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●If youfrequentlychangepaperweights,you willprobablyget skewing
problems—linesthatprint atan angle becauseofmisfeeding.Forbest
results,whenyourStarLaserPrinter4is firstsetuphavethe paperfeeder
“squared”forpaperof at least60grams.Lighterpaper,thoughcheaper,
isn’treallythe wayto economize.
●Wanttoprint onyourownpreprintedletterhead?Fine—solongas your
logo’isn’tthermographed.Thickcoloredink maylookluxurious,but it
canalso windupstuckall overyourprinter’sroller.Stayawayfrom any
inksthatsoftenat relativelylowtemperatures;yourprinterfusespagesat
200°c.
Thiswarningappliestocoloredpapertoo,ifit hasbeentintedwithalow-
temperaturedye.
●Whenprintingstartsfadingbecausethetonerislow,removethecartridge
andgentlymck itbackandforthhalf adozentimes.Don’ttipitup orthe
tonermayspillout.Redistributingthetonerpowderthiswaycankeep the
cartridgegoingfor anothertrayof paper.
●No question,workingwith singlelabelsheetsis more convenientthan
withcontinuouslabelstock.Laserprintersarefasterand producebetter-
lookinglabels than other printers. Butlaser printers, whichwork by
electrostaticphotography ratherthan impact pressure, put different
stressesonlabelpaper.Eachsheethastobend overandthroughtheguide
rollers;moreover, fusing toner to the paper involvesheat. You can
eliminatetroubleby alwaysfeedinglabelsheetsmanually.
BothAvery’s “Lasergraphic”labels andCanon’slabels seemto work
fine.Yourmain concernisthat thelabelscompletelycoverthebacking
sheetsoit showsonlyat theoutsidemargins.Thatwayindividuallabels
can’teasilypeel off.
Thesafestapproachistolaser-printsharpmastercopiesonpaperandthen
photocopythoselistsonto labels.Thiswillavoid puttingyourprinter’s
adjustmentforpaperthicknessout ofadjustment.
●If you wantto print transparenciesfor your overheadprojector,some
filmswill actually meltin your laser printer. Stickto 3M’s medium-
weighttransparencyfilm(type501) orto Hewlett-Packard’s#92285J.
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