[Issue] LO Calc Focus/Input Mode

[crusader]

I am currently using LibreOffice (LO) 25.8.4.2 (X86_64) on Linux Mint Cinnamon 22.3. I have had the problem mentioned below for a long time, likely when LO was 24.2 (if not earlier) and Linux Mint was 21.x (if not earlier). I have explored this forum and other external resources, but have yet to find a solution. Based on my research, this appears to be a well known problem.

When I open a previously saved .ods file (this doesn't happen with new files), approximately 90% of the time, I am unable to enter data in the highlighted cell (the number/alphabet characters I enter don't show in the highlighted cell). The solution that works consistently is using one of the arrow keys.

Process: upon opening a saved .ods file, I first try and enter data in the highlighted cell. When this fails, I press one of the arrow keys. Pressing an arrow key the first time (any direction) doesn't move highlight to a cell in the direction of the arrow, it simply gives the highlighted cell "focus," allowing me to enter data in that particular cell. The lack of focus is not apparent when the file is opened; neither is the establishment of focus (by pressing one of the arrow keys) apparent. In other words, there is no visible hint of either a lack or presence of focus, other than the cell will "accept" data I enter. I have explored using F2 and other keys (Shift, Ctrl, etc.) alone and in various combinations - none of them work. Arrow keys work consistently.

One widely mentioned potential solution was unfreezing columns/rows; while I have not tried it, even if the solution works, it is not acceptable with my spreadsheets. I am better off with the arrow keys.

I am looking for a workable solution in which I don't have to use an arrow key to give focus to the highlighted cell.

* Edited for clarity.

[crusader]

I forgot to mention the major steps I have taken (I have worked on many minor tweaks) to try and resolve the issue - but got the same results as noted above.

• At least twice, uninstalled and reinstalled LO (with whatever was the latest LO version at that time)

• At least twice, used another Linux Mint Cinnamon based computer (with whatever were the latest Linux Mint and LO versions at that time)

[MrProgrammer]

When I open a previously saved .ods file (this doesn't happen with new files), approximately 90% of the time, I am unable to enter data in the highlighted cell (the number/alphabet characters I enter don't show in the highlighted cell). The solution that works consistently is using one of the arrow keys.

This may not help you much, but I have never seen this happen for me with OpenOffice on MacOS. Have you tried to reproduce the problem with OpenOfice on Linux Mint. This could help you determine if it's a LibreOffice problem or a Linux Mint problem.
• If it does happen in OpenOffice, then it is probably a Linux software problem or Linux configuration problem since it doesn't happen for me in OpenOffice.
• If it doesn't happen in OpenOffice, then it's probably a LibreOffice problem. The first step would be to try a current version of LibreOffice, at least as a portable version, for a test.
I suspect you can find portable versions of OpenOffice too.

Based on my research, this appears to be a well known problem.

I don't recall hearing of this problem on the OpenOffice forum. Can you give references to topics about this?

[RoryOF]

I have used a simple 12 sheet Calc (OpenOffice) spreadsheet (.ods), a new one each year for the past ten or so years, running on Xubuntu LTS versions, regularly updated over the years.

I have never found any difficulty in entering data in any highlighted cell when reopening a saved file for further editing. If the reported problem is a linux problem (which I doubt), it may be specific to Linux Mint.

[crusader]

MrProgrammer and RoryOF, thank you for your responses and support.

My apologies for a "late" response: I had/have given up hope on this issue; hence I was not monitoring my post and don't have alerts activated. Below are responses to questions you have posed.

Per MrProgrammer's suggestion, I installed the latest version (4.1.16) of OpenOffice (OO) on a spare laptop (Dell Latitude E6540 running Linux Mint (LM) 22.3 Cinnamon). One file I have, (a 8+ year old spreadsheet) that runs without any problem on my primary computer, a desktop (Dell OptiPlex 7050 07A1 running LM 22.3 Cinnamon), ran perfectly fine on the laptop also. Other files that are creating problems on the desktop had more serious issues with OO than with LO. On my desktop, hitting one of the arrow keys or the Tab key activates focus on the highlighted cell. On the laptop, none of the arrow keys nor the Tab key worked: pressing any of these resulted in nothing. In fact, the spreadsheet froze, needing a restart. As tempting as it is to point a finger at LM, I am deeply convinced there is an issue with my files (spreadsheets). None of them have macros; all of them have rows and columns frozen. None of the files are based on external templates. Some of the files were created based on a file I already had in place (think of it as my personal template - sort of), essentially creating a newer version of the file (with different structures and purpose). The answer will require a level of digging that I am not willing to commit to and also because running these files on my desktop and hitting the Tab key is significantly easier than the digging I will have to go through.

The idea that this is a well know problem was sold to me by ChatGPT - an animal I trust, but not blindly. ChatGPT can share information difficult to find/gather. A great example is the installation of OO on my laptop: instructions on OO's website were, for me, poor. ChatGPT guided me in plain English and I was up and running in <a minute! On the other side of the coin, ChatGPT provides, at different times, different/similar answers to the same question.

Unless there is evidence to the contrary, I am walking away with the understanding that the problem lies "inside" my spreadsheets - something I am not willing to play with - at least not for the foreseeable future. The pudding (proof): there is one older spreadsheet that is "behaving" - on both the devices I use - running the same versions of LO and LM. This, at least in my mind, clearly points to a problem "inside" the "misbehaving" spreadsheets. Unless you feel otherwise, and there is an option to close a topic as "Unsolved," I plan to mark this topic as solved; however, I will wait for a green light from you. While I didn't find the exact source of the problem, I found the "home" of the problem.

Please let me know if you have suggestions/ideas or have additional questions.

Notes:
Since my last post I learned the Tab key also does what the arrow keys do in the above case. I have started using the Tab key because it is easier in the realm of keyboarding.
Generally, I upgrade to latest versions of LO and LM within hours of them being formally posted; hence I am always up to date.

Again, thank you for your support!

[RoryOF]

If you have a small troublesome spreadsheet, you might look inside a copy of it; unzip it (using engrampa, perhaps, in linux) and inspect content.xml. If you have noted a "bad" cell and a "good" cell you can compare the xml code relating to each of these, and see if there is any difference in the structural code.

[robleyd]

You might also consider raining your problem on the AskLO site; there is a wealth of knowledge there which may help you.

[RoryOF]

One thought: have any of your troublesome spreadsheets originated in or been edited in MS Office formats?

[crusader]

Thank you for the ideas/suggestions, RoryOF.

My thoughts, actions and outcomes, and future plans:

• I sliced one of my files down to 15% of its original size and used Engrampa; after what seemed like an eternity, I had a text page, full of (what appeared to be) code. I did this a couple of times, but gave up because I didn't understand the essence of it (a lot of words were familiar - they are part of the spreadsheet). It is important to keep in mind that each time I open a spreadsheet, it is extremely likely that the highlighted cell will be different from the previous time I opened the same spreadsheet. If identifying "misbehaving" [individual] cells is the goal with using Engrampa, then I do not believe it is realistic. I am not convinced this is the route for me.

• The AskLO site sounds exciting; I will pursue this route.

• I do not believe any of my spreadsheets have traces of Excel (I hope they have [at least] traces of Excellence!) I joined this forum in 2008 - before LO was officially born, I believe. Since then, OO - and now LO, have been the only office suites I have used - at home. My home and and work material are completely separate - and on separate machines. I know I joined this forum (much?) later than when I started using OO - which makes it highly unlikely any of my current spreadsheets were initiated in Excel. I cannot 100% rule out rare editing in Excel/Google sheets.

• As painful as it is going to be, I will summon the courage and open my files using M$ Excel; that will give me an idea if my spreadsheets have been contaminated.

Bottom line: since I learnt the Tab key produces the same effect as arrow keys - for the purpose of giving focus to a highlighted cell when I open an established .ods file, my concern has eased: it is much easier (at least for me) to use the Tab key vs one of the arrow keys. Besides, this is a one-time issue - per spreadsheet, per opening; as long as that particular spreadsheet remains open, the issue doesn't arise again - and I can live with it. Passive pursuit of a solution will continue - at an easy pace.

[crusader]

Attached is one of my "problem" spreadsheets. I made a copy of my "original" spreadsheet, removed personal data, and entered artificial data: everything else remains the same. I have lessened the number of columns and deleted other sheets, but formatting remains the same.

When I try and open the attached spreadsheet, cell A19 is highlighted; sometimes I am able to enter data (date or any other type of data) as soon as I open the spreadsheet, but many times I am unable to enter data until I press the Tab key or one of the arrow keys. Please note: pressing the Tab key or one of the arrow keys once doesn't move the highlight from one cell to another - it just gives the highlighted cell focus - allowing me to enter data. It is possible to have consecutive multiple instances of the spreadsheet opening with the highlighted cell having the focus - that is misleading. If the spreadsheet opens with cell A19 having focus, you many choose to close the spreadsheet and wait a while. Please keep in mind when you open the spreadsheet, the highlighted cell will be the one that was highlighted when/if you saved the spreadsheet. If you don't save the spreadsheet, cell A19 will continue to be the highlighted cell.

If, after more than a dozen attempts with significant intervals in between opening the spreadsheet, cell A19 has focus each time (you are able to enter data without pressing the Tab key or one of the arrow keys), then the spreadsheet is behaving "normal" for you; if not, join the club!

Disclaimer: to the best of my knowledge, the attached .ods file is safe to open and use. Please use caution: open at your own risk.

[MrProgrammer]

If, after more than a dozen attempts with significant intervals in between opening the spreadsheet, cell A19 has focus each time (you are able to enter data without pressing the Tab key or one of the arrow keys), then the spreadsheet is behaving "normal" for you; if not, join the club!

I use OpenOffice 4.1.7 on MacOS 13.7.8. I opened the spreadsheet five times and each time A19 had the focus and I could directly enter data in it. You might consider checking Linux Mint forums to see if others have mysterious focus problems occasionally.

ChatGPT can share information difficult to find/gather.

ChatGPT and other AI systems are notorious for inventing sources. Several lawyers have been sanctioned and fined because they used AI to create legal briefs which referenced fabricated cases. When the judge checked them, the cases didn't exist. If you're going to use damned AI and drain the planet of water and electrical resources, you should at least check the sources yourself to make sure it isn't lying to you.

[crusader]

I use OpenOffice 4.1.7 on MacOS 13.7.8. I opened the spreadsheet five times and each time A19 had the focus and I could directly enter data in it.

I trust there was an interval of 5-10 minutes between openings of the spreadsheet. On shorter intervals, the percentage of focus being present in the highlighted cell is much better for me.

You might consider checking Linux Mint forums to see if others have mysterious focus problems occasionally.

That is my next stop.

[Alex1]

I checked the file both in OO and LO in Windows and could enter data without moving the focus. I also checked content.xml and found no problems in it. So it looks like it's your setup that causes the problem.

[crusader]

I also checked content.xml and found no problems in it.

Thank you so much, Alex1 - that eliminates content.xml as the culprit. I have zero idea/knowledge of content.xml.

So it looks like it's your setup that causes the problem.

Can you please elaborate on "setup?" If I can, I would like to explore that option.

[morchat]

I have Mint 22.3 and LO 25.8.4. I can load your file without any problem. Cell A19 is editable. Check if this effect also occurs in Safe Mode.

[Alex1]

Can you please elaborate on "setup?" If I can, I would like to explore that option.

I just meant configuration. Did you try it with a new LO profile?

[robleyd]

Or Help | Restart in Safe Mode without needing to touch the actual profile files.

[RoryOF]

When I load the sample file, A19 is framed with a dark border. I need (always) to click on the spreadsheet (or other document) to activate a cursor in it. If I then click on A19, I can enter data there in the sample document.

After opening the sample document there needs to be a short pause of some seconds to permit OpenOffice finish its opening process before it reacts to receive the input [read: OpenOffice is unresponsive for a few seconds].

[crusader]

Thank you to everyone for the support!

Update: over the past couple of days, among other things, I ventured into suggestions given above: restarted in safe mode, reset my profile, worked with volunteers on LM forum, uninstalled LO completely (leaving me without LO - since LO comes as part of LM OS), and reinstalled LO from LM Software Manager via both "System Package" and "Flatpak" (one at a time). Neither installation type solved my problem. I have retained the Flatpak version for my daily use. The issue remains unresolved. I have no plans on reinstalling LM: my primary device is a dual boot desktop.

I have put in a lot of time and energy into this puzzle. I will ease off and pursue this passively. While my situation is not ideal, it is not remotely dire: all I have to do to bring focus on the highlighted cell of a saved file I open, is to press the Tab key - mildly annoying, but easily doable and tolerable - until I find a solution.

[crusader]

This problem is known and was reported almost 3 years ago.

[crusader]

Update:
Booting from both a live USB and HD, and opening the same files I previously tested (files installed on another USB when booting from live USB), produced the same results for previously saved ("old") files and (in the finding below), newly created files — but added a twist I had previously not picked up: the problem happens when I save/don't save a file. When I open a old or new file, one of 2 things happen: either I get focus or don't. If I don't get focus, I press the "Tab" key to get focus. When I have focus (irrespective of how I got it), I type data in the focused [highlighted] cell and press Enter, moving the highlight — and focus — to another cell, "filling" the previous cell with data I typed. Then I attempt to close the file — which gives me the option to either save or not save the change(s). Irrespective of the option I chose (save or not save), after I close the file and open the same or another file, I don't get focus. On the other hand, when I open a old or new file (using Tab to get focus — if necessary) and type data, but instead of pressing Enter to "fill" the cell with data I typed and move to the next cell, I press "Esc" to remove the data I typed in the cell — leaving the cell blank. When I attempt to close such a file (where data was not "filled" — because the Esc key was used), save/don't save option doesn't exist (rightfully so) because there has been no change to the file (the Esc key removed the data I typed in the cell). After such an episode, when I go to the same/another file, or create a new file and open it, I get focus. This played out the same way whether I booted from live USB or HD.
Summary: making a change in both old and new files by pressing "Enter," takes away focus from files subsequently opened — both when booting from live USB and HD.

[crusader]

Update:
I believe I have found a "bandaid" solution to the problem. The solution below will make sense after reading the post above. Important reminder: this solution is working for me — and hopefully will work for others who have to endure this 3+ year old annoyance — but there is no guarantee. Based on my research, the finger points to Wayland; I can vouch for that because my problem began after the Wayland update.

It turns out, at least in my case, focus is lost for subsequent files when LO asks me if I want/don't want to save changes. What I started doing was "implementing" my decision without LO asking me. So when I made changes to a file, and wanted to save those changes, I hit Ctrl+S to save the file, and then closed the file (Ctrl+W). This "initiative" did not put burden on LO to ask me if I wanted to save the changes. After saving the file (on my own initiative), opening the same file or another file gave focus to that file.

The challenging part came when I had to close a file I had changed — without saving the changes, and more importantly — without burdening LO to ask me (about saving/not saving the changes). The solution I found is as follows.

When I made changes to a file and didn't want to save the changes — and more importantly — didn't want LO to have to ask me, I opened the File menu (Alt+F) and then pressed L, triggering the file to "Reload" and asking, "Cancel all changes?" A "Yes" response removed all changes I made to the file (minus any changes I had saved) — bringing the file to the state it was when I opened it/last saved it. At that point, I pressed Ctrl+W to close the file — without saving changes. After that, whichever file I opened had focus.

I exercised this process countless times for 2 days, on 2 different devices running LO 26.2 on LM-C 22.3 — with the same results. Please note: this testing was done on Calc; Writer is also affected by this bug; however, I didn't test my bandaid solution on Writer. I assume same/similar approach will work.

Bottom line: seemingly, LO doesn't like having to ask about saving changes: users are expected to do what they have to do on their own initiative — without being asked — or else...

[MrProgrammer]

It turns out, at least in my case, focus is lost for subsequent files when LO asks me if I want/don't want to save changes.

This difficulty must be specific to your environment, LibreOffice on Linux Mint. Using OpenOffice on MacOS, I frequently close spreadsheets which have been changed, receive The document has been modified. Do you want to save your changes?, and press D for Discard. The document is closed, and I never experience having to use the arrow keys or the Tab key to gain the focus.

[crusader]

This difficulty must be specific to your environment, LibreOffice on Linux Mint.

Thank you for sharing that. I am looking forward to feedback from LM forum. I have no experience with MacOS.

[crusader]

I am looking forward to feedback from LM forum.

It appears Wayland in LM can be moved down on (or be removed from) the suspect list. It turns out, Wayland is an experimental feature — for now — and doesn't come into play unless the user specifically chooses to. LM's default desktop environment is Cinnamon X11 (X.org). I checked thrice to make sure my desktop is using the default desktop environment (Cinnamon X11 (X.org)).

This brings LO into sharper focus. This notion is strongly — and objectively — supported by Bugzilla Bug 155243 I reported earlier. In the interim, I did several things, including, run several terminal commands — including those related to Java, hand shake, reinstalling LO, and many others. I also checked to make sure my sheets are not protected. None of these actions convinced LO to behave!

Not being a programmer, I cannot help but wait for the LO team to address the bug — reported ~3 years ago. In the interim, I am [very] tempted to reinstall LM on my dual OS desktop; however, the fear of messing up — even with fairly clear guidelines, is preventing me — which maybe/is a good thing.

A lesson in patience...

[robleyd]

Perhaps you might add yourself to the cc list for the bug to show interest?

[crusader]

Perhaps you might add yourself to the cc list for the bug to show interest?

Excellent suggestion, robleyd!

I will do that and hope for the best. In the meantime, I will [try to] keep my cool.

[crusader]

I would like to share my "discovery" in the hope someone, somewhere knows the link between opening a saved document (file) from "Recent Documents" and opening the same saved document (file) using the "Open File" menu in LibreOffice. When I open a saved spreadsheet from the "Recent Documents" group, the highlighted cell doesn't have focus. I have to press the Tab key to give the highlighted cell focus — the basis of this topic.

Since then, I have learnt that opening the same saved file (spreadsheet) using the "Open File" menu by clicking on "Open File," going to the correct folder (and sub, sub, folders as needed), and then clicking on the saved file name to open the file, results in the spreadsheet being opened with focus. I have verified this multiple times using same/different spreadsheets, at different intervals, by saving/not saving files, etc.

The question I have is: what is it about the "Recent Documents" group that is "denying" focus to saved files when they are opened? The same saved files opened via "Open File" menu have focus.

One thing is clear: opening a saved file (spreadsheet) from "Recent Documents" group is better (at least for me). Pressing Tab key is the only step I have to take to give focus to the highlighted cell. On the other hand, opening a saved file via "Open File" menu, while offering focus to highlighted cell, requires [many] more mouse clicks/key presses — depending on file location — making it an inefficient route for opening saved files.

Thoughts, ideas, suggestions?

[crusader]

For clarity purposes, I have attached a screen shot of the LO page when I start my computer. LO is one of my "Startup Applications" in LM. Spreadsheet icons shown reflect spreadsheets used recently. I can open any of the spreadsheets by using the arrow key to highlight the icon and press enter. Mouse users can click on the icon to open the spreadsheet. By default, the spreadsheet I used last is highlighted. When I open a spreadsheet using "Recent Documents" method, the document does not have focus; however, if I use the "Open File" method (top left of the screen), the spreadsheet opens with the highlighted cell having focus.