edski@mot.UUCP (Ed Skinner) (12/24/85)
I purchased a copy of the Turbo/Lightning product from a local bookstore a couple of days ago. I was a little surprised to see it there at all - I'd >> (Lightning caught "surprized" in the previous line) thought that Borland was direct-selling it only. Regardless, I paid $74.95 (a 25% discount) and so I was very pleased! (I have version 1.00A) I installed it on my IBM-PC/XT (hard disk), and put it into the most comprehensive mode it supports. Lightning uses two dictionaries - One is RAM-resident, and is used on a keystroke-by-keystroke basis to check your typing. Three versions of this dictionary are available. The second "kind" of dictionary is disk resident, and there are two variants - One is for a floppy-based system, and the other (larger) one is for hard-disk systems. I configured my system for the largest RAM dictionary and the hard-disk >> (Lightning says "configured" is not a word. A "made up" word in the computer-arena, no doubt. I couldn't find "configured" in any good dictionary either. Guess there ain't no such beast! Thanks, Lightning!) (largest) disk resident dictionary. I AM IMPRESSED! The "as you type" spelling checker is pretty good. I do not notice any added delay in my typing, and I'm a pretty good typist (40 WPM). However, I suspect that I'm not typing at that rate when I make up things "on the fly" such as I'm doing right now. Perhaps if I were transcribing something already written, I might notice a delay. (I suspect not - But I could be wrong.) The RAM-resident dictionary is not as comprehensive as the disk version. Consequently, Lightning will often beep a misspelling as I type, but will tell me the word is "correct" when I explicitly tell it to check the spelling. Annoying, but survivable. >> (Lightning says "survivable" isn't a word. I'll use it anyway.) Sometimes, if I don't want to be bothered with spelling checks, I'll turn off the "as you go" checking, and check a whole screen full later. The nice part is the built-in Thesaurus. If I place the cursor on a word and press AltF6, I get a list of possible synonyms. For example, >> (Lightning says "AltF6" isn't a word. More made up words!) Lightning lists synonyms for "computer" as "data processor, CPU, mainframe, minicomputer, chip, microcomputer, and calculator." Sometimes a word will not be in Lightning's vocabulary, and you will have to allow Lightning to find "something close" first, and then try to find a synonym for that. Nice! Lightning is pre-configured for several software programs, such as WordStar, Lotus 123, Microsoft Word, Reflex, Turbo Pascal, and several others. In these, if you "select" a synonym or an offered-word by the spelling checker, Lightning knows which keystrokes to send in to change your text. I.e., if you type in something and Lightning's speller beeps, you press AltF9 to check the spelling. Lightning will offer a list of words that it thinks you are trying to enter. If you select one of them, Lightning will emit the necessary keystrokes to, for example, WordStar, to erase the incorrectly spelled word, and insert the one you selected. (Of course, Lightning must be told which program is currently in use.) Lightning can be configured for programs other than the ones in its built-in list. However, it cannot be configured to work 100% with all editors. I use PCWrite (version 2.55, I think) and I must remember to >> ("PCWrite" is "not a word" - By the way, if I used "PCWrite" in my writing a lot, I'd add it to my own "auxiliary" dictionary which Lightning will allow me to create.) have PCWrite in insert mode when I ask Lightning to substitute a word. >> (Lightning caught "hve" instead of "have".) (PCWrite uses the ScrollLock key to switch between Insert and Overstrike modes, and Lightning apparently can't handle that key.) Similarly, the Unix editor "vi" also presents a problem in that it is so different that I have no idea how to set it up. (At the moment, I am using ProComm on my XT to dial-in to our VAX running System V. Our "postnews" cranks up "vi," and it is "vi" that I am using to create this review. Occasionally, Lightning will beep at me as it watches me typing to vi. (Oddly, it seems to think all sorts of words are wrong. Perhaps Procomm/VI/et all is just too much for the speller!) However, even though Lightning can't substitute words, I can still call up alternative spellings and synonyms while I'm dialed in. I just have to change the word myself instead of having Lightning do it.) >> (Strange. Lightning knows how to spell "Unix" and "XT," but not "Lightning's" - possessive case of Lightning.) Lightning will also allow you to turn off the "as you go" spelling checker, and to check a whole page (screen) full of text at a time. With "vi" I tend to use this mode of operation. I haven't tried Lightning on a floppy-disk based system. The disk look up is fairly fast on a Winchester disk - Perhaps five or ten seconds to find twenty synonyms. My gut feel is that on a floppy-based system, the amount of disk accessing would be unacceptable. But perhaps a smaller dictionary would be acceptable to many, and so the product would be OK in that situation. >> (Lightning takes about 24 seconds to "spell check" a full display of words. It appears to be using the disk resident dictionary for this. During the scan, a "marker" shows you where Lightning is working. Any words which are apparently misspelled are highlighted. When you press another key, all low/highlighting returns to what it was before.) Lightning won't catch semantic errors, such as using "there" for "their." Nor is it a substitute for a dictionary. Lightning is a (damn good) spelling checker and synonym finder which is THE MOST USEFUL TOOL I HAVE for writing. In conjunction with a good editor, such as WordStar or PCWrite, Lightning allows me to stay out of my hard-copy dictionary, and concentrate on what I'm trying to say. Lightning is NOT copy protected. The license agreement says, in part, "this software may be used by any number of people and may be freely moved from one computer location to another - so long as there is NO POSSIBILITY of it being used at one location while it's being used at another." Now that's clear to me, and for the price I think (and hope) that people will respect Borland's rights. It's cheap, does what it claims, provides real value, and doesn't brow-beat you with copyright notices and protection schemes that scare the hell out of your hard-disk which you should have backed up six weeks ago, but you still haven't! Bravo, Borland! You've done it again! -- ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ihnp4!allegra!seismo!terak!mot!edski --or-- motsj1!mot!edski Ed Skinner, Motorola, 2900 S Diablo Way, Tempe Az 85282, (602)438-3064
mat@amdahl.UUCP (Mike Taylor) (12/26/85)
> >> (Lightning says "configured" is not a word. > >> (Lightning says "survivable" isn't a word. I'll use it anyway.) I think these are both words - i.e. form part of the commonly used language with well defined meanings. Try a technical dictionary, such as the IEEE dictionary. I had just this argument with 'decoupled' the other day - not in dictionaries, but you know what it means - it is a technical term and was found in the IEEE dictionary. BTW, the Unix spell command let them through. -- Mike Taylor ...!{ihnp4,hplabs,amd,sun}!amdahl!mat [ This may not reflect my opinion, let alone anyone else's. ]