typing
Latest
Swype could make typing easier on the iPhone
Still haven't caught on to typing on that little non-tactile keyboard on the iPhone's screen? This little tech, from the creator of the T9 system (dreaded by some, loved by others) being shown off at TC50, could be just the ticket. Swype is kind of like a gesture-based system, except that it uses the keyboard knowledge you already have -- just run a stylus (or your finger) around a qwerty-board, hitting all the letters in your word on the way, and the program will guess the word you were drawing. If you're looking for something similar that's already appeared on the iPhone, you might check out ShapeWriter's WritingPad, which we hope will be returning to the App Store soon (warning: loud video on page).It's pretty wild -- his drawing "Mississippi" set off my "awesometer." Unfortunately, while the iPhone is given just a slight mention (can you name another touchscreen device that's used as widely?), it'd probably need a little tweaking. He's using a stylus (which on the iPhone is a no), and it'd be tough to draw with accuracy on a keyboard as small as the iPhone, even on the bigger horizontal version. Still, I like it, and Apple could always consider something like this for the iTablet, whenever they decide to release that. It'd be an easy way to overlay another typing method onto an already-working nontactile keyboard.
Your iPhone dislikes "Flickr"
Some have said that the iPhone 2.0 software is buggy. We say, "Bugs? What bugs?"Today, reader Alfred has identified one that you can try for yourself. Open up Notes and attempt to type "Flickr." You'll find that you can't. The 2.0 software replaces "Flickr" with "flicke" or "flickt". Here's the weird part: you can't even select the "r" button. Sliding a finger from "e" to "t" skips "r" entirely.Here's the obvious, inelegant workaround: delete the "e" or "t" and type again. For more odd (and useful) iPhone tips, check out our iPhone 101 series.Thanks, Alfred!
Clove 2 typing glove leaves your other hand free for high fives
Have no fear, we're always on the hunt for new and innovative ways to boost your bombdigity quotient, and we've really found just the thing this time around. The Clove 2 interfaces with your computer over Bluetooth, and through a strange set of tapping gestures (that sort of remind us of that one Daft Punk video), allows you to type one-handed, sans keyboard. Seems like quite the learning curve, but we're sure it's totally worth it in the end. Four words per minute never looked so good. Video is after the break.[Via Hack a Day]
Oversized keyboard cranks up the font size on keys
If you're the type who just can't view a website without slamming the Control key and flinging that scroll wheel down (or up, we suppose) in order to gigantify the on-screen text, this here keyboard has your name written all over it. Offered up at Taylor Gifts, this unit actually doesn't seem much / any larger than your average KB, but each key sports a relatively prominent letter that aims to make typing much easier for the visually impaired. You can order yours now for $19.98.[Via The Red Ferret Journal]
TypingWeb gains Safari compatiblity
The biggest barrier to effectively using your Mac (or your iPhone) isn't processor speed or software compatibility -- it's poor typing speed. Who knew back at the invention of the manual typewriter that the QWERTY keyboard layout (alleged to have been designed to slow down typists and avoid jams) would still be our primary data interface more than a century later? Yes, we've got some other options now, but short of upgrading your RAM the best way to speed up your work is to simply learn to type.To enhance that finger business, check out TypingWeb, which now offers a Safari-compatible (both for desktop and iPhone, as we originally noted here) and free set of typing drills. Using the service on my iPod touch, I discovered that my Blackberry-style two thumb technique was actually slowing me down compared to an index-finger approach that leveraged the word completion feature more effectively -- who knew?For a full-scale Mac typing tutor, the classic (not Classic -- it runs in OS X now) choice is Mavis Beacon Teaches Typing, available on a cross-platform CD.
USB typing speedometer teaches Mavis Beacon a lesson in speed
It's not the first USB peripheral we've seen that'll keep watch on how fast you type, but this new USB Speedometer is certainly the most imposing, and apparently a bit more capable than most. Namely, unlike others which simply track keystrokes, this one keep track of both your words-per-minute and the total number of words you type in a day, although you'll need to install some software to take for that. If those are details you just have to have at all times, you'll be able to get your hands on one of these next month for about $40.[Via Technabob]
A typing tutor for the iPhone
A while back, we reported on a study that (not only had all kinds of holes in it, but) claimed the iPhone's keyboard was two times slower than other phones. But as many commenters said, the keyboard just requires practice.And there's no better way to get it than to jump into a typing tutor. We've seen one before for the iPhone, but reader Travis (thanks!) sent us a tip about TypingWeb.com's free iPhone tutor (just go to their site on your iPhone, and enter some information to create an account), and I was impressed by how smoothly it worked. During the Basic test, I moved pretty quickly-- a nice 36 words per minute. But on the Advanced test, they throw all kinds of things at you (including intentionally misspelled words, so you have to dodge Apple's corrections), and I dropped down to about 16 wpm.Definitely worth a try. A lot of iPhone typing seems to be situation-- moving around in a car or bus, for instance, makes things a lot harder. But at least this will give you a ballpark figure of your typing prowess.
Denver man hacks thumbs for more efficient iPhone use - literally [Updated]
Keyboards on handheld devices and smartphones have often been debated in terms of how much work they actually let you get done. Tiny displays, limited functionality, itty-bitty keyboard buttons and now the iPhone's entirely virtual keyboard whose keys can be hard to hit for some people have given folks something to talk about. Taking matters to a level that I believe is unheard of in the technology world, however, 28-year-old Thomas Martel in Bonnie Brae (a Denver, CO neighborhood) decided to solve his large handed problem by surgically altering his thumbs to make it easier to use his iPhone.Through a procedure called "whittling" which the North Denver News described, an incision was made into each of Martel's thumbs. The bone was shaved down, muscles were realigned and his thumbnail was modified to help bring it all together. His new 'streamlined' thumbs may look out of place in relation to his other fingers, but Martel says all the time and frustration he'll save should make the surgery pay for itself in ten to fifteen years. Of course Dr. Spars, the man who helped develop the procedure, is excited about this new avenue for plastic surgery; it aint just for makin' pretty faces anymore - now you too can have your very own iPhone-optimized thumbs for the low, low price of... well the North Denver News article doesn't say. My guess on the procedure's price though is somewhere in the range of 'a heckuva lot', given that time and frustration are tough things to add up over fifteen years. Depreciating values and market shifts in the value of frustration alone are enough to make one's head spin.What about you, TUAW readers? Anyone planning on hacking their thumbs for more better iPhone usage? How about whittling out a spot in a thigh so the phone rests a little better? I'm thinking about bypassing an armband case altogether and simply chopping out a chunk of my arm for taking the iPhone running. Maybe I'll see what Dr. Nick's prices are like this week.[Update 2: As some commenters have pointed out, this story has finally been officially claimed as satire by North Denver News. I guess the same ol' lesson that I have had to learn myself applies: if a news outlet typically known to print true stories (no matter how quirky they may be) tries to pull off satire, they need to let readers know up front (i.e. - a tiny link that's added at the bottom of the article just above a paid advertisement post-publication doesn't quite cut it). In summary: no one had their thumbs surgically altered to work with an iPhone more efficiently; nothing more to see here folks.][Update: As these stories sometimes go, it appears that this might not all be true. Richard Martin at InformationWeek did some digging for Dr. Spars and James Benfly, the author of the article at North Denver News. Benfly hasn't returned any of Martin's calls, and Martin finds it a bit suspicious that there is no phone book listing for a Dr. Robert Fox Spars in the Denver area. While I too found it a little odd that Denver North News is using what looks like a default template for the open source Joomla software to power their site, a friend did some checking and found four Thomas Martel's in the Denver area. I also don't find it at all strange that Dr. Spars isn't listed in the phone book, because he could very well be listed under his practice's name which Denver North News didn't list in their article. Still, it was worth mentioning that folks are punching some potential holes in the story. I'll see if I can follow up to get any more solid information.][via iPhone Alley]
iPhone Tip: Don't even bother with the .com button
While typing on the iPhone is an arguably difficult / easy process depending on who you are, I figured out a handy tip for saving at least one button press - as long as you're going to a .com site. Just like a real browser, it appears that the iPhone will allow you to type in most .com URLs without having to type the actual .com or pressing the button. Simply press Go after typing the site name and MobileSafari should automatically insert the .com for you. It's worked in every site I've tried so far at least. A mere savings of one button press to be sure, but in my opinion, shaving off even one repeated key press can amount to a lot of saved time after a while.
iPhoneTypingTest.com
You probably know how fast you can blaze up a regular keyboard, and maybe you've even taken a typing test on a more traditional mobile keyboard found on Windows Mobile or BlackBerry handsets - but how fast are you on your iPhone's virtual keyboard? iPhoneTypingTest.com ought to help you answer that question, as it does just what its name suggests: the site (which recommends you use it in landscape mode for optimum visual layout) presents a text entry box that, once tapped on, will allow you to re-type the text that appears above the box in an effort to test your iPhone typing speed. It's a simple system that seems to work well; on my first try in portrait mode (I personally find the landscape keyboard too wide to work with) I scored 21 wpm with "some error(s)," and second try I nabbed 31. How good of an iPhone typist are you? Be honest - your web honor is at stake.Thanks Georgia
TUAW Tip: A better iPhone period trick
I just read about an iPhone typing tip from David Pogue (via John Gruber) that involves one solution to the alphabet/period conundrum: the period isn't included with the rest of the alphabet, so entering a period and moving on with another sentence is an aggravating process. Pogue's solution involves tapping and holding on the ".123" key (I left out the question mark since it doesn't play well with our blogging system), sliding your finger over to the period and then releasing - the trick here is that, if you do it right, the keyboard will switch back to the alphabet due to the way the keyboard registers and handles taps and key releases.Personally, I find this really clunky, and I think I have an easier solution: simply press that ".123" key normally, type your period and then hit the space bar - the iPhone realizes you've just ended a sentence and are beginning another, so it automatically switches back to the alphabetical layout. This seems far more natural to me and easier to pull off in any kind of mobile or awkward situations.[Update: It appears my trick works with any character on the punctuation/number keyboard layout: press the .123 button, hit a number or punctuation character, then press the space bar to switch the layout back to alphabetical. For some characters that typically have a letter after them, such as an apostrophe, the keyboard seems to switch itself back automatically without any interaction on the user's part; not even a space bar.]
iPhone Experience: The keyboard
We've got our iPhones. Now it's time to see what these puppies can do. This is the first in a series of posts intended to explore the iPhone's features. This time, it's about the keyboard.With the iPhone, Apple eschewes the "real" keyboard of some other smart phones, and offers virtual replacement. It shows up when needed, and disappears when it's not. It's available in both landscape and portrait orientation, depending on what you're doing. Let's look at an example of each.First of all, the iPhone's response to your keystrokes is immediate. The "Notes" application (as well as a few others) requires you to use the keyboard in portrait mode. Create a new note and the keyboard emerges, taking over the lower half of the screen. By default, letters are displayed with a QWERTY layout, as well as a backspace button, shift, and spacebar. An additional button swaps letters for numbers and symbols (for punctuation, etc.). Click any key and it immediately "grows" from underneath your finger to confirm your selection. The problem for me, at least, is that I don't always see the letter I expect.Typing on this thing in portrait mode with 100% accuracy requires the hands of a adolescent girl. When typing a 27-letter phrase ("This little piggy went to market," if you must know), I made 5 "errors." That's not a whole lot, but it's enough to be kind of annoying.Apple must have predicted that people with adult-sized fingers would have trouble, so they've built in a helpful feature. As you type, the iPhone takes a guess at which word you're after, and places it on the screen just below the cursor. To accept the guess, simply hit the spacebar. While this is handy for avoiding errors in portrait mode, it's a real speed booster while in landscape.This is where things change. Typing in landscape mode - say, while using Safari - is much easier. Because it's got more real estate, the keyboard is wider and the keys are larger. I was able to type my test phrase with no errors and as quickly as I could find the necessary keys. Speaking of Safari, the keyboard acquires a handy ".com" button while you're on the net. It's also more comfortable to type in landscape. Your hands quickly learn how to position the iPhone so that it's secure in your grip while leaving your thumbs free to type away. I wish there was some why to flip all applications on their sides, just so I could make use of that nice, wide keyboard.If anything is at fault here, it's my massive Meat Mittens, not Apple's software. However, I would imagine that a number of users have hands like mine. For us, "slow and deliberate" is the name of the game.
Typinator 2.0 35% off at MacZOT today only
It hasn't even been two weeks since Typinator went 2.0, and now it's on a 35%-off sale at MacZOT for $12.99 (regular price: $19.99). This handy typing and snippet manager is a great tool for helping you work faster with text, and a deal this good is both rare and virtually impossible to beat. If you're looking to try before you buy, head over to ergonis software's Typinator product page to snag a demo, but do it quick: MacZOT's sales are one-day-only affairs. When it's gone, it's gone.
Typinator 2.0 released with a flood of new features
Typing tools that increase your efficiency are all the rage for anyone who has to type more than their name and credit card number on a daily basis, and ergonis just upped the ante with the release of Typinator 2.0. Competing directly with similar tools like TextExpander and TypeIt4Me, this new version of Typinator brings a virtual boatload of new features to the table, including: Sets allow convenient organization of abbreviations Import and export of abbreviation sets Comes with auto-correction sets for English, German and French Import from Textpander, TextExpander and TypeIt4Me Application-specific set assignment Typinator can be disabled in individual applications Clipboard insertion within expansions Streamlined user interface for improved conformance to Apple's guidelines The abbreviation table can be sorted by abbreviation, expansion, options, and conflict status Expansion of abbreviations is much faster now, even while typing extremely fast and with thousands of defined abbreviations and auto-corrections Significantly reduced memory requirements, especially with large expansions and much, much more As a paid user of TextExpander, this new release of Typinator looks quite tasty indeed. I'm actually just glad the typing tool space is getting more competitive, as I can't write or work on the web without one anymore. A demo is of course available, while a single licenses sells for about $26 (EUR 19.99).
Dude, can you get on Teamspeak?
I can't remember the first time I was invited on Teamspeak (some people use Ventrilo as well-- I've got both free programs installed on my PC, just in case) for an instance-- for some reason, I'm thinking it wasn't until I got invited to a raid at level 60, but considering the way that things are now, I'm really surprised it wasn't earlier. Maybe it's just because almost every instance I run is with guildies, but TS is basically a requirement for grouping-- a requirement that most of us are happy to comply with, but a requirement nonetheless.Yakov isn't so compliant-- he says Vent is a crutch, and the fact that every group he enters asks him to "jump on Vent" is rubbing him the wrong way. He says a simple 5 man run doesn't call for using Vent, and that he'd rather listen to his music then his guildies chatting it up on Teamspeak.I disagree-- not only is it more fun to chat with people on Vent (I tend to know the guildies I've talked to on TS better than the others), but it's just plain helpful, whether the instance is hard or not. If you're disappointed that your guild isn't asking you to come on more instance runs with them, and you haven't downloaded Vent or TS yet, that's probably why.Of course, like all things, Vent can go horribly wrong. You can be annoyed by your guildies' voices (I'll just say that some people's accents are a little offputting and leave it at that), or like Yakov, you can rather listen to music then random guild gossip. But especially if you're a player just getting to the endgame where there's a lot to learn, jumping on Vent is one of the best things you can do to make sure you know what's going on when. It's not a difficulty thing, although coordinating a pull on TS is much easier than typing strat in the chat channel. It's more of a communication thing-- the more and the faster comm there is, the better you'll all be.
USB mouse pedals away, gauges speed as you type
C'mon, even you know it's time to give the ole hamster a break from his wheel-spinning duties, and the latest typing-powered time waster to come our way is a very suitable replacement. The USB Speed Typing Mouse plugs directly into your USB port to get warmed up, and as you bang out dissertations, IMs, e-mail, and erroneous office rumors, the oh-so-toned mouse gets his stationary bike a-movin'. Interestingly, the front-mounted LCD is also good for keeping track of just how many keystrokes you can crank out, and of course, the faster you type, the faster the poor critter's legs will go. This must-have office mainstay checks in at a somewhat steep £19.99 ($39.40), but unfortunately for those anxious to get one shipped over, you'll have to wait about a fortnight while the little buggers complete basic training and return to stock.[Via EverythingUSB]
Free HTML snippet file for TextExpander
TextExpander is another favorite utility in the TUAW tool belt, as it can save a boatload of time with repeatedly typing anything from email signatures to canned customer service replies and even code. In fact, SmileOnMyMac just made HTML coding a bit easier on web designers and hackers everywhere by posting an HTML snippet file that contains abbreviations for over 60 common pieces of HTML, ripe for cutting down on the time it takes to hand code your sites. This file should serve as a great example of the power of TextExpander, since SmileOnMyMac made sure to use some of the app's tricks that insert the cursor in a useful place after expanding a snippet, such as in between the quotes of: <a href=""></a>, allowing you to easily fill in the blanks. But don't stop there - a little exploring of how these snippets are put together should enable you to build your own for the specific kinds of work and code you use.This snippet file is free from SmileOnMyMac's site, and the highly recommended TextExpander sells for $29.95 with a whopping 90 day money-back guarantee.
TUAW Tip: TextExpander can subscribe to text snippets
This isn't quite so much a killer trick or hack you can perform on TextExpander - an indispensable time-saving text abbreviation and expansion utility - as much as it's a neat feature that I just recently discovered. TextExpander can export a list of all your text snippets and corresponding abbreviations, and it can subscribe to such a list if you keep it somewhere, say, like your iDisk or an FTP/WebDAV space. If you have a desktop and lappy for working on the go like me, this can more or less enable rudimentary syncing for your snippets between Macs. Of course, it would rock if SmileOnMyMac would make this an official feature, with bonus points awarded for baking in both .Mac and FTP/WebDAV syncing (like Mr. Simmons did with NetNewsWire). For now though, this might be a decent solution for keeping your snippets n'sync.
Texter enables button combinations for typing on PS2, Xbox 360
If you've ever wished there was a faster way to type out messages within a console video game system other than the painfully arduous process of manually selecting each letter on-screen -- or plugging in an external keyboard -- thank your lucky stars that a company has heeded your prayers. Blue Orb has just released what it calls the "Texter", a small dongle that attaches to your PS2 ($25) or Xbox 360 ($30) and allows you to type by using certain two-fingered button and joystick combinations for each letter. Of course, like any new input system, it'll take time before you've mastered the new combinations and can type whole sentences without having to bust out that Character Guide cheat sheet. First person using the Texter to type out "The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog" quickly, accurately, and without looking should get a prize, but we're betting that it'll take awhile to get to that point.[Via Textually]
TextExpander 1.4 released
SmileOnMyMac has released TextExpander 1.4, an update to their customizable typing utility that allows users to assign keywords to snippets of text, ultimately saving gobs of time in re-typing things like phrases, websites, signatures and more. New features in this indispensable tool include: User-specified delimiters ("Set Delimiters..." button in Preferences tab) Import comma and tab-delimited text, RTF, and RTFD files Choose TextExpander or Textpander style menu bar icon in Preferences Sort snippets by date created (helps when locating import groups) Sort snippets by date modified (helps when tracking recent changes) Also of note on TextExpander's new features list at VersionTracker is 'Mac OS X 10.4 required,' but I don't know if that's a new feature in this particular version or of the actual product switchover from the old Textpander.Either way, this is a free upgrade and is available from SmileOnMyMac, as is a fully functional 30-day demo.[UPDATE: Jean from SmileOnMyMac let us know in the comments that this new 1.4 version is, in fact, Tiger-only. The 1.3.1 version which still works on Panther (10.3.9) is still available from their site. Thanks Jean!]
