Description: I tried comparing two documents, but the comparison was useless because the "Body Text" paragraph had been replaced with a different paragraph style and this change was highlighted throughout the document as if the text had changed, when only the style applied had changed. Options should be added on comparing documents and whether style changes should be considered or only the text. Steps to Reproduce: - Actual Results: - Expected Results: - Reproducible: Always User Profile Reset: No Additional Info: -
It should be considered to exclude not only style formatting but also direct formatting to only compare text (as long as other features described in bug 71152 are not working yet). But in which dialog can these options be placed as there is no comparison options dialog window when activating the compare document feature. I don't like the idea of a new dialog windows which would increase complexity and clicking quantity. Is it possible to add options in the track changes window with the list of all changes to have it working 'on the fly's? Changing an option in the comparison view would work directly without the need of starting the comparison again.
Looking in BugZilla, and testing in various versions, it appears as if change of styles triggers change tracking, is working on and off.. Anyway, in 3.3.0, 3.4.6 and 3.5.7 it does not. Afterwards it does. But the issues (1), seem to suggest that it is more random?? Wishes enough (2) in general. 1) https://bugs.documentfoundation.org/buglist.cgi?component=Writer&f1=short_desc&f2=short_desc&j_top=OR&list_id=834541&product=LibreOffice&query_format=advanced&short_desc=track%20change%20style&short_desc_type=allwordssubstr 2) https://wiki.documentfoundation.org/Track_changes
(In reply to Thomas Lendo from comment #1) > It should be considered to exclude not only style formatting but also direct > ... Options to include or exclude style and formatting information are IMO relevant. Maybe best is to always record, and once recorded, provide the ability to show/hide the info.
There seems to be some agreement, though I'm afraid of this enhancement as users may want a more options for the comparison. And that is definitely better done per extension. However, the basic option makes sense. And likewise at the Open or Save As dialogs we could have a checkbox there "[x] Include formattings in comparison" (mind the positive wording and the checked state). PS: I tested the function with DT+F3 (summy text) -> formatting to some words -> save as untitled 1; New -> DT+F3 -> Edit > Track Changes > Compare Document... and literally nothing happened. If there is no difference we should pop-up an info box, otherwise the differences have to be clear.
(In reply to Heiko Tietze from comment #4) > I tested the function with DT+F3 (summy text) -> formatting to some words -> > save as untitled 1; New -> DT+F3 -> Edit > Track Changes > Compare > Document... and literally nothing happened. 1. I looks as if only change in paragraph style is recorded. 2. For comparing, as far as I know, the one document has to be a copy of the other (and not just the same untitled-procudure) > If there is no difference we > should pop-up an info box, otherwise the differences have to be clear. Looks as a valid rfe :)
@lászló: looking at your great work in this area (thanks!) you might want to give some comment on this issue too?
Giving this area a bit more look... Similar settings could be added to Options - Writer - Comparison. To help enterprise users migrate from the competition, several similar options could be added, similar to how much is supported elsewhere: [ ] Insertion and deletion // this is greyed out in the Comparison dialog of Word, I wonder if it makes sense to include this at all, or just give it in a label like "Apart from text insertions and deletions, also include in document comparison:" and the list below. [ ] Moves [ ] Comments [ ] Formatting // depending on Bug 125793 being fixed first. Also, in current master I can't [ ] Upper/lower case changes [ ] White Space [ ] Tables // works somewhat, but fixing Bug 54068 would be necessary to make table comparison remotely useful [ ] Headers and footers // after Bug 71152 gets fixed [ ] Footnotes and endnotes // after Bug 71152 gets fixed [ ] Fields Textboxes: Comparison does not see changes in these at all: shape, textbox, frame: addition or deletion of these is not highlighted, nor tracking text changes inside. So no checkbox for this is needed.
(In reply to Gabor Kelemen (Collabora) from comment #7) > [ ] Insertion and deletion // this is greyed out in the Comparison dialog of > Word, I wonder if it makes sense to include this at all, or just give it in > a label like "Apart from text insertions and deletions, also include in > document comparison:" and the list below. Quite a long text that replace a simple information. I'd keep it. > [ ] Moves Sounds complicated as moving things around is delete/insert. > [ ] Comments > [ ] Formatting // depending on Bug 125793 being fixed first. Also, in > current master I can't Perhaps distinguish between styles (PS/CS) and direct formatting (DF/PDF)? > [ ] Upper/lower case changes > [ ] White Space Isn't this a simple deletion/addition? > [ ] Tables // works somewhat, but fixing Bug 54068 would be necessary to > make table comparison remotely useful > [ ] Headers and footers // after Bug 71152 gets fixed > [ ] Footnotes and endnotes // after Bug 71152 gets fixed > [ ] Fields > Textboxes: Comparison does not see changes in these at all: shape, textbox, > frame: addition or deletion of these is not highlighted, nor tracking text Sounds like too much fine-tuning to me. The user might want to know about text editing, formatting, and comments. I see no reason to not compare tables but header/footer, for example.