Are spell checkers a good thing?

[Quillan]

Following on from a post about English spelling and grammar being 're-introduced' in to UK schools made me think about spell checkers on PC's. For instance how many forum members actually use them? Has it made your spelling better or worse? Anyway here are my two thoughts.

Against - Spell checkers make you lazy because you don't have to think about spelling properly.

For - Spell checking improves your spelling because you get to see the correct spelling of the word and over time stops you making the same mistake.

 

[Théière]

Did they say the same thing about Samuel Johnson?

[Anton Redman II]

I think they are great. One of the most frustrating things in my life was being told to look a word I had misspelled up in a dictionary. If I could look the work up in a dictionary I would not need to look it up. I found the first Thesaurus was a vast step forward. If you could think of the antonym or synonym you could find the correct spelling of the word you were looking for. For the most part they correct the word and there is some chance you will remember the correct spelling next time.

[Thibault]

Unfortunately, spell checkers do not tell you if you have used the wrong word, but spelt it correctly - eg  there/their;  your/you're;  which/witch etc etc.  There is a danger relying only on spell checker - it needs to be used in combination with "normal" proof-reading.

[Clarkkent]

All a spell-checker does is to confirm that you have used a word contained in its memory. It does not check context, it does not check usage.

If you are using a word (particularly one of types mentioned by Thibault) and you are unsure of the spelling, then don't rely on a spell checker - use a dictionary.

[NormanH]

I find the spell checker very useful In French, especially for reminding me of accents, which it puts in without me needing to bother[:)]

For example I type in

"J'ai recu une reponse a ma lettre qui m'a beucoup aide a resoudre mes problemes"

an d I get

" J"ai reçu une réponse a ma lettre qui m'a beaucoup aidé a résoudre mes problèmes

Obviously  the two "à"s were missed, but using the Bon Patron site that I have previously recommended I get

"J"ai reçu une réponse à ma lettre qui m'a beaucoup aidé à résoudre mes problèmes "

Moral

Use a spell checker, stay alert, and consult sites such as the

Bon Patron

or if you can afford it use a programme such as Antidote

[Iceni]

[quote user="Thibault"]Unfortunately, spell checkers do not tell you if you have used the wrong word, but spelt it correctly - eg  there/their;  your/you're;  which/witch etc etc.  There is a danger relying only on spell checker - it needs to be used in combination with "normal" proof-reading.[/quote]

Well said Teebo. Another example, of which the BBC is guilty on many occasions, is "Ryanair are" - a spell checker is not much use in singular vs. plural.

John

[cooperlola]

Oooh, John, collective nouns, my favourite!  Why doesn't anybody get these any more?

It is no doubt obvious to everybody that I do not use a spell checker.[:-))]  I have fewer problems with grammar as at the very least it has rules.  But as for spelling - it's about as mysterious to me as voodoo and I have always been cr*p at it.

[just john]

I hate the automatic spell checkers especially if the word is not in the dictionary and it substitutes what it thinks;

I hate txtn shtnd and spell everything out, the least you can do if you can't be bother to make a phone call,

that's when I find predictive texting is even worse . . . .

[Théière]

He he, so true John, if you misspell the word on predictive text it adds it to the memory so ensuring it's misspelled for ever after

[just john]

I wish mine would, the best thing about ''Tom Tom'' is that it gives a pretty reasonable estimate of arrival time and I've got into the habit of texting ''eta 7pm ish,'' or whatever, and the damn thing just doesn't like either eta or ish.

[Kitty]

I type in my sister's name (Heather) and it corrects it to Heavier....

[crossy67]

I use a spell checker with Firefox, it's very useful but you do need to have a grasp of what it is you're trying to say.  My spelling isn't the best, my grammar isn't too bad but my hand writing is terrible, I can't even read what I have written my self sometimes.  Funny thing, I was trying to type aweful and it comes up highlighted as wrong but there is no alternative that looks right so I went for terrible instead[:)]

My hand writing has been bad all my life, my school did little to help me improve it, even if they did I doubt they would have had much success even when I was in uni for 4 years writing daily it improved but slipped again within months once I stopped writing daily. 

Some people are good at some things and rubbish at others, no one is good at everything I suppose.  Just because one person has a better grasp of a language doesn't mean they are better people or cleverer than ones that have a less comprehensive ability but could rewire your house or fix your car etc.

Text speak really annoys me too btw.

[Will]

Sometimes they can give you a good laugh.

When I worked for a boating magazine in the 1980s, and we moved on from manual typewriters and Amstrad PCWs to 'real' computers, we had a rather early and primitive spell checking program. It had a nasty habit of changing words to what it thought was correct without asking.

One we had to watch was 'motorboating' which always got changed to 'masturbating'. Even so, it was quite appropriate in the case of many of our readers.

[Judith]

Indeed, Will.  In former days when I would type Blackwells, the well-known bookshop and library supplier, you know, I would get Blackballs - always good for a laugh.

I can only agree with most on here, though fortunately both my spelling and grammar are good, my typing isn't always.  Spell checkers should (can) be used as an aide, but not as the final answer.  I find it useful to spell check in French however, much as NormanH says, but again, you need to have some knowledge of grammar and spelling before you know how well they are doing ......

[allanb]

[quote user="Judith"]Spell checkers should (can) be used as an aide...[/quote]

A perfect example.  Is that a spelling mistake or a typing mistake?  Either way, a spell checker wouldn't have caught it.

[Iceni]

Spell checkers are excellent tools for checking spelling but useless at other things e.g. castrating a pig.

I find that the most annoying errors that I make, in typing or spelling, arise when the written word somehow does not look quite correct but I cannot fathom why.

Thought for the day - why do spelling errors never happen when speaking?

John