Printing Drop Shadows in Visio 2013 Standard

[GISdude]

Hi all,
I have searched and googled and am at the wits' end. I can't find HQ printing in the print dialog box to print drop shadows etc. I have looked for about an hour now and I can't find it - anywhere. Is there some setting I'm missing? Maybe I have an update that I missed?

Operator error?

Thanks for any help

[Paul Herber]

It's not in the print dialog but in the printer properties for me (I can select HQ 1200 mode rather than the normal 600dpi setting). It makes no difference though, no drop shadows or any other effects are printed. Brother laser printer. Visio 2016.

[wapperdude]

Well, V2019 seems to be an improvement...it printed the "glow" enhancement.  Shadow & reflection did not print.  Kinda useless.

[Paul Herber]

It might be more down to printer capabilities than anything else.
These effects look totally pointless to me. But what do I know.

[wapperdude]

I don't think it's a printer issue. 

I can see some use for these effects...display posters, marketing brochures, improved "lighting" effects...but there's no point without printability.

The 2nd issue with these is the right side window that pops up. It is a good idea but poorly implemented.  The little thumb nail icons should be hard coded with high contrast images so you can see what effect they represent.  They don't need to show the actual result.  For minimal contrast effects, they're useless...too small to see anything.  Once you've applied, game is effectively over.      Give me button to preview the shape with/without effect applied.

[Nikolay]

I have seen this question before. There is a new checkbox in Visio 201x
Maybe this one is what you are after?

[Paul Herber]

That's well hidden! Very poor UI design.
That works. Very poor UI design.
I would never have thought of looking there. Very poor UI design.

[Nikolay]

Me too! One piece of modern UI
Was puzzled awhile (two years maybe?) ago by a customer I believe. Not sure how we discovered this thingy

[wapperdude]

Well how about that.  There it is!   You're absolutely right, Paul, bad GUI design.

[Visio Guy]

I have exported high-res bitmaps in the past, when gradient fills and transparency wouldn't print well. Just pick the resolution of your printer, and it should be effectively doing the same thing as HQ printing.