Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Posting-Version: version B 2.10.2 9/18/84; site ames.UUCP Path: utzoo!watmath!clyde!burl!ulysses!allegra!mit-eddie!godot!harvard!seismo!umcp-cs!gymble!lll-crg!dual!ames!jaw From: jaw@ames.UUCP (James A. Woods) Newsgroups: net.research,net.unix,net.nlang Subject: Re: Webster's Second (234,936 word list) now ARPA-accessible Message-ID: <853@ames.UUCP> Date: Wed, 6-Mar-85 21:23:00 EST Article-I.D.: ames.853 Posted: Wed Mar 6 21:23:00 1985 Date-Received: Sat, 9-Mar-85 07:27:56 EST References: <848@ames.UUCP> Distribution: net Organization: NASA-Ames Research Center, Mtn. View, CA Lines: 24 Xref: watmath net.research:137 net.unix:3859 net.nlang:2682 # The word "accident" should be erased from the dictionary. -- Isaac Bashevis Singer, 1978 Loose ends: (1) The wordlist is just that, no definitions. You'll just have to wait until one of the copywronged databases (Wang owns the rights for the Random House Dictionary) shows up on one of those cute 550 MB digital CD ROMs. (2) It has been moved to the 'riacs-icarus.arpa' mail gateway to soothe a swamped time-sharing CPU. (Sorry, Dave!) (3) Four-to-one data compression is sub-optimal, I know. (I used, in addition to the incremental decoder [remember zippy.h, K.T.?], "compress -b12" so that machines with tiny address space can unbutton the list. (4) Good luck if you use it as a spelling detector/corrector list! The pitfalls induced by this are nicely discussed in M. D. McIlroy's "Development of a Spelling List", in IEEE Trans. Commun., January 1982. -- James A. Woods {hplabs,ihnp4}!ames!jaw (or jaw@riacs)