Printing forms within certain barriers

[chetbarker]

I have a few Excel templates that I have created in the past that I use to print to pre-printed forms. To create the templates, I will start with a blank sheet and then resize all of the rows/columns to a relatively small size so the cells are all square like graph paper. I format the sheet to print the outline grids and then number the rows and columns along the side and top of the sheet. I then print this form on top of one of my pre-printed forms so that I can figure out exactly which cells will print where. I then merge the cells for each field in the right size and location so that when I populate those fields they will print on the right place within the form.

Depending upon the form, this process can take a while due to all of the tweaking and adjusting. I eventually get it the way I want it but I am not sure this is the most efficient way to do this. Does anyone have any better ideas on this? Also, if I use a different type of printer, I sometimes have to make adjustments because each printer has different margins.

If anyone has any better methods for doing this, I would love to hear them.
(I have thought of trying to just reproduce the entire form in Excel, but I really don't want to do that.)



Thanks for your input!