Wintertree Spell Check Applet
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Most or all words reported as misspelled

Problem: Spell Check Applet reports every word as a misspelling, and no words appear in the suggestion list. Alternatively, all but very common words (e.g., "the" and "of") are reported as misspellings.

If you are evaluating Spell Check Applet, this problem can be a symptom of a license key error. Make sure you have set the license key exactly as provided using the instructions you received when you requested an evaluation copy of Spell Check Applet. If Spell Check Applet used to work but suddenly started reporting all words as misspelled, your evaluation license may have expired.

A very common cause of this problem is Spell Check Applet being unable to open its dictionaries. The applet uses its dictionaries to determine which words are spelled correctly. If the applet is unable to open all of its dictionaries, all words will be reported as misspelled. If the applet is unable to open one or more of its dictionary files, then some valid words may be reported as misspelled.

Spell Check Applet's dictionaries are files stored on the server. Spell Check Applet itself runs on the client system. When the applet first starts, it attempts to open and read the dictionary files from the server. The applet knows which dictionary files to load from the MainLexiconN parameters you configure. The applet expects to find the dictionary files in its CODEBASE, which by default is the directory on the server containing the applet's JAR file. The path between Spell Check Applet and its dictionary files is a long chain: The Java I/O software library used by the browser, the browser's security model, the browser itself, the networking software on the client system, the network (e.g., the Internet), the networking software on the server, the server software, and the server's operating system. Many things can go wrong in any part of this chain, and it can be difficult to diagnose the cause of a problem when one arises. Here are some common causes of this problem:

• The name of the dictionary file in the MainLexiconN parameter is misspelled. Example:

<PARAM NAME="MainLexicon2" VALUE="am100k2.cxl,url,c">

(The name should be am100k2.clx.)

• The parameter name make be misspelled. Example:

<PARAM NAME="MainLexcion2" VALUE="am100k2.clx,url,c">

(The parameter name should be MainLexicon2.)

• The parameter value may be malformed. Examples:

<PARAM NAME="MainLexicon2" VALUE="am100k2.clx,url">
<PARAM NAME="MainLexicon2" VALUE="am100k2.clx,c,url">

The parameter value should be:

<PARAM NAME="MainLexicon2" VALUE="am100k2.clx,url,c">

• The file format specifier may be incorrect for the type of dictionary file. Examples:

<PARAM NAME="MainLexicon2" VALUE="am100k2.clx,url,t">
<PARAM NAME="MainLexicon1" VALUE="am.tlx,url,c">

(Files with a ".clx" extension must have the "c" file format specifier, and files with a ".tlx" extension must have the "t" file format specifier.)

• The dictionary files may not be located in the applet's CODEBASE directory on the server. By default, the applet's CODEBASE directory is the directory where SpellCheckApplet.jar resides. The applet's CODEBASE can be changed by setting the CODEBASE tag in the HTML reference to the applet in the page which uses the applet. If the dictionary files are not located in the CODEBASE directory, Spell Check Applet will be unable to open them and all words will be reported as misspelled as a result.

• The server may prevent the dictionary files from being opened or read because of permissions or other security issues. Sometimes examining the server's access logs may explain why it refused to return the file.

• If the server supports virtual directories or aliases, the server may be mapping the applet's CODEBASE directory to a different directory, one which does not contain the dictionary files.

• The browser may be preventing the applet from opening the dictionary files for security reasons. Some browsers or browser versions will not allow reference to files located in higher level directories on the server, for example. If you have set the applet's MainLexiconN parameters to include a reference to a higher-level directory ("../" in the dictionary file path name), try moving the dictionary files to the same directory as the applet's JAR file and remove the "../" from the path name.

• The dictionary file may be corrupted. Dictionary files with a ".clx" extension are binary files, and must be transferred between systems in "binary" mode. Uploading these files to a server using FTP in ASCII or "Text" mode may corrupt them. Like any files, dictionary files can also become corrupted over time due to file system errors. Restoring the files from your original Spell Check Applet distribution may solve the problem.

• If your server runs Windows 2003 Server (IIS6), you may need to associate MIME "txt" type for files with ".clx" and ".tlx" extensions (the extensions used by Spell Check Applet's dictionaries). This can be done using Internet Services Manager in the HTTP Headers tab. Click on the New Type button and create new types for both .clx and .tlx, associated with .txt.

One way to diagnose file related issues is to view the am.tlx file from a browser. am.tlx is a text file. To view it, enter a URL like the following into your browser:

http://domain/appletpath/am.tlx

Substitute the actual domain you use to access content on your server for domain, and the path to Spell Check Applet's CODEBASE (or the directory containing its JAR file) for appletpath. For example, if Spell Check Applet's JAR file is located in directory forms/app under the server's root directory on www.mydomain.com, use the following URL:

http://www.mydomain.com/forms/app/am.tlx

If the browser is unable to open the file, Spell Check Applet will also be unable to open the file, and you must solve that problem first before the applet will work correctly. (You can also try this with am100k2.clx, but the contents will be gibberish because this is a binary file.)

If you are still unable to diagnose the cause of the problem after following the steps listed above, you can contact Wintertree Software's Support group for help. Before doing so, however, enable Spell Check Applet's Verbose parameter, re-run your test, and send your browser's Java console to the Support group for analysis.