Apache OpenOffice (AOO) Bugzilla – Issue 91868
Writer can't remember language setting.
Last modified: 2013-08-07 14:44:35 UTC
Take the Dutch version of OO.o 3.0b2 (might be applicable to all translations, I don't know). 1) Start Writer. 2) In the statusbar the program tells that the language is set to Nederlands (NL). 3) Type some characters in the empty document. 4) In the statusbar the program tells that the language has switched to Engels (VS). OK, the program might be a bit stubborn, os let's set it back to Nederlands (NL). 5) Type again some characters. 6) Again the program switches the language to Engels (VS). You can repeat it several times and the program each time switches to Engels (VS). Try it in a document which is originally made in a Dutch version and even then the program changes it to Engels (VS).
I checked it in the English-UI version and it is definitely a problem. Even after setting default language for document to Dutch, and after setting language Dutch "for all text", new paragraphs become English (USA). It is also the case with other languages. This also happens when selecting all text in menu Edit, then setting the language using the menu Format - Character. In OOo 1 and 2 this would result in new paragraphs getting the desired language. I think this is a disaster for any user who regularly writes in a different language than English (USA). Finding the right person to assign this to...
Reassigning to Stefan. I suggest setting priority to P2, as this is a serious usability problem for many users.
This is intended behavior. The input language follows the keyboard input locale. See issue 1035: "language setting for typed text should be set to current input locale (keyboard setting)" This behavior does not meet all users needs, therfore one might want to switch it off via UI: See issue 91552: "Make Input language detection configurable" So I set this issue as duplicate to issue 91552. *** This issue has been marked as a duplicate of 91552 ***
Closing duplicate.
I don't agree with it. Yes, i understand it is a duplicate of 91552, but that issue says if I interpret correctly that the keyboard layout takes preferences ALWAYS. I consider this an example of pure degraded user experience. Most computer users use a keyboard with an English layout (the so called QWERTY- keyboards). So letting the keyboard layout decide the language used by Oo.o is not that good, I suppose. I don't see why this is done.
I want to point out in addition that I don't have problems with that keyboard layout dectection (even if it is probably wrong for most users since nearly everyone uses a keyboard with US layout). I've problems with the way it works: 1) The program tries to make a proper choice. 2) I, the user, am not satisfied and overrules the program by making the correct choice for my situation. 3) The program detects immediately that it was overruled and changes the choice made by the user. So here we have the classical problem of "who's at the controls?" In my humble opinion it is "not done" that the program has the last right to decide. Even if the user is to make a wrong choice according to the programs standards, the programs last resort is to advise about it and it should never be able to persist in its own opinion. I suggest the following procedure: The program can make the detection only, I repeat only, at the first start after installation and if the user makes another choice the program has to respect that choice. I would furthermore suggest that the program makes the choice not on basis of the keyboard layout but based upon the language of the user interface of the program itself. The program can safely assume that the user understands the language of the user interface and that it will be very likely that the user will create most documents in that particular language. I've never seen any program so far that needed a reconfiguration of the computer system in order to work properly. If this "feature" remains active now or in the future I predict that a lot of users will switch to programs that work more intuitively, like Abiword for example.