Apache OpenOffice (AOO) Bugzilla – Issue 20103
Sections with columns containing footnotes grow to page size
Last modified: 2013-08-07 14:38:26 UTC
In my eyes this is a bug, but if not, it is my desire that a section of text with footnotes doesn't occupy a whole page. The behaviour of the writer now is like that: Assume that a document created by Writer (OOo1.1rc4, Win98SE and SuSE 8.2) consist of one page with a head line followed by a section with some lines of text. After this section there are some more lines of text - some "free text". Now a footnote with a few words is inserted in the text belonging to the mentioned section. OpenOffice shows this footnote at the bottom of the page, as expected. In order to give a cool look to the document the section is devided in two columns (by right-clicking within the navigator on the section and selecting "edit..." in the context menue, then "options" in the appearing dialog). This works, but unfortunately the section now occupies the whole page. After the section follows the footnote. The text that was following the section before it was devided in two columns now appears on a second page. So there are two pages now, almost empty, one of them containing a footnote at the bottom. One get the same result by first defining the section with its two columns, then putting in the text and finally inserting the footnote in the text belonging to the devided section. I think this is a bug, because of two reasons: 1. All endnotes of all text, sections, frames etc. are collected without problems an shown at the end of the whole document. In the same manner one expect the footnotes of all text, sections, frames etc. belonging to one page to be collected and to be shwon outsite of all sections and frames at the end of the page - without care of the number of columns whithin any section on this page. If not, see reason 2. 2. If a footnote is desired two appear _within_ the section it belongs to, then the checkbox "Collect at end of text" can be marked. This checkbox is located in the dialog that appears with "format/sections.../options...". This works fine, and with this option activated the section doesn't occupy the whole page.
I can confirm this on 1.1RC4 windows. At least I can say, that OOo beaves this way, but I have no knowledge in typography, if this was the correct way.
reassigned to jw hello michaelis, can you please attach the document?
Created attachment 9807 [details] A sample document: Please change the # of cols to 1 and observe what happens
set target to office later
ok, i have to set this to enhancement. this is a standard in office applications. i tested this with two other offices with the same result. after talking to a developer i can tell you that this is a must bee technical issue to prevent more difficult errors. set to enhancement, reassigned to bh issue: sections with two or more columns should not expand to page size.
True, this bug is also present in MS Word, but that's only an excuse. I use this feature extensively, and am forced to migrate away from OOo until footnotes in multicolumns are fixed. If LaTeX can do it, why can't OOo? :) jw said on Mon Oct 6 03:28:33 -0700 2003, that this is needed to avoid technical issues. This indicates a problem with the underlying formatting architecture and/or algorithms that needs to be resolved. I do take exception to this being classified as an "Enhancement." It should remain classified as a "DEFECT" and assigned the "WONTFIX" value if nothing is going to be done.
*** Issue 88942 has been marked as a duplicate of this issue. ***
I've just discovered this unexpected behaviour of OOo Writer and I'm puzzled that it has attracted so little attention for five years. I believe that, if we are to fulfil OOo's mission statement of creating the leading Office Suite, this issue has to be address.
Changed the owner to 'requirements'.
Reset assignee on issues not touched by assignee in more than 1000 days.