[Solved] Spontaneous reformatting of a .doc file

[donnolo]

I created a Word (.doc) file using OpenOffice Writer that contained nonstandard formatting (numerous changes in font size and color, irregular indentations). When I printed a pdf version it spontaneously reformatted. The same thing happened when I tried to attach it to an e-mail message.

I am attaching three files: Test.doc, Test1.pdf, and Test2.pdf. Test.doc is the original Word document. Since this isn't my usual e-mail application, I don't know how it will look to others at this site. Test1 shows how it is supposed to look. Test2 shows what happens when it reformats.

The same thing happens when I start from an .odt version.

I can work around the problem by *exporting* the file in pdf format instead of printing it. (That's how I created Test1.) But it seems to be a bug and should be fixed.

[Zizi64]

I created a Word (.doc) file using OpenOffice Writer that contained nonstandard formatting (numerous changes in font size and color, irregular indentations).

Always work in the International Standard ODF file formats with the Apache OpenOffice and the LibreOffice. And the end of the editing export a copy of your document in the foreign, obsolete, never standarsized file formats - if it is necessary. (And only re-edit the native file format (original) version of the document.)

Note: There is not (never was ansd never will be 100% compatibility between the different file formats. You always will lost some formatting property when you save a document into a foreign (non-native) file format.

[Zizi64]

I just opened the .doc version of your document. There are missing fonts in it, because I have not such fonts on my PC. The TestFonts extension can examine a document for the applied/missing fonts. The relevant part of the report of the TestFonts extension:

Code: Select all

Missing fonts - found:  3 times
    Helvetica;Arial                 Bold 
    Times;Times New Roman           Regular 
    Times;Times New Roman           Bold

https://extensions.openoffice.org/en/project/testfonts


The missing fonts will be substituted when a recipient open your document. And the other font - even if it is very similar - have not same properties as the applied font have.

Maybe the one of the .pdf version contains the applied fonts embedded into the pdf file, and the other one have not. (the file size of the two .pdf files are basicly different...)

[Zizi64]

Othervise you are using a bad formatting method for in your document. The text looks like as a centered position text. But you are using a narrow space between the margins; and the text will be rearranged, when the missing font will be substituted wit an another one. Use a wider space, and force the line feeds (Shift-Enter) or the paragraph breaks (Enter), if you want not to rearrange the text.

You can use different Paragraph Styles with
- different font size, and
- with different font color, and
- with different spacing between the lines
instead of the manual formatting method. It will give you a better (more comfortable and easilier modificable) result.

[donnolo]

Yes, I did some of the editing when the file was in .doc format.

I could re-create it working entirely in .odt format, then convert to .doc in order to share it. (Not everyone uses OpenOffice, so sending it in .odt format might make it unreadable.) It would be interesting to find out if I that makes the problem disappear. But that's a lot of work merely to satisfy my curiosity.

Thanks for the tips.

[RoryOF]

All versions of Ms Office from 2007 and later will open .odt files.

[Zizi64]

(Not everyone uses OpenOffice, so sending it in .odt format might make it unreadable.)

...Do you think it: not everyone installs and uses a free PDF reader software when they want to read a PDF format document??
Yes, the AOO and the LO are free softwares for everyone - as the PDF reader softvares are free too. Everyone can install and use them (even near the other Office Suites).
And the newer versions of the MS Office software (what you at all can install on a recent Windows version ) can read the ODF file formats.

[John_Ha]

See [Tutorial] Differences between Writer and MS Word files for a description of differences and for why you should always work in, and save Writer files as .odt, Calc files as .ods, Impress files as .odp etc.