Envelope Printing in OpenOffice.org

Carol from Minnesota writes:

How do I print on envelopes in Open Office?

To begin, I have to say “That depends”.

Depends upon what, you ask?

Well, are you looking to add an envelope to an existing document so that they’re a “matched set” or do you want a file that contains just an envelope?

Either way, we’re going to OpenOffice.org Writer to get the job done.

Once in Writer, if you’re looking to pair an envelope with a specific document, then open the file into which you want an envelope inserted.

Now we’re off to the Insert menu, Envelope choice.

Once in the Envelope dialog you’ll have a few choices and settings to complete.

First, on the Envelope tab, you can use the bottom left corner for a return address and the upper left field for the destination address… or… you could leave either one or both blank and then edit them directly on the page in Writer.

The Format tab is next:

As you can see, this one allows you to designate the envelope size (bottom) as well as the location of address placement on the envelope.

You can use the Format buttons on the right to change fonts, but it might just be easier to do that stuff once you’re looking at the envelope within the document.

The Printer tab allows you to set the orientation of the envelope that your printer will use as well as address any other printer settings.

When you’ve made all your decisions and adjusted the settings appropriately you have just one more choice to make…

Envelope in current file above page 1 or envelope in a new file by itself?

If you want it in the current file then click the Insert button at the bottom.

For an envelope in a new file, click the New Doc. button at the bottom.

Either way you’ll have an envelope in a file that looks like this:

You can see the address fields allowing you to edit it right here in the document as needed.

When trying to print the envelope only of a file that also has a document, simply choose to print only page 1.

In closing, I should say that this may take a bit of experimentation at first, especially with the printing part. You’ll need to investigate how your printer is handling the envelope and make adjustments to settings as needed.

However, once you get it all figured out you’re always ready for a quick and professional looking envelope.

~ April