Problem installing on Windows 7, with workaround

Op_Ed · October 5, 2011, 8:22pm

All,

Anyone else having installation problems with LibO 3.4.3?
I've been using OpenOffice for years, and jumped to LibreOffice when it was
first released.
No big problems on Windows XP at work, or OSX Lion at home (nor Linux
anywhere...).

Now my office computer has been upgraded to Windows 7 Pro (i.e., complete
wipe of
the hard drive and the new OS installed from a corporate image). So I'm
re-installing
all my working software. This has become a pain because corporate no longer
allows
us to have administrator access on our own computers.

Anyway, I downloaded LibO_3.4.3_Win_x86_install_multi.exe and ran it.
Had to get "mommy" to come to my desk and authenticate as admin, but
otherwise the installation proceeded with no errors or obvious hiccups.

But I couldn't find it.

LibreOffice did not appear as an option when right-clicking a .odt file and
selecting "Open with..."
There was no mention of libreoffice in All Programs.
There was no mention of libreoffice in Control Panel > Programs > Programs
and Features
(formerly "Add/Remove Programs").

The installation dialog had finished with an announcement of success and a
checkbox
to add a launch icon to the desktop. There was no icon.

I found the launching executable "soffice.exe" along with the individual
.exe files in
C:\Program Files (x86)\LibreOffice 3.4\program
and made a shortcut for the desktop, which works.

It will take additional tinkering to get it into the "All Programs" list.
I guess it will never appear in >> Programs and Features.

I downloaded and installed twice, in case the first time was a fluke.
It wasn't.
No doubt the problem is due to some peculiarity of our corporate
Windows 7 roll-out (still being tinkered by our IT gnomes), but others
might encounter the same issue, so I'm mentioning the workaround in case I'm
not unique.

Regards,

</kevin>

Op_Ed · October 5, 2011, 8:35pm

OK, here's me, replying to myself.

Further little problem. Not yet solved.

Because the program does not appear in the programs list, it is not an
option
when trying to open a .odt file (or any kind of file) from the file system.

That is, I cannot simply right-click a .odt file or a .docx file and click
"Open with..." .
The resulting list does not include LibO, so I can't select it.

Is there a quick-and-dirty way to add it without tinkering with the
Registry?

Meanwhile, I open LibO and use the program's file browser to select the
files to open. Not entirely convenient.

Again, this is Windows 7 Professional.

Also, within the LibO interface, how do I set Writer as the Windows default
program to open .odt files?

Thanks.

Onyeibo_Oku1 · October 5, 2011, 8:45pm

Set default applications. Usually on startup menu.

planas · October 5, 2011, 9:24pm

Kevin

OK, here's me, replying to myself.

Further little problem. Not yet solved.

Because the program does not appear in the programs list, it is not an
option
when trying to open a .odt file (or any kind of file) from the file system.

That is, I cannot simply right-click a .odt file or a .docx file and click
"Open with..." .
The resulting list does not include LibO, so I can't select it.

Is there a quick-and-dirty way to add it without tinkering with the
Registry?

Meanwhile, I open LibO and use the program's file browser to select the
files to open. Not entirely convenient.

Again, this is Windows 7 Professional.

With Windows 7 home/64 I had no problems and have not heard of anyone
having problems similar to yours. I suspect your suspicion that someone
is tinkering with the Win7 install is probably correct. I will differ to
the Windows gurus, I have a better feel for Linux.

MSO does not handle ODF 1.2 formats only up to 1.1

Tom_Davies · October 6, 2011, 12:42am

Hi
I don't have an answer but have suffered from half of this problem on Xp.
All the icons appeared in the "All Programs" menu off the "Start" button but
right-clicking on a document doesn't give LibreOffice apps in the "Open with
..." sub-menu. I think the OP is suffering from 2 different problems.
Regards from
Tom

Jack11 · October 6, 2011, 6:51am

Op Ed wrote:

Anyway, I downloaded LibO_3.4.3_Win_x86_install_multi.exe and ran it.
Had to get "mommy" to come to my desk and authenticate as admin, but
otherwise the installation proceeded with no errors or obvious hiccups.

I've also had trouble with administrative privileges on a Windows 7
PC. What I've done is to bypass the whole installation process
entirely by using the portable version of LibreOffice. It is meant to
run from a flash drive (but can run off a hard drive as well) and
therefore has no registry entries. The advantage being that you can
have it on a PC without admin privileges.

The portable version is available from
www.libreoffice.org/download/portable/ or
portableapps.com/libreofficeportable

Further little problem. Not yet solved.

Because the program does not appear in the programs list, it is not an
option
when trying to open a .odt file (or any kind of file) from the file system.

That is, I cannot simply right-click a .odt file or a .docx file and click
"Open with..." .
The resulting list does not include LibO, so I can't select it.

Is there a quick-and-dirty way to add it without tinkering with the
Registry?

I'm curious, are you not able to select LibreOffice from the "Choose
default program..." dialogue at all? Are you not able to browse to
the exe file(s)?

I am able to assign LibreOffice as the default for various files.
However, as there is no installation, it has no short-cuts on the
desktop or start menu or anything, would have to do those manually.

Regards
Stephan

OBUTEX_Hladuvka · October 6, 2011, 7:04am

Hi,
after I had similar problems with another application
I always install all programs on my WIN7
not by simple running the instalation file but
right click the file and choosing the option "Run as administrator"
(my translation of the option label may not be exact).

Regards,
Jiri

Dne 5.10.2011 22:21, Op Ed napsal(a):

Tanstaafl · October 6, 2011, 12:07pm

I would uninstall it, log out, log in as an admin user, and reinstall it that way... thats how we do it, and it works just fine...

Gordon_Burgess-Park1 · October 6, 2011, 12:12pm

If this computer is owned by the company you work for (as you imply) than a) have you got the permission of the IT dept to actually install LO in the first place, and b) the only way is to right-click on the executable and "Run as Administrator" for which you will need the local admin password - again you need to see the IT dept...

mariosv · October 6, 2011, 12:24pm

Or install the portable version.
http://www.libreoffice.org/download/portable/
It don't need admin rights, can be instaled on USB, but also on hard disk.

Gordon_Burgess-Park1 · October 6, 2011, 12:31pm

Good thinking - I forgot that one.
Here's the page:
http://portableapps.com/apps/office/libreoffice_portable

Op_Ed · October 6, 2011, 1:38pm

Problem mostly resolved now.

Turns out the corporate Win 7 image needed further tweaking (I'm one of
the guinea pigs... before the roll-out).

They do, however, have USB ports locked down for anything that's not "human
interface" (i.e., mouse, keyboard, drawing tablet), so no portable apps - no
external drives or memory...

But after latest tweak, I'm able to assign programs that don't appear in the
primary list, including LibO, and all is (mostly) good.

Thanks, all.

</kevin>

Jack11 · October 6, 2011, 1:48pm

Op Ed wrote:

They do, however, have USB ports locked down for anything that's not "human
interface" (i.e., mouse, keyboard, drawing tablet), so no portable apps - no
external drives or memory...

Just to clarify: the portable version does not require a flash disk.
It can be "installed" onto the PCs internal drive. So even if the
ports are locked, it should still work.

Op Ed wrote:

Problem mostly resolved now.
[...]
But after latest tweak, I'm able to assign programs that don't appear in the
primary list, including LibO, and all is (mostly) good.

Glad to hear your problem is resolved.

Regards
Stephan

Tom_Davies · October 6, 2011, 2:57pm

Hi
If you are one of the guinea-pigs perhaps now would be a good time to ask them to include LibreOffice for everyone.

An increasing amount of documents are going to be in formats that MS Office can't handle very well plus Draw gives you vector graphics. With MS Office as the default for MS formats and LibreOffice for OpenDocuments it would keep your organisation ahead of the game. The 3.4.3 seems to be the best current version for long-term corporate use.

If they want to see a few articles as 'proof' i occasionally manage to put press clippings on this page
http://wiki.documentfoundation.org/LibreOffice_In_The_Press
I quite liked this one
http://www.computerworld.dk/art/118467/
and The Kim Show is a bit mainstream but 'normal' people read it.
Regards from
Tom