Adobe ILLUSTRATOR CS2 - Page 481

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ADOBE ILLUSTRATOR CS2
User Guide
About page size and orientation
Adobe Illustrator normally uses the default page size defined by the PPD file for the selected printer. However, you
can change the media size to any of the sizes listed in the PPD file as well as specify portrait (vertical) or landscape
(horizontal) orientation. The largest page size you can specify depends on the maximum imageable area of your
imagesetter.
Note the following when specifying the page size and orientation:
• If you select a different media size (for example, if you change from US Letter to US Legal), the artwork is reposi-
tioned in the preview window. This is because the preview window displays the entire imageable area of the
selected media; when the media size is changed, the preview window automatically rescales to include the
imageable area.
Note: The imageable area may vary by PPD file, even for the same media size (for example, US Letter), because different
printers and imagesetters define the sizes of their imageable areas differently.
• The default placement of the page on the film or paper depends on the imagesetter used to print the page.
• Make sure that your media size is large enough to contain your artwork as well as crop marks, registration marks,
and other necessary printing information. To conserve imagesetter film or paper, however, select the smallest page
size that accommodates your artwork and necessary printing information.
• If your imagesetter can accommodate the longest side of your imageable area, you can conserve a considerable
amount of film or paper by using Transverse or changing the orientation of the printed artwork. Consult the
documentation on your specific printer for more information.
See also
“About PPD files” on page 477
“About the artboard” on page 36
To scale a document for printing
To fit an oversized document on a piece of paper smaller than the artwork’s actual dimensions, you can use the Print
dialog box to scale the document’s width and height, either symmetrically or asymmetrically. Asymmetric scaling is
useful when, for example, you’re printing film for use on a flexographic press: if you know in which direction the
plate will be mounted on the press drum, scaling can compensate for the 2% to 3% stretching of the plate that usually
occurs. Scaling does not affect the size of the pages in the document, it just changes the scale at which the document
prints.
1 Choose File > Print.
2 Do one of the following:
• To prevent scaling, select Do Not Scale.
• To scale the document automatically to fit to the page, select Fit To Page. The scaling percentage is determined by
the imageable area defined by the selected PPD.
• To activate the Width and Height text boxes, select Custom Scale. Enter percentages from 1 to 1000 for the width
or height. Deselect the Constrain Proportions button to change the document width-to-height ratio.