Vista even includes new options for producing printed output thanks to a redesigned print architecture. The Vista printing architecture is built around a technology called the Windows Presentation Foundation (WPF). WPF enhances printed content in several ways, including:
Improved color management
Removal of GDI-based print limitations
Better support of advanced print effects such as gradients and transparencies
Enhanced support of color laser printers
Easier printing of pictures
Support of the XML Paper Specification (XPS)
Probably the most significant of these is the support for the XML (extensible markup language) Paper Specification. What's the big whoop? The XPS print path (XPS document writer) lets you create .xps files using any Windows program. You can then view these files on any computer that has an XPS viewer installed, even if that computer doesn't have the program that originally installed the application.
If the preceding description has you thinking Portable Document File (I don't just use italics off the cuff here), or PDF, you've pretty much got the idea, although XPS will not (at least for now) support every function available in a .pdf. Adobe wants to make money off its technology and all.
At any rate, here's how to print using the new XPS Document Writer:
First, open the file you want to print to the .xps format, and choose Print. (This is usually found under the application's File menu, although some applications like Microsoft Word 2007 no longer have a File menu.)
Using the app's Print dialog box, select Microsoft XPS Document Writer as shown in Figure 12. Click OK.
Since you're printing to a file (logical) rather than a print device (physical), you're now prompted for a file name and location where you want to save the .xps file. Your Documents folder is the default.
Note
For printers that support it, Vista makes the XPS print path available to physical devices as well. Microsoft claims that What's On documents with intensive graphics and XPS printers are expected to produce better quality prints than GDI printers.
The print subsystem in Windows Vista implements the new XPS print path as well as the legacy GDI print path for legacy support. For printers that support it, Vista will transparently make use of the XPS print path. Otherwise, it's the GDI print path for legacy support. For printers supporting XPS, this eliminates an intermediate conversion to a printer-specific language such as RAW, thus improving the fidelity of the printed output.
So if there's a way to create XPS files from any Windows application, surely there's a way to view these files built into Vista as well, right?
There is. It's called the XPS Viewer, although when you use it, you will be forgiven for thinking you're looking at Internet Explorer. That's because you are. When you open an XPS document, the viewer automatically launches inside an Internet Explorer window. You'll also see two additional toolbars, one above and one below. The XPS toolbars will allow you to perform these actions, among others, on the XML document:
Save a copy
Search for a word or phrase
Go to a specific page
Zoom
Digitally sign the document
Apply document permissions
Another enhanced printing feature is the way Vista handles pictures with a bundled application called the Windows Photo Gallery. (It's not in every edition, however.) The key, of course, is to first open the Photo Gallery application. It should appear in the All Programs menu after clicking on the Vista Start button. (Even faster: click Start, then type "ph." The Photo Gallery will appear at the top.)
Once there, use the checkboxes to select one or more pictures. With a picture selected, choose the Print option that appears in the Photo Gallery's toolbar. You'll see a dialog box like the one in Figure 13.
You can take it from there. Of special note is the right pane. If you want to print four up on 8½" × 11" photo paper, just scroll down to the appropriate selection in the right pane.
One Last Thing—A Printing Tip
I want to leave this section on printing with a small tip. It is not new to Vista, and it seems almost too elementary to include here, yet I find experienced computer users all the time who are unaware of this little printing time saver, so I'm passing it on.
You don't have to open the file to print it. Just right-click the file wherever you find it in Vista—in its folder, virtual (Search result) folder, or even as an attachment in an email—right-click, and choose Print. This will send the selected file to the default printer with just a click or two.