LibreOffice 25.2: News and Improvements
The Document Foundation has released LibreOffice 25.2, the first major update of the year for this popular open-source office suite. Available for Windows, macOS, and Linux, this version brings improvements in accessibility, interface, and compatibility with other formats, reinforcing its commitment to interoperability and privacy.
Privacy and Security Enhancements
One of the most notable features of LibreOffice 25.2 is the ability to remove all personal information associated with a document. This includes:
- Author names
- Timestamps
- Editing time
- Printer name and settings
- Comments with author and date
- Tracked changes
This option improves privacy when sharing documents and reduces the risk of exposing sensitive data.
Interface Customization
LibreOffice now allows you to customize the suite's appearance independently of the operating system theme. The new options include:
- Downloading and installing color themes within the application.
- Modifying the color of non-printable characters and comments.
- Ability to toggle object boundaries independently of formatting marks.
Greater Compatibility with File Formats
Interoperability remains a key focus in this version. LibreOffice 25.2 adds compatibility with OpenDocument Format (ODF) 1.4, ensuring better performance with files generated in other office suites. It also improves DOCX document import, better handling unavailable fonts and supporting inline shapes.
Updates in Writer, Calc, and Impress
Each of the suite's main tools receives significant improvements:
Writer
- New tracked changes management, with better organization and highlighting of modifications.
- Ability to set default zoom levels for documents.
- Support for inline titles.
- Improved default bullet styles for unordered lists.
- Mass deletion of specific content (except headers) from the Navigator.
Calc
- New dialog for selecting and deleting duplicate records.
- Improved search within the function assistant.
- Sheet protection options applied to Pivot Tables and AutoFilters.
- Ability to save Solver models within spreadsheets.
- New "Summary below data" option in the Subtotals dialog.
Impress
- Enhanced templates with more defined visual elements.
- Objects can be centered on a slide in a single step.
- Support for soft border effects and glow in text frames.
- Better management of overflowing text in presenter notes when printing.
- Slides in window mode can be set to repeat automatically.
Additional Improvements and Availability
Other improvements include better integration with Quick Look on macOS, accessibility adjustments, and improved interoperability with OOXML documents. Internal libraries such as libvisio have also been updated, and macro and script management has been optimized.
LibreOffice 25.2 is now available for download from the official website in versions for Windows, macOS, and Linux. Users of Ubuntu-based distributions can install it via the LibreOffice PPA, Snap Store, or Flathub.
With these improvements, LibreOffice continues to establish itself as a robust and versatile alternative for creating and editing documents in personal and professional environments. Explore the new features and let us know your experience!
