Copyright

This document is Copyright © 2021 by the LibreOffice Documentation Team. Contributors are listed below. This document maybe distributed and/or modified under the terms of either the GNU General Public License (https://www.gnu.org/licenses/gpl.html), version 3 or later, or the Creative Commons Attribution License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), version 4.0 or later.

All trademarks within this guide belong to their legitimate owners.

Contributors

To this edition.

Peter Schofield

Elzett Kotze

To previous editions.

Jean Hollis Weber

Peter Schofield

Feedback

Please direct any comments or suggestions about this document to the Documentation Team’s mailing list: documentation@global.libreoffice.org

Note

Everything sent to a mailing list, including email addresses and any other personal information that is written in the message, is publicly archived and cannot be deleted.

Publication date and software version

Published July 2021. Based on LibreOffice 7.1 Community. Other versions of LibreOffice may differ in appearance and functionality.

Who is this user guide for?

Anyone who wants to get up to speed quickly with LibreOffice Draw will find this guide very useful. You may be new to drawing software, or you may be familiar with another program.

What is in this user guide?

This book introduces the main features of LibreOffice Draw. Draw is a vector graphics drawing tool, although it can also perform some operations on raster graphics (pixels) such as photographs. Using Draw, a wide variety of graphical images can be quickly created.

A few examples of the drawing functions are: layer management, snap functions and grid-point system, dimensions and measurement display, connectors for making organization charts, 3D functions that enable small 3D drawings to be created (with texture and lighting effects), drawing and page-style integration, and Bézier curves.

The Draw Guide is not a course book to be worked through from beginning to end. Rather, it is a reference work in which can be browsed for guidance on particular topics.

Minimum requirements for using LibreOffice

For a detailed list of requirements and operating systems supported, see the LibreOffice website, https://www.libreoffice.org/get-help/system-requirements/

How to get LibreOffice

Versions of LibreOffice for Windows, Linux, and macOS are freely available and can be downloaded from http s ://www.libreoffice.org/download. Linux users will also find LibreOffice included free in many of the latest distributions.

Portable and other versions of LibreOffice are listed on the download page. Linux, Vanilla, and other versions may differ in a few features from the descriptions in this user guide.

Installing LibreOffice

Information on installing and setting up LibreOffice on the various supported operating systems is given here: https://www.libreoffice.org/get-help/install-howto/

Setting up and customizing LibreOffice

To change the default settings (options) in LibreOffice to suit your preferences, go to Tools > Options on the Menu bar (LibreOffice > Preferences in macOS).

Settings are described in LibreOffice Help and the Getting Started Guide. These two sources provide information on how to customize menus, toolbars, and keyboard shortcuts in LibreOffice Draw, add new menus and toolbars, and assign macros to events.

Tip

Many settings are intended for power users and programmers. If you do not understand what an option does, it is recommended leaving it on the default setting unless instructions in this user guide recommend changing the setting.

Extensions and add-ons

Functionality can be added to LibreOffice with extensions and add-ons. Several extensions are installed with the program and other expensions from the official extensions repository, http s ://extensions.libreoffice.org/ or from other sources. See the Getting Started Guide for more information on installing extensions and add-ons.

Where to get more help

This user guide and other LibreOffice user guides, the built-in Help system, and user support systems assume that users are familiar with computer and basic functions such as starting a program, opening and saving files.

Help system

LibreOffice comes with an extensive Help system and this can be used as the first line of support. Windows and Linux users can choose to download and install the offline Help for use when not connected to the Internet. Offline Help is installed with the MacOS version of LibreOffice.

To display the LibreOffice Help, press F1 or go to Help > LibreOffice Help from the Menu bar. If the offline help is not installed on a computer, but connected to the Internet, a dialog opens giving the option to Read Help Online. Select this option and the default web browser opens at the LibreOffice online help pages in the LibreOffice website.

The Help menu also includes links to other LibreOffice information and support facilities.

What's This? – for quick tips when a toolbar is visible, place the mouse cursor over any of the tool icons to see a small tooltip box with a brief explanation of the tool function. Also Extended Tips can be activated by going to Tools > Options > LibreOffice > General on the Menu bar. Extended Tips provide a brief description about tools and commands. To display an extended tip, use the keyboard Shift+F1, then point to a tool or command.
User Guides – opens the default browser at the Documentation page of the LibreOffice website https://documentation.libreoffice.org/en/english-documentation/. This page gives access to the LibreOffice User Guides and other useful information that can be opened in the default browser. Also, the User Guides are available in PDF format as a free download or to buy as printed copies.
Show Tip-of-the-Day – opens a small window with a random tip on how to use LibreOffice.
Get Help Online – opens the default browser at the Ask LibreOffice forum of questions and answers from the LibreOffice community, https://ask.libreoffice.org/en/questions/.
Send Feedback – opens the default browser at the Feedback page of the LibreOffice website https://www.libreoffice.org/get-help/feedback/. From this page bugs can be reported, new features suggested and communicate with other users in the LibreOffice community.
Restart in Safe Mode – opens a dialog window giving options to restart LibreOffice and reset the software to its default settings. Restarting in safe mode also provides an opportunity to restore LibreOffice from a backup.
Get Involved – opens the default browser at the Get Involved page of the LibreOffice website, https://www.libreoffice.org/community/get-involved/. Choose a topic of interest to help improve the program.
Donate to LibreOffice – opens the default browser at the Donation page of the LibreOffice website, https://donate.libreoffice.org/ providing an opportunity to make a donation to support LibreOffice.
License Information – outlines the licenses under which LibreOffice is made available.
Check for Updates – opens a dialog and checks the LibreOffice website for updates to version of the software. The dialog provides an opportunity to download and install any updates to LibreOffice.
About LibreOffice – opens a dialog and displays information about the version of LibreOffice and the operating system being used. This information will often requested if the community is asked for help or assistance with the software (on macOS, this option is found under LibreOffice on the Menu bar}.

Other free online support

The LibreOffice community not only develops software, but provides free, volunteer-based support. See Table 1 and this web page: http s ://www.libreoffice.org/get-help/

For comprehensive online support from the community, look at mailing lists and the Ask LibreOffice website, https://ask.libreoffice.org/en/questions/. Other websites run by users also offer free tips and tutorials.

Table 1: Free support for LibreOffice users

Free LibreOffice support
FAQs	Answers to frequently asked questions https://wiki.documentfoundation.org/Faq
Mailing lists	Free community support is provided by a network of experienced users https://www.libreoffice.org/get-help/mailing-lists/
Questions & Answers and Knowledge Base	Free community assistance is provided in a Question & Answer formatted web service. Search similar topics or open a new one in https://ask.libreoffice.org/en/questions The service is available in several other languages; just replace /en/ with de, es, fr, ja, ko, nl, pt, tr, and many others in the web address above.
Native language support	The LibreOffice website in various languages http s ://www.libreoffice.org/community/nlc/ Mailing lists for native languages http s ://wiki.documentfoundation.org/Local_Mailing_Lists Information about social networking https://wiki.documentfoundation.org/Website/Web_Sites_services
Accessibility options	Information about available accessibility options. http s ://www.libreoffice.org/get-help/accessibility/
OpenOffice Forum	Another forum that provides support for LibreOffice, among other open source office suites. https://forum.openoffice.org/en/forum/

Paid support and training

Support and training is available through service contracts from a vendor or consulting firm specializing in LibreOffice. For information about certified professional support, see The Document Foundation website: http s ://www.documentfoundation.org/gethelp/support/.

What you see may be different

Illustrations

LibreOffice runs on Windows, Linux, and macOS operating systems, each of which has several versions and can be customized by users (fonts, colors, themes, window managers). The illustrations in this guide were taken from a variety of computers and operating systems. Therefore, some illustrations will not look exactly like what is seen on a computer display.

Also, some of the dialogs may differ because of the settings selected in LibreOffice. Either use dialogs from the computer system (default) or dialogs provided by LibreOffice.

To change to using LibreOffice dialogs:

1) On Linux and Windows operating systems, go to Tools > Options > LibreOffice > General on the Menu bar to open the dialog for general options.

2) On a Mac operating system, go to LibreOffice > Preferences > General on the Menu bar to open the dialog for general options.

3) Select Use LibreOffice dialogs in Open/Save dialogs to display the LibreOffice dialogs on your computer display.

4) Click OK to save the settings and close the dialog.

Icons

The LibreOffice community has created icons for several icon sets, including Breeze, Colibre, Elementary, Sifr, and Tango. Each user can select a preferred set. The icons used to illustrate some of the many tools available in LibreOffice may differ from the ones used in this guide. The icons in this user guide have been taken from a LibreOffice installation that has been set to display the Colibre set of icons.

Change the icon set used in a LibreOffice installation as follows:

1) On Linux and Windows operating systems, go to Tools > Options > LibreOffice > View on the main menu bar to open the dialog for view options.

2) On a Mac operating system, go to LibreOffice > Preferences > LibreOffice > View on the main menu bar to open the dialog for view options.

3) In Icon Style select Colibre (SVG) from the options available in the drop down list.

4) In Icon Size, select Small from the drop down lists for Toolbar, Notebookbar and Sidebar.

5) Click OK to save the settings and close the dialog.

Notes

Some Linux operating systems, for example Ubuntu, include LibreOffice as part of the installation and may not include the Colibre icon set. This icon set can be downloaded from the software repository for the Linux operating system being used.

Using LibreOffice on macOS

Some keystrokes and menu items are different on macOS from those used in Windows and Linux. Table 2 below gives some common substitutions for the instructions in this user guide. For a more detailed list, see the application Help.

Table 2: Using LibreOffice on macOS

Windows or Linux	macOS equivalent	Effect
Tools > Options menu selection	LibreOffice > Preferences	Access setup options
Right-click	Control +click and/or right-click depending on computer setup	Open a context menu
Ctrl (Control)	⌘ (Command)	Used with other keys
F11	⌘+T	Open the Styles deck in the Sidebar

Who wrote this user guide?

This user guide was written by volunteers from the LibreOffice community. Profits from sales of the printed edition will be used to benefit the community.

Frequently asked questions

How is LibreOffice licensed?

LibreOffice is distributed under the Open Source Initiative (OSI) approved Mozilla Public License (MPL). See https://www.libreoffice.org/about-us/licenses/

It is based on code from Apache OpenOffice made available under the Apache License 2.0 but also includes software that differs from version to version under a variety of other Open Source licenses. New code is available under LGPL 3.0 and MPL 2.0.

May I distribute LibreOffice to anyone?

Yes

May I sell it?

Yes

May I use it in my business?

Yes.

How many computers may I install it on?

As many as you like.

Is LibreOffice available in my language?

LibreOffice has been translated (localized) into over 40 languages, so your language probably is supported. Additionally, there are over 70 spelling, hyphenation, and thesaurus dictionaries available for languages, and dialects that do not have a localized program interface. The dictionaries are available from the LibreOffice website at: www.libreoffice.org.

How can you make it for free?

LibreOffice is developed and maintained by volunteers and has the backing of several organizations.

I am writing a software application. May I use programming code from LibreOffice in my program?

You may, within the parameters set in the MPL and/or LGPL. Read the licenses: https://www.mozilla.org/MPL/2.0/.

Why do I need Java to run LibreOffice? Is it written in Java?

LibreOffice is not written in Java; it is written in the C++ language. Java is one of several languages that can be used to extend the software. The Java JDK/JRE is only required for some features. The most notable one is the HSQLDB relational database engine.

Java is available at no cost. More information and download links to the appropriate edition for your operating system can be found at: https://java.com/en/download/manual.jsp

Note

If the LibreOffice features that require Java are to be used, it is important that the correct 32-bit or 64-bit edition matches the installed version of LibreOffice. See the Getting Started Guide. If Java is not to be used, nearly all of the LibreOffice features can still be used.

How can I contribute to LibreOffice?

You can help with the development and user support of LibreOffice in many ways, and you do not need to be a programmer. To start, check out this webpage: https://www.libreoffice.org/community/get-involved/

May I distribute the PDF of this user guide, or print and sell copies?

Yes, as long as you meet the requirements of one of the licenses in the copyright statement at the beginning of this user guide. You do not have to request special permission. We request that you share with the project some of the profits you make from sales of user guides, in consideration of all the work we have put into producing them.

Donate to LibreOffice: https://www.libreoffice.org/donate/

What is new in LibreOffice 7.1?

The LibreOffice 7.1 Release Notes are available at this link

https://wiki.documentfoundation.org/ReleaseNotes/7.1

At this link the release notes for earlier versions of LibreOffice are located, which gives more information on the features that are included in LibreOffice.