How do I configure Emacs to use 'ispell' on Mac OS X?

Question

I'm using brew as my package manager for both Emacs and ispell. I have both installed. Doing a quick google, I was unable to figure out how to tell Emacs where ispell is and to load the appropriate dictionaries.

Right now when I do a M-x ispell-check-version, Emacs saucily replies: Searching for program: No such file or directory.

How do I configure Emacs to use ispell?

Answer 1

The variable you're looking for is ispell-program-name. Stuff this somewhere in your .emacs:

(setq ispell-program-name "/path/to/ispell")

Or use M-x set-variable, etc.

References:

• From the sources to ispell.el

  (defcustom ispell-program-name
    (or (locate-file "aspell"   exec-path exec-suffixes 'file-executable-p)
        (locate-file "ispell"   exec-path exec-suffixes 'file-executable-p)
        (locate-file "hunspell" exec-path exec-suffixes 'file-executable-p)
        "ispell")
    "Program invoked by \\[ispell-word] and \\[ispell-region] commands."
    :type 'string
    :group 'ispell)
  

• See also: http://emacswiki.org/emacs/InteractiveSpell

Whenever you can't find an Emacs function, remember C-h f (or a variable: C-h v). Entering ispell at the Describe function prompt tells you that ispell is an interactive compiled Lisp function in 'ispell.el'., and from there you can usually find what you're looking for.