The Ode to a Spellchecker was written by Professor Jerrold H. Zar of Northern Illinois University and published in the January/February 1994 issue of the Journal of Irreproducible Results. It became widely circulated by e-mail and the attribution was lost.

According to the author, 127 of the 225 words of the poem, although spelled correctly, are incorrect.

TRANSLATION

I have a spelling checker;
It came with my PC.
It plainly marks for my review
Mistakes I cannot see.

I ran this poem through it
You’re sure real glad to know.
It’s very polished in its way,
My checker told me so.

A checker is a blessing;
It frees you loads of time.
It helps me write, all styles to read,
And aids me when I rhyme.

Each phrase composed upon my screen
I trust to be a jewel;
The checker pores o’er every word
To check some spelling rule.

Before we wrote with checkers
Our spelling was in decline,
But now when we do have a lapse,
We are not made to whine.

But now because my spelling
Is checked with such great flair,
There are no faults within my sight,
Of none I am aware.

Now spelling does not faze me,
It does not bring a tear;
My papers all do gladden
With wrapped words fair as here.

To write with care is quite a feat
Of which one should be proud;
And we must do the best we can
So flaws are not allowed.

That’s why I break into a verse
Cause I do want to please.

So glad I am that I did buy
This software for PCs.

everything2.com/user/uucp/writeups/Ode+to+a+Spellchecker