I can't edit writer files on my Mac - unless files are on desktop

[PeterP1968]

Recently installed LO (25.2.2.2) on my Mac with Sequoia 15.3.2

It can read and write files to my ‘downloads’ folder and my ‘desktop’ - but from any other location I can only access the files as “read only” and I must then save my files to the desktop and then manually move them back to where I opened them up in the first place.

I check permissions on my other folders and set them all to “read write” for everyone. still no good.

I also found a thread where someone had luck by adding the paths to a trusted area by doing this: “LibreOffice” “preferences”, tab “security”, button “Macro security”, button “Trusted sources” and I added the paths in the “Trusted files location” area of ​​my folders.

Still no luck.

Any ideas would be helpful.

[iplaw67]

Have you tried granting complete disk access to the LibreOffice.app under macOS System Settings - Security ?

[PeterP1968]

I did grant LO complete access to my system - still no luck.

This is very odd indeed.

[PeterP1968]

It must have had a change of heart over night. Herre’s what happened:

Following directions from a YouTube video about how to make LO look and feel more like MS Office - there was a part about ‘always saving files in Office Formats’ which lead me to going here: LibreOffice - Prefereces - Load/Save - Microsoft Office and finding the “Winword to Libre Office writer in Reverse” check box → and unchecking it.

I restarted the MacBook and the files and folders acted as expected. no “read only” problems.

No idea why this would be the reason for the error - but maybe someone out there does?

Thanks for indulging me.

[ajlittoz]

@PeterP1968

‘always saving files in Office Format

This is a bad idea (with any application anyway), even when your external co-workers all use M$ Office.

When you load a non-native document, a conversion is necessary. Since DOCX and ODF formats are not identical and based on different concepts, directives cannot be translated exactly (there is no one-to-one correspondence). Approximations using several more basic features are used as a workaround.

Similarly, when you save, another conversion is needed with the same damaging effects. A round trip shows that the saved document is not the same as the original document (even when you edit nothing in it).

The cumulative effects of open-edit-save cycle is devastating. It contributes to file size inflation and document instability, in extreme case formatting dead ends.

So, save native. If you must send documents to “Word people”, export only before transmission so that the shared document underwent only a single conversion. When you receive an edited updated copy, don’t work on it directly. Copy the changes and paste them unformatted to avoid polluting your original document with Word idiosyncrasies (which are next to impossible to fix afterwards).

[Hrbrgr]

@ajlittoz

When you load a non-native document, a conversion is necessary.

Illustrated:

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Recommendation for a clean working with LibreOffice when different office programs are used

[PeterP1968]

agree completely - if I was doing anything but the simplest file manipulation I’d change my ways. I just wanted to have my own docs on my own drive, and not have to pay a subscription. So far this is turning out to be a great choice.

[iplaw67]

That sounds like a bug to me. One that isn’t encountered frequently, granted, but nonetheless, choosing MS formats as the default save format shouldn’t prevent you from saving to folders other than the Desktop.