How do I get Report Builder?

I have LibreOffice 7.1 Base installed on System76 POP (an Ubuntu-derivative). It doesn’t have Report Builder. The only installation instructions I see at Report Builder are for a JRE; that is not the problem, as there is already a JRE on the system, and LibreOffice already recognizes it. There are no instructions for installing Report Builder.

I looked up the file list for package “libreoffice-report-builder” for Ubuntu, and the contents thereof; no “reportbuilder.jar” can be found anywhere on the system.

System76’s “Pop Shop” app store does not show anything for LibreOffice Report Builder.

If I open the LibreOffice Extensions Manager, the closest thing it can find is BaseReportExtension, and its own page makes it obvious that it’s something entirely different.

Doesn’t Ubuntu – Details of package libreoffice-report-builder-bin in groovy look related?

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Yes, it does, and libreoffice-report-builder, too. And I see them in “impish” and “hirsute” as well as “groovy.”

I vaguely recall Ubuntu using apt-get to install packages, but that’s about all I remember, and I haven’t a clue about how System76 POP might differ. I’ve just logged a support ticket with System76, to see how they might weigh in on this.

Hello,

This may be of some help - tdf#121136 especially comment 4

Basically same as mike’s answer - did not look closely. :frowning:

The content of comment #4, I’d already figured out. The problem is how to deal with it. I’m guessing APT, but it’s been decades since I last used it on the Hardy Heron(!) side of my old DOS/Linux dual-boot, and most of my recent Linux experience (other than my new Meerkat) has been with Amazon Linux, which uses Yum.

Hopefully, the nice folks at System76 will see my support ticket, and either fill in any POP-specific details of how to get it with APT, or (here’s an idea) make Report Builder available in POP Shop.

Have used Synaptic package manager for years. Appears this is available on Pop!_OS also : Package Manager Issues (Pop!_OS)

Bottom of post.

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BaseReportExtension has nothing to do with report builder. Creating a report with this extension doesn’t work with a GUI like Report Builder. But the created report with this extension will be much faster.

Report builder is included in the packages of LibreOffice since LO 4.1 So there doesn’t exist a extension, which could be seen in Extension Manager. If you are using the original packages from LO it will be installed by default. But with the special Ubuntu packages it won’t be installed.

Installing Synaptic solved the problem. After I enabled a “hirsute” repository, it found the libreoffice-report-builder package and its four dependencies (libreoffice-report-builder-bin and three others), and they installed easily enough. Thanks. I’ve also posted this answer to my System76 support ticket, so that I’m not wasting any more of anybody’s time at System76.

Help file:

The Report Builder is a tool to create your own database reports. Unlike with the Report Wizard, using the Report Builder you can take control to design the report the way you want.

This is not exactly correct. There are two commands in the report section of a Base document:

  1. Create Report in Design View …
  2. Use Wizard to Create Report …
    If you are able to create a report, the report builder will be used anyway with report wizard or without.
    The old style reports are text tables in Writer documents filled with database data when loading. They can still be opened. But we can not create a new one anymore.

Seems to create the “old style reports” (legacy) with Ubuntu is possible, because the report builder isn’t installed by default. Have seen such old reports from people using Ubuntu.

So the wizard will work with the old legacy report, if report builder isn’t installed. If report builder is installed there is no chance to create the old report, but you could furthermore execute the report.

Indeed, libreoffice-report-builder and libreoffice-report-builder-bin are separate debian packages. I was not aware of this.

If both options …

  • Create Report in Design View …
  • Use Wizard to Create Report …
    … appear in the report section, you are working with the report builder. With the legacy reports you have only the wizard option.