HP Color LaserJet 5550 series - User Guide

Controlling print jobs
Three settings affect the printer driver's ability to specify how paper should be pulled in the
printer. The Source, Type, and Size settings appear in the Page Setup, Print, or Print
Properties dialog boxes in most software programs. If you do not change these settings, the
printer automatically selects a tray using the default printer settings.
Source
Printing by Source means you choose a specific tray from which you want the printer to pull
paper. The printer tries to print from this tray, no matter what type or size is loaded in it. If
you choose a tray that is configured for a type or size that does not match your print job, the
printer does not print automatically. Instead, it waits for you to load the tray you chose with
the type or size of print paper for your print job. If you load the tray correctly, the printer
begins printing. If you press
, the display allows you to choose from other loaded trays.
Note
If you have difficulties printing by Source and want the printer to autoswitch from the
specified tray, see
Tray behavior options: Use Requested Tray and manually feed.
Type and Size
Printing by Type or Size means you want the printer to pull paper or print paper from the first
tray that is loaded with the type or size that you choose. Selecting paper by Type rather than
Source is similar to locking out trays and helps protect special paper from accidental use.
(However, selecting the Any setting does not enable this tray lockout function.) For example,
if a tray is configured for letterhead, and you specify the driver to print on plain paper, the
printer will not pull the letterhead from that tray. Instead, it will pull paper from a tray that has
plain paper loaded and is configured for plain paper on the printer control panel. Selecting
paper by Type and Size results in significantly better print quality for heavy paper, glossy
paper, and transparencies. Using the wrong setting can result in unsatisfactory print quality.
Always print by Type for special print media such as labels or grayscale transparencies.
Always print by Size for envelopes.
● If you want to print by Type or Size and the trays have not been configured for that type
or size, in the printer driver, select the Type or Size from the Page Setup dialog box, the
Print dialog box, or the Print Properties dialog box. The printer will prompt you to load
that type and size.
● If you often print on a certain type or size of paper, the printer administrator (for a
network printer) or you (for a local printer) can configure a tray for that type or size (see
Using the embedded Web server or Configuring input trays for type and size). Then,
when you choose that type or size as you print a job, the printer pulls from the tray
configured for that type or size.
Print setting priorities
Changes made to print settings are prioritized (or take precedence) depending on where the
changes are made:
76 Chapter 4 Printing tasks ENWW