I can't get the right fill pattern on my bar graphs in Prism 3. What's wrong?

The notes below apply to Prism 3 only. Prism 4 handles fill patterns differently.

For stippling (dots) or hatching:
In Prism for Windows version 3.00, the stipple patterns ("Fill pattern" in the "Format Bars" dialog) resulted in stippling on screen but printed light grey on most printers. With versions 3.02 and 3.03, choosing stippling actually gives intermediate shades of whatever fill color you have chosen. 

When it's important to get stippling, there is a work-around. With the drawing tool, superimpose a rectangle over the bar. With that rectangle selected, choose "Format.. Object". Now, the stippling choices really give stippling.

For grey shading:
Read the answer above, but also note the following: There are two ways to get different shades of grey. One is to pick black as the color and then to pick one of the stippling choices as the fill pattern. The other is to pick grey as the color and a solid (black) fill pattern. If one method doesn't print well for you, try the other.

The appearance of printed bar graphs can be changed a LOT by changing the printer settings. With some settings, it looks very much like it does on screen. With other settings, it looks very different. Both the printing resolution and dithering settings make an impact. The details undoubtedly vary among printers. To experiment, use "File... Printer setup" from Prism, then click "Properties". This affects the current document only. To make a permanent change, use the printer control panel.