[SOLVED] the copy command is unavailable

franklekens · Post by **franklekens** » Mon Jun 18, 2018 8:10 am

Of late (maybe since the very latest update, but I can't be sure) the following error message pops up very often:

The "copy" command is unavailable because nothing is selected in the active document.

However, whenever it pops up, I have most definitely NOT given the copy command, either by pressing CTRL+C or by clicking the icon in the toolbar.

It seems to happen most often when I'm clicking a button in the toolbar -- but never one that's remotely near the "copy" button. I'm sure of that.

Anybody know what could be happening here? Or is it a known (new) bug?

franklekens · Post by **franklekens** » Mon Jun 18, 2018 10:01 am

One instance: I right clicked on an underlined, misspelled word, selected an "add to autocorrect" option, clicked that -- and the item was indeed added to the autocorect list, as I've just checked -- but I also got this error message. Weird!

Post by **admin** » Mon Jun 18, 2018 10:57 am

It seems to happen most often when I'm clicking a button in the toolbar

What is that button?

Post by **admin** » Mon Jun 18, 2018 12:32 pm

Atlantis may display this message box in response to a key press, not to a button click.

Do you have applications running in background that might generate virtual key presses? Clipboard managers, for instance.

Post by **admin** » Mon Jun 18, 2018 12:33 pm

One more thing. That message box is "optional". You can check its "Do not show again" box.

franklekens · Post by **franklekens** » Tue Jun 19, 2018 2:47 am

Thanks for the info.

As to the first question: I meant "when I click *any* button in the toolbar. It wasn't a particular button. E.g. it happened once after I'd selected a document to be reopened from the "reccnt documents" list (for which I have a button on the toolbar).

I saw I can turn it off, but I thought I'd not do that for a while in the hopes of finding out what's causing this first.

And it may be programmed to pop up only after a button click, but when I click on the copy button on purpose while no text is selected, I get the error as well. So there does seem to be something going on with misdirected mouse clicks (maybe).

I do have two keyboards plugged in, but the other keyboard never makes ghost contributions otherwise, and besides: something would have to press both CTRL AND C to make such a contribution?

Windows 10, by the way.

Post by **admin** » Tue Jun 19, 2018 5:52 am

Clicking a disabled button never displays message boxes in Atlantis. The attached message box is displayed when you press a hot key associated with a command that is currently unavailable. So I do not think that all this can have anything to do with mouse clicks. But I cannot suggest an explanation either. Maybe this is somehow linked to your second keyboard or the utilities running in the background. There must be something in your system that sends a "copy" hot key to the Atlantis window.

franklekens · Post by **franklekens** » Sun Jul 01, 2018 2:13 pm

I've just disengaged both keyboards and was still able to reproduce the faulty error report.

I notice that it happens if I *double click* in any area of the toolbar.
The reason it sometimes happens when I'm not concsiously doing that is, presumably, it interprets two separate clicks as a double click (e.g. when I'm using the zoom in or out or delete buttons and click those once or twice in quick succession).

Post by **admin** » Sun Jul 01, 2018 2:49 pm

I really cannot explain this. Something in your system must be generating the Ctrl+C(?) key combination, and sending it to the Atlantis window.

By the way, did you try running a test copy of Atlantis with the factory settings:
http://www.atlantiswordprocessor.com/en ... ttings.htm

franklekens · Post by **franklekens** » Mon Jul 02, 2018 2:25 am

I tried factory settings just now. Had no effect, it occurred there as well.

But I think I've found the cause! You're totally right, it's nothing to do with Atlantis. It's the standalone version of the Oxford English Dictionary that's installed on my computer.

I don't use this a lot, but have been using it occasionally over the past months. And when that application is open, it hijacks Windows to such an extent that whenever you select a word by double clicking somewhere in a word processor like Word or OpenOffice, or Atlantis apparently (but not in a browser, for instance), the text is not only selected but copied to the search box of the dictionary application.

Apparently the programmers once (it's a fairly old application) thought this would be useful. I've looked in the options and there's no way to disable this
other than by closing down the OED application.

I hate that function anyway. Plus it's a little mysterious how it works: in Word or Atlantis it suffices to double click a word to send it to OED; in other applications like notepad or this browser window I would have to manually give the copy command to send it to OED (which I don't want it to do anyway!).

Well, sorry for your troubles & thanks for bearing with me.