Windows 8 How do you print from a browser in 8.1

[Howard Walker]

I have always been able to print from my browser to my network printer. It shows up on the system in my new win8.1 system, but when I try to use CTRL + P to print from Firefox, nothing happens, and its not an option using the context menu. So am I not supposed to print anymore unless I use the apps supplied by windows?

If I select the print option in the hidden menu o the right (Charm?) I get a message "you can only print from an app"
Is a browser not an app? I thought that an app was just slang for a program.
I assume that there is a way to print from a browser, or even to an adobe pdf.

 

[davidhk129]

I am using Win 8.1 Pro, and FireFox.

Maybe the keyboard shortcut is not enabled.

Do you have the menu bar option enabled?
If yes, click File > click Print.
Will that work?

 

[Howard Walker]

The menu that is shown above does not have the print option when I use it on windows 8.1. Its fine on windows 7.

 

[Howard Walker]

Neither does it appear if I use a right click.

 

[strollin]

Hitting Ctrl-P in FireFox 25.01 running on Win 8.1 brings up the print menu for me so I don't believe it's a Win 8.1 issue. The File menu also shows the print option. Not sure why it doesn't for you. Are you able to print from other apps like Notepad?

 

[davidhk129]

Win 8.1 comes with IE11.
Use it and see if you can print.

 

[davidhk129]

@ Howard Walker,
Until you can figure out what is wrong with your FF, here is a work-around.....

Open FireFox > right click at an open spot of the blue bar at the top > select Customize .....
in the popup box, click at Print and HOLD > drag the print icon to the menu bar > click Done to exit the popup box.
The Print icon should be at the menu bar like this......

Now can you click at the print icon and do printing ?

Perhaps you should also ask the FF experts in FF Support Form.....
http://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/get-community-support

 

[davehc]

Returning to the second para in your first post. The option you are selecting, (in the Charms) will not work with anything on the legacy desktop, it is designed for the Metro items only - wrongly named "Apps".

Your second post. Is that IE or FF?
If IE, I suspect you are using the Metro version. It doesn't have the more accustomed top menu bar. In desktop mode, I have that option, with or without a printer.
But, in summary, If you are getting no action in FF, also, which has none of the above complications, when trying Ctrl +P, then I would suspect a problem with the network connection to the printer. Normally, when I select Ctrl+P from the Metro IE, the charms bar automatically pops up, with the choice of either of the printers I have connected.
Is there a socket option on the printer, to connect directly to your computer? If so, try that to ascertain that the printer is correctly installed.

 

[Howard Walker]

Thanks for all your suggestions.
It turned out that the printer needed a driver installing on the windows 8 machine, even though it was showing up on the network. As soon as I installed that, win8 found the printer and everything came together.
Sorry for the delay in answering, but the win 8 machine has no email facilities yet, and I have been working on it trying to sort it out.

 

[davidhk129]

Good to know you have the "print" issue sorted.

As to Mail, Win 8.1 has Mail app. If you have Hotmail.com account, you can use that in win 8.1.
I use WLM ( windows live mail ) in which I have a POP account and a Hotmail account configured.

 

[Howard Walker]

David,
The print icon idea is great. Makes it so much easier to have a shortcut on the page. As to mail, I am still deciding whether to buy Office or just Outlook on a disk as opposed to Outlook.com. I don't like any of the web mail things, as I have always kept my mail on my machine, with backups on a separate drive. The new web mail from Microsoft doe not seem to take pop 3 clients, and as I write web sites I have about 6 pop 3 email addresses to deal with. I worked out that I can get Outlook for about £90 and open office for free, all in all saving some £250. The alternative is to give Microsoft control of my mail on the cloud, where it can be lost in a second for ever.