you can also turn off the bad words in the system prefs

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@ derek,

Only for a Limited account. This is if kids happen to be using anAdmin account. But shold kids be using an Admin account? I don't think so, instead one should at least have a simple Guest account ready for the times when someone, child or not, asks to use your computer.


I wonder if this can dropped into the root /Library/Preferences for system exclusion of potty mouth language?


PS: I tried to "update" an entry to the Dictionary. I messed it up. Nothing after the after and including the definition I altered would show up. Do you have a How To for that, Erica?

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I'm speculating...
For the less savvy with editing such files, I'm guessing you could create a Limited account, enable Dictionary filtering and then copy and paste the new com.apple.Dictionary file to the new account.

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Purging dictionaries is the first step toward burning books. Look at what happened in Iran six years ago to see that this is no exaggeration.

When I was a child I secretly took my parent's dictionary from the shelf and looked up all the naughty words - and I'm still not addicted to crack cocaine. Believe me, this kind of thing is 'mostly harmless' and even educational.

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Why would anybody want to do this?
Parental controls by censoring "dirty words" from a dictionary?
What a strange, strange idea.

Did I miss a joke?
Or is the Europe/U.S. bias even weirder than I had thought until now?

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Holy crap an actuall semi-useful post from erica. I mean comeon I read the weather report and it didn't call for snow in hell.

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Using this technique, will I be able to fix this?:
http://flickr.com/photos/hellacutty/234761006/

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Seriously? /Seriously/?

This is the SADDEST thing EVER.

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Hmmm editing dictionaries to protect the young? Not sure this is a very good idea - not too many steps away from burning books if you ask me! Kids need to learn and will do it by whatever means they can find, what better source than the dictionary!

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So do you rip those pages out of your paper dictionary too, or just use a Sharpie to black out the "naughty" words?

How sad.

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I prefer my kids learn those words from a dictionary than other places... Deleting a word don't delete its meaning

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Great, now I can expurgate the OSX dictionary the same way I expurgated Olsen's Standard Book of British Birds... by removing the gannet.

I don't like them, they wet their nests.

http://bau2.uibk.ac.at/sg/python/Scripts/TheBookshopSketch

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Is it possible to protect our children from other dirty words such as 'evolution' and 'atheism'?

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Well, as a lexicographer who had a small part in compiling that dictionary, I'd say your motives for removing such words are poor ones. When guiding children, the best approach to earthy or coarse language is always a matter-of-fact one. Children need straightforward non-giggly definitions for these words and dictionaries like this (as opposed to ones like Urban Dictionary) are the place to get them.

As a writer and a radio host, I'd say that abridging the intellectual creation of someone else in this fashion is shameful.

And as an IT guy (lots of hats, see?) I'd say this is the lamest HOWTO since someone explained that disconnecting a television's CRT tube was a great way to make a radio.

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Ridiculous.

You should be glad your child is 1) reading and 2) actually using reference material. If your child is /looking up the word/ they have already heard it, and probably uses it on a daily basis.

The fact that a young person is showing some interest in the form and history of their native tongue is generally considered a Good Thing.

Put the plist editor down and step away from the computer.

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Epithets! Personalities! :-)

This is something I wouldn't bother doing in my dictionary. That said, if some parents would prefer to keep these words off their Mac dictionary I don't see the harm, either. It's NOT the first step in the eventual Iranian overthrow of America, and I think it's silly to suggest that this is equivalent to burning books.

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Another couple of points to consider:

What's interesting about the Parental Control feature in Dictionary is that Apple's developers coded it in but a choice was made NOT to expose it in the UI (and now I wonder if it takes effect automatically in limited accounts... hmm... will check on that). This how-to doesn't say that this is necessarily a good idea, nor does it check which other words might get flagged, but it does expose a very interesting development decision by Apple.

Also, this screenshot is just, may I say, 'fricking' hilarious:

http://www.tuaw.com/gallery/expurgate-your-dictionary/211221/

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I consider this to only be a slight Bowlderisation.

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Erica,

In your next post, could you please offer an explanation for how to make sure my child can never order the following books on Amazon, or enter them into Delicious Library:

Huckleberry Finn
Ulysses
Slaughterhouse Five
Harry Potter (any)
The Origin of Species

Oh yeah, and anything by degenerate Jewish authors.

Thanks.

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can someone make me a plist file that blocks all blog posts of this author?

ridiculous and shameful are words that come to mind, maybe she can look them up if her dictionary isn't censored yet by some other b***t

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