How to check for spelling in your posts

[gfell]

Today I just stumbled across the Google toolbar to spell check your posts. In fact, it checks spelling on any website. Works great and installs in seconds. Now you really have no excuse for misspelt posts.

Google Toolbar for Internet Explorer
Google Toolbar for Firefox

[English]

This is great information gfell I know everybody here want to correct spelling mistake during forum posting. I saw many site have option to check post spellings. I have Opera so both link doesn't useful to me. If you know good software for Opera please put it here.

Thanks.

[gfell]

Why don't you just move over to Firefox? Of all visitors to our site, only 1% uses Opera, 18% Firefox and 75% Internet Explorer. Internet Explorer is losing marketshare in the browser war. Anyone that tries Firefox I'm sure will not go back to IE or Opera.

[English]

Originally Posted by gfell

Why don't you just move over to Firefox? Of all visitors to our site, only 1% uses Opera, 18% Firefox and 75% Internet Explorer. Internet Explorer is losing marketshare in the browser war. Anyone that tries Firefox I'm sure will not go back to IE or Opera.

Thanks for providing information over browser. After your suggestion i will switch to Firefox now. I hope it is better than Opera and IE. I dont like IE because slowest one.

Is Firefox free?

[vare2]

Yea Firefox is great =D I've been a Firefox user since Firebird haha that's pretty long ago but anyway I've enjoyed it ever since. The new Firefox 2.0 allows spell check as you type, which I find really useful. Firefox ftw!

[justlocal]

Hi. For those wishing to spell check using Australian English, I thought I would let you know there is no longer any need to change from your favourite browser, or to potentially use American spelling as offered by the Google toolbar.

The latest Australian English dictionary files used for spell checking with Firefox, Internet Explorer and Opera, are available from the ***AD LINK REMOVED*** site. Scroll to the bottom and select the project of interest. (The OpenOffice.org page contains the dictionary files for Internet Explorer and Opera.)

The current Australian dictionary files available from the Firefox project for Firefox and Thunderbird are based on files nearly four years old. Visit JustLocal to get the latest up-to-date files direct from the creator and maintainer of the dictionary files.

Also available at JustLocal are Australian English files for OpenOffice.org, Thunderbird, Aspell, Microsoft Word and Outlook Express. All files are free.

[gfell]

The site you linked to is an advertising site selling advertising blocks. It just happens to have a few ads for dictionaries. Please only give the direct link to the site for the dictionary.

[justlocal]

Hi gfell. You are welcome to remove the link as you have.

Linking directly to the pages is not advised.

The number of dictionary files now available has grown unexpectedly as a result of requests from users. In time the structure and location of these pages will change.

I attempted to make the instructions quite specific so people could easily skip past the advertising. (The Free For Community Use section is located at the bottom of the page, which is where the dictionary files are promoted.)

You now have the knowledge. Please feel free to do what you feel is most appropriate for your site. If that means removing the post/s, please feel free to do so.

All that is important is for you do what you feel is appropriate.

Thanks for your time and efforts.

[gfell]

Post can stay but thanks for your understanding. I know your intention is good, but there are many sneaky people out there trying to advertise their non-ESL sites on our forums.

Thanks.

[justlocal]

Hi gfell and thanks.

Whilst my interest in this thread was regarding spell checking, I thought you and others may be interested in other ways the files I produce may be useful.

During the course of maintaining the dictionary files over the last three to four years, I found I was able to resolve my confusion with many words, such as words containing "ise/ize".

I didn't want to force my view of spelling on the rest of Australia, so I produced what I now call the "kelvin" version of the files. My aim with the "kelvin" version is to identify and keep only a single spelling of a word. For example I keep "organise", but not "organize". I have already identified and removed over 1,800 words.

As it turns out the "kelvin" version closely matches the more commonly used word according to the Macquarie dictionary. (The only exception to this that I have found is "judgement". I've kept "judgement". I'm happy to explain my reasons.)

The "kelvin" version of the dictionary files may make it easier for ESL students. I was confused with the dual spelling of many words used in Australia. I can see how it can confuse others.

The Microsoft Exclude file achieves a similar result for Microsoft Word/Outlook users. There are some additional words that I have identified such as "mom" and "mommy", but largely the Exclude file corresponds to the 1,800 words that have been removed to create the "kelvin" files.

If someone states they don't want to use "American" spelling, these files will achieve that result. (We accept both spellings in Australia, so it really isn't American spelling that is being removed, but the less commonly used words.)

The last files I would like to mention are the raw word lists which are text files and can be opened using Notepad.

I see these files of use when people want to see the words that are formed from a word. For example: wrestle; wrestled; wrestler; wrestlers; wrestler's; wrestles; wrestling; wrestling's.

I remember there were plenty of times such a word list would have helped me. Maybe they will help others.