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Print a draft (2.4a)

To allow you to check or test the translation, you probably will need to print it on paper. Paratext has several ways to print out your project but don’t use Print!

Export Draft to PDF​

  • Project Menu > Export Draft to PDF command.
    • The Export Draft to PDF dialog box opens.

Choose from the various configuration options

  1. Select the chapters or click Choose to select the books you need to print
  2. Click Combine Books to put all books into one PDF file.
  3. Choose the page size (A4 or Letter).
    • Getting it right is crucial.
  4. You can set the width of the margins, columns, font and font size, and basic layout options, such as justifying paragraphs.
  5. Add a note about the purpose of the printout in the comment field.
  6. The Advanced tab has a number of advanced options regarding font, headers, versification and pictures.
  7. When the settings are ready to try, click OK.
    • Paratext creates the export… then the PDF file opens in a PDF reader.

Changing layout or formatting​

  1. Close the file and use Export Draft to PDF again.
    • The settings you used last time will be preselected.
  2. Change some settings to improve the output.
  3. Click OK.
  • When you are happy with the appearance of the PDF file, use Print in the PDF reader.
    • The pages will be printed exactly as they are shown on the screen.

Open the PDF file after closing it​

  1. Open Windows Explorer
  2. Navigate to your Paratext project folder, which is usually at the root of the C drive.
    • By default, this folder is called My Paratext (8 or) 9 Projects.
  3. Open the folder for the relevant project.
  4. Open the PrintDraft folder.
  5. Double-click the PDF file to open it.
  6. You can now print the extra copies you need.
    tip

    You could also copy the file onto a USB drive, or send it to someone in an email as needed.

Help about the options​

  1. First try the guide on the Export Draft to PDF dialog,
  2. Alternatively search in the Help file for “export draft”.
    • The top Help topic “How do I make a draft printout of my translation?” is the relevant one for this dialog box.

PTXPrint​

PTXPrint is a separate program which similarly creates a PDF file from a Paratext project. It has far more configuration options, such as

  • more precise picture placement,
  • fine-grained control of footnotes,
  • headings, and
  • columns.
  • it can print diglots and include page borders.

To learn more, go to http://software.sil.org/ptxprint/