[Solved] Determine Windows user name for profile reset

[billyboyny]

Hi
I'm one of those poor souls who is trying to figure out the red squiggly line debacle and in order to proceed with the complicated steps, I'm supposed to navigate to: C:\Users\xxxxxx\AppData\Roaming\OpenOffice\4\user\Scripts Apparently I am to substitute my user name for Open Office in place of the x's but I have no clue what my user name is. Any help would be appreciated! Thanks!

[LastUnicorn]

In Windows Explorer do the the following:

(1) Type or paste the following into the Explorer Address Bar (including the percent marks): %AppData%

(2) Once that is entered click on the Explorer 'Go' button, or just press the Enter key on your keboard.

(3) Explorer will now open the 'Roaming' folder of your user account. You will be able see from that path the user name of the currently logged-in user.

(4) You will see the OpenOffice folder (or LibreOffice folder) as a sub-folder of your Roaming folder.

[billyboyny]

Thanks for the quick reply... but I don't have Windows Explorer. Will it work any other way?

thanks!
Billy

[LastUnicorn]

If you are on Windows 7, which your forum signature says you are, then you do indeed have Windows Explorer.

[LastUnicorn]

Or try some of these instructions: 7 Easy Ways to Find Your Windows Username

[billyboyny]

Thanks... but I don't need my Windows user name. Apparently I need my Open Office user name which I can't find.

[LastUnicorn]

Your OpenOffice username is just: user

[billyboyny]

Okay... I think I've gotten to the right section. I opened: AppData/Roaming/LibreOffice and underneath is a file called "4". Am I close to finding the name because I don't see a "path" to my user name. Thanks again. Bear with this old guy!

[LastUnicorn]

Yes keep drilling in the folders, so drill into '4', then into 'user' and you might be able to find the 'scripts' folder you are looking for in there. Though I find it strange that you are looking for a 'scripts' folder, I don't have one in my user folder.

What exactly is it you are looking for? What are you actually trying to do?

[billyboyny]

You are very patient... thanks...
I'm just trying to follow the pathway that will eventually allow me to correct the "red squiggly lines" that are suddenly on every one of my OO documents. User John_Ha instructs:
1. You will first need to make hidden files visible by Start > Control Panel > Folder Options > View > select Show hidden files, folders and drives. In Windows 10, go File Explorer > View (Ribbon tab) > Options ... to open the Folder Options/File Explorer Options window.

2. Use Windows Explorer and go to C:\Users\xxxxxx\AppData\Roaming\OpenOffice\4\user\Scripts (where xxxxxx is your username) and open the folder. right-click inside the folder > New > Folder ..., and create a new folder called python. Note: you must use all lower case letters for "python" or Writer will not see the file.
Edit: If you are still using AOO 3.x - you should not be as there are security implications - I think the path is C:\Users\xxxxxx\AppData\Roaming\OpenOffice.org\4\user\Scripts OpenOffice.org
3. Download the attached config_backend_cleaner.py.zip file and place it on the desktop.

4. Double click config_backend_cleaner.py.zip file to open it > right-click config_backend_cleaner.py > Copy. This takes a copy of the file.

5. Go back to C:\Users\xxxxxx\AppData\Roaming\OpenOffice\4\user\Scripts\python > right-click inside the folder > Paste. This pastes the file config_backend_cleaner.py into the folder ...\python.

6. Close OpenOffice.

7. If you run the quickstarter, close it as well. [Start > Control Panel > Performance Information and Tools > Advanced Tools > Open Task Manager > Processes > left click on Image name (to sort the processes in alphabetical order). Now right-click each soffice.exe and soffice.bin > click End Process - they will all disappear.]

8. Start OpenOffice

9. Go Tools > Macros > Organize Macros > Python > click the [+] by My Macros > click the [+] by config_backend_cleaner > click on cleanup > click Run

10. Close OpenOffice

11. Start OpenOffice

The problem should be fixed.

____________________________________________________________

I completed step one successfully (I think) but now I'm supposed to enter the C:\Users... etc in order to get the backend cleaner and he says I need to put my username in place of the xxxx's. Is that not supposed to be OO or is it Windows User name? Sorry I'm so confused. I'm an actor by trade and computers befuddle me.

thanks for caring
best
Bill

[LastUnicorn]

As best as I can see what you are referring to as your OpenOffice Username is in fact your Windows Username. Neither OpenOffice nor LibreOffice are in any way involved in setting your Windows username. So forget about the username as you are just confusing yourself and everyone else with your use of it.

If your OpenOffice/LibreOffice files are all showing spelling marks as being underlined with squiggly-lines then you can try a profile reset to fix it. The instructions to do that are here: [Tutorial] Profile reset on Windows 10 - with images

[robleyd]

It seems billyboyny is following the suggestions in [Tutorial] Spell Check Not Working (words red underlined) to install a script rather than using the simpler solution proposed earlier in that post of resetting the profile.

[billyboyny]

Hey Rob
If you know of a shortcut, I'd rather take the simpler solution. But the only one I saw that was offered was simply turning off the spellcheck. And I noticed, now, that at the same time that I gained all the squiggly lines on everything, I lost the curly apostrophe and the double-wide -- which had taken me forever to figure out. So if there was a solution offered that restores things to my original and loses the red lines I'm all ears! Thanks!

[billyboyny]

Unicorn...
Re: If your OpenOffice/LibreOffice files are all showing spelling marks as being underlined with squiggly-lines then you can try a profile reset to fix it. The instructions to do that are here: [Tutorial] Profile reset on Windows 10 - with images

I'm still using Windows 7

[LastUnicorn]

I'm still using Windows 7

It doesn't matter, you can still reset the user profile. Just adapt the instructions to suit your Windows 7 system. It's pretty straightforward if you try.

[billyboyny]

Thanks! I'm trying to figure it out right now. I'm a dolt when it comes to technical stuff so fingers crossed!

[billyboyny]

Oh my gosh, everyone!!! The simplest method worked! All the red underlines are gone. The only thing I think I lost were the curly apostrophes! Thanks for your patience and sorry for the all the rolled eyes I'm quite certain I caused. Huzzah! (Thanks to Last Unicorn and Robeyd particularly)

[LastUnicorn]

The only thing I think I lost were the curly apostrophes!

If you have 'lost' them you should understand that when you reset the user profile what happens is that on the next launch of OpenOffice/LibreOffice a brand new user profile is created with default settings, to suit your system somewhat. So some things might have changed from what you are used to if you had at anytime made changes to the default settings/options when you first installed OpenOffice/LibreOffice. The solution to that is just to step through OpenOffice/LibreOffice Settings/Options and take things from there.

For curly apostrophes you most likely would need to set that in AutoCorrect options. Guides can be found here: how to set curly apostrophes

[billyboyny]

Thanks. I figured it out quickly. I just thought that since my additions to the dictionary were transferred, so would my preferential settings.

[Lupp]

Your OpenOffice seems to still run at least despite whatever you judge to be a debacle.
1. Run OpenOffice.
2. Go through the menu path >Tools>Options>OpenOffice>Paths>>AutoCorrect
3. This path (and also some more entries there) will start with the folder path you need.
4. This will also work under altyernative OperatingSystems and with an OpenOffice from a PortableAps package where the OS dependent user paths are obsolete.

[billyboyny]

Yeah. It’s been resolved. Thanks anyway.

[Lupp]

Yeah. It’s been resolved. Thanks anyway.

I knew you thought so. My additional post should tell other visitors to the thread that the search for the user name as managed by the specific OS may be the wrong approach. What they actually need in case of user profile corruption ist the path to the user profile, and even on a Win system that path may differ from the default for a couple of reasons.
To give an example:
I'm running a dozen AOO/LibO versions expanded from a PortableApps package. They have their own default paths.
For special purposes I have three different user profiles for my "current insatalled version". For two of them the paths are explicitly assigned via a parameter set in the calling command.