Consecutive numbering in separate tables. Writer

[Bertie1]

I’m creating recipes in table format with 3 columns. The 3rd column has the numbered instructions. Each recipe is in a separate table on a separate page. Very recently the instruction numbering has become consecutive across tables. That is if I have 4 tables on 4 separate pages, each instruction set would begin numbering at one. Now, the instructions in the first table begin at one and the following instructions number consecutively from that first set. Instead of having 20 odd instructions max, now it goes up into the hundreds.

The same happens whether I use Linux or Windows.

I did open the document in MS Word at some point, but I’ve done that before with Writer documents with no issues.

Version: 25.8.1.1 (X86_64)
Build ID: 54047653041915e595ad4e45cccea684809c77b5
CPU threads: 8; OS: Windows 10 X86_64 (build 19045); UI render: Skia/Raster; VCL: win
Locale: en-CA (en_CA); UI: en-GB
Calc: CL threaded

Thanks for any help on this

[EarnestAl]

At the next table after the first, right click on the first number, select List - Restart numbering. Repeat at the beginning of subsequent tables.

[Bertie1]

Yes, I’m familiar with the “restart numbering” command but it’s a bit of a bother doing 30-40 tables like that. Unfortunately there is no way to do it in bulk.
I have tried it several times and saved the changes religiously. However, it seems to repeat itself.
It’s as if the tables have somehow merged into one - at least that’s how they behave.
I’m curious if anyone else has had this and found out why it happens. I’ve done other similar documents with many tables with numbering and it’s never happened before only since the upgrade to Libreoffice 25.

[ajlittoz]

How do you number the steps in your recipes? The procedure is a numbered list. There are two methods to create numbered lists:

• adding the numbering with a tool button
• applying a list style

Using a toolbar button if full of pit traps. The feature is a tentative compatibility device to try and mimic the badly-designed M$ Word feature (because Word lacks a neat underlying concept) which is considered “intuitive” (only because it is widely known). The problem here is to identify where and when new occurrences of this generic list begin and end. Since it is direct formatting, various heuristics are used but the results depend heavily on edit history. And it is also possible that the heuristics have been modified between your present release and the previous one.

Using a list style ensures a more stable and consistent designation of the list (because list identity is defined by the list style). The only remaining issue is the “boundaries” of the list occurrences. This is done with Format>Lists>Restart Numbering as already mentioned by @EarnestAl and you told you’re familiar with. Applying a list style completely skips the heuristics, achieving predictability and stability. Of course, you must still restart numbering manually.