Q: How can I print a PDF file on Athena?

Answer

PDF not printing correctly? There are multiple versions of the Portable Document Format (PDF) standard, and not all applications that create PDFs do so correctly or in a compatible manner. If your PDF fails to print correctly, we recommend you try a different PDF reader. In most cases, Adobe Reader (see below) can print documents that Document Viewer can't, and vice versa.

Document Viewer (Evince)

The easiest way to print PDF files on Athena is to use "Document Viewer", the default PDF viewer. The "Document Viewer" application should open automatically when you double-click on a PDF file. You can also launch it from the Terminal window:

When you are ready to print your PDF, choose "Print" from the "File" menu, and select the name of the printer in the list provided. If you wish to print double-sided, click the "Page Setup" tab, and change the "Two-sided" option to "Long Edge (standard)".

Adobe Reader

Adobe Reader, formerly known as Acrobat Reader, is a commercial PDF reader. This is installed on Athena, and can be launched from the Dash by clicking on the Home icon, and then typing "Acrobat" in the search box, or from the Terminal window as follows:

Adobe Reader's license agreement currently prohibits us from pre-installing it on Athena workstations, so it is stored in the AFS network file system, and may take a few moments to launch.

Adobe Reader's "Print" dialog box is slightly different than most applications you may have used. You can select properties such as double-sided printing by clicking the "Properties" button at the top-right of the dialog, after you have selected the appropriate printer.

Printing from a Browser

Modern versions of Firefox include a built-in PDF reader. In some cases, it may be preferable to download the actual PDF and open it using one of the PDF readers described above. You can do that by clicking on the "download" icon in the top-right of the PDF viewer (highlighted in the picture below):