Writer is corrupting docx

[Southernwood]

I was editing some docx. files I had been sent. Several pages were blank or contained only my comments but not any text. In one instance the document was complete when I first opened a copy which I had saved to desktop. Subsequently, both my working copy and the untouched original lost several pages after I had saved the copy with Track Changes. Another document was obviously incomplete when I first opened it without doing any work.
Microsoft Office is not installed on my computer.
I am using Libre Office 7.2.6.2. My operating system is fully updated Windows 10 Pro. I have done a full malware scan and restarted the computer.

[Hrbrgr]

Have a look at:

Migrating from Word, need to restart page number after Word section break

I have several documents which use Microsoft Word’s section break to start a new section on the next page. This allows me to also start the new section page numbering over at 1 again. So for clarity, each new section after a section break, needs to have the page numbering begin at 1. The page numbering is in the footer section, if that makes a difference. This setup works fine in Word, LibreOffice writer does not seem to appreciate it, and for whatever reason does not restart the numbering at 1…

[Southernwood]

Thank you for your extremely helpful reply.

My problem is that this stripping out or hiding of several sections or even entire pages has extended to the incoming originals as well as my working copies and includes my back-up. In one case a docx file was incomplete when I first opened it with Writer before I had made any amendments.

In the light of your and ajlittoz’ comments in the “Migrating from Word…” topic, I suspect that the trigger for my problems was that one original docx file used a mixture of English languages in different sections and I changed the settings to UK English throughout before starting to edit.

I shall ask the originator of these documents to send me another set and shall follow your advice to save as odt before I start work.

[Southernwood]

As you suggested I saved clean copies of the original docx files as odt and then made working copies of these odt files. I had problems in that I was still losing sections of the working document, but they could be restored in full, including my tracked amendments, by pasting in the corresponding sections from the original odt file and then deleting the insertion using ctrl Z.
I have sent the amended documents to the person who requested them and am waiting to hear whether they are complete or whether this rather odd problem has continued.

[Hrbrgr]

…I saved clean copies of the original docx files as odt and then made working copies of these odt files.

Whatever the term “clean copies” means to you.

As long as you work with different programs and file formats, IMHO I think there will be problems again sooner or later.

Even the ODT format Microsoft uses its own style.

[keme1]

Totally agree with the comments from @Hrbrgr. As a consequence of what he says, and assuming that you will be sending files back and forth between you, the two of you should definitely agree on one “common platform” for your work. Either both use MS Word or both use LibreOffice Writer. (The latter is easier in most cases, and cheaper in all cases.)

Each time a file transitions between Word and Writer context, there is a translation which inserts formatting codes to replace “unsupported elements” from the foreign context. It is done in a “conservative” manner to avoid changes to the existing content, but this makes a mess for further editing.