In addition to PDF exports, CrownSync Playbooks provides a dedicated print-optimised view for producing physical copies directly from your browser. While PDF exports are the recommended approach for official records (as they include verification IDs, QR codes, and watermarks), the print view is useful for quick reference copies, tabletop exercises, and situations where a physical document is more practical.

Accessing the Print View

To access the print view for a playbook:

Open the playbook you want to print
Click the Print button in the playbook toolbar (the printer icon)
A new browser tab opens with the print-optimised layout
Your browser's print dialog appears automatically

Alternatively, you can access the print view directly by appending /print to any playbook URL. For example, if your playbook is at pb.crownsync.uk/playbook/ransomware-infection, the print view is at pb.crownsync.uk/playbook/ransomware-infection/print.

What Is Optimised for Print

The print view applies several transformations to ensure the content prints cleanly on paper:

Navigation removed— The sidebar, toolbar, header, and footer are hidden so only the playbook content appears on the printed page.
Colours adjusted— Background colours are removed or lightened to save ink and improve readability. Text is rendered in high-contrast black on white.
Page breaks— Intelligent page breaks are inserted between phases and before major sections to prevent content from splitting awkwardly across pages.
Headers and footers— Each printed page includes a header with the playbook name and phase title, and a footer with the organisation name, page number, and print date.
Tables reformatted— Wide tables are reformatted to fit within the print margins without horizontal scrolling or truncation.
Links expanded— Hyperlinks in the content display their full URL in parentheses after the link text so they remain accessible in printed form.
Condition badges simplified— Condition badges are rendered as simple text labels rather than coloured badges.

Recommended Print Settings

For the best results, configure your browser's print dialog with the following settings:

Paper size: A4 (the content is optimised for A4 dimensions)
Orientation: Portrait
Margins: Default (the print stylesheet already accounts for margins)
Scale: 100% (do not shrink to fit)
Background graphics: Off (recommended to save ink; section borders will still print)
Headers and footers: Off in browser settings (the print view includes its own)

Save as PDF from the print dialog

You can use your browser's “Save as PDF” option in the print dialog as a quick alternative to the formal PDF export. However, note that browser-generated PDFs will not include the verification QR code, watermarks, or CrownSync verification ID. For official records, always use the PDF export feature.

Printing Specific Phases

If you only need to print a subset of the playbook, you can use your browser's page range feature in the print dialog. Each phase starts on a new page, and the phase number is shown in the page header, making it straightforward to identify the page range for a specific phase.

Alternatively, you can collapse the phases you do not need in the playbook viewer before opening the print view. Only expanded phases will be included in the print layout.

Print Audit Logging

Opening the print view is logged in the audit log as a print action. This ensures your organisation has a record of when physical copies were produced and by whom, supporting document control requirements for ISO 27001 and similar frameworks.