Learn Hardcore Indonesian: Setelah sampai di kantor, saya langsung mencetak dokumen penting itu. - After arriving at the office, I immediately print that important document.

Use di to mark the location you have reached: sampai di kantor = arrive at the office.
ke marks movement toward a place (go to), not the location of arrival.
You may hear sampai ke in casual speech, but for “arrive at,” sampai di is the standard choice.

Can I drop di and say “sampai kantor”?

Yes. Sampai kantor is common and natural, especially in speech. Sampai di kantor is a bit more explicit/formal. Both are fine here.

What’s the difference between sampai and tiba?

sampai = arrive/reach; very common in everyday speech.
tiba = arrive; a bit more formal/literary.
Both take di for the place: sampai di kantor / tiba di kantor.

Could I use setelah, sesudah, begitu, or ketika here? Do they differ?

setelah and sesudah = after. Near-synonyms; sesudah can feel slightly more formal/traditional. Either fits.
begitu = as soon as. Emphasizes immediacy: Begitu sampai di kantor, ...
ketika = when. Neutral timing, not necessarily after: Ketika saya sampai di kantor, ... (OK, but it’s more “when I arrived” than “after arriving”).

Do I need the comma after the first clause?

Yes, it’s standard to use a comma when an adverbial clause comes first: Setelah ... , saya .... If you put the main clause first, you usually omit the comma: Saya ... setelah ...

Why is the subject omitted in “Setelah sampai di kantor”? Should it be “Setelah saya sampai ...”?

Indonesian often omits the subject in a fronted time clause when it’s the same as the main clause’s subject. Setelah (saya) sampai di kantor, saya ... Both forms are correct; the shorter one is natural.

What nuance does langsung add? How is it different from segera or baru?

langsung = immediately/straightaway, with no intermediate step.
segera = promptly/soon; slightly more formal; can be minutes later, not necessarily instant.
baru = only then/only after that (sequence), not about speed. It’s different in meaning.

Where can I place langsung in the sentence?

Default: put langsung before the verb: saya langsung mencetak.
After the verb (saya mencetak langsung) is uncommon unless it modifies a following phrase (e.g., mencetak langsung ke PDF = print directly to PDF).

Is mencetak the only natural verb for “print,” or can I say print/ngeprint?

mencetak is standard/neutral and preferred in formal writing.
ngeprint (colloquial) is very common in speech.
mengeprint appears in use but is often considered informal/nonstandard by editors.

What does the prefix meN- do in mencetak?

Base verb: cetak (print).
meN- forms an active transitive verb: mencetak = to print (something).
Assimilation: meN- + c → menc- (similar patterns: p→mem-, t→men-, s→meny-, k→meng- [often dropping the base’s first consonant]).

Why is it dokumen penting itu (noun + adjective + itu)? Could I put penting before the noun?

In Indonesian, adjectives usually follow the noun: dokumen penting = important document.
The demonstrative itu/ini comes after the noun phrase: dokumen penting itu.
Putting penting before the noun is not standard for simple adjective-noun phrases.

Does itu mean “that” or “the” here? Is the noun singular or plural?

itu can mean that/those or function like the (definite, known to both speaker and listener).
Number isn’t marked: dokumen penting itu can be singular or plural from context.
To force plural, you can say dokumen-dokumen penting itu or dokumen penting itu semua.

Could I say “Sesampainya di kantor” or “Setibanya di kantor” instead?

Yes. Sesampainya di kantor / Setibanya di kantor = Upon arriving at the office. This -nya form nominalizes the verb and sounds a bit formal/literary but is common in writing.

Is the sentence past tense?

Indonesian doesn’t mark tense morphologically. Time is inferred from context and adverbs. Here, the sequence marker Setelah and langsung imply a completed sequence, often translated in past tense in English, but the Indonesian itself is tenseless.

Can I reorder the sentence?

Yes: Saya langsung mencetak dokumen penting itu setelah sampai di kantor. Meaning and tone are the same. Fronting the time clause (as in the original) slightly emphasizes the timing.

Is saya the only option for “I”? What about aku or gue?

saya: polite/neutral; safe in most contexts.
aku: informal/intimate; friends/family.
gue/gua: very informal, Jakarta slang. Choose based on formality and who you’re talking to.

Is there a causative form like mencetakkan? When would I use it?

mencetakkan [sesuatu] (untuk [orang]) = to print something for someone (causative/benefactive).
Use it if you’re emphasizing doing the printing on someone’s behalf: Saya mencetakkan dokumen itu untuk bos.
For simple “I printed the document,” stick with mencetak.

Any quick pronunciation tips for tricky parts?

c in cetak/mencetak = “ch” in “church.”
ng in langsung = the “ng” in “sing.”
ai in sampai = “eye.”