Created attachment 204573 [details]
Detailed report in ODT format.

Title:

Draw does not persist display mode (Color / Grayscale / Black & White), causing user confusion and loss of visual information.

Summary:

In LibreOffice Draw, the display mode setting
(View → Color / Grayscale / Black & White)
is not preserved when:

Creating a new Draw document

Reopening an existing Draw document

Starting Draw after closing the application

Using a user-defined template

Resetting the user profile

Using Flatpak, system package, or different VCL backends

This behavior leads to Draw always opening with “no display mode selected” or reverting to an implicit monochrome rendering mode.

As a result, users experience:

Lines and shapes appearing black even when assigned a color

A mismatch between saved document data (which contains correct colors)
and the displayed output (often monochrome)

Difficulty recognizing whether color settings are applied correctly

Confusion, especially for first-time users

This affects usability and contradicts modern expectations for drawing applications.

Steps to Reproduce:

Open LibreOffice Draw

Select View → Color

Draw colored shapes or lines

Save and close the file

Reopen the file or open a new Draw document

Expected Behavior:

Draw should:

Remember the last-used display mode
OR

Allow the user to define a default display mode
OR

Persist the mode inside the document or template

So that when users open Draw, the interface behaves consistently.

Actual Behavior:

Display mode reverts to “unselected” on startup

New documents ignore the last-used mode

Templates do not preserve display mode

Even saved documents open with display mode reset

Colors stored in the document render as black until display mode is manually changed

This makes Draw appear “broken” or “color-incompatible,”
even though the underlying color data is intact.

Impact:

Modern users expect drawing software to display colors consistently.
Today’s Draw is used for:

Diagrams

Network & wiring charts

Process flows

Educational materials

Presentation graphics

Technical illustrations

In these contexts, color is not optional metadata;
it is semantic information.

Resetting display mode on startup leads to:

Misinterpretation of documents

Incorrect assumptions of data loss

Preventable user frustration

Increased support overhead

Poor first-time experience (especially on Linux distributions)

Technical Observation:

Even after:

Deleting registrymodifications.xcu

Resetting user profile

Removing templates

Reinstalling LibreOffice

Using different VCL plugins (gtk3, gen, cairo)

Testing APT version and Flatpak version

Draw still refuses to persist display mode,
suggesting that this is not merely a configuration problem but a
deliberate design from legacy code that no longer fits modern workflows.

Proposal for Improvement:

The following improvements are suggested:

Persist display mode across sessions

through user profile

or through application state

or per document template

Provide a user preference:
Example:
Tools → Options → Draw → Default Display Mode: Color / Grayscale / B&W

Show an initial hint to new users:
“Your document may contain color information that is currently hidden due to display mode.”

Clarify behavior in documentation
Current documentation does not explain that color display is non-persistent.

Why This Matters:

In 2025、color is a fundamental component of diagrams.
Draw’s current behavior reflects a 1990s workflow where monochrome printers dominated.

Color-as-optional-view is no longer suitable for current uses of Draw.

Making display mode persistent would dramatically improve usability with minimal architectural change.

Environment Tested:

Linux Mint + LibreOffice 7.x (deb)

LibreOffice Flatpak latest stable

VCL backends: gtk3, gen, cairo

Clean user profiles

Multiple machines

Issue persists in all environments.

Reporter’s Note:

This report is written to improve LibreOffice Draw for all users,
especially beginners who often assume the application “cannot display color”
because Draw opens in an ambiguous visual state.