PPT2000: Shapes with Background Fill Print Black When Slide Background is a Gradient Fill (226571)

SYMPTOMS

When you apply the Background fill type to an autoshape with a slide background fill as a gradient fill of type From Corner or From Title and you print the slide to a PCL based printer with the Grayscale option not selected, the autoshape prints out solid black.

NOTE: This happens even if the PCL based printer prints in color. This only occurs on Windows 9x, and it does not occur when you print from PowerPoint on Windows NT.

WORKAROUND

If a non-PCL based printer driver is available and the printer can support that format, for example a driver using PostScript, then use that driver to printer.

Otherwise, format the background of the slide to use a different gradient fill. To do this, follow these steps:

On the Format menu, click Background.
From the Background Fill Color list, click Fill effects.
Select a gradient fill other than From Corner or From Title, and click OK.
For one slide, click Apply.

For every slide in the presentation, click Apply to all.

STATUS

Microsoft has confirmed that this is a problem in the Microsoft products that are listed at the beginning of this article.