Understand PlanMaker Function-Language Settings

PlanMaker localizes function names with the user-interface language. The language used for spelling checks is a different setting. When a copied formula fails, check the function name, numeric separators and argument syntax separately rather than translating the entire worksheet.

What changes, and where?

This guide uses current PlanMaker 2026 desktop documentation plus SoftMaker’s official localization tip. Exact behavior on older versions, FreeOffice and mobile builds was not tested.

• File → Options → Appearance → Dialog language selects the interface language. In classic menus, begin with Tools → Options.
• File → Options → Language controls spelling and hyphenation. It is not documented as the function-name selector.
• File → Options → Edit → Number separators controls decimal and thousands characters, either from the system or a custom choice.

See Appearance settings, Language settings, and Edit settings. Record your existing settings before changing them. Program options apply beyond the current practice sheet, so do not change number separators just to make one pasted formula fit.

Check a function name without guessing

SoftMaker’s localized-function tip gives these names for the same sum function:

Interface language	Function name
English	SUM
French	SOMME
Spanish	SUMA

That official page also links a PlanMaker cross-reference workbook for looking up other names. Do not assume every function can be translated by translating an English word, or that an Excel translation list establishes every PlanMaker name.

Use a blank practice workbook with these values:

Cell	Value
A1	10
A2	20
A3	30

In English, =SUM(A1:A3) should return 60. In a French interface, the corresponding name is SOMME; in Spanish it is SUMA. A single contiguous range avoids the extra question of which character separates multiple function arguments.

Use the function dialog to find the local name

1. Select B1 and open Formula → Function → Function, or Insert → Function in classic menus.
2. Choose the sum function under its locally displayed name and double-click it to insert it in the dialog’s Formula field. Edit that field to sum A1:A3, then click Insert.
3. Check that B1 returns 60, then inspect the formula in the input field. Record the spelling selected from the application’s function list.
4. For a second check, create a sum of A1 and A3 only in B2. English help uses comma-separated arguments, as in =SUM(A1,A3). Use the verified local function name. B2 should be 40.
5. If that two-argument form is rejected, select the function in the dialog and press F1 to inspect its help before adjusting punctuation. The dialog has one Formula field; it is not a wizard with separate argument boxes. Keep a working local two-argument example as a reference for future pasted formulas.

The formula-entry guide documents the dialog and its F1 help. The menu paths are documented in the ribbon/classic mapping. This procedure avoids claiming one comma/semicolon rule works for every language and regional configuration. Do not confuse the colon in A1:A3, which denotes a range, with an argument separator.

If you deliberately switch interface languages

Save the practice workbook and record its two results first. Change Dialog language to your intended language, follow any application prompt, and inspect the formulas and results again. Use the dialog to recreate a test formula in a spare cell before editing a real model. Restore the original interface setting when finished if the switch was only a test.

The checkpoint is the numerical meaning: A1:A3 totals 60, while A1 and A3 total 40. A different displayed function name is not itself evidence that the calculation changed. Conversely, correct-looking text is not proof that the formula has been parsed and calculated.

Diagnose a pasted formula in small pieces

• Wrong function spelling: look up the localized name or insert it using the function dialog.
• Numbers interpreted incorrectly: inspect Number separators and the actual stored inputs. The examples above intentionally use integers to remove that complication.
• Formula remains plain text: check for a leading apostrophe and whether it was entered as text; try re-entering the formula in a fresh normal cell.
• Several arguments fail: rebuild a two-argument version locally and compare its punctuation. Never globally replace commas in a workbook: commas can also occur in decimal numbers, quoted text and other syntax.
• Only spelling behavior changes: you may have changed the Language tab rather than Appearance → Dialog language.

For the calculation itself, see the SUM guide. The goal here is localized entry, not a new SUM algorithm.

Testing note: Expected totals were independently calculated. The settings and localized-name examples were checked against official sources, but language switching and local formula entry were not tested in the application. No claim is made that every locale uses the same delimiter or exposes a separate formula-language override.