Grammar checker works for other docs but doesn't for one

[leighmackay]

Hi.

I'm working on a large document. Yesterday the grammer checker worked.
Today it doesn't. Specifically, I'm wanting the Flesch-Kincaid Grade
Level reading. The option works fine in other documents I try, but it
has stopped working for my current project.

Thoughts appreciated.

 

[Daiya Mitchell]

Check the language assigned to the text. Directions here:
http://daiya.mvps.org/spelling.htm#Misspelled

Are you saying the entire grammar check has quit, or just the Grade Level
part?

 

[leighmackay]

It would appear that the entire grammar check has quit for this
document. Other documents still have the grammar function and grade
level.

Leigh

 

[leighmackay]

I checked out the information in the "Language" link. No help there.
Tried the suggestions but no fix.

If I copy text out of the document and paste it into a new doc, grammar
and grader work.

The doc I'm working on is 243 pages and counting. Could that be a
factor?

Leigh

 

[Daiya Mitchell]

Sometimes for very long documents with a lot of errors, Word will give a
message that it cannot handle doing the "spelling/grammar as you type"
check, and the red/green lines will go away. But 243 pages is not really
that long, and it shouldn't affect running Tools | Spelling and Grammar
anyhow. (e.g., I've gotten that message on 800 pages of sentence fragments
and eighteenth century spelling)

Your problem sounds very strange to me.

When you went to Tools | Language, what language was assigned? Exactly which
suggestions did you try? Did you try selecting all and assigning a
language, and making sure the "do not check" box was neither checked nor had
a line in it?

You might as well just create a new doc and copy the entire thing in, since
that works. It might be easier to open up a new doc and then use Insert |
File to get the old doc in, but that might also bring the defective
formatting.

It's also possible that the document has gone corrupt, in which case follow
these tips:
http://word.mvps.org/MacWordNew/DocumentCorruption.htm
(hit reload a few times in Safari, if that doesn't work, try Explorer)


DM

 

[leighmackay]

Ah ha! Brilliant!

I checked the suggested webpage indicated below. None of the procedures
worked, but number 3 made me think of checking by halves.

I copied the first half of the document and pasted it into a new
document. Everything worked perfectly.
I did the same steps with the second half. Grade level function broke.
With the next slice, I was able to locate the source of the problem--a
text box.

I won't go into a rant about text boxes. I'll just say that at
companies and corporations I've worked with, I've encouraged people not
to use text boxes. They're problematic. There isn't anything you can do
with a textbox that you can't do with a table with much more control.

Anyway, Daiya, thank you for helping me to put things right. I don't
know why I didn't think of that on my own. I've debugged enough Word
docs, I should have thought to try the "by halves" trick right away.

Cheers,
Leigh