I woke up to find my Microsoft Office 2021 applications for Mac received an ultimatum notice affixed under the ribbon. Looks like Office 2021 is no longer supported and consumers are being forced to either subscribe to 365, or purchase a perpetual (ha ha) license for one—yes one—PC or Mac desktop for $179.

I succumbed to the perpetual option thinking, like many versions previously owned since Office 1998, that this purchase grants usage of Office on the desktop and laptop I own; same user, separate device. Come to discover, I'm required to purchase an additional $179 perpetual license for my laptop if I want to use Office 2024 on both computers.

Now, picture this. You visit the DMV, spend time and money obtaining your driver's license for a Class D vehicle—only to discover that the license is restricted to one vehicle. Following Microsoft's logic, if you owned a second Class D vehicle, you'd be required to return to the DMV for a second license to drive your second vehicle; same user, separate device.

Frustrated by this, I am here. With you. In LibreOffice land. I have a few questions, though, if someone can help point me in the right direction.

1. There are many settings. Is there a way to merge old Word settings into LibreOffice? What settings are really critical?
2. Are there resources or videos online for learning?
3. How stable is LibreOffice and is there strong support for it remaining relevant for years to come?
4. What other tips and glaring changes should new users be aware of when starting?
5. Opening Word docs and Office docs within LibreOffice?

TL;DR: I abandoned MS Office for LibreOffice and need tips for a first-time user.

LibreOffice is already a solid, mature office suite. So why keep adding features instead of focusing more on the two things that, in my opinion, hold it back the most?

The UI: It still feels outdated and unnecessarily complicated compared to modern alternatives.

Mobile apps: There’s no polished, official mobile experience comparable to Microsoft Office or Google Docs.

I feel that improving these two areas would do much more to attract mainstream users than adding more features that most people will never use.

I know LibreOffice is an open-source project with limited funding, but my question is: why spend that money on adding more features instead of improving the product to attract more users? A larger user base could mean more visibility, more support, and potentially more revenue.
Many open-source projects, for example, offer their desktop version for free while charging for their mobile apps. Couldn’t that be an additional source of income for LibreOffice?

I've read some to get me started, but clearly not enough as I got stuck so early...

Edit1:

Version: 24.2.7.2 (X86_64) / LibreOffice Community

Build ID: 420(Build:2)

CPU threads: 8; OS: Linux 7.0; UI render: default; VCL: gtk3

Locale: en-US (en_US.UTF-8); UI: en-US

Ubuntu package version: 4:24.2.7-0ubuntu0.24.04.7

Calc: threaded

I have made jeopardy style games for friends and family for years in Powerpoint. I wanted to move to Libre as many said the options were very similar. The biggest thing I can't get to work is having a video play when the slide starts, then disappear when the video is done. I do alot of little 15-20 second clips and in Powerpoint there is just a checkbox to play in fullscreen and to hide when not playing. I thought I could recreate that by adding animations for start media and disappear after with a delay of the length of the video (which is already a pain if the video doesn't end exactly on the second mark because it's hard to find that exact number). The issue is when this slide plays the video never goes away. I have been really fighting with this program to learn how to make things work with it so if anyone can help I would really appreciate it.

Version: 26.8.1.1 (X86_64)

Build ID: bf6ef2662401c7d6dce671ab4deb26ee0af3a7c1

CPU threads: 16; OS: Windows 10 X86_64 (build 19045); UI render: Skia/Raster; VCL: win

Locale: en-US (en_US); UI: en-US

Calc: threaded

I just need the page black even the writing area and text white is there extension or something similar pls help?

I'm taking notes for an exam, But due to how small my notes are and how I'm only allowed one page: I split the page in two. I thought that using a page break wood forest text to be on the other side, but doing that forces another page should be created, which is the exact opposite of why I have a two column format to begin with.

How do I force text to appear on the other side of the page without spamming a bunch of enters?

I only have less than two hours to finish up these notes. I am on a time crunch. So I do not have time to reform the whole thing entirely from scratch. So just give me the saying that it's like pace break but it forces the text on the other side of the page as though the other side of the page was a new page instead of training a new page. I also don't have time to check grammar.

Version: 24.2.0.3 (X86_64) / LibreOffice Community

Build ID: da48488a73ddd66ea24cf16bbc4f7b9c08e9bea1

CPU threads: 20; OS: Windows 10.0 Build 26300; UI render: Skia/Vulkan; VCL: win

Locale: en-US (en_US); UI: en-US

Calc: CL threaded

EDIT: I coincidentally typed in the exact right words into Google to have the AI give me the exact thing of this future supposed to be called. It's apparently called "column break". But for some reason beyond my comprehension is not just in the right click menu or in "insert". It's instead not only hidden away under "layout", but it doesn't have his own option that appears when a page is split into column for some stupid reason. I instead have to go into "manual break", which opens up a whole other interface, and check column break instead of "page break".

I am sorry to complain: but it is legitimately driving me insane how basic features are hidden away in obscure, unintuitive places. And I only have an hour and a half left to finish my notes! Why would anyone design the program like this?

well this is not strictly necessary for my notes: It would help readability. But I'm also using tab to mimic how something would be viewed in a program like notepad++. So it needs to be applied only to the section I desire.

Using the image above as reference: I am having a list of special characters that can be generated in HTML, And I want the special characters themselves to be on the right side of the Column (I have a two column page), and the actual thing I need to type for them on the left.

I tried looking up on google, and I even found a post that would seemingly, but the information in it seemed to imply the existence of something that does not appear to exist. And I highly doubt inserting a table would do anything to help in any way that wouldn't make things more complicated.

these are notes for an exam I'm taking in less than an hour and a half. So I'll keep expanding the notes while I wait for a response. And as I said it's not strictly necessary. But it would be greatly appreciated if you could give me something that could help with the things and the formatting.

Thank you in advance!

Version: 24.2.0.3 (X86_64) / LibreOffice Community

Build ID: da48488a73ddd66ea24cf16bbc4f7b9c08e9bea1

CPU threads: 20; OS: Windows 10.0 Build 26300; UI render: Skia/Vulkan; VCL: win

Locale: en-US (en_US); UI: en-US

Calc: CL threaded

I am using the tabs format.

I have been an off-again, on-again user of LO for the past 8 years. I recall being able to set LO's load and save to MS 2007-365 format and have no problems opening docx, xlsx, and pptx files.

Recently that has changed.

For the past six months or so, I have noticed that LO crashes whenever I try to edit or save a docx file.

I am wondering if others have had similar experiences, and whether there is a known cause. Has LO changed and somehow lost compatibility or perhaps have MS files changed to make them more proprietary and thus less accessible with LO?

I submit this to you, my fellow redditors, to tap your collective brains.

EDIT: adding my version details

Version: 26.2.6.3 (X86_64)

Build ID: 8221e31b3ac356a1623c672912a3d2b492f7e3d1

CPU threads: 16; OS: Windows 11 X86_64 (build 26300); UI render: Skia/Raster; VCL: win

Locale: en-US (en_US); UI: en-US

Any idea why after I select an object in Impress and add an animation trigger on another object it doesn't stay? (Object 2 is set to Appear on click of Object 1) When I click Object 1, Object 2 appears for a millisecond and then disappears (If I spam click, Object 2 keeps appearing, but doesn't stay)

Info: Version: 26.8.1.1 (X86_64)

Build ID: bf6ef2662401c7d6dce671ab4deb26ee0af3a7c1

CPU threads: 16; OS: Windows 11 X86_64 (build 26200); UI render: Skia/Raster; VCL: win

Locale: pl-PL (pl_PL); UI: en-US

Calc: CL threaded

File .pptx

Version: 26.8.1.1 (AARCH64)

Build ID: bf6ef2662401c7d6dce671ab4deb26ee0af3a7c1

CPU threads: 8; OS: macOS 26.6.2; UI render: Skia/Raster; VCL: osx

Locale: en-GB (en_GB.UTF-8); UI: en-US

Calc: threaded

MacOS: Tahoe

Hi all, sure this is a very basic question!

How can I get LibreOffice to display the app title (eg. LibreOffice Writer, LibreOffice Calc etc.) in the window and document title bars? My install only shows either LibreOffice (window title) or the filename (doc title).

I’ve seen screengrabs of it so I know it’s possible, but after rifling through Settings, help docs and forums for the past hour I’m stumped! Would appreciate pointers on where to find the setting for this, please?

Hey! I'm moving my manuscript over to libreoffice and I was really intrigued by the Master Document file type. I made sure the format on the Master Document was correct for a professional manuscript but when I tried to add my prologue as a Sub Document, the formatting changed back to the default. Any tips and tricks would be very appreciated as I am very new to this!

The bot requested more information so just to be safe:

Version: [26.8.1.1](http://26.8.1.1) (X86_64)

Build ID: bf6ef2662401c7d6dce671ab4deb26ee0af3a7c1

CPU threads: 8; OS: Windows 11 X86_64 (build 26300); UI render: Skia/Raster; VCL: win

Locale: en-US (en_US); UI: en-US

Calc: threaded

File type: .odm / .odt

I did my formatting in the text portion, the very first thing that opened when I opened the document. It doesn't have a chain link by it so maybe that's the issue? I'm unsure.

If that is the issue, how do I fix it? if the format linked to the first "document" in the navigator?

Edit: I tried making a new document and insured all of the formatting was correct but still no luck when it comes to adding new sub documents which stinks because I really didn't want to have to format every single chapter but again, I might be doing it wrong.

Hello!
I have text that looks like this.
Line 1: Blah blah blah action dialogue
Line 2: Blah blah action dialogue

I want it to look like this.

Line 1: Blah blah blah action dialogue

Line 2: Blah blah action dialogue

With a full break between every line. This is for converting to LaTeX, otherwise I need to do it by hand.
Converting everything by hand is extremely time-burning and also it hurts my hands to do over 1500-2000 lines of text.
Is there a way to do this? To add a full, whole ass line break between existing lines?

"Not
This"

"Like

This"

Full paragraph break between every line.

Edit: Not space, it needs to be a fully registered line break, as if I hit the enter key after every line.

THANK YOU EVERYONE FOR REMINDING ME REGEX EXISTS

I ended up working out how to do it in my text editor (we love Kate) instead of Libre but I did it! Saving my precious lil hands

How do I get this to stop popping up? I downloaded the binary file in the correct language and installed it but this still pops up. I hit the allow updating option but again, this still pops up.

Version: 26.8.1.1 (X86_64)

Build ID: bf6ef2662401c7d6dce671ab4deb26ee0af3a7c1

CPU threads: 8; OS: Windows 11 X86_64 (build 26300); UI render: Skia/Raster; VCL: win

Locale: en-US (en_US); UI: en-US

Calc: threaded

.odm / .odt file type (master document with sub documents)

Solved: It was tools, options, libreoffice, security, macro security, trusted sources, and then I just had to add my folder to trusted sources

I'm using v26.2.5.1 of LibreOffice, and I notice that one .doc file (4.2MB), containing nothing but text, which used to load in 2 or 3 seconds, is now taking more like 20-30 seconds. Not seeing any other slowdown on my system; it seems to be limited to L.O. and/or this file. Any idea why, or how to speed it up?

I wanted a PPTX that I generate to carry its own font, so I ran one slide through four variants and rendered each to PDF with LibreOffice 26.8.0.3, then checked which font ended up in the file with pdffonts. The font was VT323, which isn't installed on this computer.

With nothing embedded, the PDF used fallback fonts (FrankRuhlHofshi-Bold and LinuxLibertineG). VT323-Regular only showed up when the fntdata was an uncompressed EOT (Flags 0) and embedTrueTypeFonts="1" was set on the presentation. A raw TTF with the attribute, or the same EOT without it, gave the same fallback as embedding nothing. That matches what I read about the import code, that it only looks at the embedded font list when the attribute is true and always treats the data as EOT, though I only read it and didn't step through it.

All of this is LibreOffice on one build. I don't have PowerPoint here, so I don't know what it does with an uncompressed EOT. Has anyone seen older LibreOffice versions handle the attribute or the raw TTF differently?

I used AI to help draft this and checked it against my experiment notes.

Details: LibreOffice 26.8.0.3 (bce0998afefdbc355585ca324285661a2170ba77) on macOS 15.7.3 arm64, with a .pptx file. I can paste the relevant bit of presentation.xml if useful.

Select the page you want to change, open its page properties and clear "Resize all pages" before changing the size or orientation.

That option arrived in LibreOffice 26.8. A portrait cover and a landscape diagram can now sit in the same Draw document, with each page keeping its own dimensions. For a job report, I'd rather give a wide diagram its own page than shrink it until the labels are barely readable.

Source: The Document Foundation's LibreOffice 26.8 release announcement confirms that Draw supports multiple page sizes in one document.

https://blog.documentfoundation.org/blog/2026/08/26/libreoffice-26-8/

Hello, I am fairly new to Libreoffice. I recently switched to Linux and only really had experience with MicroSoft Word, so please excuse me if this is cause by me being an idiot on some pretty rudimentary concepts. Essentially, I have a fairly complex .odt file with twenty or so images, tables, etc... I export to .docx and the first time I open the new document it is pristine, the exact same as the odt file. The second time I open it it becomes completely jumbled mess (image for reference), and many images simply disappear, the only thing left being is their frames. When I upload the .docx file on google docs, the same problem occurs.

The problem is I cannot simply get delete the frames and paste the images on the document. I need them to be captioned, so frames are a necessity as far as I known.

Is there any way to fix this? Am I doing something very wrong? I insert images using the insert tool, same as with the tables.

Libreoffice info:

Version: 26.2.6.3 (X86_64)

Build ID: 620(Build:3)

CPU threads: 8; OS: Linux 7.2; UI render: default; VCL: gtk3

Locale: en-US (en_US.UTF-8); UI: en-US

Calc: threaded

Hello!

I created the style "ABNT-TITULOS" (in which ABNT means the norm of documents here in Brazil and Titulos is basically titles) and whenever i try to change the style of the paragraph to another (ANBT-Corpo, Corpo means body), it changes the title style too.

And theres more! When i press enter, it makes a new page. I think it has to do with the Tools > Title numeration. In the video, i click in the "Ferramentas" (tools) tab and then i click in the "Numeração de título" (title numeration) option to show my options in this config.

I used these tabs to make an summary.

May someone help me?

(Linux Fedora in LibreOffice Writer)

Info:
Version: 25.8.7.3 (X86_64)

Build ID: 580(Build:3)

CPU threads: 8; OS: Linux 7.2; UI render: default; VCL: gtk3

Locale: pt-BR (pt_BR.UTF-8); UI: pt-BR

Calc: threaded