I believe the recent versions of LyX do have in-line spelling error highlighting, but it is a mistake to use it. I am a big LyX user and I never turn this on because it is a productivity killer. Here’s why: When you are entering information, you want to focus 100% of you mind on the information you want to express. The very worst time to fix spelling errors is while you are in text entry mode. It is a major distraction and causes context switches between the real information you need to express in words and the exact spelling of those words.

The LyX batch spelling check is highly productive for several reasons, 100% focus on spelling, really accurate prediction of the correct word and outstanding single click ergonomics. Word users ask for inline spelling – software makers have to meet these requests, but smart people don’t have to use brain dead features.

actually, Lyx DOES support inline spellcheck:
http://waluyo-adi-siswanto.blogspot.it/2011/12/lyx-spellchecker-in-ubu ntu-1110.html

:)

I agree that if you really want to learn LaTeX, you should start off with a plain text editor. But then you need 1. time 2. motivation 3. either a very patient teacher or a good does of geekiness.

If, OTOH, you just want your thesis to look good when you send it to the printers, LyX is great.

Of course, since I’d like everyone to eventually learn LaTeX, it would be nice if LyX was a bit “closer” to LaTeX (eg. let you edit LaTeX code directly instead of just “inserting” snippets, not use so many LyX-specific functions), but I realise it’s very hard to cater to both audiences.

I’m just really happy that I can be tech support for LyX instead of for Word. Life is so much better.

Ok so it seems you write a lot, i’m sure learning a complex language like LaTeX pays off big if you write a lot.

I’m lucky to write anything substantial (intended for printing) more than once a year. That means i’d effectively have to re-learn it again every time I used it, and since I don’t use it often enough I never learn it properly anyway. This ends up just being a big wasted investment in time, and the results aren’t worth it either (it’s hard to get the best out of something so complex if you’re no expert). It’s not just that i’m lazy, although I am that.

And microsoft word (or openoffice dot org, since it is just a clone) is pretty much in the same bucket for me. Horrid programs that are hard to use and even harder to get to do the job done with, if they can at all.

For a casual user (in terms of writing documents) like me, LyX is a real god-send. What it lacks in features it makes up for in stability and usability – I’d rather have those than any number of fancy features I rarely use. I get reasonable results with almost no effort, and without having to fight with stupid software.

I’ve been following the project for many years although I rarely use it – and when I try it out it’s always made incremental improvements whilst remaining solidly stable. More than can be said for most modern software. It’s no toy.

For me it’s the right tool for the job, but if I was working on to-be-printed documents more often then it might not be.

(well, it’s the right tool until someone wants to edit the result in microsoft word …).

For me the tool actually streamlines and optimizes the writing process. I know that I easily break my own flow when I start thinking about orthography. Being bilingual with English not being my native tongue does not help either. Sometimes I have a word in my head that I want to use, and I know it should be applicable in English because it has a Latin root. This is not always the case. The squiggly is often an instant indication that the word I’m stuck on does not fit and I probably should rephrase my sentence.

I guess it boils down to this – I know there are gaps in my English mastery. I speak with a funny accent and it is often detectable in my writing as well. Squiggles help me to quickly avoid obvious blunders and “remind” me how to spell certain words that I only use once in a blue moon.

If you are confident in your orthographic prowess you can probably remove the training wheels and spell check at the end. But I’m not, so I enjoy having them on. :)

Any particular reason you need an inline spell check rather than just hitting the spell checker button every so often? I kind of like the absence of squigglies…they break the typing zen LyX gives me when it takes away all the extraneous formatting while I’m composing. The spell check button definitely works…you just have to position your cursor *before* the text you want checked (so, at the beginning of the document for a whole-document check).

Your argument in favor of inline spelling for me is an example of joseph weiznebaum’s thesis that the tools one use alter your mind (remeber the old saying “For him whose only tool is a hammer everything looks like a nail” ?)

Writing a short message like this one inline spelling may be helpful but when i’m developing a serious argument i just don’t want my thinking broken and forced to jump to another level (orthograpy).

Caring for correct orthography is for me on the same level as caring for page lyout. I do it when the text is ready, when my arguments are clear.

So i’m one of the extremly satisfied Lyx user (sinc Lyx-1.1 I don’t even remember when i started using it after having used LaTeX for a long while) who prefers spell checking as a separate functionality.

Best regards

Hellmut

@ brunda:

Oh, nice. My Google Fu has failed me this time. I found lots of old feature requests and maling list posts on this topic. I did not check the wiki for some reason. Good catch.

Nice. Can’t wait for Lyx 2.0 now. I mean, I could probably grab the source from git, but meh..

Hi Luke, perhaps you should check LyX website before wasting your time with useless ranting. Its already implemented for many moths. Nice day.

>It seems that the developers are on the fence about the feature.

http://wiki.lyx.org/LyX/NewInLyX20#toc4

OK, interesting that the text-entry box swallowed the actual “<" tags I put into that last post to turn sarcasm on and off. Good to learn the value of the 'Preview' button…