max 1KB size for CUSTOM.DIC

so, Unicode instead of ANSI.

finally someone gave me an answer

thanks a lot, Carlos.




"Carlos_JFC" wrote:

> Hi Lil,
>
> This is a bit late, but I used to have a similar problem for ages when
> spell-checking technical docs in Spanish. This worked for me:
>
> I created a new custom dict and, after trying unsuccessfully to spell-check
> a document (I could not add more than 20 words, or so, to the custom
> dictionary), I went to the location of the custom.dic file(C/Documents and
> Settings/User Name/Application Data/Microsoft/Proof), opened the dict file in
> Notepad and chose "Save as...", and in "Encoding" I selected "Unicode"
> instead of "ANSI".
>
> That did it!
> I hope this helps.
>
> --
> Carlos_JFC
>
>
> "Lil" wrote:
>
> > Dear people:
> >
> > Since one or two months I've been experiencing an annoying trouble in my
> > CUSTOM.DIC. I have MS Office 2003 on XP, and I use it a lot to write
> > technical reports for my job and university. So I wrote many entries in
> > my own dictionary (called then BioChem.dic), but never as many as 5.000
> > (which is the maximum size, as far as I know after visiting in some
> > troubleshooting forums). One day, after adding a new entry, all
> > dictionary, everyone of the approx. 300 entries, disappeared. I was not even
> > able to restore using restoration tools, like Handy Recovery or so. I
> > definitely lost
> > that dictionary.
> >
> > I've tried several ways to fix this recurrent problem. Note that:
> > - I did not installed anything new.
> > - I have my PC up to date and with no malware at all that could be
> > corrupting my dict.
> > - I have already tried to re-install and repair all MS Office: first
> > "detecting and repairing", later reinstalling it from the beginning.
> > - I have already tried the posted solution consisting in renaming
> > MSSPELL3.DLL to MSSPELL3.OLD ... and the rest of the solution steps
> > [published in MS official page].
> > - I have already changed the default dictionary language.
> > - I have already changed the path where MS Office saves and reads the
> > dictionaries.
> > In my case, it was in: C:\Documents and
> > Settings\_MYUSERNAME_\Configuración local\Datos de
> > programa\Microsoft\Proof
> > (which in Spanish stands for: C:\Documents and
> > Settings\_MYUSERNAME_\Local\Application Data\Microsoft\Proof )
> >
> > I then placed the dict (and told Word to do so) to the following
> > independent-of-user directory:
> > C:\Archivos de programa\Archivos comunes\Microsoft Shared\PROOF
> > (in Spanish that stands for C:\Program Files\Common Files\MS Shared\Proof)
> >
> > - I tried everything: adding one word, erasing it, editing the ___.dic
> > (CUSTOM.DIC, PERSONAL.DIC, WHATEVER.DIC...)
> > in Notepad, in Wordpad,
> > via Word application, and also via Power Point,
> >
> > - I tried erasing every dic and then restore them, ... almost every
> > "trivial" solution in my hands and capabilities, and also every suggest
> > found in the web, in wiki, in google, in your forums, in MS support
> > page... result: NOTHING. All the entries disappear after adding the 21st
> > (or 23rd... really unpredictable) word.
> >
> > I explain in detail the strange behaviour I detected:
> > For some reason, now, my *.dic (no matter the name; custom.dic or any
> > other one) cannot hold more than 20-25 entries... and the longer are
> > the words, then, when adding a new one, the earlier it eliminates
> > everything. I have a hypothesis, but no idea on how to solve it (or even
> > if it is true). I think that, fore some unknown reason, my dict has a
> > minimum size established somewhere else (not in Word; maybe in the
> > Win Registry? not in normal.dot, as far as I know) of about 1KB (and... why
> > so little? if it were at least 64 KB, as it should be, I could hold a
> > "respectable amount of entries" dict).
> > So, after adding the first 10-15 words, depending on the length (if
> > they're short --2 letters-- I guess I can add 100 entries). Then, when it is
> > reaching
> > the maximum size limit, suddenly, (some times with an error msg,
> > sometimes WITHOUT warning msg), the whole wordslist disappear. As if it had
> > never existed. No tracks. Nothing.
> >
> > And this "erased file" it's "unrestorable" (I mean, one can erase files,
> > but then use a restoration utility that totally or partially recovers
> > the file).
> >
> > No matter if I hide the folder containing it (changing its folder
> > attributes), no matter if I set the dict file as read-only (in this case, the
> > dict would be static and its functionality, quite limited).
> >
> > I wouldn't be writing to you if I hadn't search by myself long enough...
> > but at this moment it seems impossible to me. And (i know it is not of
> > your matters), but I have to submit an important paper for my research
> > group and also for a University Proffessor... and having a dict is quite
> > effective for that kind of technical texts. Hummm... it is essential.
> >
> > The only relevant issues I found on the web that are related with this
> > specific behavior are the following. One person who referred the same
> > problem as me, much more synthetic, I recognize
> > ____________
> > > My custom dictionary can not hold more than about 25 words. I would like to
> > > add many more. How do I increase the size of the custom dictionaries?
> > __________
> >
> > I think the fix to this problem is in:
> > http://support.microsoft.com/?kbid=813996 (if it could help you).
> > Apparently, this person followed the solution provided by one member of
> > your MVPS group and worked for him/her (obviously NOT for me). The
> > solution was provided, by Suzanne S. Barnhill (as published in that MS
> > newsgroup); thank you, Suzanne, and thank you all people for being there
> > and try to help us, to help all the community, with your vast knowledge
> > and easy explanations.
> >
> > Do you think it will be a solution for this 1KB-limit-size problem? It's
> > just exasperating editing a big dict and then see that it is destroyed
> > without leaving traces... (it is completely ERASED, ANNIHILATED, no
> > restoration utility could help me...)
> > I know, (and that is what I'll do in the future), that I should backup
> > my dict files... but I think that's worthy when one has at least a 200-word
> > dict,
> > but, not for 20 (the largest one I can opt for)...
> >
> > And the other reference I found in the web to my problem is found in the
> > following google.book:
> > "Word Annoyances: How to Fix the Most Annoying Things About Your
> > Favorite Word Processor"... Autor Guy Hart-Davis (pag. 113:
> > "Protect your Custom Dict"; there is the referred problem, but for a
> > standard size of 64KB)
> >
> > but the only solution provided in the mentioned book is to keep frequent
> > backups of the dictionaries. It is not really a solution; it would better be
> > an unefficient,
> > uncomfortable and annoying patch (it is unpredictable when a dict is
> > going to erase previous words... it does not give even the posibility of
> > UNDO).
> >
> > I think this is a "nice problem" (at least, it is challenging so I
> > address it to you. Could anyone of you help me? It would be great for
> > me...
> >
> > Excuse for my English, and thank you for being out there and for helping
> > so much people. And, of course, thanks for having reading up to this
> > sentence
> >
> > My best regards,
> >
> > Lil