Bug#271868: openoffice.org: Spellchecking no longer works With the latest installed version of OpenOffice.org, spellchecking does not work correctly out of the box. Furthermore, OO.org gives no errors or inclination that anything is wrong. The issue is that oo.org cannot find the writing aids to perform spellchecking, hyphenation, and the thesarus. Normally, it searches for them in /usr/lib/openoffice/share/dict/ooo. The directory isn't even created, despite the fact a fresh install of openoffice.org refers to it. Upon installing the required dependenices packages, that directory remains empty. The packages install their data in /usr/share/my spell/dicts, and run update-openoffice-dicts to update the dictionary.lst file. The only error that can be created is by going to Tools -> Options -> Openoffice.org -> Paths, and modifiying the 'Writing Aids' path, you'll get a message complaining that /usr/lib/openoffice/share/dict doesnt' exist, and then it'll specify a new path. However, specifying /usr/share/myspell/dicts will not work, as oo.org wants the files in a subdirectory ooo/ of the given directory.

["Adam R. Skutt" <askutt@wnec.edu>]

Package: openoffice.org
Version: 1.1.2-3
Severity: grave
Justification: renders package unusable

I see two possible solutions:
1. Fix update-openoffice-dicts to create symlinks in 
   /usr/lib/openoffice/share/dict
2. Fix oo.org to refer to /usr/share/myspell/dicts by default and not 
  require the ooo subdirectory.

I was able to make spellchecking working by manually creating the proper 
directores under /usr/lib/openoffice.

I filed this as grave because the error isn't readily apparent and 
oo.org gives no inclination that there is actually a problem, which is 
dangerous and misleading behavior.

Adam Skutt
<askutt@wnec.edu>

-- System Information:
Debian Release: 3.1
  APT prefers unstable
  APT policy: (500, 'unstable')
Architecture: i386 (i686)
Kernel: Linux 2.6.8-1-k7-smp
Locale: LANG=en_US, LC_CTYPE=en_US

Versions of packages openoffice.org depends on:
ii  dictionaries-common [openoffi 0.22.53    Common utilities for spelling dict
ii  openoffice.org-bin            1.1.2-3    OpenOffice.org office suite binary
ii  openoffice.org-debian-files   1.1.2-3+2  Debian specific parts of OpenOffic
ii  openoffice.org-l10n-en [openo 1.1.2-3    English (US) language package for 
ii  ttf-opensymbol                1.1.2-3    The OpenSymbol TrueType font

-- no debconf information