Mail.app only printing message headers -- fix

We previously reported on an issue in which Mail.app only prints message headers, leaving message body text out. The problem appears to manifest more often when the "Command P" keyboard combination is used to print documents.

Dozens of users have since corroborated the problem:

• "This problem has me climbing the walls. I thought it was a font issue perhaps with Suitcase Fusion, but now it happens on my home computer as well (no Suitcase there). [...] I deleted Helvetica Fractions and the Phonetic fonts and that problem had mostly stopped (but not completely)."
• "I began experiencing the problem several weeks ago, but since I don't normally print e-mails at work and never at home, it wasn't apparent exactly what caused it."
• "I, too, have had this problem with Mail for at least the last month. Another (related?) issue is that when Mail does manage to print the body of the message, it's often in an incorrect font (not the one displayed)." -- Charlie Sharp

The easiest workaround for this issue is as follows: after invoking the print command, wait for the print dialog box to fully render, then wait 5 additional seconds and press print. In other words, it appears that moving too quickly can cause this problem.

As written by one MacFixIt reader:

"I am having the same problems. I have found that it appears many times to be a timing issue. I print out many of my emails and at times there are quite a few in the print que. If I take my time and wait for the drop down print window to open all the way, (instead of quickly hitting Command P and then the return/enter key,before the window has opened all the way) then the emails seem to print correctly most of the time. Also if I go back and re-print the emails after I find out that the 1st time I got nothing, then again most of the time, things print correctly."

Another, more consistent workaround involves clicking the "Preview" button in the print dialog, then printing the message from within the Preview application.

Only saving headers Meanwhile, some users are reporting a problem where saving messages as text files results in the same missing-header problem.

MacFixIt reader Chuck writes:

"I experience something similar, which is not related to printing. If I select (but don't open to view) a message, and then elect to save it to a text file, I get only the header."

If you are experiencing a similar issue, please let us know.

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