If you routinely print to multiple printers from your laptop, Windows 7 will ease up your printing task. Rather switching among different printers when you go from, say, home to work, it will be more preferable to delegate this task to Windows 7.
With Location aware printing, whenever you print, windows 7 remembers the network and printer you're using. Next time you return to that spot, Windows automatically switches the default printer to match the one you last used. You can also manually pair printers and networks. So, now you are hassle free from managing multiple network based printers by setting up default printers based on what network you are connected to!
To use it, first set a printer as your default. That printer then becomes the default for the network you're connected to. Then, set Windows to change your default printer depending on where you are.
If you want a wireless network to appear in the Manage Default Printers dialog box, you need to have successfully connected to that wireless network at least once.
To set a default printer
- Open Devices and Printers by clicking the Start button
, and then, on the Start menu, clicking Devices and Printers. - Right-click a printer, and then click Set as default printer.
To manage location-aware printing settings
- Open Devices and Printers by clicking the Start button, and then, on the Start menu, clicking Devices and Printers.
- Click a printer, and then click Manage default printers on the toolbar.
- Click Change my default printer when I change networks.
- In the Select network list, click a network.
- In the Select printer list, click a corresponding default printer.
- Click Add.
- Repeat steps 4, 5, and 6 as needed. When you're finished, click OK.
This feature is available in Professional, Ultimate and Enterprise editions of Windows 7. It's also only found on laptops and other portable devices that use a battery.