OpenOffice Calc Problem

[Kaedros]

I thought kubuntu 9.10 might be the ideal distro
but trying to work with my ooo calc spreadsheet (after working with it in ooo windows last time) was murder. Copying and pasting had to be repeated, the whole thing just seemed to run too slow (it's quicker in other linux distros)

Is the trouble with kbuntu of version of openoffice supplied with the distro?

[Argent]

Re: OpenOffice Calc Problem

I admit I also have issues with copy and paste with openoffice in kubuntu. It works but not reliably so sometimes you have to repeat which is infuriating. Switching the openoffice windows is occasionally very slow too. However all distros seems to have their little issues. Look around and try some KDE designed software. Some of it is quite good. I rather like digikam.

[askrieger]

Re: OpenOffice Calc Problem

Personally, I use OpenOffice Calc every day on a 64 bit machine currently running Karmic. I haven't noticed any particular delays in the current version compared to previous Linux versions. I just checked one of my spreadsheets on a 32 bit machine running Jaunty and I can't say that I noticed any delay in copying and pasting material from one sheet to another. I can't speak to the windoze version because I haven't used windoze in several years.

Accordingly, I suspect a problem in the way that it is set up on your machine. Please believe that I am not trying to insult your competence, or "blame the victim". I am trying to determine the circumstances of your problem.

Did you install the Ubuntu package from the repository, or did you acquire it in some other way, e.g. download and compile from source? Is it the correct package for your hardware (64 bit version on a 64 bit processor, the Karmic package for the Karmic release of the OS, etc.)? How much memory do you have on your Kubuntu machine? How big is the spreadsheet? What were you trying to copy (e.g. a single line or column from one sheet to an identically sized line or column in another sheet, or something else)?

I'm hoping that the knowledgeable folks here will have you up and calculating in almost no time.

[Argent]

Re: OpenOffice Calc Problem

Well I'm curious about finding a fix too. It all works it's just frustrating.

In my case it was part of the upgrade to 9.10 (from 9.04). The copy and paste is not delayed for me. It simply doesn't copy to the clipboard perhaps 1/2 the time on average. I notice this on writer not calc because i use it more. The delay is a separate issue which occasionally occurs when you switch focus with openoffice windows. Oh I remember too the save as when you try to change folder it's horrible takes 10s of seconds per action.

Copied amount varies a word a few lines paragraphs. I use 32bit Karmic on a 64 bit processor. This machine has 4GB ram. My files vary in size from mostly a few kb to several MB for a rare few.

Doing similar on my dual boot of windows with openoffice is fine.

[The Liquidator]

Re: OpenOffice Calc Problem

My finding too is that the relationship between OOo and Klipper is erratic, to say the least.

No problems with speed though as my experience that OOo in 'buntu is way, way faster than on a windows machine with similar specs.

[askrieger]

Re: OpenOffice Calc Problem

I do a "save as" once a day, on my primary spreadsheet, when I back up to an external drive. I must admit that I haven't noticed the time it takes to do that, because half the time I've forgotten to mount the %$#@* backup drive! So I can't blame any delays on the software or the hardware. That's strictly a PBKAC (Problem Between Keyboard And Chair).

[Kaedros]

Re: OpenOffice Calc Problem

Thanks for the replies

I have worked on my spreadsheet every Saturday for years in windows excel. In trying to wean myself off windows, I first started using ooo under windows saving as ods file, which worked fine. So last weekend I decided to work on the spreadsheet from linux with kubuntu ooo spreadsheet program, and the session was miserable - I can identify with Argent here. Copying share prices off browser, pasting into sheet, copying values from on worksheet to another – it just refused to work as intended on occasion. The only way to get it to behave reliably was too slow down – be slow and emphatic on what I did.

I have installed kbuntu from the standard cd which I downloaded. The only real adjustments I have made is getting the multimedia apps going adding realplayer, libdvdcss2, replacing amarok with exaile (for the shoutcast stations). Although my cpu (intel dual core) supports 64 bit I always ignore that option and stick with 32 bit option.

I have looked at ooo spreadsheet in Debian Lenny and mepis8 where it seems to run smoothly – I don't think there is too much more I can add.

Regards
ph

[GreyGeek]

Re: OpenOffice Calc Problem

Have you experimented with the OOo memory settings? The amount of memory OOo uses, the amount of memory given to each object, and the number of objects, etc....?

[The Liquidator]

Re: OpenOffice Calc Problem

My take on this is that when we run OOo we are in fact running Novells Go-OO as evidenced by the OOTB PDF import and the ability to open and save as Office 2007, whatever one may think of that..

This has been packaged by the ubuntu devs, it opens with a lovely brown splash screen, and I wonder whether it has simply been packaged for gnome, with KDE integration (including with Klipper) an afterthought.

Has anyone tried using the packages from Sun (probably not because we have version parity at the mo) but I wonder whether the problem exists there?

Ian

[askrieger]

Re: OpenOffice Calc Problem

If you open the Kubuntu distro version of Oo.o spreadsheet and hit help/about you see a Sun logo and the message "This is a distribution by Ubuntu of OpenOffice.org ..." as The Liquidator says, but there is no mention of Novell, just Sun.

[The Liquidator]

Re: OpenOffice Calc Problem

If you open the Kubuntu distro version of Oo.o spreadsheet and hit help/about you see a Sun logo and the message "This is a distribution by Ubuntu of OpenOffice.org ..." as The Liquidator says, but there is no mention of Novell, just Sun.

Absolutely right but the Go-oo website says:
"Ubuntu
Ubuntu provides Go-OO in their repositories. To install it just type as root

# apt-get install openoffice.org"
The same applies for Mandriva and Debian too. However I have digressed a bit here and my main point was that I wonder whether the basic issue is that the ubuntu build integrates better with gnome than it does with KDE. If so, use of the Sun packages (ie downloaded a la Windows) might solve the problem.

[askrieger]

Re: OpenOffice Calc Problem

Good point! If one of the folks having problems with the Ubuntu Oo.o cares to try the Sun package and report back. We'd all be grateful.

[The Liquidator]

Re: OpenOffice Calc Problem

I'll have a dabble - although to be fair it will probably be between Christmas and new year

[dibl]

Re: OpenOffice Calc Problem

@Liquidator, if you're going to do experiments, may I suggest first trying the Debian Sid package:

http://packages.debian.org/unstable/openoffice.org

don't forget openoffice.org-kde for the kde plugin.

Although one would think this would be the same as what the *buntu packaging folks put in the *buntu repository. But, maybe not.

[askrieger]

Re: OpenOffice Calc Problem

I would be VERY surprised if the Debian Sid package was anything more than a (buggy), upgraded version of what we have now. Ubuntu is based on Debian Testing. Therefore, it would require a change in practice by Debian before we saw any other than a new version of what we have now. Admittedly, it's possible that the bugs in Oo.o have been fixed upstream.