Control AutoInput and AutoCorrect in OpenOffice Calc

An unexpected completion, a corrected word and a code converted to a number are different problems. Check the relevant setting instead of switching off every typing aid. A number format that displays leading zeros does not by itself preserve a code as text.

Scope and a safe test sheet

This exercise follows the Apache OpenOffice 4.1 Calc Guide, English desktop menus. The input behavior has not been newly executed in OpenOffice; dictionary contents, active language and saved preferences may differ on your computer. The steps below include acceptance checks rather than claiming a native result.

Use a blank practice workbook, not a shared production file. Before changing a preference, note its original state so you can restore it. Keep two separate test areas:

Cell	Purpose	Intended content
A1	Label column header	Location
A2	Existing completion candidate	North Warehouse
C1	Route column header	Route
C2	Literal two-hyphen route label	Bay–North
C3	Single-hyphen comparison	Bay-North

Enter the headers and A2 normally. Leave C2:C3 empty until you reach the punctuation test below.

AutoInput completes from the same column

The official Deactivating Automatic Changes section describes AutoInput as suggestions based on existing input in the same column. Its switch is Tools → Cell Contents → AutoInput; the check mark indicates whether it is enabled.

With AutoInput enabled, start typing North in A3 and inspect any completion before committing the cell. The exact point at which a suggestion appears is not guaranteed by this exercise. Press Escape to abandon the practice edit if it is not the label you want.

For a controlled comparison, clear only A3, switch AutoInput off, and type the complete intended text North Annex in A3. Commit the entry and inspect the cell’s input line: the intended value is exactly North Annex, not North Warehouse. Restore the original AutoInput setting after the comparison.

This is not a dropdown list of approved locations. If users must choose from a controlled vocabulary, use Data Validity lists instead. AutoInput being enabled or disabled does not establish that an entered location is valid.

AutoCorrect handles replacements and capitalization

If a word changes even though it is not a completion from another row, inspect Tools → AutoCorrect Options. The 4.1 Customizing Calc chapter, page 20 identifies this dialog as the place to investigate automatic changes. Spelling replacements, capitalization and quotation changes are distinct from AutoInput.

Read the Options and Replace tabs before changing anything. Record the setting responsible for the observed change and test only that setting in an unused cell. Do not delete a whole replacement table to investigate one word. Replacement entries and language settings may differ, so this tutorial does not promise that a particular misspelling will be corrected on every installation.

For a real identifier, compare the final committed text with the original source character by character. Undoing a recent change can help during the same editing session, but reopening a clean practice copy is the safer reset if you are unsure what changed.

Test one punctuation option, not every typing aid

A route label with two hyphens is a useful controlled example because its characters can be counted independently. In Tools → AutoCorrect Options → Options, record the current Replace dashes setting, then switch that option off. Leave unrelated options unchanged.

Type Bay–North into C2 and Bay-North into C3, using the ordinary keyboard hyphen. Commit each cell and inspect its input line. C2 should retain two adjacent hyphens; C3 should retain one. Use these checks in unused cells:

Formula	Expected result with the intended literal text
=LEN(C2)	10
=EXACT(C2;"Bay--North")	TRUE
=LEN(C3)	9
=EXACT(C3;"Bay-North")	TRUE

The independent counts are 3 letters + 2 hyphens + 5 letters = 10, versus 3 + 1 + 5 = 9. EXACT compares the actual characters; LEN alone cannot tell you which punctuation character is present.

The official Inserting Dashes section documents conversion of the compact two-hyphen pattern to an em dash when Replace dashes is enabled. A single hyphen between the two text parts is documented as unchanged. Thus a converted Bay—North has length 9, but it is not the same string as Bay-North, which also has length 9.

If you want to compare the enabled behavior, switch Replace dashes on and type the same two labels into fresh cells C5:C6. Inspect the committed text. If C5 becomes Bay—North, =EXACT(C5;C2) should be FALSE even though the labels look similar at a glance. If no substitution occurs, do not manufacture the expected result: check your installed Help and the active settings. This exercise has not established the exact substitution timing on your build.

For an input mutation, with Replace dashes off again, replace C2 with Bay–South. The length remains 10, but =EXACT(C2;"Bay--North") must become FALSE. Restore Bay–North and confirm TRUE. This demonstrates why equal lengths are not proof of equal labels.

Restore settings and diagnose the remaining problem

Restore AutoInput and Replace dashes to the states you recorded. Changing a preference is not the same as fixing text already entered: inspect and correct that text separately from the original source. Do not assume closing the practice workbook resets application preferences.

• A place name is completed unexpectedly: inspect AutoInput and same-column entries first, rather than the spelling replacement table.
• Punctuation changes but the completion switch is off: inspect the relevant AutoCorrect option. Turning off AutoInput does not turn off AutoCorrect.
• Two labels both have length 9 but do not match: compare the literal characters with EXACT. A single hyphen and an em dash are different characters.
• A leading zero disappears or a date-like code is interpreted as a date: use the separate preserve product identifiers guide. Text interpretation is not the same problem as AutoInput or punctuation replacement.
• Only imported text is wrong: use the semicolon CSV and text-column import guide. Do not expect a typing preference to repair an earlier import.

The string counts and equality expectations were independently checked. They are not native execution evidence. No new GUI input test, screenshot, dictionary comparison, workbook reopen test or cross-application guarantee accompanies this documentation-qualified exercise.