OOo 3.0 Wishlist

jape · General User Joined: 28 Sep 2005 Posts: 15

Well. 2.0 is just around the corner and i think its time to start thinking forward.

So...Wwhat improvements would you like to see in OOo 3.0?

My number one annoyance atm is poor table handling inside text documents.

Meaning that formatting and handling is quite limited after i select insert -> table. Cant even wrap text around the table or move it easily. I think tables should be handled as floating objects (think pictures for example).

Whats yours?

AndrewZ · Posted: Wed Oct 19, 2005 8:13 pm Post subject:

I'd like to see performance improvements in terms of startup time, time of certain operations (such as mail merge and sorting a big spreadsheet), and memory usage. Performance was scheduled for 2.0, so I wonder if it will make it in a later release before 3.0?

By the way, you can see a list of items in the Issue Tracker targeted for 3.0. Some are already fixed!

bwminick · Posted: Fri Oct 21, 2005 7:45 pm Post subject:

Here's some areas that NEED improvement:

1) Lack of color support.
The color drop-down boxes present you with a limited selection of colors to choose from. The color dialog box needs to be changed so that users can easily select their own, custom colors. (Microsoft offers this feature -- why can't OpenOffice offer this ability too?)

2) Lack of quality templates.
One major flaw that holds OpenOffice back to the stone age is the fact that they do not offer beautiful, high quality templates available for users to work with. This is one feature that clearly sets Microsoft apart from the other players. For example, PowerPoint comes with many colorful, well designed templates for users to select and build presentation files from. In order for me to be able to do the same, I have to first create my presentation in MS PowerPoint, and then switch the file over to OO. Sad but true that Microsoft is way ahead in this arena.

3) The draw program
This is one of the best features of OpenOffice, but some improvements need to be made, in order for it to be able to complete with MS Publisher. First, you need to be able to cause text to be able to flow around graphics. Second, you need to have the ability for overflow text (in one textbox) to be able to flow to another textbox of choice. This way, it makes building columns, etc. possible.

4) The database
I applaud OpenOffice for giving users the ability to create localized database files on their computer. This will come in very handy for small businesses that need to be able to store information for mail merge, etc. However, as an advanced computer user, I find myself struggling to learn how to use it -- this is not good! I would recommend that the OpenOffice programmers provide a simple way for users to create a simple table of contact information (first name, last name, address, etc.) in which users can easily perform mail merges with. Think of it as a simple distribution list -- allows users to create basic mail merge letters, mailing labels, etc.

The general policy for OpenOffice needs to be *KISS* -- keeping it simple is SMART.

Byron
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bobharvey · Posted: Sat Oct 22, 2005 1:05 pm Post subject:

eyolf · Posted: Sat Oct 22, 2005 4:48 pm Post subject:

1. The "notes" function. works fairly badly at the moment. The same goes for the record changes function.
2. Database/bibliography. I understand that Bibus works well, once it is installed, but that's not easy.
3. More typographic functions. Writer goes so far in the direction of DTP, so it's logical to take some steps further. E.g. hyphenation and justification: I'd like not just to be able to set a hyphenation zone, but also the various methods for justification (how many % extra between words? Compact space between letters as well?)

limjimmy · Newbie Joined: 22 Oct 2005 Posts: 3

Hi, Singaporean here. My only Wishlist for OOo 3.0 is to have Base gain OpenDocument and MS-Access .mdb file format compatibility.

esperantisto · Posted: Sun Oct 23, 2005 9:47 pm Post subject:

I have quite many wishes and probably will write more. The two ones I need badly are:
1) Search and replace function should be like in MS Office. The present one is just awful.
2) Limitations on cell merge in tables in text documents should be removed. In MS Word, I can merge any rectangular selection of cells. In Writer, I very often get a message like “Cells are too complex to merge”.

nusntusmu · General User Joined: 08 Jan 2005 Posts: 46

As fast as Abiword...

Colorado6202 · General User Joined: 27 Sep 2004 Posts: 22

Base is a good first pass. However, using writer as the forms is not a good choice. I suggest Base needs to have standalone forms capability.

Calc is looking good, but a minor quibble is the ability that first came out in Quattro Pro and later copied by Lotus and Excel to color code the worksheet tabs. This would be a nice touch.

Also it would be nice to have a VBA translation capability. This would allow companies with major investment in VBA code to move to OOo.

bwminick · Posted: Mon Oct 24, 2005 8:55 am Post subject:

Agreed with the VBA -- very important to getting large organizations to switch to OOo.

Byron
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AndrewZ · Posted: Mon Oct 24, 2005 3:37 pm Post subject:

Dale · Posted: Mon Oct 24, 2005 4:42 pm Post subject:

Improved charting.

newtron · General User Joined: 24 Oct 2005 Posts: 5

Programs like Konfabulator seem to put everything on the desktop - why not build an OO office paradigm - which could look and behave like a Grokker search map on your desktop.

It would start with say 6 boxes (shapes for - Calc, Base, etc) - you click on a box and it expands to show you a box for all the folders for the files you have built with each system. You click on a folder and inside you see boxes which represent the files you have made with that system. You click on a file box and it starts up. I suppose it is a russian doll paradigm or a series of nested boxes.

It could also show a sort of workflow arrow for the link from say a Base file box to other file boxes (other OO files) - so you could see how many resources it used. You could then break/replace links so that replacing say a background graphic for a web page could be done by replacing the link from a writer file to a draw file - at the same connection point of the old file - the connector 'point' could carry the properties (size etc).

Can I copyright this?

RGB · Posted: Tue Oct 25, 2005 12:56 am Post subject:

http://qa.openoffice.org/issues/show_bug.cgi?id=27377
http://www.openoffice.org/issues/show_bug.cgi?id=972
http://qa.openoffice.org/issues/show_bug.cgi?id=35545
And a really better Math module: is a long time since its last change

MichaëlVD · Power User Joined: 28 May 2005 Posts: 65

1. Something like MS Words Outlining View
2. Making the program faster
3. Less crashes
4. Less chaos in the Impress interface

It does everything I need already, but these 4 things would be very nice.