[Solved] Words in Documents shrinking down & stretching up

[zedsdead]

This has been happening for quite some time. I had the same problem on my last laptop with an earlier version of OO. Recently adopted a different laptop (Windows 8) and downloaded the latest version of OO (4.1.7) and it’s happening again. It happens throughout multiple Word Documents, the latest that I noticed the issue in is 6 pages long (seems like it only begins to happen after I have a couple of pages written (doesn’t happen with only one page). The letters of a single sentence (sometimes not the whole sentence) on one line of a page will warp, either shrinking down or stretching upwards and becoming squiggly and difficult to read. My current fix is always only temporary: I will delete a few letters of a word in the sentence, retype them, and the sentence will return to normal, but the problem always pops up again shortly after, always in a different sentence. I really hope this can be fixed, because it’s very distracting having to break from writing to fix the warped sentence, because I can’t read it. I downloaded this version of OO from the official site.

[RusselB]

Welcome to the Forums.
This is the first that I can recall reading about an issue as you have described it.
My first suggestion is to check your video settings and ensure that you are using the latest video drivers, though the fact that you state it's a Windows 8 machine may mean that the latest drivers might be too new (ie: designed for Windows 10). If you can't find the video driver manufacturer, try the support site for the manufacturer of the laptop.

[John_Ha]

The letters of a single sentence (sometimes not the whole sentence) on one line of a page will warp, either shrinking down or stretching upwards and becoming squiggly and difficult to read.

Almost certainly an operating system or graphics system glitch.

Try scrolling the distorted text out of view. When you scroll it back is it OK?

Is it always the same line of text? Or can it be different lines of text?

Is it a complete line? or only part of a line?

Next time it happens take a screen copy. Press Alt+PrtScrn to take a copy of the active window. Paste into a graphics editor. Crop out the interesting bit and upload it - 128 kB max here.

Search the forum with fuzzy text. See [Solved] Fuzzy / blurry appearance on Windows 8.1

[zedsdead]

@John_Ha

It is almost never the same line of text. As I said, after deleting a few letters out of the warped words and then retyping them, all warped words return to normal. It happens again quickly, though, usually while I’m typing, it’ll pop up in a random spot: in that spot, yes, all words warped are side by side, usually on the same line, but sometimes it doesn’t effect the entire sentence.

I can’t get to my laptop right now, but I’ll try to show an example here: I’ll use the star mark to express warped text (which, again, is either shrunken down or stretched upwards and warped in a way that is almost impossible to read).

Example:

“Johnny went for a run. It was hot out, though, so ** *** ** **** * ***** ******. ******* ** *** **** ** *****, he strapped it to a loop on his belt. This caused a new problem, though, as it banged into his leg with every step.”

After deleting a few letters and replacing them, the problem disappears. But, if I continue typing it will just pop up elsewhere. I’ll try the scrolling thing as soon as I can, this reply is just to explain further. Honestly, I’m surprised that no one else has had this problem; as I said, it happened on my old laptop, too, and I figured with having a different laptop and downloading the latest version, it wouldn’t pop up again.
In addition, these word documents I work on are usually much longer than 6 pages and are formatted like books (because they are, haha) with short and large paragraphs mixed together and the problem seems to pop up wherever it wants to, but usually only in one place at a time.

[RusselB]

Your example is, realistically, useless.
Please wait until you can get to your laptop and upload a screenshot when you can.
We're here at all kinds of different hours, partially due to being located all around the world, so even if it seems like a weird time for you, it might be someone else's normal time to be on here.
The sooner you can get that screenshot to us, the sooner we might be able to give you better information, and possible resolution.

[RoryOF]

Almost certainly a graphics display problem. Do the broken lines extend across screen lines, or are the effects entire sentences of the text, with distortion extending to a some words above and below the main distorted line. Do the distorted lines occur on the same place on the screen - probably halfway or quarter way down the screen?

Edit: Try adjusting the settings for "graphics acceleration" and "anti-aliasing" on /Tools /Options /OpenOffice /View

[zedsdead]

Eh, yeah, when I scroll, it appears to go away, but pops up again later. Will post a screenshot as soon as possible.

Apologies for the delay, didn’t really expect to get so many replies so soon. Kudos to this forum, anyway, for that.

[RoryOF]

Look carefully at where the distortion occurs. If it is on the half, the third or the quarter (etc), as judged by eye, it is almost certainly a graphics driver problem. Try the four variations - both off either on, both on - of the settings I suggested. It may be best to restart OO after each such change.

Edit: On some of my computers, using Writer, I sometimes get a screen line of text in the vertical centre of the screen slightly reduced in height - as if one line of pixels was omitted. As the screen scrolls, this will vanish. I just ignore it. It does not show up on printed output.

[zedsdead]

@RoryOF

I’m sorry, but I’ve gone where you suggested (Tools/Options/OpenOffice/View) and don’t understand exactly what you’re telling me to uncheck. Apologies again; I spent a few days figuring out how to work Microsoft Office Styles when I had MS, so I’m sorry if this is easy to understand from your perspective, but what should I uncheck? I’m not a programmer, just a humble author btw. Open Office is all I have for now.

BTW, the example I’m seeing now is completely across one line alone: As in, one single line of a paragraph is warped, not half, not a quarter, just the whole line. I would take a screenshot, but it’s from a book I’m writing, so...- I tried copy and pasting a manuscript from a classic off Gutenberg, but the problem wouldn’t show up, even with a few deletions and retypes.

[RoryOF]

See attached screenshot, top right-hand corner. On my system Use Hardware acceleration is not available, but it may be on yours, Try the options as I list:

Accel On, Anti-Aliasing On
Accel On, Anti-Aliasing Off
Accel Off, Anti-Aliasing On
Accel Off, Anti-Aliasing Off

Each time, press OK, close OO, restart it, and see what the graphics situation is before moving to the next setting change.

I'm offline for the morning.

[RoryOF]

The distortion across an entire screenline narrows things down to graphics problem. The position of the distortion will be in the vertical dimension of the screen, usually half or quarter down the screen; if on the quarter position, it may also be on the half and the three-quarter position.

[zedsdead]

@RoryOF

Ah, you meant down the screen. Right now, it’s at a whole single line, one line below the top of the page (page 4). I unchecked (Use hardware acceleration), which didn’t work. Will try options as you listed next and update as soon as I see results or otherwise. Thanks very much for clarifying.

[John_Ha]

What happened when you tried the fix given in the solved thread I posted?

[Hagar Delest]

I confirm it is an AOO glitch and the only fix IIRC is to refresh with Ctrl+Shift+R.
See:
Letters randomly squishing together
[Issue] Distorted lines of text
I had even created a bug report: Issue 127293 - Characters shrinked within line. Will be 3 years old in 3 days.

[John_Ha]

Hagar

Interesting. This is the image you uploaded to the bug report but magnified. It isn't a loss of a single line of pixels which I have seen. Note also each affected "a" has lost a bit and so has the "s" - all about the same height.

What surprises me is that other bits (Calc etc) don't do it as I would expect them all to use the same code for driving the screen.

But code can always whistle up a surprise when it wants.

[RoryOF]

This solution to another problem might be worth trying:
viewtopic.php?f=6&t=100821&p=485570#p485570

[zedsdead]

RoryOF, after trying all your other suggestions, Accel Off, Anti-Aliasing Off seems to have worked.
If I’m wrong, I’ll try the solutions in the links posted and update if there’s a change.

[zedsdead]

Yeah, seems to me that Hardware Acceleration Off and Anti-Aliasing Off worked. Haven’t seen the problem at all within a few hours of working on the document: before it would’ve happened a dozen times already.

Sorry for being new, but can anyone tell me how to mark this post as Solved? Do I have to do it manually?

[robleyd]

How to tag a topic as solved.

In your first post, click the Edit button. Go to the subject line and add [Solved] at the beginning of the subject.

Then select the green tick as the Post icon (just below the subject line). Preview if you wish to see how it looks.
Finally, hit Submit - done!

[RoryOF]

A similar problem and solution (different Poster) is at
https://ask.libreoffice.org/en/question ... haracters/