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How to print e-book pages

Just in time for school bells and syllabi, here are some go-to ways for printing out pages from an e-book.

Sharon Profis Vice President of Content
Sharon Profis is a vice president of content.
Sharon Profis
3 min read

New e-reading converts might be surprised to find out that despite the fact that e-books can be read on computers, there's no real way to print out a page for reference. In the olden days, you could just put a paperback facedown on a copier, but with e-books, it's a little trickier.

Just in time for school bells and syllabi, here are some go-to ways for printing out pages from an e-book.

Remember, though, that policies for the many book publishers vary, so review those policies and move forward at your own risk. Distributing copyrighted material without authorization is illegal in the United States and many other countries. CBS Interactive does not encourage or condone the illegal duplication or distribution of copyrighted content. Before copying or distributing any e-book content, make sure you have the legal right to do so.

With that in mind, watch the video tutorial and follow the steps below to find out how to print pages from an e-book.

Watch this: Print e-book pages

The (almost) universal method
If your e-reader offers a Web or desktop reader, like Amazon, Kobo, Sony, and Barnes & Noble, this option is for you.

  1. Head to your e-reader's Web site, like Barnes & Noble or Amazon. From there, launch the Web reader or desktop reader software. Amazon and Barnes & Noble, for example, have both of these options. For this tutorial we'll use the Nook for Web reader.
  2. Open a book and find the page you want to print.
  3. Resize the browser (or desktop) window so that it matches the aspect ratio of an 8.5" x 11" piece of paper. It doesn't have to be exact; just eyeball it.
  4. Take a screenshot of the e-book page. In Windows 7 launch the Snipping Tool, drag the cursor to outline the page, and save the screenshot. On a Mac, hit Ctrl+CMD+4 and drag the cursor to outline the page. The screenshot will be saved to your desktop.
  5. Open the screenshot image file and go to File > Print. In the print dialog, be sure to uncheck any settings that will stretch the image (i.e. "Fit to page.") Also change the ink settings to print in black (not color or grayscale). Finally, hit print.
  6. Repeat this process for any other pages you want to print.

If you own an iPad
If you use the iPad as your e-reader, the process is a little simpler.

  1. Open your e-reader app, open a book, and navigate to the page you want to print.
  2. Adjust the layout to display black text on a white background. (This process will vary in every app, but usually it's in the font adjustment menu.)
  3. Take a screenshot by holding the home button and clicking the sleep button. Do the same for any other pages you want to print.
  4. Go to the Camera Roll and hit the action button (the arrow in the upper-right) and tap to select all of the screenshots. When you're done, tap "Share" in the upper-left, and select "E-mail." E-mail the screenshots to yourself.
  5. Head to a computer with printer access, open the e-mail, and download the photos. Open the screenshot image files and go to File > Print. In the print dialog, be sure to uncheck any settings that will stretch the image (i.e. "Fit to page.") Also change the ink settings to print in black (not color or grayscale). Finally, hit print.

Printing in a pinch
Before you read on, note that this is the really, really last-resort way to get a copy of an e-book page and only applies to those who own an e-ink reader (like the Nook Simple Touch.) I wouldn't really recommend doing this if you don't have to.

  1. Find a copy machine.
  2. Grab your e-reader and navigate to the page you want to print. Adjust the font size, if you like.
  3. Place the e-reader face down on the copier, close the lid...and hit copy.

Really, that's it. And it totally works.