Sams Teach Yourself StarOffice® 5 for Linux in 24 Hours |
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Hour 12: Using SpellCheck and the Thesaurus |
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During this hour, you learn to use some of the language tools in StarOffice--specifically, you learn about the most useful ones: the spellchecking features and the associated thesaurus.
You explore features such as AutoCorrect and Auto Spellcheck, as well as learning how to start a regular spellcheck session. You also learn how to use the thesaurus by seeing how to look up words and follow new word options.
This hour looks first at the AutoCorrect feature of StarOffice spellchecking. The AutoCorrect feature can automatically correct common errors that occur as you enter text.
For example, when you type a period and begin a new sentence, AutoCorrect capitalizes the first letter of the first word of the new sentence if you forget to do it. AutoCorrect also corrects commonly misspelled words as you type.
AutoCorrect looks at all the text that you type, unless you turn off this feature in the Options dialog box. You can also change settings on AutoCorrect to make it fit your style and needs.
The AutoCorrect feature works automatically, although you can turn it on or off and set up options for how AutoCorrect works on your document.
You can open the AutoCorrect options dialog box by selecting AutoCorrect/AutoFormat from the Tools menu. (See Figure 12.1.)
Figure
12.1
The
AutoCorrect dialog box enables
you to set options regarding how your typing is automatically corrected.
The Replace tab in the AutoCorrect options dialog box contains a list of common typing errors or abbreviations that are automatically replaced. For example, if you type abbout, with two b's, the second b is removed as you type.
The autocorrection list contains hundreds of entries, but you can also add to the list. Suppose that you always type regards as regrads at the end of your letters. This autocorrection isn't in the list. To add it, follow these steps in the AutoCorrect options dialog box (in the Replace tab):
1. Enter regrads in the Replace field.
2. Enter regards in the With field.
3. Press the New button.
4. Choose OK to close the dialog box and continue typing. Now anytime you enter regrads, it is replaced with regards.
Tip - You can also remove any item that you don't want to have automatically corrected as you type. Just select it from the list, and then choose the Delete button. |
The next tab of the AutoCorrect options dialog box is for exceptions to the rules in the next tab: Options. Look there first. The Options tab is shown in Figure 12.2.
Figure
12.2
The Options tab of the AutoCorrect dialog box enables you to turn AutoCorrect
features on or off.
In the Options tab, you can turn features on or off by selecting a check box for each one. These features include the following:
Start each sentence with a capital letter.
Correct TWo INitial CApitals (make the second letter lowercase--using two initial capitals is a common typing mistake).
Ignore double spaces (after periods, for example).
Tip - Auto Spellcheck, which underlines in red any word that can't be found in the dictionary, is a separate feature. You learn about it later in this hour. |
Now, go back to the Exceptions tab of the AutoCorrect options dialog box (see Figure 12.3).
Figure
12.3
In the Exceptions tab of the AutoCorrect dialog box, you can prevent the correction
of certain situations.
When you use an abbreviation in a sentence, you don't want the next word to start with a capital letter--but the AutoCorrect rules do this. By having a list of exceptions, AutoCorrect leaves some things (such as lowercase letters following abbreviations) just as you type them.
You can add other abbreviations that you use so that they don't have a capital letter added after them.
Tip - This hour doesn't cover the Custom Quotes tab of this dialog box. You can use it to set up how smart quotation marks are used in your document. |
Sams Teach Yourself StarOffice® 5 for Linux in 24 Hours |
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Hour 12: Using SpellCheck and the Thesaurus |
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