Test LibreOffice automatically
Robust Tool
Listing 1 demonstrates the basic features for remote controlling LibreOffice. The scenario described and the solution outlined may not be appropriate for all administrators. But, an enormous power pack is generally available for remote controlling LibreOffice to anyone with a little Python scripting expertise. There are plenty of test tasks, for which script-controlled solutions can help, in each area that has to do a lot with the typical Office formats.
You'll find an array of conversion tools on GitHub for documents of various types, which are based on the remote control of Libre or OpenOffice. Such converters are often hidden behind a web front end. GitHub also hosts tools for extracting elements from Office documents, generating reports, creating documents diffs, and much more. The technology is therefore useful.
A downside, however, is the documentation. There may be the LibreOffice API site [1] and detailed documentation of the interface [2]. However, the former only links a few very short Python examples, and the latter refers to the C++ site for the interface. It isn't always easy to deduce what the individuals calls look like in Python.
Additionally, the fact that both LibreOffice and OpenOffice exist doesn't necessarily make matters any easier. The API might currently appear to be the same, but there are more informative examples on the OpenOffice wiki [3]. It's hard to judge whether the APIs will grow farther apart in the long term. The developer of a corresponding Python script cannot get around Google, Stack Overflow, and the public code on GitHub. The searchable code fragments are much more useful to the developer than the abstract API documentation.
Once the functional calls have been collected, the whole thing works surprisingly robustly and provides administrators with a versatile tool box for test in an Office environment.
Infos
- LibreOffice API:http://api.libreoffice.org
- Documentation for LibreOffice API: http://api.libreoffice.org/docs/idl/ref/index.html
- OpenOffice Wiki:https://wiki.openoffice.org
« Previous 1 2 3 4 5
Buy this article as PDF
(incl. VAT)
Buy Linux Magazine
Subscribe to our Linux Newsletters
Find Linux and Open Source Jobs
Subscribe to our ADMIN Newsletters
Support Our Work
Linux Magazine content is made possible with support from readers like you. Please consider contributing when you’ve found an article to be beneficial.
News
-
NVIDIA Released Driver for Upcoming NVIDIA 560 GPU for Linux
Not only has NVIDIA released the driver for its upcoming CPU series, it's the first release that defaults to using open-source GPU kernel modules.
-
OpenMandriva Lx 24.07 Released
If you’re into rolling release Linux distributions, OpenMandriva ROME has a new snapshot with a new kernel.
-
Kernel 6.10 Available for General Usage
Linus Torvalds has released the 6.10 kernel and it includes significant performance increases for Intel Core hybrid systems and more.
-
TUXEDO Computers Releases InfinityBook Pro 14 Gen9 Laptop
Sporting either AMD or Intel CPUs, the TUXEDO InfinityBook Pro 14 is an extremely compact, lightweight, sturdy powerhouse.
-
Google Extends Support for Linux Kernels Used for Android
Because the LTS Linux kernel releases are so important to Android, Google has decided to extend the support period beyond that offered by the kernel development team.
-
Linux Mint 22 Stable Delayed
If you're anxious about getting your hands on the stable release of Linux Mint 22, it looks as if you're going to have to wait a bit longer.
-
Nitrux 3.5.1 Available for Install
The latest version of the immutable, systemd-free distribution includes an updated kernel and NVIDIA driver.
-
Debian 12.6 Released with Plenty of Bug Fixes and Updates
The sixth update to Debian "Bookworm" is all about security mitigations and making adjustments for some "serious problems."
-
Canonical Offers 12-Year LTS for Open Source Docker Images
Canonical is expanding its LTS offering to reach beyond the DEB packages with a new distro-less Docker image.
-
Plasma Desktop 6.1 Released with Several Enhancements
If you're a fan of Plasma Desktop, you should be excited about this new point release.