Why does my document reformat itself as soon as a try to print it

[Cherokee Charlie]

When I hit the print button, the contents of the page get completely changed
and reorganized. Why does this happen? I want to print the document exactly
as I typed it, but it will not print as set up.

 

[Herb Tyson [MVP]]

Are you changing the default printer when you print? Word's WYSIWYG printing
is determined by the printer that's being used. Different printers have
different capabilities, and if you change to a printer with a very different
page footprint, then Word has to reformat what's on screen to match the
printer.

For example, many laser printers have a different printable region than many
inkjet printers. So, if you write the document with a laser printer set as
the default, then change to a an inkjet printer when you actually print,
that can and does affect the layout.