Unable to print any Avery Labels correctly

MissBee · ‎07-21-2020

I have been unable to print Avery Labels correctly. I am usually in a hurry when trying to do so and assumed it was human error on my part. However, this summer I am determined to get my filing cabinet organized so I can find the documents I am looking for! I have spent the ENTIRE afternoon trying to print a single page of Avery File Folder Labels!!!! I downloaded the Avery Template when could not find it as an option in Word (8593). That didn't work. I have been on both Avery and HP helpsites trying to trouble shoot and have determined that it is obviously an HP problem This is unacceptable!!!!!!! When restarting Printer, checking and double checking all printer settings and other suggestions by
Avery did not work, I tried to create a blank document in word using the measurements of the label sheet to set up a table. I have had to do this before (many many years ago when it was not as easy to find a template as it is now!) and am proficient at Word, tables, and measuring. Even this did not work because of limitations in Word. I am beyond frustrated. Why oh why is there such a disconnect between Avery and HP? I am forced to shop at WalMart for office supplies - rural community! - and Avery labels are my only option. I have always believed HP to be the most reliable printer.

If there is something I don't know about downloading a temple and importing it into Word so It works with the Mailings/Labels feature....PLEASE explain!

Dragon-Fur · ‎07-21-2020

@MissBee

Two main things come to mind:

If this is your printer

HP Deskjet 5650 Color Inkjet Printer

It is a very old printer - it was introduced in 2003

It is possible the printer is wearing out.

What if it is software?

The "disconnect" is likely due to Avery having removed the wonderful Design and Print download software for Windows that was so very popular, usable, and pretty accurate. You can still use the software at the Avery Site - irritating, but likely doable.

You did not describe "what is wrong" beyond the labels are "not correct".

I would guess the issue is related to the margins, the layout, the results sliding up / down / left / right of where you expect.

As to what you don't know - well, I don't know.

I am not being sarcastic - I assume you are creating the label document correctly.

I cannot find "template 8993" at the Avery site - different name, perhaps?

Avery Results list "File folder labels"

I don't have a Deskjet printer, so no guarantees - depending the problem you are having and whether I can "see" the issue using my tools (Office Home and Business 2019), I can certainly try using the template and creating the document.

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Dragon-Fur

MissBee · ‎07-22-2020

Thanks Dragon-Fur! I appreciate you trying to help! I do have a VERY old printer! LOL I am a school teacher in a rural community. We are not allowed to install our own printer on the school desktop (don't ask me why -probably a security thing?) so I am stuck with the printer the school issued me and will be stuck with it until they decide to upgrade. With that said, the hp Deskjet 5650 has been a pretty reliable little printer. I don't have a problem with anything else..I print Word Documents, pdfs, Google Docs and Sheets, etc with no problem. It is only Avery Labels I am having a problem with and I think it has something to do with borderless printing. I created a Word Document with a table but I was already so tired and frustrated that it took a lot longer than it should have. I spent a lot of time and paper and ink trying to get my rows the correct height because 0.66 inch isn't exactly right but they couldn't all be 0.67 either and .......anyway....

I did not realize that Avery had removed their Design and Print software. Is that why my Microsoft Word 2013 doesn't include the "new" label numbers? The template that I downloaded from Avery.com/templates for Word did NOT print correctly....the margins were completely wrong. I saw a lot of other discussions on this site that made me think that a lot of people with hp printers were having the same problems and so assumed it was HP's fault. When I left yesterday, I was thinking I would just have to make a list of the folder names in a spreadsheet and then import it to the template and print my labels at home on my home printer (much newer!) So I came to my classroom this morning with that plan. After I got here, I opened the Word Document and quickly fixed the table so that it prints okay....Not perfect, but definitely good enough. Then, I read your reply and went back and looked at the avery. site to see if I could find the software you mentioned. Much to my surprise, I found it immediately - in the middle of the screen ...BIG LETTERS....

"Design and Print Online" and "Start Designing"

So...um...yeah....I think I will be okay. I will try this and if it still doesn't align correctly, I will just use the Word doc that isn't perfect but is definitely good enough. With virtual school looking like our best option, I am trying to get all my worksheets and handouts converted to digital. A HUGE task. I don't have digital textbooks, so .....yeah....a lot of scanning. But it does seem like the perfect time to get file cabinet organized too. I keep telling the other teachers, "Sure it's going to be hard, but we are going to grow so much as teachers! I have been saying for years I needed to get more organized! Well, it's finally happening - because it HAS to!" Guess I am feeling a little stressed out and overwhelmed but hopefully, today will be better! Thanks again for your response!

Dragon-Fur · ‎07-23-2020

@MissBee

Good Morning.

Our thread is "back" so I can properly answer your post.

First order of business:

Download every scrap of information that you can find for this printer. The typical support window is ten years (sometimes more, obviously) - the entire support structure (documents) could disappear at any time.

Because you are dependent on Windows 10 drivers (the actual printer software is not supported in "modern" Windows), your choices will be limited to those provided by the Windows print drivers. While not ideal, Windows print drivers suffice most of the time and include most basic print functions.

There is no way to protect your printer from the eventual loss of the Windows print drivers - Once Windows pulls the support completely, the printer will stop working. When? No idea. Just be aware it can happen.

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The template I mentioned (8993) was the wrong template, of course. Using a larger page magnification allowed me to actually read what you wrote. Smiling. Sometimes I forget I cannot see as well as I did in my twenties. Smiling.

Downloaded the Word template:

Avery File Folder Labels 8593

What can the printer do?

The printer Specifications provide some information - and, in fact, provide details not typically found in more recent documents of this type - worth downloading the file, I think. The Specifications do not appear to provide that most important of details: margin requirements.

The issue with printing the label document could be a number of things, of course. Sometimes the issue is tied to the margin settings - although many printers tolerate a "narrow" print margin (typically .5 inches each side in Word document setup) - not all printers do so. In particular, a printer might require a larger bottom margin.

In the case of the Avery 8593 template, the bottom margin setting is showing a bit under the .5 inch mark. I don't have any idea of your printer's margin tolerances. It is not uncommon for a printer to require a larger bottom margin.

What if? If the margins required by the template / document are not tolerated by the printer, the print might fail outright or - as apparently the case this time - print "out of spec", that is, out of alignment to the actual label placements on the paper.

Example - Margins - Avery 8593

Avery_8593_Filing_Labels_Margins_1 Avery_8593_Filing_Labels_Margins_1

OK - So you found a "solution" of sorts. It may - or may not - be related to the margins.

What if? Margin requirements are just something about which you want to be aware when choosing a template.

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Thank you for being a teacher.

Thank you for being strong, brave, and dedicated.

Thank you for protecting, nurturing, and accepting our children.

Thank you for inspiring all of us to a clear appreciation of what is important.

Thank you for training our children to live in our world.

Good luck with the reorganization. You are right, of course: The work will have been worth the effort. It is just a matter of getting to the other side of the project. Smiling.