What does collate mean when printing?

[riya]

What does collate mean when printing? I often see this option in printer settings, but I’m not exactly sure what it does. Does it change the order of the pages or how the copies are printed?

 

[jainnorton]

In printing a multi-page document using multiple copies, collate is used to mean that the copy should be assembled in the right sequence (e.g., set 1: pages 1, 2, 3; set 2: pages 1, 2, 3) then the next copy will be printed. This saves time that would have been spent tediously putting the pages into their order later.

 

[BlissCore]

When printing, collate means that if you’re printing multiple copies of a multi-page document, the printer will organize the pages in the correct order for each copy. For example, if you print three copies of a 3-page document with collate on, you’ll get: 1-2-3, 1-2-3, 1-2-3. If collate is off, the printer prints all copies of page 1 first, then all copies of page 2, and so on (1-1-1, 2-2-2, 3-3-3). It’s basically about keeping the pages in order for each set.

 

[Mayank]

When printing, collate means arranging multiple copies of a multi-page document in order. For example, if printing three copies of a five-page document, collated printing outputs pages in sequence: 1-5, 1-5, 1-5, rather than all copies of each page together.

 

[danisjohn]

When printing, “collate” means to print multi-page documents in complete, ordered sets. For example, if you print three copies of a five-page document.

• Collated: 1–2–3–4–5, 1–2–3–4–5, 1–2–3–4–5.
• Uncollated: 1–1–1, 2–2–2, 3–3–3.
  It ensures pages stay properly organized.

 

[nikhilrajoria]

In the case of having several copies:

Collate ON) sets i.e. 1,2, 3.

Add OFF Collates multiple or several pages together (1,1,1... then 2,2,2...).

 

[Noor]

collate definition printing to the process of printing several copies of a multi-page document in the correct sequence. For instance, collated printing produces pages in the following order when printing three copies of a five-page document: 1-5, 1-5, 1-5, instead of all copies of each page at once.

 

[alexie]

Printing multiple copies of a multi-page document in the right order is known as collate printing. When printing three copies of a five-page document, for example, collated printing generates pages in the following order: 1-5, 1-5, 1-5, rather than all copies of each page at once.

 

[Oscar]

In printing, the term collate refers to sorting a series of documents into complete sets of documents, where the copies are to be ordered in their order, not to print the same page numbers on the same page but to print sequentially in order.