LO 5.3 glitches

users
#1

Minor ones, the download and install were fine and that fixed my lack
of spell-checking that I was complaining of here a while back.

I'm using Linux Mint 18. The new icons for version 5.3 showed up in the
start menu and they work. My boot process ends at a desktop so I like
to have a LO Writer icon on the desktop so I can start there if I want.
I popped up the start menu, went into "office" then with the mouse
over the LO Writer icon, dragged it to the desktop, leaving me with a
desktop icon as launcher. Clicking on the desktop icon gives a dialog
box with a message, "untrusted application launcher" and "The
application launcher 'libre-office5-3writer.desktop' has not been marked
as trusted. If you do not know the source of this file, launching it
may be unsafe." Below are two buttons, "Launch anyway" and "Cancel" I
always launch and it works fine. Still it would be nice to make it
trusted.

Also the icon has a little lock emblem in the top right corner.
Ordinarily I expect to see that when I'm running as a user and trying
to launch a program owned by root. And finally I'd like to be able to
change the icon image and label text but an attempt to rename through
the icon properties dialogue box leaves me with a message box telling me
the item could not be renamed and 'unable to rename desktop file.'

All small stuff the upgrade is still very worthwhile.
TIA

Dave

#2

Try changing the Icon properties set to allow execute.

This may help.

#3

I used Linux Mint on a test system. What Desktop version are you using - MATE or Cinnamon? I used MATE when I tested Linux Mint.

I use Ubuntu with the MATE desktop [16.04LTS] and I also have the LO desktop icon,s plus the icons for Writer and Calc in the "top panel". I have not tried the 5.3.x.x version, since I just upgraded to 5.2.4.2. After I do the needed work this month, or two, I will test 5.3.x.x on my testing laptop.

The need to change the Icon Properties to launch LO from the desktop/panel icons is a concern for me. Will I have to do similar to Ubuntu Mate when I go to 5.3.x.x?

#4

Hi :slight_smile:
Right now is a good time to post bug-reports and "feature requests".

"Feature requests" are what most 'normal' (ie non-devs) of us think of as
bugs. It includes features that used to work but now don't and features
that don't quite work at all.

"Bug reports" are only things that cause the program or entire system to
crash (or that escalate privileges to super-users/ super-user/
administrator - but as normal users we probably wouldn't notice such
escalation). In chatting with each other we often call things "bugs" or
say a thing is "buggy" but if it doesn't crash the system or cause it to
close unexpectedly, then it doesn't fit the developers notion of "bug", so
there is no point posting a bug-report about it - instead post as a
feature-request.

Similarly with the term "stable". However badly a thing behaves, such as
familiar functionality suddenly not working, then the devs don't think of
that as showing the program is unstable. A program is only unstable if it
crashes (or maybe that escalation thing) or if it crashes the whole
system. LibreOffice is particularly unlikely to do either of those things
- there is a measurement of that sort of stability and LibreOffice scores
extraordinarily highly, far above much more respected or well-known
software.

It is nice to hear about good&bad issues with new the branch of LibreOffice
as it allows us to be better prepared for the questions that 'normal' users
are likely to ask on this mailing list. However reporting an issue to this
mailing list is extremely unlikely to result in the issue being (what we
would probably refer to as being) fixed.

Right now is probably the best time for doing proper bug-reports and
feature-requests because it's the time when the greatest percentage of devs
are focused on this branch and most interested in it's outcomes.

Regards from
Tom :slight_smile:

#5

Hi Tom

There is one thing that can cause "crashes" or frozen LO windows - the .config files. I had an issue with 5.2.2 freezing when working with large [number of pages] text files [.txt] editing and freezing MATE desktop. Something was messed up in the config folders and the LO system folders like "/opt/". I was told to install 5.2.4.

I used "sudo apt-get remove libreoffice?" and then installed the new version of LO. That fixed the issues.

There are several /opt/ folders for LO, almost all of the lines - like 4.x, 5.0.x, 5.1.x, 5.2.x. So I assume that there were "bad" settings in the folder for 5.2.2 that was corrected in the 5.2.4 install. So for my Ubuntu/MATE laptop, some LO problems are affecting the laptop's ability to run after that older version "crashed". I think I was told that this was a known bug/issue.

#6

I can confirm Paul's solution. I use Slackware Linux and xfce4 for my desktop. xfce provides a similar popup when the .desktop file is not +x. I routinely change the *.desktop files to +x to quiet the xfce complaints.

IMHO, This is not exactly a LO problem. Sure, they could ship the distro with all .desktop files +x but that is not the proper solution, nor is it LO's responsibility. The proper solution is to get the packager to make the change, or do it yourself as a part of system configuration.

As for changing the .desktop properties, such as the text or icon, that information is embedded into the .desktop file, which, as you discovered, is owned by root and cannot be changed without being root. I would suggest making a user-editable version by changing the symlink to the .desktop file in your ~/Desktop directory to a copy of the .desktop file itself. Just find the desktop file and copy it into your ~/Desktop directory. Doing the copy should change the permissions to your user permissions. If not, then you may have to be root to change them. When you have a user version, then you can change the .desktop properties, including its filename which may be used as the desktop icon text. Here, I am assuming your desktop abides by the opendesktop standards, which include the ~/Desktop directory. xfce does and so does kde. If not, you may have to find out where your desktop places the .desktop files displayed on the desktop.

HTH.

Girvin Herr

#7

Try changing the Icon properties set to allow execute.

This may help.

Wow! You da man! fixed!

#8

I used Linux Mint on a test system. What Desktop version are you
using
- MATE or Cinnamon? I used MATE when I tested Linux Mint.

yes Mate for me too.

d

#9

I can confirm Paul's solution. I use Slackware Linux and xfce4 for
my desktop. xfce provides a similar popup when the .desktop file is
not +x. I routinely change the *.desktop files to +x to quiet the
xfce complaints.

IMHO, This is not exactly a LO problem. Sure, they could ship the
distro with all .desktop files +x but that is not the proper
solution, nor is it LO's responsibility. The proper solution is to
get the packager to make the change, or do it yourself as a part of
system configuration.

As for changing the .desktop properties, such as the text or icon,
that information is embedded into the .desktop file, which, as you
discovered, is owned by root and cannot be changed without being
root. I would suggest making a user-editable version by changing the
symlink to the .desktop file in your ~/Desktop directory to a copy of
the .desktop file itself. Just find the desktop file and copy it
into your ~/Desktop directory. Doing the copy should change the
permissions to your user permissions. If not, then you may have to
be root to change them. When you have a user version, then you can
change the .desktop properties, including its filename which may be
used as the desktop icon text. Here, I am assuming your desktop
abides by the opendesktop standards, which include the ~/Desktop
directory. xfce does and so does kde. If not, you may have to find
out where your desktop places the .desktop files displayed on the
desktop.

HTH.

Girvin Herr

well Girvan, I'm a slob and have a working fix, so notwithstanding the
logic of your suggestions, with which I agree, I think I'll park this
advice for another upgrade. I'll send along a note to the packager as
you suggest though.

Thanks!

D

#10

That's an interesting point of view Tom.

In my opinion any unannounced regression is a proper subject for a bug report and a new capability is the subject for a feature request. But, I'm not a developer.

It would be nice if ordinary dictionary definitions applied to the words used!

#11

​The usage with which I am familiar corresponds to that mentioned by James
above ; i e, ​
​«any unannounced regression is a proper subject for a bug report and a new
capability is the subject for a feature request»​
​....

Henri​

#12

Having spent a lifetime in problem handling and feature request I do not agree with Tom.

Here's my take-

Bugs:
- Anything that used to work and doesn't anymore is a bug (introduced by an update). Of course set aside features which are announced to be obsolete.
- Anything not working which is supposed to work according requirements and/or documentation
- Anything that causes LO to crash

Feature requests:
- Anything that is not in requirements and/or documentation
- Anything users can't reasonably expect to work, but is desirable

As such, bugs need to be solved (since they shouldn't be there in the first place :-)).
Feature requests on the other hand is, once approved, new work in the pipeline, and we have to see when and if developers get time for it.

Rob.