In some contexts, there is a need to display a thumbnail image for a given document; particularly, in the start center, and conceivably (even if not currently) in file open dialogs, in the template management dialog, and outside of LO itself - in file manager / explorer applications which use or generate thumbnails. Let us assume for the sake of this bug that the thumbnail is always a page of the document, or has been chosen/configured to be a page of the document. Document authors may not wish for the first page to be used as the Thumbnail. Example: A Writer document may have a near-empty page with a motto, or some meta-data, before a title page; a multi-page drawing may have a few pages of separate components followed by a diagram of a composite system; etc. However, currently and in the Start Center - it is always the case that the first page gets used. I believe the right place for an indication of what to use for a thumbnail is in the document itself - another piece of meta-data like Author and Keywords and such, even if not necessarily a free text field. But - I've made this bug wider that that particular suggestion in case others have a different perspective on this matter.
Reasonable, +1 Seems like adding a UI for choosing the page to use as preview for current document could be added to sfxpicklist and the GetPreviewBitmap() from the object shells.
A similar request for Calc was made in bug 150317. It was fixed by Andreas for 25.8.
(In reply to Rafael Lima from comment #2) > A similar request for Calc was made in bug 150317. It was fixed by Andreas > for 25.8. While the bug is closed and there is some logic now to determine the page used for the thumbnail (which is a clear improvement), it does not solve the actual problem that we have in our company. Using different templates for different purposes for Writer and Calc, we need an easy way to identify the respective templates. And the thumbnail pictures are providing that. But only because we modify the template archives and exchange the thumbnail picture in the ox files - each time we edit a template. This has been triggered by the bug, where we didn't have a deterministic thumbnail picture. Now, where we enjoy the de-luxe version, nobody wants to go back. It would be great to have that integrated in LO. There should be an option to set the thumbnail picture with an external picture once. This should then be used automatically again, when the template is modified. Of course, unless the thumbnail picture is explicitly changed again. A nice spot for this option would be the save-as dialogue.
(In reply to Fritz R. Paul from comment #3) > There should be an option to set the thumbnail picture > with an external picture This bring me back to my assumption in the second paragraph "let us assume that the thumbnail is always a page of the document" - you're saying that this assumption is not generally valid. And I don't disagree. The question is, should a separate bug be filed for that or should the scope of this one be expanded?
(In reply to Eyal Rozenberg from comment #4) > (In reply to Fritz R. Paul from comment #3) > > There should be an option to set the thumbnail picture > > with an external picture > > This bring me back to my assumption in the second paragraph "let us assume > that the thumbnail is always a page of the document" - you're saying that > this assumption is not generally valid. And I don't disagree. The question > is, should a separate bug be filed for that or should the scope of this one > be expanded? I would prefer to have this handled in one place only and expand this bug (which probably should be a feature request).
Calc saves the current tab as thumb and we could do the same in Writer and Draw/Impress. Not really obvious and convenient, IMO. And I cannot think of a good alternative. Clumsy interactions like a spinedit at the document properties dialog to enter the page/slide number for the thumbnail sounds wrong to me.
I don't see a single reason to implement something that seems to be needed for a single person. Look: there is a "similar" bug 150317 mentioned in comment 2; a change was implemented to address it; and it doesn't fit the submitter of that bug, as seen in comment 3. The idea of Fritz is reasonable (note how it's different from what Eyal asks); and I do not believe that any way to customize the *document* to define some place to use as a thumbnail is generally usable - while I can see someone creating an own *art* to be used as the custom thumbnail. "Current" page? Absolutely unreasonable - both for the author / editor (the view in the moment of saving could make that thumbnail completely non-distinguishable), and for readers (what does the place of editing has to do with the document essence?). A "metadata"? Separate from content -> will immediately need manual synchronization after a slightest edit. An in-document "marker"? Well, maybe - but that would be likely difficult to maintain; e.g., it is most possibly be invisible in "normal" mode (= without formatting marks); and then it will be easily dropped...
(In reply to Heiko Tietze from comment #6) > Calc saves the current tab as thumb You mean, the tab that was current when the file was last saved? That's weird and non-intuitive. If I'm working on one of the sheets, does that mean I want it to be the thumbnail? No. > and we could do the same in Writer and Draw/Impress. > Not really obvious and convenient, IMO. Indeed :-) > And I cannot think of a good alternative. Sure you can, I gave you one. > Clumsy interactions like a spinedit at the document > properties dialog to enter the page/slide number for the thumbnail sounds > wrong to me. Well, that would get the job done and require very little implementation effort. But - if you want something less clumsy, you could also add a sheet or sheet + area selection, a bit like what we do for chart source area selection, but with focus on sheets, or just a choice of sheets. That would be a "show, don't tell" choice.
We discussed the topic in the design meeting. Some reasonable use cases come in mind: many documents with similar first page, meaningless or even empty first page, and privacy too. A simple solution could be to add a spin edit at the meta data that allows to define the page for thumbs. The alternative, providing an interaction to load a raster graphic into the metadata, solves the wish for user-defined thumbs, for example in case of a template. The OP although insists in having access to a particular page of the document. Related bug 157087 reports an issue with File > Properties > [ ] Save preview image with this document.