open files automatically

users
#21

Forgot to mention, closing the folder also closed the open documents.
So, you could create a work area folder for a project, place all the
files for that project in the folder and then open or close them all at
once. You could also create shadows for those documents in the work
area folder, but leave the originals elsewhere. A shadow is another
instance of the exact same file, so changes in a shadow automagically
appear in the original.

#22

Something I'm not getting there...

To launch LibreOffice, you either use a shortcut of some sort, or directly
run a command in a run dialog. That's true for any OS.

There where solution proposed for either cases, on different OS. You can
either create a new shortcut to open documents to your liking, or even
alter the default one in the start menu in the exact same way. If you need
more advanced functionalities, it is even possible to point the default
shortcut to a script that will cook things the desired way.

How does that not answer the question at hand? Is there really a hard
necessity to add inside LibreOffice an option that can be handled with a
*lot* of flexibility directly from the OS? What I don't get is, what's the
difference between clicking an LO shortcut that open lots of documents, and
clicking an LO shortcut that open LO that opens lots of documents?

The only thing that isn't obvious from this thread is if you want to open
files, from a directory, where the actual list of files vary from time to
time, under windows. That's the cornercase that noone wants to touch, but
still easily feasible if that's really what is desired here (although it's
more a windows issue than a LibreOffice issue).

Unless I totally missed the point, and the question wasn't about
automatically opening a set of document when starting LibreOffice... in
that case, please ignore me.

#23

With any popular Linux desktop and (Windows too) Ctrl+A selects all file
icons in a folder window.
And the Enter key does the same as the double-click. It triggers the
standard action which should be "open" for all document files.
I would not be surprised if something similar works with OSX as well.

#24

No, as I mentioned, it's not true with OS/2 and work area folders. If
you had a document in that folder opened, then closed the folder, the
document also closes. When you open the folder again, the document also
opens.

As I mentioned, this is very handy for projects. The only thing that's
similarly useful for projects is a virtual deskop. They have been
commonplace in Linux & Unix for many years, but only recently been
available in Windows.

#25

With those OS/2 work area folders, you don't have to select anything,
beyond opening the folder. When it opens, all the documents that had
been open previously would open again, taking you back to exactly where
you were when you closed it previously. It even survives reboots, which
virtual desktops don't.

#26

Write a utility that creates a "Work Area" folder, regardless of the
platform one uses.
An interesting challenge for somebody who is good at PERL or Python coding.

jonathon

#27

That was quite usefull, it was a desktop environment/OS function rather than being a part of Star Office I used at that time. If it is in the recent Lotus code (to open the work folder) may be it will be integrated into Open Office, but for Libreoffice it would be a feature request.

#28

This can be done with plain stupid StarBasic using the "application
open" event and some folder named "autostart" within the setup default
document folder.

#29

Sub onApplicationStart()
oSrv = createUnoService("com.sun.star.util.PathSettings")
sPath = PathConcat(oSrv.Work, "AutoStart")
sDir = PathConcat(sPath, "*.*")
s = dir(sDir)
while len(s)
  sPathName = PathConcat(sPath,s)
  StarDesktop.loadComponentFromURL(sPathName, "_blank", 0, Array())
  s = dir()
wend
End Sub

Function PathConcat(s1, s2)
  if right(s1,1) <> "/" then s1 = s1 & "/"
  PathConcat = s1 & s2
End Function

#30

*May or may not help.

Batch File Converter for Word Pro* AT
http://www.odpro.com/cgi-local/webdata_freebies.pl

This file migration tool allows a user to batch convert from any
readable Word Pro file type to any Word Pro savable file type. It will
also traverse sub-directories and can place the new converted files in a
new directory structure.

Installing / Using this Freebie:
* Place this file to a directory and open it in Word Pro. The
instructions are then displayed for your convenience.
* The Globals!Initialize event will load a new menu option off of the
File menu. (You must allow scripts to run when a document is opened for
this to work correctly.)
* Select this option, "Batch File Converter...", to see the application run.
* Display the Script or Dialog Editor to see the LotusScript and Dialogs
used to build this application.

You must have Word Pro 9.x for Windows installed to use this tool!

#31

This is still not what the OP wants.

Since "this" is the creation of a shortcut or menu item that starts LibreOffice along with a fixed set of documents - as suggested by others (instead of either showing the splash screen or opening a blank spreadsheet) - surely it is exactly what he needs?

It is possible to come close by saving the files when you are finished editing but keeping them open. Then kill Libreoffice (not

Exit). On restarting LO next time it should ask to restore the

files you had open.

Aaargh! You are not seriously suggesting this as a recommended technique? Oh, but I think you are!

When my driving test instructor asked for an emergency stop, I switched off the ignition, slammed on the parking brake, and drove into a lamppost. I'd stopped very quickly but she wasn't impressed.

In any case, it probably doesn't work. It relies on the user having exactly the relevant files open when he kills LibreOffice, whereas he may have closed the standard documents and opened others. If not, he has to be selective when responding to the recovery dialogue. Once he gets used to killing the product instead of closing it gracefully, he will inevitable forget to save these or other documents and he will have disabled the usual challenges to save changed documents - so will lose work. Apart from anything else, this requires more work that simply opening the required documents from the Recent Documents list

But thanks for the chuckle!

Brian Barker

#32

Hi Andreas, all

Andreas Säger wrote

<snip>

Write a utility that creates a "Work Area" folder, regardless of the
platform one uses.
An interesting challenge for somebody who is good at PERL or Python
coding.

<snip>
Sub onApplicationStart()
oSrv = createUnoService("com.sun.star.util.PathSettings")
sPath = PathConcat(oSrv.Work, "AutoStart")
sDir = PathConcat(sPath, "*.*")
s = dir(sDir)
while len(s)
  sPathName = PathConcat(sPath,s)
  StarDesktop.loadComponentFromURL(sPathName, "_blank", 0, Array())
  s = dir()
wend
End Sub

Function PathConcat(s1, s2)
  if right(s1,1) <> "/" then s1 = s1 & "/"
  PathConcat = s1 & s2
End Function

I can't test if this script does what the OP asked for. Where should the
AutoStart folder be placed when using a Windows OS or in a Linux OS?

Would it be possible to take this effort further and evolve this script into
an extension with a point-and-click interface to select the Autostart
folder?

Maybe some other people would find this feature useful and it is probably
more likely that this can be added as an extension rather than as a new
feature...

Just my 2 cents

#33

Hi all,

I lost recently a calc file despite the autorecovery function set on 10 minutes interval.

I kept the lost file open for 2 days. The only files to be found in the backup directory and the temporary file directory were 2 days old, although the lost file had been modified several times.

I use to set specific paths for backups and temporary files instead of keeping the default paths.
Using LO 4.4.1.2 on Win 7.
I have the bad habit of keeping many files simultaneously open, including heavy ones (GIS, ...).

Is there an explanation? Should I keep the default paths for the backups and the temporary files?

Many thanks for any hint,

Paul

#34

I lost recently a calc file despite the autorecovery function set on 10 minutes interval. I kept the lost file open for 2 days. The only files to be found in the backup directory and the temporary file directory were 2 days old, although the lost file had been modified several times.

As you probably realise, backup and AutoRecovery are two different things. If you have backup copies selected, you should see a *.bak copy of the file in the backup directory - but this is simply the version that was replaced the previous time you made a manual save of the document. So if you did not save the document during those two days, no matter how many modifications you made, the backup copy will indeed be the previous version cascaded by your manual save two days ago.

With AutoRecovery set to ten minutes, a current version of the document should be saved separately every ten minutes - provided you have made some modification since the previous similar save - under a different name. I think the AutoRecovery version of name.ods will be saved in the same backup directory as name.ods_0.ods (where the "0" progresses to other numbers).

But you don't explain how you "lost" the document. When you save the document manually - including if you respond positively to the challenge when closing either the document or LibreOffice itself - the AutoRecovery version is deleted. If LibreOffice (or the operating system, or the computer) crashes for some reason, you should be offered a recovered version next time you start LibreOffice. You may accept the offer (and save the recovered document somewhere) or choose to decline it. But whichever choice you make at this point, the AutoRecovery version will be deleted. If for some reason you don't trust LibreOffice to offer you the recovery process, you would need to go digging for the file *before* reopening LibreOffice. Otherwise there will indeed be nothing to find.

Did you perhaps close the document without saving it (an easy mistake to make) but hope that the AutoRecovery facility would keep what you thus asked LibreOffice to discard? It's not designed to protect you from unfortunate choices despite reminders.

I use to set specific paths for backups and temporary files instead of keeping the default paths. [...] Should I keep the default paths for the backups and the temporary files?

I doubt that makes any difference.

I trust this helps.

Brian Barker

#35

Thanks a lot for this thorough explanation.
And sorry for not having explained in detail my problem.

It was after a crash indeed.
If I remember rightly, at recovery process, most of the files were marked green (recoverable) except this one. LO proposed to save a copy in the "My Documents" directory but there seemed to be none saved there.

Thanks to your explanations, I understand that all Autorecovery versions are lost when we accept the Autorecovery process after a crash; I should have been digging for the lost file before reopening LibreOffice.

This "digging" seems difficult to me as Autorecovery usually works very well : it is difficult to anticipate when the process could fail and for which file it would fail.

Besides, it seems to me that this digging was possible in previous LO versions even after an autorecovery process.

Anyway, would'nt it be better that LO keeps the autorecovery files after a crash, in case ... ?

Thanks again for the explanations,

Paul Lens

#36

Feel free to do what you want with it. I won't elaborate any further
since this is a feature I would not use by myself.
The right location for the AutoStart folder is your default document
folder ("My Documents") as set up in menu:Tools>Options>Paths. This is
system independent and every user who wants to use this can take care
about the gory details:
-- Move AutoStart after changing the default folder.
-- Mind that directory names are case insensitive under Windows but case
sensitive under regular systems.
-- In order to keep this as simple as is (no error handlers), you must
not drop any files into that folder that can not be loaded by your
office suite.

#37

A computer course for absolute beginners would help you to avoid common
mistakes like this.

#38

As I understand things, any recovered document is merely opened in LibreOffice, and it is up to you to save it and to choose where to save it. Indeed, you might know you wanted to overwrite whatever previous version you have, or you might want to save it as a separate document until you had checked exactly what condition it was in.

I trust this helps.

Brian Barker

#39

I merely accepted LO's proposition but didn't in the directory it proposed to save it in, but it can be that I made a mistake somewhere.

Thanks again for all,

Paul Lens

#40

Hi Andreas, all

Andreas Säger wrote

Feel free to do what you want with it. I won't elaborate any further
since this is a feature I would not use by myself.

I don't intend to use it either. I'm just trying to find a user friendly
solution to the OPs problem. And you seem to be the right person to solve
this :slight_smile:

Andreas Säger wrote

The right location for the AutoStart folder is your default document
folder ("My Documents") as set up in menu:Tools>Options>Paths. This is
system independent and every user who wants to use this can take care
about the gory details:
-- Move AutoStart after changing the default folder.
-- Mind that directory names are case insensitive under Windows but case
sensitive under regular systems.
-- In order to keep this as simple as is (no error handlers), you must
not drop any files into that folder that can not be loaded by your
office suite.

Everything works fine (i.e. all documents in the AutoStart folder are
launched) except that the onApplicationStart macro is not executed when
LibreOffice is opened.

Is there a way to make it autorun on start?