APPLICATIONSBUREAUTIQUE ★ ARNOR - PROSPELL ★

PROSPELL (Amstrad Computer User)Prospell on the Amstrad CP/M continues to amaze (PopularComputingWeekly)Prospell (Amstrad Action)ARNOR - PROSPELL (Amstrad Computer User)
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When asked to do a review on Prospell, the latest product from Amor, I was immediately confronted with a couple of problems. Firstly, the number of spelling checkers available for the Amstrad CPC range is relatively small, making a comparative review difficult, and secondly, I have always had a deep suspicion of rave reviews. "Nothing can be that good, surely".

Well in this case it is. Of all the spelling checkers I have used, on a variety of machines, this is the first one that I choose to use, rather than feel the need to use. The reasons for this are simple -convenience and flexibility, combined with speed.

Prospell is available either on disc or with the program on ROM and the dictionary on disc. The first thing to do on getting it is to make a copy of the dictionary, preferably two. The dictionary comes with more than 30,000 words and is about 75 per cent full. There is no limit to the number of dictionaries you may create and use.

I chose the ROM version and would suggest that if possible, you do the same. The real advantages of ROM software, the instant availability and minimal use of memory, are shown to their best advantage in this sort of program.

There are two completely separate ways of using Prospell, either from within Protext, in which case it is capable of checking documents up to about 80 per cent of the maximum size permitted by Protext, or alternatively, as a "stand alone" program, when it can check individual files up to the capacity of the disc. Used from within Protext

If you have the disc version, you must load Protext in the normal way, use the Q option and then load Prospell, using RUN"DISC". Having both programs eats up some of the available memory, but still leaves enough space for you to create a document of about 10k. The ROM version will allow you to check documents of around 32k. If the document is too long you are warned to save the document and check it in "stand alone".

Once you have created your document all that is required is to type in "SPELL" from Pretext's Command mode, having first inserted the dictionary disc. Alternatively, "SPELLB" will check a marked block. With two disc drives, the program automatically configures itself so that the dictionary is inserted into the opposite drive to the one containing the text files.

The screen clears and a series of messages inform you of the fact that it is Sorting, Scanning and then Checking. Unrecognised words are displayed on the screen and you have the choice of Storing the word in the dictionary, Ignoring the word, in which case you will be told how many cases are being ignored in the rest of the text, Viewing the word in context, which presents you with a number of lines of text, containing the unrecognised word.
Change presents you with the word in context, and you have only to type in the correct word. Lookup will try to find similar words from the dictionary for you to choose the correct spelling. This last option takes some time, because it has to search the dictionary and is not infallible. The word you want may not be in the dictionary.

When the spelling check has been completed you are given an analysis of the number of words stored, changed and checked. If any of the word lengths have been altered you are cautioned about the need to reformat, a simple task using Protext's Format command on return to Protext. Saving or Printing is done in the normal way.

Prospell stands alone

On its own, Prospell offers a host of functions that should keep everyone happy. It is very flexible and is capable of checking any Ascii format files and can check files created by Wordstar and its clones, effectively this permits it to be used to check files created by most word processing programs, as well as Protext files.

Disc users should run the program, using RUN"DISC", to load the necessary RSX while ROM users only have to type in " SM" (for Spell Menu), which immediately puts you into a Main Menu containing seven options. The program can be used in either Mode 1 or Mode 2, but the latter is preferable as it give more detailed information than is possible with Mode 1.

Main Menu options

The CAT, Erase, Back-up files, Printer On/Off and Utilities Menu (of which more later) options, are obvious. Some word processors, like Wordstar, store their text in an unusual format and another option allows you to set Prospell to check files created by such programs.
It would be impossible to check for all the file formats used by different word processors, but most of the ones you are likely to meet on an Arnold are catered for. The two main options on this menu are Spell Check files and Two Pass check.

The Spell Check option is virtually the same as the Spell option described above, the main differences being that it is possible to have the printer on, so that when words are found they are also sent to the printer and on entry you specify the file name to check. The file is loaded and checked as before, and when complete the amended file is automatically resaved.
If the text file is too big to fit in memory in one go the program will load and check the file in suitably sized blocks and resave each one before loading the next for checking. As before, you are warned if the file will need re-formatting.

The options used so far only permit the use of one dictionary, which should be more than adequate for the majority of uses, but the Two Pass check permits more than one dictionary, which can be particularly useful for anyone working with technical subjects which frequently have obscure or specialised words.

Initially things proceed as for the other options, but when the checking starts the program does a first pass listing any unrecognised words, either to screen or screen and printer and after completing the first pass, the option to check another dictionary is offered. The process is repeated using another dictionary disc.

When you have used all the dictionary discs you want each word is displayed in turn as before. Apart from the facility to use more than one dictionary, the main advantage of this method is that if the printer option was selected, you will have a list to check at your leisure before quickly dealing with them in one go, on the second pass.

Utilities Menu

This is the area where all the little bits live, not to mention some very big ones. Ten options are available, some of them, such as CAT and Printer on/off, merely duplicating those on the main menu for convenience.
List dictionary allows you to select where to start, before listing the contents of the dictionary.

Edit dictionary permits you to enter or delete words, by entering a word. If found you can elect to delete or leave it, if not found, to store or leave it.
Word count gives you a count of the total number of words in the dictionary and an indication of how much space remains in the dictionary.

Facilities are provided to create a new blank dictionary, change the name of an existing dictionary and a very interesting option called Build Dictionary which works in a similar fashion to the normal Spell option, the difference being that instead of you deciding what action to take, every unrecognised word is automatically stored in the dictionary. This can be very convenient for creating new dictionaries from text that is known to be correct.
Users with two drives also have the option to write the words to an Ascii file on the text disc. When used with a blank dictionary disc this enables a file containing an alphabetical list of words to be created from a text file.

This leaves just two more options, Find and Anagrams. The latter does just what you would expect of it. Enter a word or collection of letters and the program will list all words that utilise those letters. Wildcards are supported in similar, but slightly more extensive, fashion to that used by Amsdos.
Find is similar to Anagrams except that it only finds words in the specified order. Wildcards are permitted. The opportunities afforded by these two options should go a long way to solving all those crosswords and word puzzles that drive you mad.

Conclusion

Prospell is faster than any others I have used, but the real beauty of it is the extreme versatility in the ways you can use it, with what you can use it and the ease with which you can create and add to dictionaries.

Not only that, but it understands Queen's English, unlike most, if not all of the CP/M offerings, which are of American origin.

How fast is Prospell? This review is about 1,700 words long (unless the editorial Block Delete has been at work) and took 68 seconds to check from within Protext. This is more spectacular when one takes into account the time required to save files and reload into most of the other spelling checkers.

What are the shortcomings? Very few, and those that it does have are the same ones found in all other spelling checkers at present.
Until someone perfects artificial intelligence for computers, spelling checkers are just that. They cannot check the meaning of a word in context, so if you type in herd when you meant heard, the program will not recognise the error.

As with Arnor's other products, Prospell is a very professionally written program, user friendly and as far as I can see, entirely bug free. Anyone looking for a spelling checker need look no further than Prospell..

ACU #8604

★ PUBLISHER: ARNOR
★ YEAR: 1986
★ CONFIG: 128K + CP/M or PCW
★ LANGUAGE:
★ LiCENCE: COMMERCIALE
★ AUTHOR(S): ???
★ PRICE: £24.95 (DISK) ; £34.95 (ROM)

★ AMSTRAD CPC ★ DOWNLOAD ★

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L'Amstrad CPC est une machine 8 bits à base d'un Z80 à 4MHz. Le premier de la gamme fut le CPC 464 en 1984, équipé d'un lecteur de cassettes intégré il se plaçait en concurrent  du Commodore C64 beaucoup plus compliqué à utiliser et plus cher. Ce fut un réel succès et sorti cette même années le CPC 664 équipé d'un lecteur de disquettes trois pouces intégré. Sa vie fut de courte durée puisqu'en 1985 il fut remplacé par le CPC 6128 qui était plus compact, plus soigné et surtout qui avait 128Ko de RAM au lieu de 64Ko.