Notepad++ and aspell

Newest release of Spell-Checker plugin (v1.2; 09-Sep-2007) available here.

Note that there is also a new Notepad++ (v4.3; 24-Sep-2007) available here, but v4.3 still includes v1.1 of the Spell-Checker plugin.

To make it work with Aspell portable, extract the v1.2 SpellChecker.dll to X:\PortableApps\Notepad++Portable\App\Notepad++\plugins (replacing the old one).

Go to that directory to make these instructions shorter. You can delete the SpellChecker.ini here (and under ...\App\DefaultData\settings) because it's not actually used. Then create or edit config\SpellChecker.ini, adding a Relative Path line like below:

[Spell-Checker]
Current Language=en
Relative Path=..\..\..\Aspell\bin

Unfortunately, the config-file parser has a 29-char limit for the actual path. So, you'll have to copy the Aspell files to X:\PortableApps\Aspell (19 char relative path) rather than X:\PortableApps\CommonFiles\Aspell (31 char relpath).

I have not yet tested with Notepad++ v4.3, but the v1.2 plugin works with v4.2.2 (the current PortableApps version). 'Tis a wee bit slow, however...

Hope this helps. Perhaps the config could even make it into the Notepad++ Portable v4.3 installer.

-hea

P.S. I haven't checked yet to see if Pidgin has a similar mechanism to reference a common portable install of Aspell.

Many many thanks!

Works great! Thank you very much.

While testing it out I discovered something, If Aspell is installed locally then the relative path is ignored and the local copy is used. Is this by design? I'm sure speed is improved by defaulting to the local install if available, but if the local install is non functioning or doesn't have the dictionary the user wants then the user is out of luck.

Not a huge issue, just what I noticed while testing it out.

And again, much gratitude for you all your work!

This is my config and setup.

Path to Aspell:
X:\PortableApps\CommonFiles\Aspell

Path to SpellChecker.dll:
X:\PortableApps\Notepad++Portable\App\Notepad++\plugins

Path to SpellChecker.ini:
X:\PortableApps\Notepad++Portable\Data\settings\plugins\config
removed all other copies of SpellChecker.ini

contents of SpellChecker.ini:
[Spell-Checker]
Current Language=en
Relative Path=..\..\..\CommonFiles\Aspell\bin

Note relative path is based off the location of Notepad++.exe, not the location of spellchecker.dll

if Aspell has been installed locally then SpellChecker uses that path.

if this does not help, then post your equivalent information and I will see what if I can reproduce the issue and what can be done to resolve it.
Thanks.

Since this ancient thread is the primary search result from both, I'd like to request an update. Any idea when this spellechk(smirk) madness will be gotten in hand now that there is clearly an open disctonary? Given open office's and firefox 3's ability to spellcheck.

I did all the above, and now what happens is I get both the spellcheck window and the "how to use spellchecker" window, and since it cannot tolerate a theft of focus, in effect I still dont get the spell check window.

*soapbox*
Stuff like this is the biggest enemy of open source since the RIAA. Why did we ever, as a community, tolerate this madness? Simple laziness. Those who can, won't. They fix thier own setup, maybe if we're lucky write a halfway working and understandable tutorial, and consider the matter closed.

You can't convince me that the total effort required to make a truly functional free and actually open spellchecking solution is greater than the total effort expended by everyone who has ever fought with aspell plus the total time lost due to spelling errors or other work arounds, such as pasting into OO and then back.

Ubuntu has this same problem. Fact: A work around is not a solution, nor is a tutorial. The need for a tutorial is a defacto bug report.

This information is outdated. Notepad++ no longer includes Spellcheck.dll, so I tried downloading it from this topic, but that was a no-go. I did everything as the topic suggested, and nothing would work. Maybe this worked with earlier versions of Aspell and Notepad++, but with the latest versions, it does not.

I can get Aspell to work in Notepad++ when Aspell is installed, and it works nicely, but on the go it's a different story.

John T. HallerI just think that most people don't care about spell check in a text editor. So, it's a very low priority and not enabled by default.

Disabled by default is fine, but for those who would enjoy the feature to be able to enable it would be nice, and given the small size of the plugin and the increasing size of flash drives, I would think its inclusion, if it existed, should be trivial. Of course, if it doesn't exist, getting someone to make it is the real issue. If there is a feature somebody wants enough to post on the forum about it, and it can be done with a reasonable amount of effort, at some point it becomes a shortcoming of the app to not do it, especially if the feature is viable and others like the idea as well.

John T. HallerBut a text editor is a different animal. Notepad++ is meant primarily for coding. Which means most people don't care about spell checking. If more did, it would be included or easier to add.

Ah. "An app is only good for one thing primarily." I strongly disagree with this, and most developers agree, I would say. The more an app does within its scope, the better it is. Isn't Nero better than the disc burner included with Windows? Well, it would be if it weren't so bloated and slow and didn't have a bunch of garbage it doesn't need, like a second rate picture viewer and third rate video player, to say nothing of the media center and launcher. OK, so Nero got stupidly big stupidly fast, but I guess if you pay $100 for the license, it had better do a lot. Anyway, Microsoft intends for all their apps to be installed, but we here find value in untying (other) apps and carrying them around. Even the Notepad++ developers intended for there to be a spell checker, only the feature is broken.

Anyway, here's my argument for Notepad++ having a spell checker. I'm watching videos with subtitles, but the subtitles, while synced well (most of the time) have all kinds of problems. Lowercase pronouns, no spaces after commas, spaces before question marks and exclamation points, and words stuck together (space omitted). I'd use OpenOffice Writer, but having VLC and Firefox open at the same time makes VLC skip, badly. OpenOffice is more resource-intense than Firefox, so it's out. Haven't thought to try AbiWord, but Notepad++ is lean and fast. I use it to pen all of my blog articles lately. I need a text editor that fires up fast, so I can get my thoughts typed out faster. In the time it takes OpenOffice to launch, good ideas come and go.

innomenHell, at this point firefox is basically my operating system.

Well, if you happen to see this reply, Google "WoaS". Wiki on a Stick is a Wiki contained in a single XHTML file. Bury it in your Portable Firefox code, then drop it on Portable Firefox. Bookmark it. Now, since it's one file, your back/forward buttons won't work like you expect, but it brings its own, and you can configure its toolbar to stay at the top, even as you scroll down. It's really handy. And of course it uses Firefox's spell checker, as well as any extension Firefox has. Doesn't help me, not in this case, but for a statement as you've made, you may like it.

Could someone explain how to add Aspell "portably" eg. without actually installing it?