How To Print A Calendar
Use the Right Calendar Link, if Possible
If your browser supports it, you should use the calendar link from the left column. That version of the calendar is formatted especially for printing. It also supports different colors for the different categories of events.
How can you tell if your browser supports it? The easiest way is to try. If it comes out looking like a calendar, you are in good shape. If not, your browser does not support it. Currently, the only browser that does not support this formatting is Internet Explorer.[1] If you must use a browser that does not work, then your only option is to use the legacy calendar link, which presents the original formatting of the calendar. This version does not support colors in the categories, and more importantly, it is harder (but not impossible) to print on a landscape sheet of paper.
Set Your Printing Preferences to Print Landscape
Landscape printing is sideways, with the long dimension of the paper going left and right instead of up and down. The calendar is sized to fit best on a sheet of paper this way.
Set Your Margins to Zero and Adjust from There
The calendar is sized to take up nearly all the space on the paper. The dimensions should usually be the same, but sometimes it can expand a little bit vertically. To see how the margins look...
Use your Print Preview Function Until You are Satisfied
If the calendar is coming out too high on the paper, increase the top margin. If it's too far left, increase the left margin. If it seems too big even when the margins are set to zero, look for a setting that automatically adjusts the scale to fit things on one page.
Remember to Print in Color If You Have a Color Printer
You can also print in black and white or gray, if you prefer. But then the color-coded categories will not be as easily seen.
Select Categories to Remove Unwanted Items
The Select Categories link at the bottom of the calendar will allow you to adjust which categories are displayed. You can "turn off" a category (like Bethany or Concordia, for example) so that those events will not show up.
For More Event Info, try As Event List
Each event can have a description associated with it. Those descriptions won't show up in a printed calendar when it is in the regular calendar view. But if you select the As Event List link at the bottom, you will get a listing of the events that does include the descriptions and much more. In that view, you can still select the categories that will be displayed.
For a More Compact Arrangement, Toggle Time Format
The Toggle Time Format switches the format of the event start times back and forth between 12-hour and 24-hour time. 24-hour time is more concise, because it does not require "AM" or "PM" to be attached to every time. If you are comfortable reading 24-hour times, using them can result in better formatting of the calendar.
More about Internet Explorer
When Explorer 7 was in development, it was promised to greatly improve support for Internet standards like the Cascading Stylesheets (CSS) code used in our standard calendar. Unfortunately, it seems Microsoft was unable to include that particular compliance in its flagship browser, though much smaller companies and even collections of volunteers have accomplished it in competing browsers. This is somewhat disappointing, though not entirely unexpected. Microsoft has a history of difficulty complying with standards that allow interoperability with competing software. If you are limited to using a Microsoft computing environment, you are probably familiar with the frustrations it entails. I sympathize, but have only limited resources to devote to things like our web calendar. Given the choice between complying with the worldwide-accepted standard or supporting the quirks of Internet Explorer, I will support the standard, every time.
Though your convenience and productivity are not as important to Microsoft as its market share, you can take some solace in the fact that there are multiple free alternatives to Internet Explorer, all of which seem to work better. I can only recommend that you try them. I suggest Firefox or Opera, both free.
