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I don't own a printer. I want to print on-line documents such as coupons and airline tickets to a USB drive which I will then take to the Staples store for printing.

I will want to keep the bar codes intact.

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What operating system are you using? – GreenMatt Mar 29 '10 at 0:39
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you want a "print-to-file" option, or "export-as-PDF", which will ask you where to save the file, and you'll save it to the flash drive. – quack quixote Mar 29 '10 at 0:40
@quack quixote: Does Staples support opening PDF files for printing? just wondering? – studiohack♦ Mar 29 '10 at 4:38
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@studiohack23: they didn't when i worked there, but that was more than a decade ago. (long before they had computers and you could print stuff out.) last time i went in to print something was nearly a decade ago, and your file had to be on floppy (not CD, and this was pre-flash-drive), but i think they had PDF viewers on the kiosks. – quack quixote Mar 29 '10 at 5:02
@quack quixote: ya, probably. thanks! – studiohack♦ Mar 29 '10 at 14:29
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3 Answers

up vote 10 down vote

If you're using Windows, you could install CutePDF (free), which allows you to save any printable document to a PDF. You could save the PDF files to your thumbdrive, then transport them to Staples.

Link to CutePDF

If you're using a Mac, in the standard print dialog you can select PDF -> Save to PDF...

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+1 cause that's exactly what i was about to suggest ;p – Journeyman Geek Mar 29 '10 at 0:44
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up vote 6 down vote

You don't even need to install CutePDF - select a Postscript printer and Print to File. (this will give you a postscript file).

To create a "print to Postscript" virtual printer in Windows XP, follow these steps:

  1. Start the Add Printer Wizard (Start -> Printers & Faxes -> Add Printer).
  2. Select "Local printer", and uncheck the "Automatically detect and install" checkbox.
  3. Select "Use the following port". In the dropdown, select "FILE: (Print to File)".
  4. This is where you choose a driver; you need a Postscript driver for this. Good ones are the "Apple Color LW 12/660 PS", "Apple LaserWriter 12/640 PS", and "Apple LaserWriter 16/600 PS". If you want to print in color, use the "Apple Color LW 12/660 PS". Drivers for all of these are provided by Microsoft, so there's no need for additional downloads.
  5. Set the name for the printer or leave the default. Set it as the default printer if you want.
  6. Share and print a test file as desired, and finish the wizard.

When complete, you'll have a new "printer" available to your applications. When printing to this virtual printer, a popup dialog will ask where to save the output file. It will be a Postscript file, but you may need to add the .ps file extension by hand. There are free tools that will convert Postscript to PDF if you prefer (such as ps2pdf from the GNU Ghostview utility).

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up vote 2 down vote

On a Mac, just hit Command+P (or File -> Print), click the PDF button at the bottom-left of the dialogue and choose Save as PDF...

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