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Mac: How to print 2x7" labels
Mac: How to print 2x7" labels

Learn how to print 2x7" labels with a Dymo LabelWriter 450, Brother QL-800, or other small label printer with an Apple macOS computer

Updated over 4 months ago

Getting set up with 2x7" labels on Pirate Ship

  • Switch Your Label Size to 2x7": First, you'll need to switch the Label Size on Pirate Ship in Settings / General Settings, to 2x7" labels before you can buy 2x7" labels.

    • Here's how that looks:

Screenshot of General Settings section in Settings, showing where you can switch the label size between 4 by 6 inches and 2 by 7 inches. The 2 by 7 inch option is highlighted.

  • Save Your Settings: Click Save at the bottom.

  • Buy Labels: Now you can Buy a 2x7" label!

    • Some Features Aren't Available with 2x7" Labels: Certain features are not supported in the 2x7-inch format, such as customs forms. If any of the noted features are necessary for your shipments, we recommend leaving this setting to 4x6” and getting a 4x6" inch label printer or you can print with your desktop printer too.

How to print labels from different web browsers

  • Start the Printing Process: Start by clicking the giant green Print Label button.

Chrome

  • Labels Preview in Your Browser: In Chrome, you'll see Pirate Ship will generate a label preview. And if you put your cursor over it, you'll notice a small printer icon to click in the top right.

    • For your first print, click on "More Settings / Print using system dialog" so you can get acquainted with certain settings.

Firefox

  • No In-Line PDFs Means No Previews: Firefox does not support in-line PDFs like Chrome. We recommend using Chrome, but if you must use Firefox, just click "Download PDF" and open the document in Apple's Preview.

    • In Preview, go to File > Print.

Safari

  • Toggle Apple's Preview: In Safari, if you hover your cursor near the bottom of the preview box, you'll notice an icon to click that will open the document in Apple's Preview.

    • Here's how that looks:

A screenshot of the icons that appear in Safari when you are viewing a PDF and you hover the cursor near the bottom of the preview box. The third icon to the right has a green circle around it, indicating if you click on this icon, the PDF file will open in Apple's 'Preview.'

  • In Preview, go to File > Print.

Printing from System Dialog

  • Printing Dialog Box: Whether you're printing from Preview or from Chrome, your system's printing dialog box is mostly the same. Here are the steps you need to follow:

  1. Select the Printer you want to use.

  2. Select the correct Paper Size.

    1. Dymo LabelWriter 450's paper size is the 99019 option (2.31 by 7.48 inches, or 59 x 190 millimeters).

    2. Brother's QL-800 has the option "7 inch postage label" (2.44 by 7.24 inches).

    3. Note: Your Pirate Ship 2x7 inch Shipping labels are exactly 2x7 inches, so any label printer that has a bit of margin beyond 2x7 inches will work!

  3. In Preview, make sure Scale is at 100% or Scale-to-Fit, and Auto-Rotate is selected.

  4. If given the option, ensure that your Color is set to "2 Color".

  5. We recommend going up to Presets and selecting Save Current Settings as Preset so your options are saved. Here's how that looks:

    A screenshot of the system print dialog window. The paper size is set to '7 inch Postage Label,' 'Auto Rotate' is turned on, and Scale is set to 100 percent. The drop down menu next to 'Printer' is open, and 'Save Current Settings as Preset' is highlighted.

  6. If you're ready to Print, go ahead and Print!

    1. Note: If you want to set default printer settings for Chrome, which we recommend, you must change your CUPS preferences (guide below).

Printer Features 

A screenshot of the system print dialog window showing the drop down menu where 'Preview' is located. 'Printer Features' is highlighted in this drop down menu.

  • Prioritize Print Quality for the Brother QL-800: It’s important to note that for the Brother QL-800, and perhaps other printers, there’s a printer feature option called Quality that by default is set to “Give priority to print speed” but the recommended option is “Give priority to print quality.”

    • Here's a screenshot showing you how the label quality is improved with the "Give priority to print quality" setting:

Two barcodes are shown to demonstrate the differences between giving priority to print speed, and giving priority to print quality. When print speed is prioritize, the barcode appears a little fuzzy and less clear. When print quality is prioritized, the barcode appears crisp.

Recommended: Changing default settings in CUPS Preferences

  • Change Default Printer Settings: If you would like to change your default printer settings for Chrome, or any other web browser, you must change your CUPS preferences. This is fairly simple and quick:

1. In an internet browser go to http://localhost:631/printers

2. You’ll most likely get a "disabled interface" error.

  • If this is the case, on your keyboard press Command-Spacebar, and start typing "terminal."

  • Open Terminal.app

A screenshot of the Spotlight Search on the Mac, with 'terminal.app' typed into the search bar. The top hit, 'Terminal.app' is highlighted below the search bar.

3. Paste the string "cupsctl WebInterface=yes" into Terminal and hit Return. 

A screenshot of the Terminal app on the Mac, showing 'cupsctl WebInterface=yes' entered.

4. Now you can go back and refresh your web browser's page to load http://localhost:631/printers. You should now see a list of printers.

5. Select the printer you want to change.

6. From the right drop-down list, select Set Default Options

A screenshot of the CUPS preferences, showing the Brother QL 800 printer information for this particular computer. Under where the printer is listed, there's an option to 'Set Default Options.'

7. Change the Media Size to the correct size. You'll need to select 7" Postage Label for the Brother QL-800, or 99019 for the Dymo (if 99019 isn't available, select the option with the dimensions 59 x 190 mm).

8. For the Brother QL-800, we recommend you change "Quality" to “Give priority to print quality.”

A screenshot of the CUPS preferences, in the 'Set Printer Options' section. Both the Brother QL 800 and the DYMO Label Writer 450 are shown with their options below. Under the Brother printer next to where it says 'Quality,' a drop down menu is open with the option 'Give priority to print quality' selected.

  • Dymo Speed & Quality: While you can also increase the quality of print from the Dymo, personally, we like the LabelWriter 450’s default speed-to-quality ratio.

9. Click Set Default Options, and you’re in ship shape to print quality labels from Chrome, so you don't need to open the "Print from system dialog" option every time!

YARRrrr ready to print your label!

  • Click Print: Once you're ready to print your label, just click Print in your printer dialogue, and your label should print as expected!

A screenshot of a 2 by 7 inch label being printed out of Chrome's print dialog window. The Brother QL 800 is selected as the destination, the paper size is set to '7 inch postage label,' and scale is set to default.

You can't use 2x7" labels for international shipments

  • No International Shipments with 2x7" Labels: You can't print customs forms on 2x7" labels, so you can't use them for international shipments.

    • If you need to make an international label, just switch back to the 4x6" label size and use a regular desktop printer or a 4x6" label printer.

You can't print 2x7" UPS labels

  • No UPS Shipments with 2x7" Labels: Unfortunately, you can only print USPS labels in the 2x7" sizes, since UPS labels on Pirate Ship only come in the standard 4x6" size 😅

    • If you have 2x7" selected in your General Settings, UPS services won't show up when you create your label and click the green "Get Rates" button.

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