[Solved] Dropdown Menu Dialog Boxes are Overwritten

[robleyd]

{SOLVED} Thanks to Bill below - thank you!

I've been using Linux Mint for less than one week. I downloaded Apache Open Office because I've used it a little in the past.

However, when I tried to use Open Office Writer today, and I tried to enter a new value for page margin in the dropdown menu for page formating, the new value I entered was overwritten on top of the old value. The old value did not dissapear.

In general, this overwriting problem seems to occur in all dropdown menu dialog boxes.

Possibly, the problem relates to Java. I downloaded Java 8 (that was the default version when I opened up the Java website from a search engine). But I don't know if I have properly installed Java (and I saw a menu in Open Office Writer that indicated no Java was associated with Writer).

[Villeroy]

You better use the LibreOffice version which is shipped with your office suite. OpenOffice is almost dead.

[Bill]

It's caused by the default Controls setting in the Mint-Y theme in LM19. Open the Themes settings and change the Controls setting.

Re: Text in "File Name" field doesn't disappear when erased

[erikh]

Bill -

Thank you - that worked!

I would not have figured that out in a million years. Themes looked to me to just be different color buttons (an option that I never use). I randomly selected a different color button (something that looked "functional" and not too "colorful" or "showy" - and functionality of the dialog boxes was restored.

[erikh]

You better use the LibreOffice version which is shipped with your office suite. OpenOffice is almost dead.

Thank you for the comment. I downloaded an extension to find and replace for LibreOffice - I could find instruction on how to download the extension, but I could not find instruction on how to *use* the extension - very frustrating. I decided to try Apache OpenOffice because I had used it before with some success, and possibly because it's been around longer, I was able to find instructions on how to use the extension (it was the same extension). But I had to delete LibreOffice in order to get Open Office installed.

As a beginner, a considerable amount of time (hours) is required to complete these simple tasks, and I just want to edit a document that I cut and paste from the internet. As with other software, I'm sure my proficiency with Linux and Open Office will increase with time, and I will remove Open Office and re-install LibreOffice when it becomes necessary.

I did spend some time to searching the internet to see if OpenOffice or LibreOffice was preferred - I did not see that Open Office would become outdated, until your advice. That is useful information.

[Villeroy]

We can not know which extension you are talking about nor do you tell us which find/replace operation you can not do with LibreOffice. There is no find/replace facility in OpenOffice that does not exist in LibreOffice as well. Feature development in OpenOffice came to halt many years ago. All Linux distributors include the actively developed LibreOffice into their software installation packages and they sometimes add some adjustments to the respective environment.

The one and only difference in find/replace I'm aware of is that Ctrl+F in LibreOffice calls a small and simple search tool in a toolbar at the bottom of the document window. On that toolbar there is a search button which pops up the full blown find/replace dialog. It is directly accessible via menu:Edit>Find/Replace and shortcut Ctrl+H.

[erikh]

I was trying to explain why, as a new user, I was going to keep OpenOffice for now, and switch to LibreOffice when it becomes necessary.

I am an experienced Windows user, and I can perform many tasks, with a high level of proficiency, on Windows, because I have used the software for many years, and I have memorized many keyboard shortcuts, ignore the GUI (which is slow and inefficient), and I have customized the "environment" to replace icons with words (icons have essentially no meaning for me, but I have used *words* since I was a child and they are full of meaning). However, like many other computer users, I want to get away from Windows.

Thus, with the purchase of this new computer, I installed Linux. One of the first tasks I tried to accomplish was to cut-and-paste a short document from the internet, and annotate it with my own notes, for my own use. The document I was working with had *carriage returns* separating lines of text rather than *paragraph marks*. The *find and replace* function on LibreOffice did not appear to have a way to replace carriage return with paragraph mark. So - by myself (because we are supposed to be self reliant as much as possilbe) I searched the internet for a solution, and downloaded an extension for *find and replace* (the name is something like Alt Find and Replace). While I could find instructions on how to download this extension, I could not find any instructions on how to actually use the extension.

That is when I made the big decision to install OpenOffice - I figured that if I could not get LibreOffice to perform a simple find and replace (which is done with CTRL-H in Windows) then I would install OpenOffice. Long periods of time are necessary for a stupid beginner like me to (1) try to install Open Office, (2) realize there is a conflict with LibreOffice, (3) try to uninstall Libre Office, (4) try again to install OpenOffice, (5) try to edit my document, (6) realize there is the same problem with find and replace for formatting marks, (7) search the internet for a solution, (8) finally solve the simple problem (after hours), and then (9) realize I have a problem with Openoffice Writer because the drop down menus are overwritten when I type new values into them.

And then it turns out that problem - solved in this thread, results becase the default *theme color* for the dialog box is off-white instead fo gray. Huh? Who woulda thunk?

Now, I'm grateful for you comment that OpenOffice is on the way out, and LibreOffice is actively supported - but all those hours I spent 2 days ago are - painful - and learning new software takes years. From experience, I know that I was able to keep using Windows XP right up untill I purchased this new computer last week. Even though Windows XP is no longer supported (and there are well publicized reports of problems, at hospitals in UK for example, with hanging onto old software) we ordinary people make a logical decision to use software that we know, because it is so difficult and so painful (hours and hours and hours of work to find a solution for find and replace, for example) to learn new software.

This explanation is a good example. Look at how long this explanation is. I'm sincere in trying to explain why I think it is logical for me to hang onto OpenOffice for now, I really want you to understand - but the only way I think I can explain it is to write this long explanation. My apologies. And thank you for your help.

[Villeroy]

Learning to use LibreOffice when you already know OpenOffice takes minutes. It is the same software producing the same ODF documents. The deal with user friendly Linux distributions is that you get a complete, preconfigured bundle of software which allows you to use your typical home computer without any technical nor legal issues. You can browse, mail, chat, edit media and documents while all your installed software from the repository updates automatically from secure sources as long as you use the built-in software installation tool (some kind of "shop" like "google play"). If you want to install anything which comes into your mind from any source coming across your way then you have to use MS Windows or learn quite a lot about a Linux system. I take care of the PCs of all my elderly relatives and one neighbour. With one exception they all enjoy using free software on a Linux platform because the same system work reliably without annoyance and without much trouble as long as the hardware does its job (it's just like becoming older).

We all hate long explanations. Just 3 points:
1. What exactly are you doing? I hit Ctrl+F in LibreOffice6 that is shipped with my Linux Mint in order to replace "this" with "that" in a text document.
2. What happens when you do that? A little search box pops up at the bottom of the screen where I can not enter any replace string.
3. What do you expect to happen? A full blown find/replace dialog. (at this point you may explain what does not happen)
Everybody in a Linux forum, OpenOffice forum or LibreOffice forum could have helped you instantly without stirring up your hard disk for nothing.

[erikh]

Ok, thanks. I read the Mint User Manual available from the Mint welcome screen (starting several hours ago). I installed Pinta (I used similar software in Windows a lot). I haven't figured out how to paste a screen shot into this "Reply window" yet, but there are a lot of new things to learn.

I try to put a reasonable amount of effort searching for an answer on-line before posting a question on the Forum. I feel I should *try* (and learn) before asking for help. Sometimes I can figure things out either by trial and error, or by searching on-line. Sometimes when I post questions on Forums like this, the comments confuse me more - and sometimes the answers are spectacularly good - as in this case. It will take me time.....

[robleyd]

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