How to change default program for printing windows 7

Johnmcl7

Have you checked 'Set program access and computer defaults' in Default Programs within the control panel?

John

littlerock

OK my pc's printer IS selected as the default printer. I think it is not a printer problem but a software problem. I changed the set up somehow, so that when I click Print while viewing a jpeg, the first thing it does is open Photoshop and I then have to find the photo on my PC using Photoshop and print from there. This was, at the time, what I wanted to do, but I no longer want to do it.

Meanwhile if I select Print for a Word document, nothing at all happens. I do not get to see any print options screen at all. Ditto Control+P. If I go to the Control Panel and select Devices and Printers, my printer is correctly shown as the default printer.

Johnmc17 - Looked at that but there is no Photoshop program shown although I have it on my pc

Le_Kirk - Nothing happens

Andypix - correctly shows my printer as the default printer

[Deleted User]

I think we're getting confused here.

I think what the OP wants to do, is set the default program, to open images.

OP, if this is what you want, this is how to do it.

1. Go to a folder, containing an image of the type you want to open.

2. Right click on the image, scroll down the menu and hover over "Open with", until another menu opens.

3. In this menu, click "Choose default program".

4. Click on Photoshop, then ensure there's a tick in the option "Always use this program to open this type of file".

From now on, when you double click a file of that type, it will open in Photoshop.

Cash-Strapped.T32

Correct me if I'm wrong, but I think I clock what the OP is saying.

If *I* go to a folder on my HD, and r-click an image file, and using the context-menu select "print", then in Win-7 by default, it opens the image file in a specific program titled "Print Picures".
It appears to be an integral component of Win-7.

(it lives in Windows/System32 and the executable is called "print.exe")
Having recently done a clean re-install of Windows, I don't even have any printer drivers or associated software installed yet, so I know it's an integral part of Win7..

To double-check this, if you go to the "Run" dialogue at the bottom of your start menu and try to run "Print Pictures" from there, the app will open briefly & then close straight away, because (I assume) it needs to have a file or document loaded/passed to it as as argument of the execute command before it can actually do anything.


So I feel John above has the right idea - it's a question of setting the default application, not of setting the default printer.

Additionally, since the OP is attempting to print directly from the Windows shell, not from within a specific program, setting the default app to open the file won't get the intended result as such (although it's something that should be done anyway, and funilly enough, we technically do need to open the file with print.exe).


My suggestion would be to do what John says - r-click an image file, go to "open with".
When it asks which program to use, browse to C:windows/system32 and select the file "print.exe".
Open the image using this program.

If this produces the intended results, then next time, r-click>open with>choose default program and do the same again, this time it will make print.exe the default program in future.



Personally, having used Photoshop since version 4 back in '97 or '98 I don't see why any user wouldn't simply open the image in Photoshop & print that way (totally messy to randomly set Photoshop as the default program to print form but hey).

It's also a bit weird for windows to even use a printing app - it's better imo to let whatever software you wish to handle the file, to handle the command of sending the file to the printer, but hey, what do I know?

Johnmcl7

It's a separate command to the default 'open' option and seems unrelated as when I change the default open program, the program that opens with print doesn't change. I've found this program which appears could change the program:

http://defaultprogramseditor.com/

This doesn't seem very userfriendly though and I can't seem to find a Windows way to do this without using the registry. Also the default photo printing wizard for jpegs isn't that useful but for reference mine is set as a DropTarget and Droptarget Object for Photo Printing Wizard.

John

Cash-Strapped.T32

Johnmcl7 wrote: »

It's a separate command to the default 'open' option and seems unrelated as when I change the default open program, the program that opens with print doesn't change. I've found this program which appears could change the program:

Ayes, my mistake! - I realised shortly after posting it wouldn't be a case of opening an image file with the .exe I mentioned, as obviously the default app to open image files is usually image viewer - no doubt there will be a way to instead modify the command to print (right-click context menu) to point to it.

As it isn't something I've modified in the past, I'm unsure off the top of my head, but like I said - my windows installation is only a few days old right now, and it's default "print" command (as from the r-lick context menu or from within image viewer) definitely uses the "print.exe" program in system32.

If I understand the OP right, they're saying they used to be able to select "print" from within a windows explorer window, or from within image viewer, so as far as I can tell this can only be the behaviour they're trying to replicate.

Le_Kirk

OP, you seem to have two problems. Go to Windows Explorer, find a .jpg file, right click on it (assuming you are using the mouse as a right-handed person) and select "Open with" and scroll to the bottom and select "Choose default program" click on that, what is shown - one would assume Photoshop. Select "Windows photo viewer" Now double click on a .jpg and does it open in Windows photo viewer? Now, single left click on a .jpg, what options are there in your menu bar? Can you see "Print" if so click on it, what happens?

With Word, open a file, select the print option by using an icon or using Ctrl P, your print page should open, do you see a list of printers in a drop down box, if so, drop it down and select yours. Then hit print button, what happens?

littlerock

Thanks for all the replies. Sorry I have only just been able to get back to you. This is what I did http://www.photoshopessentials.com/essentials/default-image-editor-in-windows/

I set up PSE to be the default image editor for all my pictures.

Now I am in for the evening I am going to see if I can reverse the procedure.....

Cash-Strapped.T32

Oh, so after all that you had just set Photoshop-esque to be the default app to open images... :rotfl: