gSpell: Google Powered Spell Checking

As a former Windows user, I’ve often felt that the default Mac OS X spell checking utility leaves something to be desired. It’s not very accurate and often mistakes words. Surely by now we have conquered the ability to adequately spell check our documents?

Fortunately, Nathan Spindel created a free Mac OS X plugin called gSpell, which eliminates most of the problems associated with the default spell-checker, and adds an interesting twist.

Recently mentioned by John Gruber, gSpell is similar to the Google spell checking tool found in Gmail and Google Docs. Since Google collects data from millions of users, it’s bound to be more accurate than any desktop spell-checker, and can even correct names and colloquialisms (words like ain’t, gonna, etc.). It’s installed in ~Library/Services, but doesn’t appear in the services menu. To activate it, you select the text you want corrected and press command-shift-’.

Overall I think gSpell is a very worthy addition to any of your other writers’ tools, and really helps you leverage the wisdom of crowds to improve your penmanship. Also because the tool no longer requires Google API access, there’s now no limit to the amount of times or frequency you can probe Google for corrections. Keep in mind though, you will still need to be connected to the internet. Also, It doesn’t replace the default spell-checker, so there’s no reason not to try it, and remember: each time you make a search on Google, you’re making your spell-checker smarter.

gSpell is completely free and open source - so grab a copy and give it a shot.