The Online Plain Text English Dictionary

The Online Plain Text English Dictionary

OPTED is a public domain English word list dictionary, based on the public domain portion of "The Project Gutenberg Etext of Webster's Unabridged Dictionary" which is in turn based on the 1913 US Webster's Unabridged Dictionary. (See Project Gutenburg)

This version has been extensively stripped down and set out as one definition per line. All the Gutenburg EText tags and formatting have been removed by computer. Version 0.03 is a new processing of v0.47 of the websters dictionary and it has considerably fewer errors. Also the definition limit of 255 chars has been removed to give full justice of some of the more majestic of the originals. Some important errors in the parts-of-speech fields have been corrected and a lot of inflections/ alternatives and plurals that were missed due to software bugs in v0.01 and 0.02 are now included properly.

The dictionary is set as a word list with definitions, using minimal HTML markup. The only tags used are <P>, <B> and <I> and these serve to delimit the words (between <B>s) the part of speech or type (between <I>s) and the definitions (The rest of the line). Each entry is between a <P>, </P> pair. This will facilitate computer processing. The text was prepared on a macintosh, so the few accented and umlauted characters appear best if your browser is set to Western MacRoman encoding (this should look like an umlauted u : ü). If this causes problems and I get enough responses, I'll look into producing an ISO 8859-1 or even a Unicode version.

The dictionary can be viewed (with patience) directly online as you would a normal printed dictionary, otherwise a user can download the pages and process them in some way on their own machine. The only usage conditions are that if the material is redistributed, the content (not the formatting) remain in the public domain (ie free) and that the content be easily accessible in non-encoded plain text format at no cost to the end user. The origin of the content should also be acknowledged, including OPTED, Project Gutenburg and the 1913 edition of Webster's Unabridged Dictionary. If the material is to be included in commercial products, Project Gutenburg should be contacted first. There are no restrictions for personal or research uses of this material.

OPTED v0.03 by Letter(size)

Second computer generated version:

A(1.1M) | B(1005k) | C(1.6M) | D(1M) | E(809k) | F(784k) | G(564k) | H(686k) | I(833k) | J(172k) | K(172k) | L(637k) | M(931k) | N(343k) | O(466k) | P(1.5M) | Q(147k) | R(931k) | S(2.1M) | T(1005k) | U(343k) | V(343k) | W(490k) | X(49k) | Y(74k) | Z(74k)

OPTED v0.03 by Archive

OPTED v0.03can also be downloaded as a large stuffit/binhex encoded archive. (7.1MB/ 19.1M unpacked)

Recharging Laptops, Netbooks, Gadgets Abroad

Recharging Laptops, Netbooks, Gadgets Abroad

James A. Martin

August 12, 2009 (PC World) Traveling within the U.S. can be stressful and expensive. When it's time to dig out your passport, there's no telling what will happen (other than you'll wish you hadn't had your passport photo taken at Walgreens). Packing a laptop and other gear doesn't make international travel any simpler, either.

So, to make your upcoming globetrot a bit easier, this week I'll focus on what you need to know about recharging electronics abroad. Next week: using your mobile phone overseas.

Get Ready to Adapt

You'll need a power plug adapter specific to the country or region you'll be visiting. The adapter has just one job: to fit a two- or three-prong power cord plug from North America into a wall socket outside the continent that would otherwise reject it.

If you'll be traveling to multiple countries, try Kensington's $20 Travel Plug adapter. The adapter enables you to plug in one device in over 150 countries.

Otherwise, just buy one or two adapters (depending on how many gadgets you're packing) specific to the country you're visiting. Single-plug adapters are cheaper (about $5 to $6 each) and more compact than universal adapters like Kensington's Travel Plug adapter. The World Electric Guide will help you figure out which adapter you need. Magellan's is a good source for adapters and other travel accessory needs.

Tip: To minimize the number of adapters you'll need, and to simultaneously power your netbook and a USB device, consider Kensington's Power Adapter for Netbooks. It can recharge a variety of netbooks (using interchangeable tips) and also has a USB port.

Kensington's Power Adapter for Netbooks is a bit pricey (about $50 online), but it's less costly than the iGo series of power adapters, which also let you simultaneously charge a laptop and another device. The iGo products for laptops and other gadgets start around $60, but they also include adapters for airline seats and vehicle power outlets (which the Kensington device lacks). As a bonus, you could keep either the Kensington or iGo products stored in your laptop bag, so you won't have to remember to pack your laptop or netbook power cord before each trip.

Given that current in some countries is, shall we say, dicey, you might consider traveling with a portable, universal surge protector. Targus Mini Mobile Surge Protectors are truly tiny, come in two- and three-prong versions, cost about $19 each, and work on 110-230 voltage systems. Keep in mind you'd still need a plug adapter to use one of these surge protectors overseas.

You Probably Won't Need to Convert

Aside from plug adapters, it's extremely unlikely you'll need a power converter, also known as a Switched Mode Power Supply, for your gadgets.

Converters regulate and stabilize electrical current. They're necessary when a device that operates within one voltage range is plugged into an electrical system that operates within a different range, and the device didn't come with a universal power adapter. In North America, most appliances operate within the 100-125 volt range. On other continents, 220-240 volts is common.

However, the vast majority of U.S. consumer electronics today (including laptops, netbooks, camcorders, cameras, MP3 players, mobile phones, ebook readers, and GPS devices) come with universal power adapters that can operate within the 100-240 volt range. So if your gadget's power adapter says something like "Input: 100-240VAC," all you'll need is the appropriate power plug adapter to recharge your electronics outside North America. You won't need a converter.

Most gadget power adapters work within the 50Hz or 60Hz frequencies. You're good to go here, too. North America uses the 60Hz frequency standard, while many other countries are on the 50Hz standard.

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Is there a particularly cool mobile computing product or service I've missed? Got a spare story idea in your back pocket? Tell me about it. However, I regret that I'm unable to respond to tech-support questions, due to the volume of e-mail I receive.

Contributing Editor James A. Martin offers tools, tips, and product recommendations to help you make the most of computing on the go. You can follow him on Twitter http://twitter.com/james_a_martin . Jim is also the co-author of Getting Organized in the Google Era, to be published in March 2010. Sign up to have Mobile Computing e-mailed to you each week.