Can't get Spanish distionary to stay selected

users
#1

In LibreOffice 3.4. I've tried everything, read all the forums. Downloaded the recommended Spanish oxt file from Extensions. Extension Manager shows it as installed. But when I try to set it as the dictionary for my document, the only place it stays checked for is Selection. I have Spanish (Mexican) set as my default language. When I try to establish Spanish as my SpellChecking language in Writing Aids, it does not stay selected. It appears in the selection box, then I click Close, but when I open the Writing Aids dialog again, it has reverted to English.

AND, the spell checker doesn't check anyway -- just asks Start at top? then says everything is fine. In a document full of misspellings and gibberish.

Help!

Lenore

#2

Spell checking works based upon paragraph and character styles. You
have set Spanish (Mexican) as your language meaning that the Default
paragraph style in the Font tab has this selected as the dictionary used
to check spelling.
     If you want to use Spanish, you need to create a new paragraph
style with Spanish selected as the language in the Font tab. Then apply
the Spanish style to all the paragraphs containing Spanish. For
paragraphs containing Spanish (Mexican), apply the Default paragraph
style.
     More information on styles are found in the Getting Started with
Writer chapter of the Getting Started Guide and the styles chapters in
the Writer Guide.

--Dan

#3

I am not sure why the person sent the two emails to me off the list. If the person was looking at LO from my portal site, they would have used the different email address that was displayed there.

There is a point about setting the default language for spell checking that is not English, when you are using English for your menu language.

There should be a way to keep it set to Spanish, French, or other supported language, without it defaulting back to English until you tell it to. The "complex" way to spell check a non-English text with a non-English dictionary that is installed and enabled, seems too complex to me. What happens if you write a text that was completely in English, but you type a word or two that was in perfectly spelled French or Spanish? Now it seems that you have to check each bit of text with each and every possible language that might be written within that text. For someone who writes in English but needs to reference words from other languages that he/she has installed dictionaries for those other languages, we need to have an easier way to help them spell check his/her writing. When I write some text for a document and know that the word I just typed is correctly spelled, and it is not a "standard" English word, I still get them underlined as misspelled. Take the words "Español" and "Français". I have Spanish and French dictionaries installed [which are locked so they cannot be uninstalled or modified], I get the underline stating that I have misspelled then. I have to run the different languages through the spell checking system to get them to work. Also, With the language menu so filled with different versions of English and French, it had only one space left for a version of Spanish and no space left for German or other language. The menu list for languages is the language box that comes up when you press the "spelling and grammar" icon in the "Standard Toolbar". So with only the default and locked dictionaries enabled, this language menu gives me the following and no room for any more:

English - Australia, Canada, Erie, India, Nambia, South Africa, UK, USA, and Zimbabwe.

French - Belgium, Canada, France, Luxembourg, Monaco, Switzerland.

Spanish - Spain.

I have a German dictionary installed and there is no listing so I can use it to spell check German words. I think it is due to the fact that the "default and locked" English and French dictionaries have listed in them ALL of these different version of those two languages and the menu system is picking up on them and listing all of them in the limited menu space.

Since I am using Ubuntu, I am not given the option of a "custom" install, like Windows, so I can decide on the dictionaries I want installed. So that may be the reason I am getting this issue for lack of menu space for the other installed languages.

But the issue for making it easier to spell check a non-English language or keeping that language from switching back from your selected document/paragraph/text language choice is in need of a looking in to.

.

#4

Sorry to repeat myself: It is all about paragraph and character
styles. All of these styles in the Font tab allow you to select the
language to be used. Paragraph styles affect the language for the entire
paragraph; character styles affect only the parts of a paragraph to
which the character style is applied.
     So a paragraph written in English but contains one or more words
written in another language has the English paragraph style applied to
the paragraph. The word or words of another language has the character
style for the other language applied to them.
     Further on styles and templates: If you write documents in which
you want the document's default language to be one of several of them,
for each of the languages, create a template for each language.
     Again, Getting Started with Writer and the chapters on styles in
the Writer Guide will explain how to do this.
     Styles are very useful if you use Writer very much. The Writer
Guide is very useful as well since it describes how to use styles.

--Dan

#5

Default Language sets the language for

all brand new documents. Brand new documents those documents which are not derived from some template.
If you use some default template for a component, you've got to open the template for editing (File>Templates>Edit...) and apply the language setting together with option "current document only".
This setting affects the "font language" in all text formatting dialogs having a "Font" tab.

#6

I think right now the problem could be the use of many languages in a single document and getting the language option menu in the "Spelling and Grammar" icon/option to have more space for more language listings - is what is needed. I added German to my dictionaries and it did not show up in that specific menu list. Setting the default language for a specific paragraph, etc., did show German though.

Yes, having styles and templates set up for making a new document have a specific default language may be a good idea, but the basic user would not know how to do this. I have been using LO since 3.3.0 and have not got into creating "styles" or changed my default document, or even created any new templates.

I thing I might have to buy a printed copy of the Writer book, if I was to start dealing with all the other things that Writer can do that I have not been doing so far. I would rather read a printer book than read it on my desktop or laptop. I do not have a tablet.

#7

Comments inline:

> >>>Default Language sets the language for
> all brand new documents. Brand new documents those documents which are
> not derived from some template.
> If you use some default template for a component, you've got to open
> the template for editing (File>Templates>Edit...) and apply the
> language setting together with option "current document only".
> This setting affects the "font language" in all text formatting
> dialogs having a "Font" tab.
>
>
I think right now the problem could be the use of many languages in a
single document and getting the language option menu in the "Spelling
and Grammar" icon/option to have more space for more language listings -
is what is needed. I added German to my dictionaries and it did not
show up in that specific menu list. Setting the default language for a
specific paragraph, etc., did show German though.

     I have had a document that contained English, German, and Spanish
in one paragraph. By creating a character style for each language, I was
able to correctly spell check all three languages. Three paragraphs in
three different languages requires one paragraph style for each
language.

Yes, having styles and templates set up for making a new document have a
specific default language may be a good idea, but the basic user would
not know how to do this. I have been using LO since 3.3.0 and have not
got into creating "styles" or changed my default document, or even
created any new templates.

     I don't mean to sound harsh at all, but if you want LO or OOo to
more than the basics you need to learn how to use styles. Begin with the
Writer chapter in the Getting Started with LO and then graduate to the
Writer Guide.

I thing I might have to buy a printed copy of the Writer book, if I was
to start dealing with all the other things that Writer can do that I
have not been doing so far. I would rather read a printer book than
read it on my desktop or laptop. I do not have a tablet.

Lulu.com sells printed copies of the Writer Guide. The direct link:
http://www.lulu.com/product/paperback/libreoffice-3-writer-guide/15593313

--Dan

#8

Why can't a "basic user" design templates? I know a lot of "basic users" that are using LO for home or work and they might want to design a template document or two, like letterhead, postcard, or envelope templates.

I can be considered as an admin for some people, but most people I work with are home and home-office users. I do not "administrate" their computers. I just help them with their questions over the phone or via email. I could setup their templates for them, but they have the time and some have better "art skills" than I do.

Also some users I deal with use many more features for Writer than I normally do. So I am a "basis user" for the type of work I do with Writer, but I am not a "basic user" of a computer system.

#9

A lot of people do not download or read the PDF documents.

I am thinking about getting a copy of the 3.3.x printer book one of these days, or maybe the 3.4.x version would be out for Writer by then.

I need to sit down and do some technical reading again.

There ARE a lot of people who use software without reading any documentation and feel that it should be easy and menu/option self explanatory enough to use it without extensive reading. It has been more than 6 months since I really read through the Writer documentation, so I do not remember much of what I read, and the files have been updated now as well for 3.4.x.

My real issue now it the problem with all off the "localized" English and French listing in "Spelling and Grammar" icon / Text-language menu drop down menu. There is one space left for Spanish/Spain and no room to list German or other dictionary. I do not remember so many English [9] and French [6] shown with 3.3.4 or 3.4.3 as I do with 3.4.5. There is just no room in that menu list for any other language [with the default setup] with the 3.4.5 64-bit DEB version of LO. I have to use Ubuntu's Package Manager to remove French or Spanish since they both are locked in the Extension Manager and are unable to be disabled or deleted. I may have to modify the French and English default listings to remove all of these localized listings like "Eire" and "Namibia" English or "Luxenbourg" and "Switzerland" French. For me, these localizations are not needed. "Common" US/UK English, Spanish [Spain], and French [France] is all I would need for the default installed and locked languages.

#10

I have a problem with link to database in calc.

I use libreoffice 3.5 on linux ubuntu 10.4
Before was installed libreoffice 3.3

Now when I press F4 in calc appear some database where old, used before installing libreoffice 3.5

If I go on tools> option> libreoffice base>database no database are open ( except Bibliography that I have eliminate).
Also If I add a new database and I close and reopen ......libreoffice

database do not appear any database. It is empty.

Please if somebody can help me.
Regards
Fabio

#11

Hello Fabio

When you create a new database under base there is an option to register
the database name.

1- be sure to use that option if you want to see the database from Calc

2- you can also register existing Base files using tools> option>
libreoffice base>database dialog. Simply open that and add in one of the
new files you created.

If that doesn't help you out ping back, OK.

//drew

#12

Many thanks Drew

but it is just the problem.
Now I removed all libreoffice program, removed all files regarding libreoffice in my computer, removed all from the terminal.
I reinstalled libreoffice 3.5.
When I go to

> libreoffice base>database no database are open. But if I search (F4) on calc appear some database(calc) that I used before.

Also I can not remove these database.
More: if I go tools> option> libreoffice base>database and I add a new database I can not see the database in the window when I reopen. And in the source data (F4) still appear the old database.
Please help me.
Thanks
Fabio

#13

Many thanks Drew

but it is just the problem.
Now I removed all libreoffice program, removed all files regarding
libreoffice in my computer, removed all from the terminal.
I reinstalled libreoffice 3.5.
When I go to

> > libreoffice base>database no database are open. But if I search (F4) on calc appear some database(calc) that I used before.
Also I can not remove these database.
More: if I go tools> option> libreoffice base>database and I add a new database I can not see the database in the window when I reopen. And in the source data (F4) still appear the old database.
Please help me.
Thanks

Howdy Fabio

WEll, that sucks..

My first thought is the configuration settings - between 3.4 and 3.5 the
location for user configuration data moved. Where to exactly depends on
you OS - so your OS? (if Windows which one xp, vista, 7)

thanks

//drew

#14

My OS , as I wrote before, is linux ubunut 10.4
Fabio

#15

My OS , as I wrote before, is linux ubunut 10.4
oops - missed it.

Ok the configuration file used to be at
~/.libreoffice

it is not at
~/.cofigure/libreoffice

If you haven't done so yet, double check that old location and rename it
so that it won't be found - it might not hurt to rename the new one
also, that way a new one will be created from scratch on next startup ot
the application.

//drew

#16

Thank Drew

but I cancelled all files before named libreoffice on my computer, so the file /.libreoffice was deleted.
After that I reinstalled libreoffice3.5 .
So you can tell me where calc store the source data. I can try to delete from the files.
Regards
Fabio

#17

Thank Drew

but I cancelled all files before named libreoffice on my computer, so
the file /.libreoffice was deleted.
After that I reinstalled libreoffice3.5 .
So you can tell me where calc store the source data. I can try to delete
from the files.
Regards
Fabio

Right - from within Calc
Data->Define Range

You will see a list of data ranges.
Select a named range.
Click on the More button
If the data is linked from an external data source it will be listed on
the next to last line of the dialog.

//drew

#18

Dear drew

I tried but nothing happen. Not data source I can find. Not data range are open.
How I can delete link for these database if I can not know where they are stored.
Regards
Fabio

#19

Dear drew

I tried but nothing happen. Not data source I can find. Not data range
are open.
How I can delete link for these database if I can not know where they
are stored.

hmm - I'm a bit stumped.

If you did find for all .odb files, do you see any of the registered
names matching odb file name?

//drew

#20

I repeat.
with F4 I can see some database, 3 calc and 1 odb.
I click right on them but not database are listed, same window as in tools-option-libreoffice base-database. Not db listed at all. Also If I add a new database after reopen the window not database are listed. But still they are open with F4(source data)
regards
Fabio