Resolve a problem without losing your work
Begin with the smallest relevant check. A surprising result usually comes from the project, Active selection, generation settings, current filter, or the distinction between highlighted and checked rows.
Check the visible state in this order
Read the project name and make sure the expected corpus texts are present.
Read Active selection. It may be the entire corpus, one item, or a group.
Read the query, match mode, case, comments, apostrophe rule, minimum, and result count that apply to the current page.
A project does not open or save
Exempla project files use the .kontext extension. A TXT or DOCX transcript must be imported with Add Text Files, not opened as a project.
Reconnect the external disk or network location, or copy the project to a writable local folder and open that copy.
Use Save As and choose a writable location with enough free space. Keep the existing project until the new file opens successfully.
Allow Exempla to open and migrate its working copy. The original project is not overwritten until you save.
A text cannot be imported or needs review
Save the file as UTF-8 and try again. Exempla rejects invalid UTF-8 and the Unicode replacement character because they can conceal damaged text.
Import a non-empty .txt or .docx file. Older Word formats such as .doc are not supported.
The checker found unmatched square brackets or parentheses. Choose Review and Fix to edit the project copy, Import Anyway to keep the issue in the imported copy, or Cancel.
Assign one speaker code to the entire transcript, import it without a speaker, or cancel. The original file remains unchanged.
The incoming filename matches a corpus text. Replace the existing text, import with a different name, or cancel.
The incoming content is identical to a text already in the corpus. Skip the duplicate unless you intentionally need another corpus entry.
Choose Same Person only when the code identifies the same individual. Otherwise choose Different Person, change the incoming code, review occurrences, or cancel.
For correct examples and an explanation of what the checker changes, see Preparing Your Files.
Reconstruct the exact search request
Confirm Active selection, spelling, case setting, match mode, and apostrophe setting. Comments are excluded unless Include Comments is selected.
A short Contains query can match inside many words. Use Exact, Begins with, Ends with, Exact phrase, or a narrower scope when that reflects the question.
Change Join at apostrophes and run the search again. The same setting can change Word List, Sequences, and Statistics totals.
Open it in Transcript view. Speaker attribution continues from the most recent valid speaker marker, and comments do not create speaker turns.
Click a supported column heading to cycle its sort order. Returning to Original ordering restores the search result order, but a multi-million-row sort can take time.
A table is empty, filtered, or marked for refresh
Choose Generate Word List after setting Active selection and apostrophe/case rules. Check the Minimum and Filter results controls if expected words are hidden.
Choose the sequence length and minimum before generation. A sequence cannot cross an excluded comment or a transcript boundary.
Generate the first result. If you add, delete, rename, replace, or edit corpus content or speaker codes, the button becomes Refresh Statistics. Refresh before trusting the displayed labels and tables.
If a generation was cancelled, partial results are not presented as complete. Run the command again when ready.
The Clipboard count differs from what you expected
Exempla skips occurrences already stored in the Clipboard. Read the completion message for added and duplicate counts.
Selections are page-specific. Selecting page 1 does not select page 2.
The warning protects working memory and project size. Export directly, cancel, or Add Anyway. Additions of 5,000 or more rows provide progress and cancellation.
Clear Clipboard removes the complete collection, not only the current page. Use Delete Selected Rows for a subset.
The Clipboard is saved with the project. Make sure you saved after adding the rows and reopened the correct project file.
An export is missing, incomplete, or not what you expected
If you cancelled the save dialog, nothing is exported and source rows remain unchanged. Try again and choose a writable folder.
Confirm whether you chose selected rows, visible/filtered rows, or all results. Page-specific export rules are explained in each analysis chapter.
No partial destination file should remain. The generated results and Clipboard stay available so you can retry.
Use Export complete statistics as Excel workbook…. It should contain Overview, Text Files, and Speakers worksheets. If Excel offers to repair the file, keep the original and report the issue.
Suggested names begin with the date, then project and export type. If a filename would exceed a safe filesystem length, optional query or project components are omitted rather than cut in the middle.
A task feels slow or the pointer is spinning
Look first for a progress window, Cancel control, changing result count, or elapsed time. A broad search or sort across millions of rows can take several seconds. If progress is active, let the task finish or cancel once. Repeated clicks can make the state harder to interpret.
If there is no change for an unusually long time, wait briefly, cancel if possible, and save when the interface responds. Restart only after giving current file writing time to finish. See Performance for memory cleanup and large-corpus guidance.
Update checking or appearance does not behave as expected
Confirm the computer is online and try later. Automatic checks happen only at launch when enabled and at least one day is due.
This is expected while Automatically Check for Updates is selected or while a check is already running.
The installed version may be current, the release may have been skipped, or Remind me later may still be active.
Open Appearance and choose Classic or Clarity (High Contrast), then select Light or Dark. See Accessibility.
Use a recovery copy after an unexpected closure
Exempla creates background recovery copies for changed projects. At launch, if a valid recovery copy is newer than the normally saved project, you can choose Recover, Discard Recovery, or cancel and decide later.
Loads the recovered work and marks the project as changed. Choose Save to keep it in the normal project file.
Deletes that recovery copy and keeps the normally saved project.
Exempla leaves a damaged recovery copy untouched and reports the problem. Do not overwrite your normal project while investigating.
Report a reproducible problem
Include the Exempla version, macOS or Windows version, exact workspace and command, project dimensions, Active selection, relevant settings, result count, elapsed time, and the complete error message. Add a screenshot when useful. Explain whether the issue happens every time with a small test project.
Protect participant confidentiality. Do not attach transcripts, project files, or exported occurrences unless you have permission and they are necessary for support.
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