This cell duplicates image in that cell in spreadsheet? - openoffice-calc

Question

Very simple. Cell A1 has an image in it, which I supply through Insert:Picture:From File...
Now I want Cell A3 to automatically show the same picture. I simply can't find a way-- certainly the "=" doesn't work. At this point, I don't care if the images are "links" or embedded, I just want it to work. Can it? Thx.
Edit, 09-01-17, based on Jim K's idea, here's macro code I have installed:
REM ***** BASIC *****
Private oListener as Object
Private cellA1 as Object
Sub AddListener
Dim Doc, Sheet, Cell as Object
Doc = ThisComponent
Sheet = Doc.Sheets.getByName("Sheet1")
cellA1 = Sheet.getCellrangeByName("A1")
'create a listener
oListener = createUnoListener("Modify_","com.sun.star.util.XModifyListener")
'register the listener
cellA1.addModifyListener(oListener)
End Sub
Sub Modify_disposing(oEv)
End Sub
Sub RmvListener
cellA1.removeModifyListener(oListener)
End Sub
' macro jumps here when oListener detects modification of Sheet
Sub Modify_modified(oEv)
Doc = ThisComponent
Sheet = Doc.Sheets.getByIndex(0)
originCell = Sheet.getCellByPosition(0,0)
originValue = originCell.Value
if originValue then
print "originValue is " & originValue
else
print "originValue zero"
end if
End Sub
The problem, ironically, is that it works. It works for integers and {non-value}, I mean an empty cell.
So any integer not zero prints TRUE, zero prints FALSE, and empty cell prints FALSE.
But that's where it quits working-- any kind of string "asdf" also returns FALSE.
Maybe that could be fixed, but there's something a lot worse: When I paste an image in the cell, or use the Insert/Image/From File... menu, or Cut an existing image... Nothing happens! The Sheet Modified business does not trigger the expected routine.
Any hope? Thx.

Answer 1

As you discovered, the solution in my comment does not work, because the Content changed event will not trigger when images are added. I looked into other events as well, but they did not work either.
So instead, we can set up a function that runs periodically. Each time it runs, it checks the count of images, and if any have been added or removed, it calls update_copied_images() below, which currently simply reports the value of cell A1, as in your code.
As explained here, I have not gotten a timer loop to work in Basic without crashing, so we can use Python instead (a better language, so this is not a drawback in my opinion).
import time
from threading import Thread
import uno
COLUMN_A, COLUMN_B, COLUMN_C = 0, 1, 2
FIRST_ROW = 0
def start_counting_images(action_event=None):
t = Thread(target = keep_counting_images)
t.start()
def keep_counting_images():
oDoc = XSCRIPTCONTEXT.getDocument()
oSheet = oDoc.getSheets().getByIndex(0)
oDrawPage = oSheet.getDrawPage()
messageCell = oSheet.getCellByPosition(COLUMN_C, FIRST_ROW)
messageCell.setString("Starting...")
prevCount = -1
while hasattr(oDoc, 'calculateAll'): # keep going until document is closed
count = oDrawPage.Count
if prevCount == -1 or prevCount != count:
prevCount = count
messageCell.setString("Number of Images: " + str(prevCount))
update_copied_images(oSheet)
time.sleep(1)
def update_copied_images(oSheet):
originCell = oSheet.getCellByPosition(COLUMN_A, FIRST_ROW)
originString = originCell.getString()
messageCell = oSheet.getCellByPosition(COLUMN_B, FIRST_ROW)
if len(originString):
messageCell.setString("originString '" + originString + "'")
else:
messageCell.setString("originString length is zero")
g_exportedScripts = start_counting_images,
To run, go to Tools -> Macros -> Run Macro, find the .py file under My Macros where you put this code, and run start_counting_images.