Tutorial: Print the Map

Estimated time: 2 minutes.

You can output any image displayed in a RockPlot2D window to your printer that you have installed within Windows. There are three steps in this process: Be sure the file to be printed is displayed in the active RockPlot2D window, establish the printer settings, establish the printing scaling.

! The instructions given here will apply to maps as well as images such as ternary diagrams, Piper diagrams, scattergrams, etc.

1. Be sure the combined, annotated point + contour map is displayed in the active RockPlot2D window. This window should have the name "map with border.Rw2D." 
   1. If you can’t locate this window on your screen, hover over the RockWorks icon on the Windows taskbar.
   2. Click on the window with the RockPlot2D icon.
       
2. Set up the printer: Choose the Print Setup command from the RockPlot2D File menu.
   1. The program will display a standard Windows dialog box that lists the printers you have installed within Windows, and the printer that is currently listed as default. For many printers, this window will also show the current paper size and orientation.
   2. Choose a printer from this dialog box, if one is not already selected, for outputting the RockPlot2D map.
   3. For printing this map, be sure the paper, regardless of its size, is set to "Portrait" orientation. Check the other settings for your printer to be sure they make sense for map plotting.
   4. Choose the OK button when you are ready to continue.
       
3. Now, let's set up for printing:
   1. Select the RockPlot2D File | Print command. The program will display a window for setting the plot scaling. There are several portions of this dialog box to note; we will step you through them.
   2. Be sure to check out the diagram on the right side - this handy cartoon will let you know how your plot will be placed on the printer paper based on current dialog box settings. Note also the Configure button at the top - this will bring up the settings available in the Print Setup dialog box you viewed earlier.
   3. Horizontal Scale = Vertical Scale: The first step in printing is to check the Horizontal Scale = Vertical Scale setting. The status of this box will greatly affect how the rest of the settings behave. Be sure this box IS checked.
   4. Units: Click on this tab, to the right.  Choose whether your scaling units and margins are to be expressed as inches or centimeters.
   5. Margins: Next, click on the Margins tab. You may override the displayed margins as necessary. They are expressed in decimal inches or centimeters as selected above. Note that these margins are in addition to any built-in printer margins (printers cannot generally print to the paper edges).
   6. Layout Preview: Click back on this tab.
   7. Fill Page:  If you have changed the margins, click on the Fill Page button at the top to re-dimension the map with the new margin settings.
   8. Center:  Next, click on the Center button (at the top) to re-center the map on the page. At equal scaling x and y, you can toggle between centered and not-centered using the Fill Page and Center buttons. The change will be reflected in the cartoon.
      
      The current output scale will be displayed near the middle of the screen. For example, "1 inch = 79.86163 units" indicates that each inch of the printed map will represent 79.86163 map units (meters, in this project). You can type in a different value if you prefer a rounded number, such as "80". As you change the scale, you can click the Center button again to re-center the map on the page.
       
4. That should do it for this map, so if you are ready to print, choose the Print button.

The program will send the map information to the printer. You may cancel at any time by choosing the Cancel button from the status window.

Printing RockPlot2D Images
 

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