asked 2012-04-19 15:59:03 +0200
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One of the features most obviously missing in LibreOffice Writer (or opaque to this user, at least) is the capacity to use a wildcard in auto-correct entries. For instance, if I attempt to set up an auto-correct entry to take three periods and change to an ellipsis (which is a standard typographical convention), it is not possible to type "[wildcard]..." and have the software do the auto-correct, as there is no wildcard. In auto-correct, there needs to be a space typed before the "..." for things to work, which issues in text that is just not proper typography. This is frustrating for a writer.
There are similar problems with convincing the software to perform an auto-correct on analogous text, e.g., try to set up an auto-correct to change "--" to an em dash at the end of a word, or between two words, and the auto-correct feature just will not work: a space has to be typed before the text, which is actually not the proper typographical convention.
This, it seems to me, would be most easily fixed by the simple expedient of having a wildcard available in the auto-correct feature. As it is, the auto-correct feature in Writer is simply unsatisfactory.
Check this answer ->(http://ask.libreoffice.org/en/question/7663/lo-writer-insert-special-characters-by-shortcut/?answer=7693#post-id-7693) and
(http://ask.libreoffice.org/en/question/3527/special-characters/?answer=3579#post-id-3579)
May the answers there are adaptable to your situation.
answered 2012-04-21 15:28:12 +0200
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That is helpful, thank you. However, as what I want to be able to do is thus confirmed as one, at least, of the conventions, it would be helpful still to know whether or not there is a work-around in Writer. I do find it odd that the extensive list of "regular expressions" that are so helpful in a complex search and replace cannot be called upon at all in auto-correct. The upshot is that the latter is hobbled.
I am a new user, however, so I may be missing something.
answered 2012-04-20 04:35:11 +0200
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While you may have a valid issue with regards to whether or not a wildcard character should be allowed in the autocorrect list, your use of the terms ‘proper typography’ and ‘proper typographical convention’ are IMO generalisations. Typography is a complex response to a situation at hand that involves the font in use as well as many other typesetting parameters. It depends on how the characters are drawn/designed in the font being used and the writing convention (style guide) employed.
I generally find that some sort of space is required prior to a HORIZONTAL ELLIPSIS (Ux2026) in most instances. For best results it is sometimes necessary to make use of one of the many forms of space in the General Punctuation range (Ux2000-2006f), such as THIN SPACE (Ux2009) or HAIR SPACE (Ux200a) in combination with the WORD JOINER (Ux2060) to prevent undesirable line breaking. Having said that, there are some instances where no spacing gives the desired appearance. The same applies for the EM DASH (Ux2014) and numerous other punctuation characters.
These are really typesetting matters that a publisher, rather than author, would be concerned about. Some examples of typographical opinions by experts on whether to include a space (or not) prior to an ellipsis can be found here and here.
Hi @beachycove,
Sounds like your best bet is to file an enhancement bug and ask for the ability to use regexp in Auto-correct. Don't forget to mark your bug as an 'enhancement'. The QA team will be happy to help you triage your feature request in the bugtracker.
Please post a link to any bugs you file in a comment below using the format "fdo#123456".
Thanks!
answered 2012-04-22 05:42:28 +0200
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Re. the wildcard matter in the autocorrect list, it will likely never be possible without some sort of hack (probably via an extension) as the Replace and With lists are entirely inclusive, in regular expression terms. Let's say the asterisk is what is used for a wildcard and that you could use it in the autocorrect feature. The problem is that the underlying autocorrect code will treat replace *... (asterisk and three dots) with … (ellipsis) as substituting four characters with one. This replacement configuration would effectively say (in regular expression terms) that it does not matter what the first of the four characters in the pattern-matching is. Finding (using a wildcard) and replacing are not the same thing. It is generally not possible to replace using a wildcard i.e. replace *... (asterisk and three dots) with *… (asterisk and ellipsis).
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Asked: 2012-04-19 15:59:03 +0200
Seen: 289 times
Last updated: Mar 14
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