Bug 132294 - automatically recognize language
Summary: automatically recognize language
Status: RESOLVED DUPLICATE of bug 91766
Alias: None
Product: LibreOffice
Classification: Unclassified
Component: Linguistic (show other bugs)
Version:
(earliest affected)
7.0.0.0.alpha0+
Hardware: All All
: medium enhancement
Assignee: Not Assigned
URL:
Whiteboard:
Keywords: needsUXEval
: 133117 (view as bug list)
Depends on:
Blocks:
 
Reported: 2020-04-21 09:52 UTC by giors_00
Modified: 2020-09-14 13:11 UTC (History)
7 users (show)

See Also:
Crash report or crash signature:


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Description giors_00 2020-04-21 09:52:27 UTC
Description:
In a multi-language text, spellchecker mark as a mistake a word written in a different language and you have to set the language manually for each one. 

It would be great if you could opt for a multi-language approach. Having marked your text as "multi-language", spellchecker can be allowed to correct your text using all (specified) installed dictionaries. 

So, for example, if I have installed Spanish and English dictionaries, once marked the text as multi-language, english and Spanish words that fit with the spanish AND English dictionaries should be considered correct without any need to manually specify to what language does each word correspond.  

Steps to Reproduce:
Now in a multi-language text, you have to manually specify the language of each word

Actual Results:
Spellchecker mark as a mistake correct words written in a different languages

Expected Results:
1.mark a text as "multi-language", selecting what languages are involved
2.libreoffice spellchecker automatically use all selected dictionaries without the need to specify the language of each word.


Reproducible: Always


User Profile Reset: No



Additional Info:
Consider that word written in a different language that fit in the installed dictionary is correct.
Comment 1 Buovjaga 2020-08-27 16:02:38 UTC
*** Bug 133117 has been marked as a duplicate of this bug. ***
Comment 2 Buovjaga 2020-08-27 16:03:43 UTC
Pinging UX team.

Duplicate also has some ideas.
Comment 3 Heiko Tietze 2020-09-10 13:37:29 UTC
Would prefer a Spanish+English user dictionary rather than messing around with the application. Makes no sense to plug-in various dictionaries and ignore the language of the text. Other opinion, Mike?
Comment 4 V Stuart Foote 2020-09-10 13:51:19 UTC
The use case has merit, we're not translating--just spellchecking. 

Designating a paragraph as multi-language, and then pick list, or F7 dialog, assigning a couple of dictionaries to spell-check against seems useful.

Don't we do similar now user-defined 'Technical', 'Ignored words', 'Standard' in addition the dictionary for the designated paragraph specific language.
Comment 5 Mike Kaganski 2020-09-10 14:36:23 UTC
We don't only check spelling of separate words, but also some rules (see e.g. English Sentence Checking in Options|Language Settings); they are language-specific. Additionally, there are grammar checkers like LanguageTool that use more involved rules. And even in simplest case, a word that is OK in one language is not necessarily OK in another, so using all installed dictionaries potentially results in too forgiving check.

We already have built-in mechanism for using input language from system for entered text. That allows user to switch the input language using normal OS method (e.g., Shift+Alt)? and LibreOffice follows. In countries like Russia, where Cyrillic keyboard layout is necessarily different from Latin layout, users are used to that, and you couldn't enter an English word without switching keyboard layout *and* input language at the same time. In case one wants to switch between two Roman languages, possibly people don't use that, and keep typing characters of a different language without doing anything to change input language ... but they can set it up, and have it working. At least on Windows, see tdf#108151.
Comment 6 jonathon 2020-09-10 18:20:53 UTC
> Additional Info:
> Consider that word written in a different language that fit in the installed dictionary is correct.

Consider the following sentence:
"Die Man in Die Bad."

In one language, it has one major grammatical error.
In a related language, it has minor spelling errors.
In a second related language, it has no spelling or grammatical errors.
In a third related language, the only way to make sense of it, is to guess at what the correct spelling of each word is, and then rearrange them to be grammatically correct.

Is being wrong in three out of four instances is a desirable feature?
Comment 7 giors_00 2020-09-10 22:28:16 UTC
Well I am just an end user but I would consider two possible approaches:

1. if you select the option "autodetect" libreoffice automatically detect the language of each word among installed dictionaries. So spellchecker switch the dictionary automatically. Obviously manual language selection should always be available.

2. if you mark the option "multi language" then libreoffice will not mark as a mistake any word considering all selected dictionaries (by user).

Option 1 seem better to me. But I insist: I am a final user not programmer.

Thank for your attention
Comment 8 Heiko Tietze 2020-09-14 13:11:47 UTC
(In reply to giors_00 from comment #7)
> 1. if you select the option "autodetect" libreoffice automatically detect
> the language of each word among installed dictionaries. So spellchecker
> switch the dictionary automatically. Obviously manual language selection
> should always be available.

Sounds very desirable - and has been requested in bug 91766, 76974, 113298, and 63558 (quick search, not checking the details of every ticket).

*** This bug has been marked as a duplicate of bug 91766 ***