The black plate prints a box with an "X" instead of the graphic in Publisher 2002

When you print Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, and Black (CMYK) separations in Microsoft Publisher 2002, a box with a small "X" may print in the upper-left corner of the page instead of the graphic. This issue only prints on the black plate.

Note When you view the publication in Print Preview or when you distill the publication in Acrobat Distiller by Adobe, the issue does not occur.

This issue may occur when the graphic is damaged or corrupted.

Use one of the following methods to work around this issue.

Method 1: Paste the graphic as an Enhanced Metafile

To paste the graphic as an Enhanced Metafile, follow these steps:

1. Right-click the graphic, and then click Cut.
2. On the Edit menu, click Paste Special.
3. In the As list, click Picture (Enhanced Metafile), and then click OK.
4. Reprint the black plate.

Note This method may reduce the quality of the graphic.

Method 2: Save the graphics file in a graphics editor program

To save the graphics file, follow these steps:

1. Import the graphics in a graphics editor program such as Adobe Illustrator.
2. Open the graphic.
3. Save a copy of the graphic to a new file with a new file name.
   
   Note If the graphic editor has a feature to increase the quality of the graphic, increase the quality of the graphic to level 6 or to a level that is less than maximum.
4. Insert the new graphic file in your publication.
5. Reprint the black plate.

The third-party products that this article discusses are manufactured by companies that are independent of Microsoft. Microsoft makes no warranty, implied or otherwise, regarding the performance or reliability of these products.