[ScottAz]

RE: "I always set my printer defaults to draft mode to take advantage of fast
printing, and only override that mode on occasion.

The problem is, in Word 2007, Word does not obey the printer defaults, at
least for the draft mode setting. Word overrides the printer defaults and
prints in normal mode unless you go to Word's Advanced Print options and
check the "Use draft quality" checkbox. Even then, Word's "draft" mode is
slower (and presumably higher quality) than printing in draft mode from other
applications. Worse, Word refuses to save this setting--every time I open a
document, the checkbox is always un-checked and I have to turn it back on.

Is there a way to get Word 2007 to obey the printer defaults as set in the
control panel?"

I am having this exact same issue, word for word.

What can be done to set draft as the default setting using an HP Deskjet 6988 printer?

HP computer, windows 2007, IE8