LibreOffice 5.3.0
wiki.documentfoundation.org
wiki.documentfoundation.org
> ODB files created by LibreOffice < 5.3 can be manually converted to LibreOffice 5.3 format by using Firebird 2.5 to convert the data to archive format, and replacing the database data within the ODB by the archive format version. To do this, install a stand-alone Firebird 2.5, and use its "gbak" tool to convert the file "database.fdb" to "database.fbk" within the odb file. Don't forget to remove the .fdb file.
I don't use this feature so I don't know how popular it is, but it seems like this could cause a lot of problems for people. They probably shouldn't have updated to Firebird 3.0.0 until they had an automated migration process in place, instead of instructing end users to manually convert their old files from the command line.
[1] https://bugs.documentfoundation.org/show_bug.cgi?id=48918
A couple of weeks ago I had the task to dynamically update the value of two cells in a calc spreadsheet. I did it, but ended up using a library that build on a library that builds on ... that build on UNO or whatever it's called.
The api is a mix of C++ and Java, documentation is pretty much non-existing and code examples are incomplete and ridiculous.
If I had been using excel I could have been using the win32 com api and get it done in a couple of hours at most.
But don't get me wrong: when doing non-programming stuff it works great!
For instance, custom motion paths seem to come and go at whim (still not fixed in 5.3, and as this bug shows has been a recurring problem)
https://bugs.documentfoundation.org/show_bug.cgi?id=76916
It's hard to rely on it when basic functionality constantly breaks.
I use LO daily under Linux to produce handouts, simple screen based materials and spreadsheet models for teaching. My colleagues are blissfully ignorant of the fact that the materials they sometimes use where not produced in MS Office on Windows.
I would really like a stable interface for creating interactive materials, but I'd settle for being able to export a full range of hyperlinked objects in Impress as a pdf file so that the hyperlinks work. That would get me 95% of where I would like to be.
I'd rather just pay one cost and use the product.
Retail Office gets updated about every three years. That's plenty, buying a subscription for Word seems hardly worth it.
The value-add here is that Office comes with cloud storage, really great built-in sync, and a continuous stream of improvement. Amazingly, Office is still getting better, but now improvements are released by the month, not every 3-4 years.