Fore- and sur-name for the (first) author(s) too?

[86ul]

Hello fellow users of LO,

On a LO7.1.4.2 I am trying to create a template for my papers according to the guideline of my faculty (MA student here). Therefore I would like to add both a forename-field and a surname-field of the author on the main page (so that others can use my template too). I have tried the fields of First Author, Author and Sender, with different results. Before I file in a bug, I would like to ask here what I am doing wrong. I have filled in the User Data (in Options > LO > UD) accordingly.

The following field and results are what I have tried so far, and are in the order that I prefer:

1. First Author: Results in nothing/blank field > [Blank], where as I prefer [Forename] [SURNAME]
2. Author: Results in [Full Name], whereas I prefer [Forename] [SURNAME]
3. Sender[Forename]SENDER[Surname]: Results in what I prefer [Forename] [SURNAME], but I am not the sender here.

Oh, and these fields do not auto update them selves, it seems.

So, are these results my fault (settings etc.) or a bug in LO7.1?

[ajlittoz]

From analysing a document dump, Insert>Field>First Author is associated with a field named “initial-creator” while Author>Name is “author-name” (which is taken from Tools>Options, LibreOffice>User Data).

First Author returns empty here also (LO 7.1.4.2) but, just guessing, it is possible that it refers to the very initial author of the document. I have not tested it but perhaps if it is edited on a different computer with different user data, it is possible that the “initial-creator” is then initialised with the present author name in the document which is then replaced by the current user data. It is likely that once created “initial-creator” is no longer modified.

Since user data is internally ordered and there is no field to access separately first and last name, your workaround is to create your own Custom Properties in File>Properties. You access them with Insert>Field>More Fields, DocInformation tab. When custom properties exist, there is an expandable Custom item in the Type list.

Change the value in File>Properties, update the document with Tools>Update>Update All and your changes are reflected in the document.

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[86ul]

Than is Sender[Forename]SENDER[Surname] a good alternative. Although I can work with these suggested workarounds, others who are using my template maybe not. Also this template has to work with other office suits. Thus for them I will stick with Sender[Forename]SENDER[Surname] for now. How this will turn out in Microsoft Office (Online) and GDocs, is what I will check later on.

[ajlittoz]

I have never used the Sender field family and don’t know where they are taken from.

Templates have specific format dedicated to a suite. Don’t expect such a template to be “universal”, i.e. a single file for all suite. You’ll have to create one template file per suite. Be prepared for maintenace nightmare.

In addition, with the exception of a very small number (e.g. page number or page count), field insertion will not be honoured by all suites. Once again, you’ll have to cope with every suite specificity.

[86ul]

As I see how what works, and is affected by change, I think both Sender[Forename] and SENDER[Surname] use the Author fields in User Data. btw, thanks for notifying me for a nightmare. So, there is no standardised data field for such? Pitty.