Bug 170645 - If the file is saved while the cursor is in a comment, the cursor disappears and is not recovered by Esc, arrow keys, etc.
Summary: If the file is saved while the cursor is in a comment, the cursor disappears ...
Status: UNCONFIRMED
Alias: None
Product: LibreOffice
Classification: Unclassified
Component: Writer (show other bugs)
Version:
(earliest affected)
25.8.0.4 release
Hardware: x86-64 (AMD64) Linux (All)
: medium minor
Assignee: Not Assigned
URL:
Whiteboard:
Keywords:
Depends on:
Blocks:
 
Reported: 2026-02-06 20:56 UTC by Carl Fink
Modified: 2026-02-08 02:40 UTC (History)
0 users

See Also:
Crash report or crash signature:


Attachments

Note You need to log in before you can comment on or make changes to this bug.
Description Carl Fink 2026-02-06 20:56:58 UTC
I have noticed that on my system (Devuan daedalus), if the flashing cursor is in a comment and I save using Ctrl-s, the cursor is no longer visible. Typing text has no effect. Neither to arrow keys, Esc, Tab, etc.

Obviously this does not interfere that much with editing, since I can simply click in the main viewport to regain the cursor. It is not ideal behavior, though. I can still use the keyboard to control menus and use shortcuts (e. g. Ctrl-b toggles the boldface indicator in the toolbar), so keyboard input is not blocked or "stolen" by a process.

To reproduce:

1)Create a LibreOffice Writer document using Ctrl-n or File >> New >> Text Document.
2)Open a new comment with Ctrl-Alt-C.
3)Type at least 1 character in the comment.
4)Press Ctrl-s.

Your cursor will have vanished. Keyboard input in the form of typing, arrow keys, and Tab will be ignored.

Expected behavior: the flashing cursor will still be visible in the comment and the user could continue typing, or press Esc to return the cursor to the document.

System is i9-based home build running Devuan daedalus. I don't currently have any other systems here to test on, but I will have access to an Ubuntu system as early as tomorrow and will test there.
Comment 1 Carl Fink 2026-02-08 02:40:21 UTC
Tested on a mini laptop running Devuan Geronimo, LO version Version: 25.2.3.2 Build ID: 520(Build:2). Behavior is unchanged.

I did find a workaround. Ctrl-F opens the find toolbar and puts the cursor in it, and the cursor then behaves normally. I hope that helps in debugging.

Perhaps I should clarify that when I say "cursor" I'm referring to what I was trained to call the insertion point decades ago.

I'll test on Ubuntu probably tomorrow.