Advice for anyone experiencing problems with iBus and LibreOffice

[ger_kor_linuxdev]

Hi all,

like many other KDE users (that doesn’t affect OpenSuSe alone) I was virtually unable to do my work (for which I need iBus to type Korean) using LibreOffice. The problem is that LibreOffice just tends to ignore iBus after switching to another program, and in most cases also restarting iBus doesn’t help. I had to restart LibreOffice instead and sometimes even that didn’t help. After having spend endless time on finding a solution (none of the suggestions I found worked), I gave up and installed Apache OpenOffice manually (I don’t think that it’s really such a bright idea that they removed it from the repos for whatever reasons), which worked fine.

However, after having re-installed OpenSuSe I didn’t want to install Apache OpenOffice manually again (which is also not done in a few minutes; you need to remove LibreOffice first and do some other things) I finally found a solution:

Just install libreoffice-gnome and all problems are solved.

[robin_listas]

On 2014-10-26 05:06, ger kor linuxdev wrote:

> Just install libreoffice-gnome and all problems are solved.

Well, it is known that kde and LO and ibus have problems. I think there
was a paragraph on the release notes of 13.1.

–
Cheers / Saludos,

Carlos E. R.
(from 13.1 x86_64 “Bottle” at Telcontar)

[ger_kor_linuxdev]

@robin_listas

On 2014-10-26 05:06, ger kor linuxdev wrote:

> Just install libreoffice-gnome and all problems are solved.

Well, it is known that kde and LO and ibus have problems. I think there
was a paragraph on the release notes of 13.1.

Really? I couldn’t find anything there:
http://doc.opensuse.org/release-notes/x86_64/openSUSE/13.1/

The only working solution which I finally found was on some bug report board not related to OpenSuSe.

I think it would be a very good idea to tell the developers to make libreoffice-gnome being installed automatically once iBus is selected for installation (I will point them to this thread, for the case that they didn’t do that for 13.2 yet).

Besides that I keep wondering why they keep people from installing Apache OpenOffice. I know about the license issues, but it’s just not true to simply say that it would have disadvantages compared to LibreOffice. It might have any disadvantages (which I didn’t find so far), but it has some advantages compared to LibreOffice.

[ger_kor_linuxdev]

@ger_kor_linuxdev

Besides that I keep wondering why they keep people from installing Apache OpenOffice. I know about the license issues, but it’s just not true to simply say that it would have disadvantages compared to LibreOffice. It might have any disadvantages (which I didn’t find so far), but it has some advantages compared to LibreOffice.

EDIT: Sorry, didn’t know that:
https://en.opensuse.org/Additional_package_repositories#Apache

It should be enabled by default though.

[wolfi323]

@ger_kor_linuxdev

I think it would be a very good idea to tell the developers to make libreoffice-gnome being installed automatically once iBus is selected for installation (I will point them to this thread, for the case that they didn’t do that for 13.2 yet).

The problem is that this will prevent KDE integration. On 13.2 ibus will force LibreOffice to use GNOME integration when libreoffice-gnome is installed even on KDE.
(on 13.1 it forces GNOME integration unconditionally even if libreoffice-gnome is not even installed, but that’s a different story…)

Not all people use ibus you know, but it might be pulled in by other packages. Users will complain that LibreOffice doesn’t use KDE dialogs.

The optimal solution would be to make the KDE integration work better with ibus so there’s no need to require GNOME for that. I hope that this will be done upstream.
Personally I don’t really have any idea about ibus though.

[ger_kor_linuxdev]

@wolfi323

The problem is that this will prevent KDE integration. On 13.2 ibus will force LibreOffice to use GNOME integration when libreoffice-gnome is installed even on KDE.
(on 13.1 it forces GNOME integration unconditionally even if libreoffice-gnome is not even installed, but that’s a different story…)

Not all people use ibus you know, but it might be pulled in by other packages. Users will complain that LibreOffice doesn’t use KDE dialogs.

The optimal solution would be to make the KDE integration work better with ibus so there’s no need to require GNOME for that. I hope that this will be done upstream.
Personally I don’t really have any idea about ibus though.

I think that prevention of KDE integration (I’m not exactly sure what you mean by saying that, so I’m just guessing [strange GUI?]) it is not a big deal when it comes to productivity. Actually I couldn’t notice any important issues followed by LibreOffice forcing libreoffice-gnome.

If that should lead to any problems, then I think using OpenOffice instead of LibreOffice would be the best work-around for peopple who have to use iBus.
That would be another reason why the OpenOffice repo should be enabled by default, or even better, giving users the option to choose between LibreOffice and OpenOffice during the install process…

[wolfi323]

@ger_kor_linuxdev

I think that prevention of KDE integration (I’m not exactly sure what you mean by saying that, so I’m just guessing [strange GUI?])

Actually the GUI wouldn’t even look so strange as there is an oxygen theme (the default KDE theme) for GNOME as well.
It’s mostly about the dialogs. (e.g. when you open or save a file)

it is not a big deal when it comes to productivity.

How can you say that?
Of course it is a big deal for users that want to have the KDE file dialogs, and it can be a big deal for productivity as well. F.e. you can create bookmarks in KDE’s file dialog to make your life easier and quickly navigate to your documents. With LO’s KDE integration you have those bookmarks in LO’s file dialog, otherwise not of course.
And it’s probably also a question of what you’re used to. If you use KDE’s file dialog all the time in all your applications, you are just faster/better/more productive when using it in LO as well.

Btw, there was a big discussion about this when the ibus maintainer suggested to drop libreoffice-kde4 altogether on the Factory mailinglist (and people demanded to keep the KDE integration).

Actually I couldn’t notice any important issues followed by LibreOffice forcing libreoffice-gnome.

If libreoffice-gnome is installed, it is enforced by ibus anyway.
But in 13.1 ibus also enforces libreoffice-gnome even when it is not installed, resulting in absolutely no desktop integration, and problems with ibus as well (i.e. it doesn’t work, at least that’s what I understand).

If that should lead to any problems, then I think using OpenOffice instead of LibreOffice would be the best work-around for peopple who have to use iBus.

Why? Just install libreoffice-gnome.
On a GNOME installation it should be installed by default anyway.
On KDE not even ibus is installed by default.

That would be another reason why the OpenOffice repo should be enabled by default, or even better, giving users the option to choose between LibreOffice and OpenOffice during the install process…

Suggest that on the Factory mailinglist and offer to maintain it…

Anyway, discussing this here won’t lead to anything anyway.
If you really want to make suggestions about changes in the distribution, you better do that on a different channel, like the factory mailinglist or even bugzilla or openfate.

[kerijan2003]

A question of curiosity: Can one uninstall ibus if one doesn’t use other languages?

[wolfi323]

@kerijan2003

A question of curiosity: Can one uninstall ibus if one doesn’t use other languages?

Yes.
You can uninstall ibus, but you probably have to keep libibus. That’s no issue though.

[robin_listas]

On 2014-10-26 21:16, wolfi323 wrote:

> Btw, there was a big discussion about this when the ibus maintainer
> suggested to drop libreoffice-kde4 altogether on the Factory mailinglist
> (and people demanded to keep the KDE integration).

+++······················
Date: Tue, 16 Sep 2014 21:54:41 +0900
From: Fuminobu TAKEYAMA <>
To: <opensuse-factory@opensuse.org>
Subject: [opensuse-factory] Do we really need libreoffice-kde4?

…

2. Poor input method support (XIM only)
   Thereby, the launch scripts of IBus contains:
   exports OOO_FORCE_DESKTOP=gnome
   to enforce libreoffice-gnome on KDE environment.

To do that, the IBus package have a weird supplements tag:
Supplements: packageand(libreoffice:libreoffice-gnome)

On the other hand, libreoffice-gnome supports input method via GTK,
Chinese and Japanese users can input texts smoothly.
······················+±

–
Cheers / Saludos,

Carlos E. R.
(from 13.1 x86_64 “Bottle” at Telcontar)

[robin_listas]

On 2014-10-26 05:46, ger kor linuxdev wrote:
> robin_listas;2671271 Wrote:

>> Well, it is known that kde and LO and ibus have problems. I think there
>> was a paragraph on the release notes of 13.1.
>
> Really? I couldn’t find anything there:
> http://doc.opensuse.org/release-notes/x86_64/openSUSE/13.1/

Nor can I now, but I do remember reading prominently that ibus and kde
and libre office did not work / were incompatible, on 13.1 release time.

–
Cheers / Saludos,

Carlos E. R.
(from 13.1 x86_64 “Bottle” at Telcontar)

[wolfi323]

@robin_listas

On 2014-10-26 05:46, ger kor linuxdev wrote:
> robin_listas;2671271 Wrote:

>> Well, it is known that kde and LO and ibus have problems. I think there
>> was a paragraph on the release notes of 13.1.
>
> Really? I couldn’t find anything there:
> http://doc.opensuse.org/release-notes/x86_64/openSUSE/13.1/

Nor can I now, but I do remember reading prominently that ibus and kde
and libre office did not work / were incompatible, on 13.1 release time.

Probably here in the forums?
A lot of users asked/complained about that conflict back then IIRC.

At 13.1 release time ibus conflicted with libreoffice-kde4 at a rpm package dependency level, i.e. to install ibus you had to uninstall libreoffice-kde4 and vice-versa.
This was changed later on to the current status (ibus forcing libreoffice-gnome) via an online update because of this bug report:
http://bugzilla.opensuse.org/show_bug.cgi?id=851982

TBH, I somehow preferred the explicit conflict. At least the user knows that something is wrong, that those two packages don’t work together.
Now, libreoffice-kde4 just doesn’t work/isn’t used when ibus is installed as well without any hint to the user why.
At least in 13.2 it will work unless libreoffice-gnome is installed too, as mentioned. It makes no sense to force GNOME integration anyway if it is not even installed (and won’t help with ibus either).

[robin_listas]

On 2014-10-27 11:06, wolfi323 wrote:
>
> robin_listas;2671359 Wrote:

>> Nor can I now, but I do remember reading prominently that ibus and kde
>> and libre office did not work / were incompatible, on 13.1 release time.
>>
> Probably here in the forums?
> A lot of users asked/complained about that conflict back then IIRC.

Maybe.

> At 13.1 release time ibus conflicted with libreoffice-kde4 at a rpm
> package dependency level, i.e. to install ibus you had to uninstall
> libreoffice-kde4 and vice-versa.
> This was changed later on to the current status (ibus forcing
> libreoffice-gnome) via an online update because of this bug report:
> http://bugzilla.opensuse.org/show_bug.cgi?id=851982

Ah, yes.

> TBH, I somehow preferred the explicit conflict. At least the user knows
> that something is wrong, that those two packages don’t work together.
> Now, libreoffice-kde4 just doesn’t work/isn’t used when ibus is
> installed as well without any hint to the user why.
> At least in 13.2 it will work unless libreoffice-gnome is installed too,
> as mentioned. It makes no sense to force GNOME integration anyway if it
> is not even installed (and won’t help with ibus either).

There should be a paragraph in the release notes, people will have problems.

–
Cheers / Saludos,

Carlos E. R.
(from 13.1 x86_64 “Bottle” at Telcontar)

[wolfi323]

@robin_listas

There should be a paragraph in the release notes, people will have problems.

About what?
That you need libreoffice-gnome for full ibus support in LO?
Or that installing ibus and libreoffice-gnome will disable libreoffice-kde4?

Actually the situation in 13.2 hasn’t really changed much since 13.1 (after the update at least).

But if you think it should be mentioned in the release notes, you know what you should do, I suppose…

[robin_listas]

On 2014-10-27 17:16, wolfi323 wrote:

> But if you think it should be mentioned in the release notes, you know
> what you should do, I suppose…

But I do not use ibus, I’m not affected.
Nor do I use factory.
So I don’t have first hand knowledge of the issue.

–
Cheers / Saludos,

Carlos E. R.
(from 13.1 x86_64 “Bottle” at Telcontar)

[wolfi323]

@robin_listas

On 2014-10-27 17:16, wolfi323 wrote:

> But if you think it should be mentioned in the release notes, you know
> what you should do, I suppose…

But I do not use ibus, I’m not affected.
Nor do I use factory.
So I don’t have first hand knowledge of the issue.

Me neither.
I do have a Factory installation in VirtualBox, but that’s KDE and doesn’t have ibus (or libreoffice-gnome for that matter) installed.

And I never used ibus at all anyway, ever.
I even uninstalled and tabooed it on my system to get libreoffice-kde4 working (it got pulled in automatically when upgrading to 13.1, because of GNOME and/or libreoffice-gnome I think, which I have installed here as well).