Tip: About PDF

The periodic tables are in Adobe Acrobat PDF format. The artwork will print crisply at any size, even poster sized. If you do not have Acrobat Reader, you can download it free it from Adobe. If the image looks wrong or is slow to load, you may need to download a newer version of Acrobat Reader.

Tip: They're a Set

"Elements in Pictures" and "Elements in Words" are designed to go together as a set. Either will stand on its own, but they work best together.

"Elements in Pictures" gets you hooked, and "Elements in Words" lets you learn more.

Tip: Double-Sided Letter-Size

The "Elements in Pictures" and "Elements in Words" are designed to be printed, in color, as the front and back sides of a standard American 8.5x11 inch letter-size sheet of paper or card stock.

You can print this on the typical home color printer. Double-sided printing looks best with paper of higher quality (heavier, more opaque) or card stock. If your printer does not have a double-sided (duplex) option, you will need to print one side, then reload the printout back into the printer to print the other side.

You may want to punch holes so it can be put in a notebook binder.

Tip: Single-Sided Letter-Size

You may want to print "Elements in Pictures" and "Elements in Words" on two single-sided sheets, rather than one double-sided sheet.

You can then look at them side-by-side, or put them both on the wall.

Tip: Lamination

You can plastic laminate the paper to make it more durable.

Tip: Clear Plastic Sheet Protector with Back-to-Back Single-Sided Letter-Size
Recommended

You can print "Elements in Pictures" and "Elements in Words" on two single-sided sheets placed back-to-back (or one double-sided sheet) inside a clear plastic sheet protector with notebook binder holes.

This is an excellent method to make classroom handouts. The periodic tables will last for many years; the plastic holes won't rip. This allows you to pull out both periodic tables to view them side-by-side. You don't need to bother with laminating, nor printing on thick paper, nor double-sided printing. It's easy to buy a box of sheet protectors (ex., Avery).

Tip: Grayscale or Black & White

Color printouts and copies are best, but grayscale or black & white are adequate.

The images are much better in color, but they have been designed so they can be printed and photocopied in in grayscale with only some loss of information. The main thing you will lose is the color coding of the groups of elements. If your copier increases contrast, making grays become black & white, it may be helpful to use a "lighter" setting; it is better for the grays to become white than to become black.

Tip: Ledger-Size

"Elements in Pictures and Words" exactly fits a standard American 11x17 inch ledger-size sheet of paper.

One 11x17 inch sheet is exactly the same size as two 8.5x11 inch sheets.

Tip: International Paper Sizes

The PDF files were designed for American paper sizes (8.5x11 inch and 11x17 inch), but you can print them at international paper sizes (ex., A4 or A3) simply by using your "fit to page" and "center on page" printing options (the exact options to use will depend on your printer and software).

Tip: Printing Posters at Your Local Print & Copy Shop

You can print "Elements in Pictures" or "Elements in Words" or "Elements in Pictures and Words" as posters of any size.

The artwork will print crisply at any size, even at huge poster sizes, because the PDF artwork is stored as lines, not pixels.

You can print the PDF file as a poster of any dimensions simply by using your "fit to page" and "center on page" printing options (the exact options to use will depend on your printer and software).

You can print it at poster size at your local print & copy shop. Many print & copy shops can print from PDF files. It may be quite expensive to print large posters. Perhaps your employer, school/college, or other organization has a poster printer you can use at less expense.

You can also buy posters online (see Buy Products).

Tip: Large "Pictures" Poster with Small "Words" Poster.

You may want to print "Elements in Pictures" as a large poster, and place a smaller printout of "Elements in Words" nearby.

Make the best use of your limited wallspace or money by posting a big "Elements in Pictures" poster, with a smaller "Elements in Words" printout at eye-level nearby, for people to read the more detailed information.

Tip: Multiple-Sheet Posters

You can print a cheap poster on multiple letter-size sheets and tape the pieces together.

Your printer software may have a "poster printing" option that automatically enlarges the image, and prints it piece-by-piece on multiple pages (ex., 2x2=4 sheets or 3x3=9 sheets). This is not very professional looking, but you can do it on your home color printer, so it is quick and inexpensive.