool features, and I like the concept of the
Ribbon, but the reality is that lack of customization is going to prove
problematic in the long run. Given the enormous UI change it may take
months before the full impact is felt, but as users move beyond the beginner
stage, they will realize they're losing productivity by constantly having to
work around the UI.

Mike