Unable to open .xls file in LO Calc

I have a xls file 35mb.
Calc 5.0.6 and 5.1.4 can’t open it.
Microsoft Excel can open and save it.
I opened this file in MS Excel and saved it in ODS format. LO Calc not able to open this ODS file.

2016.0729 UPDATE

I just reported the issue to Bugzilla. See https://bugs.documentfoundation.org/show_bug.cgi?id=101195.

==========================

2016.0728 UPDATE

Because of character limits in comments, I am revising my original response to reply to your comments.

No, you are correct – saving to CSV doesn’t make any sense when the file includes images. You failed to mention that fact in your original post.

I’m running LO Calc Version: 5.1.4.2 and MS Excel 2007 (12.0.6750.5000). The laptop used in my test is an older model, MSI gaming laptop I originally had custom built for business use. The laptop is running Windows 7.

Excel opened your file fairly quickly, albeit with a short delay to display all of the images. LO Calc, on the other hand, tried to open the file but became non-responsive. I had to close the application through Windows Task Manager.

While preparing a file to attach to a bug report, I found the answer – at least for now.
Since this is a very large file, I deleted a substantial number of rows, leaving the first two or three primary groups and the last primary group. I then saved the file to xls file format, ignoring the feature compatibility fidelity loss warning. The resulting file opened quickly in both Excel and LO Calc.

I do not have time to determine how many rows are necessary before Calc fails. I suggest you begin removing one primary group at a time to determine when LO Calc is no longer able to open the file. When you find that point, I also suggest you test just the last group deleted (deleting all primary groups before and after) to see if there is a problem with that group.

If you do find a problem with a particular group, you should continue surgical deletions until you find the specific row causing the problem. Then go back to the original file, delete just that specific row, and see if you can open the saved copy results. If so, there may be a corruption of some sort in an image – but I doubt this since Excel opens the file.

If, on the other hand, the number of image rows appears to be the problem, you need to find the break point where opening the file fails. This needs to be reported as a bug. Unfortunately, the file attachment size for reporting bugs is limited to 10MB and your file is 35MB, so separate arrangements may have to be made for getting a test file to The Documents Foundation.

The Top Level Domain (TLD) in your link indicates you are from Russia. I do not read Cyrillic, but the format of your spreadsheet seems to suggest you are trying to create some sort of e-commerce shopping page.

If so, I strongly suggest you use HTML, CSS, and MySQL (or other web-based database manager) for this purpose. If, instead, your work is to be housed on the local computer, I strongly suggest using a relational database manager (such as LO Base or MS Access) for the task.

Please click the check mark next to the response you believe best answers your question.

==========================

2016.0727 ORIGINAL RESPONSE

Before I begin, let me mention that I am a Microsoft Office power user of many years. I am NOT a M$ hater, but I AM a business person who recognizes competitive tactics intended to limit competition when I see them.

I recently began using LibreOffice as part of an effort to determine if a move from Windows 7 to Linux Mint is viable for my particular situation. While not perfect, I have been quite impressed with LibreOffice and the FLOSS (free libre and open source software) community approach.

Okay, that’s out of the way. Let’s address your situation.

You didn’t mention what version of Excel you are using, but the fact that the file format mentioned is pre-2007 (xls), I can only presume that you are using Excel 2000-2003.

As I understand it, Microsoft Office has used the transitional open document format (ODF) for most of its existence. See this link: Default file format for saving in MS Office 2016: OOXML Transitional or Strict?

Microsoft’s practice has been quite intentional, paying lip service to ODF while limiting the effect of the competition. They annnounced a change for Office 2013 (see this link: http://www.accountingweb.com/technology/excel/microsoft-to-fully-embrace-open-document-standards).

However, the default format for Office 2013 is apparently still the transitional file format (see this link: What is the default file format for saving in MS Office 2013? Is it still the transitional OOXML or the I). Office 2016 follows suit (see this link: http://www.zdnet.com/article/the-best-desktop-office-suite-libreoffice-gets-better/).

As you can see from the links provided, Microsoft’s proprietary and competitive tactics have intentionally created problems for anyone trying to open files with a competing product. Try saving the worksheet to a CSV file and opening it with LO Calc. Hopefully that will work for you.

Please click the check mark next to the response you believe best answers your question.

In my file a lot of pictures - save to CSV it doesn’t make any sense.
I failed to attach the file here. I can provide a link - http://rkb1c.ru/soft/35mb.xls

Because of character limits in comments, I am revising my original response to reply to your comments.

Ok. I’ll try to find the cell which causes it to hang LO Calc and cut the file up to the limit in 10MB. Original file created not by me but by our supplier. I know to shove a bunch of pictures in the file .xls is not very productive.

I removed the image columns and the file is opened. LO Calc can’t display many rows with pictures. 1000 rows displays slowly, 1500 lines displays very slowly, and 2000 lines for a very long time but displays. 2500 lines already does not display. Something wrong with the mechanism of output rows with pictures.

I removed the image columns and the file is opened. LO Calc can’t display many rows with pictures. 1000 rows displays slowly, 1500 lines displays very slowly, and 2000 lines for a very long time but displays. 2500 lines already does not display. Something wrong with the mechanism of output rows with pictures.

If you have a very large spreadsheet with images, you may not have enough memory. On a Linux system TOOLS > OPTIONS > Memory. Memory is a software balancing act between most users with their simpler requirements and performance. It is the memory in working storage you need to consider, not the saved compressed file.

If you’ll notice in the thread, Excel 2007 opens the file when LO Calc 5.1.4.2 does not. While I agree with your observations related to memory, I’m not sure they are relevant here. My 64-bit Win7 machine has an Intel i7 2.4GHz processor with 16GB of RAM. Besides, one would expect LO Calc to open the file if Excel 2007 can – wouldn’t you agree?

Have you tried increasing the allocated memory? This is a standard option to try with performance issues. We are considering software memory allocation not the physical hardware. Anyway, if you were me I would give it a try.