[Solved] How to edit AOO templates

[JamesEJ]

Hello again. Located and downloaded some neat templates I'd like to use but want to edit them (e.g make rows wider to write easier, take out sections I don't need, etc.). I'd also like to save them with my other documents.

How can I do that.

Thanks guys, Jim

[thomasjk]

Just open them do your editing and then do File Save As then choose ODF Text Document Template (.ott) or ODF Spreadsheet Template(.ots) as applicable.

[acknak]

Templates are just documents—you edit them (almost) as you would any text document.

If the templates are installed and registered, so that they appear in the list of templates (File > New > Templates and Documents > ...) you can edit a template by selecting the template from the list, then click the "edit" button at the bottom of the dialog window.

If the template is not registered, you can still edit it with File > Templates > Edit ... (navigate to the template document file, select the template file, and OK)

[JamesEJ]

Thanks, first major question subject matter was/is: How to edit. Meaning the details on how to edit, please under- stand. thanks, Jim

[robleyd]

The process is the same as if you were editing a 'normal' - i.e. non-template document. If there are specific actions that you do not know how to perform, please tell us what it is you are needing to do, what you have tried and what happened.

[JamesEJ]

need the instructions please. that's the purpose of this post; Edit: the initial post says "what I am trying to do"

[robleyd]

Perhaps rather than trying to incorporate in one post all the possible editing capabilities of AOO, I'll refer you to the AOO manuals and the Writer guide.

As I said in my previous post, if there are specific things you are having problems with, please tell us what it is you are needing to do, what you have tried and what happened.

[JamesEJ]

untill I get my question answered, I won't be bullied around. Your help is too soon. bag the big man attitude. Since about the win98 days, this place's people have always been friendly one's. please do keep it that way. thanks

[Bill]

Your question has been answered. As has already been stated, templates are just documents and can be edited like any other document. Surely you don't expect us to tell you how to edit documents in general. Books have been written on that subject. If you have a specific problem, then tell us about that problem and someone will try to help. Otherwise, you're wasting your time and ours.

[JamesEJ]

" Located and downloaded some neat templates I'd like to use but want to edit them (e.g make rows wider to write easier, take out sections I don't need, etc." I do not how to successfully edit the downloaded templete(s) Sounds like you guys do..."can be edited like any other document" That just is not the case you see. Try downloading the Oo "Client_Information_Worksheet.doc" template and "(e.g make rows wider to write easier, take out sections I don't need, etc.)". You will see I did tell you the problem in the initial post, like i said. This place is not one to argue, and all that stuff. at least it never has been.

[JamesEJ]

Ok, no answer tells all. Its really OK if you do not know the answer. Being up front and saying "I do not know either" is the proper honest method of communication in those situations. No one knows every thing. Night, Jim

[Zizi64]

e.g make rows wider to write easier,

What rows ? All of the rows in the document? or in a part of the document only?
Do you know anything about the Styles? (Paragraph styles, character styles, page styles and others?)
Maybe you need modify the spacing property of the default paragraph style, and nothing more action not needed.
But we can not guess, what you want to do with those templates.

Please upload one of those templates here.

Try downloading the Oo "Client_Information_Worksheet.doc" template

A .doc file is NOT a template file. It is not a template in the MS Office suite and not a template in the Apache OpenOffice or the LibreOffice suite.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_M ... extensions
https://wiki.openoffice.org/wiki/Docume ... le_formats
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Template_(file_format)
The AOO/LO text template filenames have .ott extension, the MS Word templates have .dot extension.

Use ODF fileformats with AOO and LO. There is not 100% compatibility between the different fileformats. For example: The MS doc fileformat can not handle the Page styles: this fact raises some issues.
Always use the native, International Standard ODF fileformats with AOO and LO if you want work efficiently with the open source office suites.

[JamesEJ]

Rows: frankly the rows I decide I need to widen. Call it all rows to make it simpler.
Styles: Just downloaded from Oo. Really do not know. Did a search and the template showed up, so I downloaded it.
https://templates.openoffice.org/en/search?f[0]=field_template_category%3A14
Modify spacing. that likely would work but then words seem to disappear. Off to a redo I go again.
What I need to do: get templates for customer general information and credit car payment information.
The .doc is the choice given to download to be able to view it in Oo. I gave the name it's given after downloading.

Hope this new info helps. Thanks for being particular, Jim

[keme]

Ok, no answer tells all. Its really OK if you do not know the answer. Being up front and saying "I do not know either" is the proper honest method of communication in those situations. No one knows every thing. Night, Jim

It's not so much about knowing the answer. Most of the regular helpers here probably know many of the answers you need. It is about knowing the question. If you want the general ability to edit a template (which is all you have asked for), the answer has already been given, with the assumptions that you know about basic file handling on a personal computer, and general tools for editing text in a screen oriented text editor.

I will attempt to address your specific requests one by one, trying to make only minimal assumptions:

"... save them with my other documents."

Background info:
Most web browsers will by default put downloaded files in a folder named "Downloads". If your system's language is not set to English, the folder may have a different name with roughly the same meaning. Your browser may have been configured to save files elsewhere. Browsers will also allow you to download directly to any folder you have access to, typically by right clicking the download link and selecting "Save as...".
Most applications will default to saving documents in a folder named "Documents". (Aforementioned language and configuration conditions also apply here.)

Procedure:
Open a "Windows Explorer" window. (This is also known by links named "File handler", "My files", "My computer", etc.). The most reliable way to open that window is by pressing Windows+E keys on your keyboard. Somewhere to the left of the space bar on your keyboard there should be a key with a Windows icon. (Most keyboards also have a duplicate of that key to the right of the space bar. If so, they both work the same.) Press and hold the Windows key, press and release the E key, then release the Windows key.
The window that opens should have two content panes below the tool ribbon. To the left, an overview of storage areas and categories. Whenever an item is selected in the left pane, the right pane will display the detailed content of that area/category.

Select Downloads in the left pane. Locate the name of your downloaded template in the right pane. Click and hold that name, and drag to the "Documents" item in the left pane before releasing it.

Your other requested operations, "make rows wider to write easier, take out sections I don't need ", may each mean a few different things so I will address each one in a different post, when I find the time. In the meantime, if you could heed robleyd's request above, telling us "... what you have tried and what happened", it may make things easier for all of us.

Trust me, the previous responses you got do NOT constitute bullying, at any level. Among other things, a detailed description of what you have tried and how it failed also helps us to understand what you understand, so we are able to provide the instructions you requested without too much superfluous info (which I suspect that I may have provided for you above).

[keme]

https://templates.openoffice.org/en/search?f[0]=field_template_category%3A14
...
The .doc is the choice given to download to be able to view it in Oo. I gave the name it's given after downloading.
...

Could you tell us the name it had on the download page? The name you gave it when saving to your computer is of no use when we try to find what you are talking about.

Also, that template repository is user driven. (Templates supplied by users.) If a user has provided a file in Word-format, then it will be an inferior (and potentially problematic) foundation for further work. There is nothing we can do to rectify this, other than advising you about using something else...

[Zizi64]

Rows: frankly the rows I decide I need to widen. Call it all rows to make it simpler.
Styles: Just downloaded from Oo. Really do not know. Did a search and the template showed up, so I downloaded it.
https://templates.openoffice.org/en/search?f[0]=field_template_category%3A14
Modify spacing. that likely would work but then words seem to disappear. Off to a redo I go again.

There is not Client_Information_Worksheet.doc "template" file on that page (I can not found it).
But there is a cost free one with same filename on the Business Form Templates webpage... Note: IT IS NOT A TEMPLATE file, but it is a DOCUMENT file.

Here is it:

Client_Information_Worksheet.doc

(59 KiB) Downloaded 131 times

This is a tipical Word example with terrible formatting properties. The tables are wider than the margins, there is not applied any paragraph style (except the Default style)...

The text located in some TABLES.
You can modify the ROW HEIGHT of the table, and you can adjust the vertical alignment of the text on the rows - if you want it.

A Word example with terrible formatting properties.

[Zizi64]

Row_height2.png (8.02 KiB) Viewed 5945 times

[JamesEJ]

OK I was able to take a snapshot of the "TABLE" that is supposed to be able to adjust the rows, columns and etc of the subject template. Cannot seem to paste it to this replay space tho. Its very similar to the "Row height" pic you posted, we are both starting to get on the same path I hope. How did you get your .png uploaded, so I can do the same?

[JamesEJ]

Think I got it. Look at the below "Posted attachments"...TEMPLATE TOOLS BOX.png. this is the mehansim by which I am given to use when trying to edit the template. I need to know how to use these tools effectively. Instruction that Oo supplies would hopefully by the ultimate cure. Thanks, Jim

[RoryOF]

The best advice I can offer you is that you open a new (blank) document (/File /New /Text document), click on the page and insert a table (/Table /Insert); go with the defaults. You should play with this.

Select your table by positioning cursor at top left (should get a popup message "Select whole table") and clicking. Select a row or column by positioning cursor above or to left of the Row/Column (popup message."Select Table column/(Row)). Change row height or column width by positioning cursor over the row or column border (cursor changes to double headed arrow) and dragging. Click cursor in a cell and experiment with the options on the popup; for example, having right-clicked in a cell, chose Table from the popup, Background tab and choose a colour - this will apply to the selected cell.

[Bill]

Think I got it. Look at the below "Posted attachments"...TEMPLATE TOOLS BOX.png. this is the mehansim by which I am given to use when trying to edit the template. I need to know how to use these tools effectively. Instruction that Oo supplies would hopefully by the ultimate cure. Thanks, Jim

You have posted a screen shot of the Table Toolbar which usually appears when you click inside a table. If you need to know what each icon does, you should enable the "Tips" and "Extended Tips" options in Tools > Options > OpenOffice > General > Tips > Tips/Extended Tips. After enabling these options, hovering the mouse pointer over an icon in the Table Toolbar will display a detailed explanation of what the icon does.

There is no setting for "row width". There are settings for "row height" or "column width". To access these settings, click a cell in the row or column then right-click and select Row > Height or Columm > Width. As far as I know, these settings are not available on the Table Toolbar.

[JamesEJ]

@RoryOF and BILL well been an adventure to say the least but your guys last two post did the wonders. Bill this was the kind of thing I needed in the first instance FYI. RoryOF With that info I can create my own form and use the subject template as my example to re-creates. The best of two worlds. Thanks much guys, Jim