Colors lost if file is saved in Word 97 DOC format

Discuss the word processor
Post Reply
Repercussionist
Posts: 8
Joined: Thu Dec 24, 2020 3:28 pm

Colors lost if file is saved in Word 97 DOC format

Post by Repercussionist »

Recently, when using the latest Apache OpenOffice, version 4.1.15, on my MacBook Pro, OS Sonoma 14.2.1, if I set a Text Document paper format as Letter size with 0.75" margins and saved it as a Microsoft Word 97/2000/XP (.doc), when next I opened it, the paper format was A4 with .79" margins.

In an attempt to cure the above in the Preferences, the text which was previously in colour now displays in black only.

Any suggestions?

Thank you,
Martin

 Edit: Changed subject, was Apache OpenOffice Colors 
Make your post understandable by others 
-- MrProgrammer, forum moderator 
Last edited by MrProgrammer on Thu May 16, 2024 8:51 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Reason: Edited topic's subject
Apache OpenOffice 4.1.8
Apple MacBook Pro (November 2020) macOS BigSur version 11.1
User avatar
Zizi64
Volunteer
Posts: 11412
Joined: Wed May 26, 2010 7:55 am
Location: Budapest, Hungary

Re: Apache OpenOffice Colors

Post by Zizi64 »

Any suggestions?
Do not work in the foreign, never standardized, obsolete file formats like the binary MS .doc format.

Can you upload a sample file here?
Tibor Kovacs, Hungary; LO7.5.8 /Win7-10 x64Prof.
PortableApps/winPenPack: LO3.3.0-7.6.2;AOO4.1.14
Please, edit the initial post in the topic: add the word [Solved] at the beginning of the subject line - if your problem has been solved.
JeJe
Volunteer
Posts: 2906
Joined: Wed Mar 09, 2016 2:40 pm

Re: Apache OpenOffice Colors

Post by JeJe »

Which text?
Windows 10, Openoffice 4.1.11, LibreOffice 7.4.0.3 (x64)
Repercussionist
Posts: 8
Joined: Thu Dec 24, 2020 3:28 pm

Re: Apache OpenOffice Colors

Post by Repercussionist »

Sample.doc uploaded.
I coloured some text but I can't see it.
Highlighting still works as it should.

Re: Which text?
All of it.
Attachments
Sample.doc
(10.5 KiB) Downloaded 72 times
User avatar
Zizi64
Volunteer
Posts: 11412
Joined: Wed May 26, 2010 7:55 am
Location: Budapest, Hungary

Re: Apache OpenOffice Colors

Post by Zizi64 »

Please upload an ODF version of your sample doc, too (with the desired settings). I am sure that the native .odt format can save your settings.
Tibor Kovacs, Hungary; LO7.5.8 /Win7-10 x64Prof.
PortableApps/winPenPack: LO3.3.0-7.6.2;AOO4.1.14
Please, edit the initial post in the topic: add the word [Solved] at the beginning of the subject line - if your problem has been solved.
JeJe
Volunteer
Posts: 2906
Joined: Wed Mar 09, 2016 2:40 pm

Re: Apache OpenOffice Colors

Post by JeJe »

The picture is what I see, which is showing colored text. If that's different from what you see - how? By Preferences I assume you mean you think you've inadvertently changed something in Tools menu/options?
Untitled.jpg
Untitled.jpg (32.06 KiB) Viewed 4756 times
Windows 10, Openoffice 4.1.11, LibreOffice 7.4.0.3 (x64)
User avatar
Zizi64
Volunteer
Posts: 11412
Joined: Wed May 26, 2010 7:55 am
Location: Budapest, Hungary

Re: Apache OpenOffice Colors

Post by Zizi64 »

it is apeared in my LibreOffice 7.5.8:
Colors and Page properties.png
Colors and Page properties.png (36.51 KiB) Viewed 4720 times
The page size is "Letter", but the margins are 1" (25,4 mm).
Tibor Kovacs, Hungary; LO7.5.8 /Win7-10 x64Prof.
PortableApps/winPenPack: LO3.3.0-7.6.2;AOO4.1.14
Please, edit the initial post in the topic: add the word [Solved] at the beginning of the subject line - if your problem has been solved.
User avatar
RoryOF
Moderator
Posts: 34751
Joined: Sat Jan 31, 2009 9:30 pm
Location: Ireland

Re: Apache OpenOffice Colors

Post by RoryOF »

Opened in OpenOffice 4.1.14 on Xubuntu as page size Letter for me, with 1 inch margins. Also Letter, 1 inch margins in AbiWord. In both cases the colours were as Zixi64 and JeJe illustrated.
Apache OpenOffice 4.1.15 on Xubuntu 22.04.4 LTS
User avatar
LastUnicorn
Posts: 647
Joined: Sat Mar 29, 2008 2:41 am
Location: Scotland

Re: Apache OpenOffice Colors

Post by LastUnicorn »

I tried the following:

(1) Opened Sample.doc in LibreOffice 7.6.7. Page size was shown as Letter. Margins I had to manually set to 0.75" (my own usual defaults are 1.0". Then saved the doc in Word 97-2003.doc format as Sample - In Word 2003.doc

(2) Opened that Microsoft document in Word 2003 and it was okay. Page size Letter, and margins at 0.75".

Maybe this is because I am using LibreOffice and not OpenOffice. LibreOffice is said to have better handling for Microsoft Office documents so you might want to consider trying LibreOffice and see if you get a better result there. There are several good reasons for switching to LibreOffice anyway, some of which are mentioned here: [Tutorial] Considering a Switch from OpenOffice to LibreOffice? Some Useful Information

LibreOffice - Word 2003 Document.png
LibreOffice - Word 2003 Document.png (108.75 KiB) Viewed 4610 times
LibreOffice (Still) 24.2.6.2 (x64) installed to Windows 10 Pro x64 and Windows 11 Pro x64
Apache OpenOffice Portable 4.1.15 [Portable Apps]
For Java I use Adoptium Temurin JRE LTS Releases.
User avatar
Hagar Delest
Moderator
Posts: 32804
Joined: Sun Oct 07, 2007 9:07 pm
Location: France

Re: Apache OpenOffice Colors

Post by Hagar Delest »

I think it is a setting linked to high contrast mode or printing in black but I couldn't find which one in the Tools > Options...
Like the setting that shows the pics or not.
LibreOffice 24.2 on Xubuntu 24.04 and 7.6.4.1 portable on Windows 10
User avatar
RoryOF
Moderator
Posts: 34751
Joined: Sat Jan 31, 2009 9:30 pm
Location: Ireland

Re: Apache OpenOffice Colors

Post by RoryOF »

Perhaps /Tools /Options /OpenOffice Writer /Print : ""Print text in black" should be unchecked.
Apache OpenOffice 4.1.15 on Xubuntu 22.04.4 LTS
JeJe
Volunteer
Posts: 2906
Joined: Wed Mar 09, 2016 2:40 pm

Re: Apache OpenOffice Colors

Post by JeJe »

If you've turned on record changes then changes will be all the one color (brown as default for me), instead of the actual text color, but highlight will still be colored. To see if its this go to,

Edit menu /changes/ untick "show" to turn this off.
Windows 10, Openoffice 4.1.11, LibreOffice 7.4.0.3 (x64)
Repercussionist
Posts: 8
Joined: Thu Dec 24, 2020 3:28 pm

Re: Colors lost if file is saved in Word 97 DOC format

Post by Repercussionist »

Re: I am sure that the native .odt format can save your settings.
It can't.

I don't have Microsoft Office, only OpenOffice.

Re: Perhaps /Tools /Options /OpenOffice Writer /Print : ""Print text in black" should be unchecked.
'Print text in black' is unchecked.

Re: Edit menu /changes/ untick "show" to turn this off.
'Show' is unticked'
Apache OpenOffice 4.1.8
Apple MacBook Pro (November 2020) macOS BigSur version 11.1
User avatar
MrProgrammer
Moderator
Posts: 5078
Joined: Fri Jun 04, 2010 7:57 pm
Location: Wisconsin, USA

Re: Colors lost if file is saved in Word 97 DOC format

Post by MrProgrammer »

Repercussionist wrote: Tue May 14, 2024 5:15 pm Recently, when using the latest Apache OpenOffice, version 4.1.15, on my MacBook Pro, OS Sonoma 14.2.1, if I set a Text Document paper format as Letter size with 0.75" margins and saved it as a Microsoft Word 97/2000/XP (.doc), when next I opened it, the paper format was A4 with .79" margins.
I can reproduce that problem with OpenOffice 4.1.7 on MacOS 13.6.3. When I open your Sample.doc, the margins are 1 inch. I think DOC format handles page styles differently than OpenOffice. Actually, I think I have read that DOC format does not support the concept of a Page Style. Perhaps OpenOffice uses our default page style settings when it saves or opens a file in foreign DOC format, Letter 1 inch for me, A4 .79 inch for you. It is well known on the forum that saving text documents in other than ODT format risks loss of content, formatting, or features. If you need to work reliably in DOC format, MS Office is the one and only program for you. LibreOffice has tried to improve support for foreign formats DOC and DOCX.
Format → Page
Format → Page
202406040955.gif (36.13 KiB) Viewed 3960 times

Repercussionist wrote: Tue May 14, 2024 5:15 pm In an attempt to cure the above in the Preferences, the text which was previously in colour now displays in black only.
I cannot reproduce that problem with OpenOffice 4.1.7 on MacOS 13.6.3. JeJe, Zizi64, LastUniforn, and I can all see the colors in your DOC file. I looked at several possible settings in Preferences which might display your document in black, but none of them did. I also looked at many preferences in  → System Settings, though it is not possible for me to try every combination of them. If you suspect a change to your System Settings is the cause, use the Guest User account to verify that. The Guest User gets a new, default set of preferences. Do your problems occur for the Guest User account?
Q28/A28: How do I use the Guest User account to run a test?
Q29/A29: How can I access a file from the Guest User account without a USB drive?
Sample.doc screen image
Sample.doc screen image
202406040946.jpg (100.47 KiB) Viewed 3960 times

Repercussionist wrote: Sat May 18, 2024 6:23 pm Re: I am sure that the native .odt format can save your settings.
It can't.
I cannot reproduce that problem with OpenOffice 4.1.7 on MacOS 13.6.3. I opened your Sample.doc and changed the margins to ¾ inch, then saved it as an ODT document. When I later open it, the colors and ¾ inch margin are present.
Sample.odt
Sample.odt
(19.47 KiB) Downloaded 37 times

Repercussionist wrote: Tue May 14, 2024 5:15 pm Recently, when using … MacOS Sonoma 14.2.1
It is possible that MacOS 14 has introduced changes or new preferences which cause the problem that you have. However no one else on the forum has reported it. I do not use MacOS 14.

Repercussionist wrote: Tue May 14, 2024 5:15 pm Any suggestions?
Did you try to open Sample.doc with Pages? It is included in MacOS 14, already installed, ready to use. Are the colors present there? They are for me. Are the margins 1 inch in Pages? They are for me. Since both OpenOffice and Pages report the margin in Sample.doc to be 1 inch, this suggests that OpenOffice did not save your ¾ inch margin when you created your document in DOC format. Saving text documents in other than ODT format risks loss of content, formatting, or features.

RoryOF wrote: Thu May 16, 2024 4:02 pm Perhaps /Tools /Options /OpenOffice Writer /Print : ""Print text in black" should be unchecked.
I think this only affects the File → Print dialog. I find that the Print text in black setting has no effect in the document as displayed in View → Print Layout or View → Web Layout or File → Page Preview.

JeJe wrote: Thu May 16, 2024 7:14 am By Preferences I assume you mean you think you've inadvertently changed something in Tools menu/options?
On MacOS OpenOffice does not have Tools → Options. Tools → Options on other platforms is OpenOffice → Preferences in MacOS.
Mr. Programmer
AOO 4.1.7 Build 9800, MacOS 13.7, iMac Intel.   The locale for any menus or Calc formulas in my posts is English (USA).
Repercussionist
Posts: 8
Joined: Thu Dec 24, 2020 3:28 pm

Re: Colors lost if file is saved in Word 97 DOC format

Post by Repercussionist »

Re: I opened your Sample.doc and changed the margins to ¾ inch, then saved it as an ODT document. When I later open it, the colors and ¾ inch margin are present.

I downloaded my Sample.doc, which you had saved as an ODT document, when I opened it, the highlighting was present, the colours were still absent, and the margin are all 1".

So far, nothing has changed.
Apache OpenOffice 4.1.8
Apple MacBook Pro (November 2020) macOS BigSur version 11.1
Repercussionist
Posts: 8
Joined: Thu Dec 24, 2020 3:28 pm

Re: Colors lost if file is saved in ODF Text DOC format

Post by Repercussionist »

Re: By Preferences I assume you mean you think you've inadvertently changed something in Tools menu/options?

I meant I've inadvertently changed something in the OpenOffice Preferences.

Having opened a new ODF Text Document and, while adding colours to the text, the colours are not visible... even when saved as a .odt file and then opened.
Apache OpenOffice 4.1.8
Apple MacBook Pro (November 2020) macOS BigSur version 11.1
User avatar
floris v
Volunteer
Posts: 4486
Joined: Wed Nov 28, 2007 1:21 pm
Location: Netherlands

Re: Colors lost if file is saved in Word 97 DOC format

Post by floris v »

I opened it in AOO 4.1.11 and it was in Letter format with 1 inch margins, all colors kept as in the screenshots above. So, Writer kept in the colors in the conversion, they just don't show on your system. Maybe your user profile got corrupted, in that case it helps to reset it. Click here for help how to do that.
OpenOffice 4.1.11 on Ubuntu; LibreOffice 6.4 on Linux Mint, LibreOffice 7.6.2.1 on Ubuntu
If your problem has been solved or your question has been answered, please edit the first post in this thread and add [Solved] to the title bar.
Nederlandstalig forum
Post Reply