I'm not sure I understand LibreOffice Language Packs on MacOS - where is my Spanish?

[reallydismayed1]

I’m not sure I understand Language Packs on MacOS (10.15.7). I want to be able to spell-check my documents in either GB English or Spanish. I want my user interface always in GB English.

So I downloaded these files:
LibreOffice_7.6.2.1_MacOS_x86-64_langpack_en-GB.dmg
LibreOffice_7.6.2.1_MacOS_x86-64_langpack_es.dmg

I opened them both one after the other. In both cases, a folder opens which contains a folder called “LibreOffice Language Pack.app”.

The readme folder is useless for MacOS:

• macOS 10.15 (Catalina) o más reciente

Asegúrese de que tenga memoria disponible suficiente en el directorio temporal del sistema y compruebe que cuente con los privilegios de acceso de lectura, escritura y ejecución. Cierre todos los demás programas antes de comenzar el proceso de instalación.

I copied both “LibreOffice Language Pack.app” to folder Applications, where the second one got a slightly different name.

I ran the GB English one and then the Spanish one.

In LibreOffice, with a document open, I went to Tools → Language → For All Text → and it offers me English (USA) and English (UK). That bit is OK and works, but what happened to my Spanish option?

[EarnestAl]

Here is a FAQ for adding languages to spell check, How to install extra dictionaries?

[reallydismayed1]

OK, I read that. Now I’m confused by this:

To get to this Extension Manager, click on the Tools menu option and then the Extensions option in the bottom section of that menu option list. At this point, you click on the “Add button” and browse through your computer’s drive system. At that point, you click on the .oxt extension file [be it a dictionary, template, gallery, or other .oxt file] and click on the “Open button”. Then you follow the automated steps to complete the installation of the .oxt extension.

Does that mean that when I click “Add”, the file I want is already on my computer and I just have to guess where it is?

[EarnestAl]

@reallydismayed1

what happened to my Spanish option?

Have you set the Spanish text as Spanish? Select the Spanish text and set the language in the status bar at the bottom of the screen to Spanish.
.
You might find the Writer Guide helpful, there is a Mac edition for 7.2 but still relevant for 7.6i think, download from English documentation II | LibreOffice Documentation - LibreOffice User Guides

[reallydismayed1]

@EarnestAl

Have you set the Spanish text as Spanish? Select the Spanish text and set the language in the status bar at the bottom of the screen to Spanish.

An option for Spanish does not appear. Only English (USA) and English (UK).

[EarnestAl]

@reallydismayed1

I went to Tools → Language → For All Text → and it offers me English (USA) and English (UK).

If you select some Spanish text and click Tools > Language > For Selection and click the More Option, then in the Western pane in the Language field, can you select Spanish?
If so, does it have a green tick to show the spell check dictionary for Spanish is installed?
Or
In this sample there are 3spelling errors introduced in the Spanish text, are they underlined?
SpellCheckSpanish.odt (31.6 KB)

If you cannot detect the spelling errors then the dictionary has not been installed.
You can download the es.oxt here, Spanish Spellchecker » Libreoffice Extensions.
Then click Tools > Extensions and click the Add button. Navigate to and select the .oxt file that you just downloaded and click Open.

[reallydismayed1]

@EarnestAl

If you select some Spanish text and click Tools > Language > For Selection and click the More Option, then in the Western pane in the Language field, can you select Spanish?

Yes, after I added some Spanish text to the document! I was not expecting that. The option for Spanish remains available even after I delete all the Spanish text. (But not by clicking More which leads to an irrelevant dialogue box. I suspect you may be using a different version of LibreOffice from mine.)

@EarnestAl

If so, does it have a green tick to show the spell check dictionary for Spanish is installed?

No, the tick is black. (I put more Spanish text back in order to test that. See image.)

What baffles me is that, without me doing anything, an option for Portuguese has appeared.

@EarnestAl

You can download the es.oxt here, Spanish Spellchecker » Libreoffice Extensions.

Would that be a different dictionary from the one I appear to have installed by using the Spanish Language Pack?

@EarnestAl

Then click Tools > Extensions and click the Add button. Navigate to and select the .oxt file that you just downloaded and click Open.

Is there any convention about where to place .oxt files on a Macintosh?

[EarnestAl]

OK. You have tested Spanish and it works; nothing more to do.

[mikekaganski]

It still feels odd. The “_langpack_es.dmg” is advertized as “UI” pack (see download page), so it is expected to provide a UI language, not only a set of dictionaries. Of course, it’s 7.6, so it could be a problem of that old version.

[reallydismayed1]

@EarnestAl

OK. You have tested Spanish and it works

And thanks for your help. Still got lots of questions but they can wait a little.

[reallydismayed1]

@mikekaganski

It still feels odd. The “_langpack_es.dmg” is advertized as “UI” pack (see download page), so it is expected to provide a UI language, not only a set of dictionaries.

Yes, perhaps I should not have installed two language packs. Maybe I confused it. I didn’t read the manual, I just saw “language pack” and thought aha, that’s what I need.

It’s clever that I select some Spanish text and it recognises it as Spanish and decides it needs to offer me Spanish spell checking. Maybe that’s how the Portuguese version popped up.

By the way, I still can’t select UK English as my UI language.