WSpell ActiveX Spelling Checker
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WSpell behaves like evaluation version

Problem: I had tried the WSpell evaluation version, then I purchased the retail version of WSpell. It still behaves like the evaluation version: a message reading "For evaluation only -- Not for production use" pops up each time I try to check spelling.

Discussion: WSpell is a licensed ActiveX control. WSpell uses licensing information to determine whether it is an evaluation version or commercial version. In "design mode," WSpell obtains this licensing information from a disk file on your development computer. When you use WSpell in an ActiveX control container such as Visual Basic or VC++, the control container asks WSpell for a copy of its licensing information at design time. The control container stores the licensing information somewhere, and gives it to WSpell at run time for validation. When you use the evaluation version of WSpell, the evaluation license information is stored by the control container. If you later purchase the retail version of WSpell, sometimes the control container continues to use the evaluation license information, causing WSpell to think it is still an evaluation version. (This licensing protocol was designed by Microsoft; it is common to all licensed ActiveX controls, not just WSpell.)

Solutions:

• Re-compile your application. Some control containers (e.g., Visual Basic) store the license information in the application's .EXE file. When you compile the application or make the .EXE file again, the current licensing information will be stored in the .EXE file.

• If you are using WSpell with Microsoft Visual C++, you may need to remove WSpell from the VC++ gallery then re-add it. When you add a licensed ActiveX control (such as WSpell) to the VC++ gallery, VC++ reads the control's licensing information. When you add the control to a project, VC++ places the licensing information in the project's .rc file. VC++ doesn't automatically change the licensing information in the .rc even if the .lic file changes. Because you tried the evaluation version of WSpell, VC++ stored the evaluation licensing information in your project's .rc file. Even though you now have the retail version of WSpell, the evaluation licensing information is still in your .rc file, so WSpell behaves as though it were still under evaluation. The solution is to remove WSpell from your project and from the VC++ component gallery, then re-add it to the gallery and to your project. VC++ will read the new licensing information and store that in the .rc file.

• You may need to remove WSpell from your development environment, then re-add it. How this is done depends on the specific programming language and development environment. Removing the control, then re-adding it, will sometimes cause the development environment to re-read the licensing information. You may need to contact the manufacturer of your programming language/compiler/development environment for specific instructions.

• If you are using WSpell with VB.NET or C#, the only way we have found to force VB.NET (or C#.NET) to re-load the licensing information is to remove all instances of WSpell from your project, then re-add new instances of WSpell with the sames names (e.g., if your project contained a form that had an instance of WSpell named "WSpell1", re-add WSpell to that form and assign it the name "WSpell1").

• If you moved wspell.ocx to a different directory in your development environment, it won't be able to find its licensing information. WSpell expects to find its licensing information in the same directory as wspell.ocx. This problem can also occur if you have two or more copies of wspell.ocx on your system.

• Some control containers do not support the ActiveX licensing protocol. If you are very knowledgeable about ActiveX and COM, you can implement the protocol yourself. Otherwise, you might want to use the Sentry Spelling Checker Engine instead, which is a DLL and does not use the licensing protocol. Contact Wintertree Software Sales for details.

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