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Instant Text is NOT THAT GREAT! - Tester

Posted: Aug 31, 2011

I just signed up for the 30-day free trial of Instant Text. This is what I have found:

* IT is faster than Shorthand.

* IT has some good features that SH lacks.

However, IT also has some annoying limiitations -- just like SH does -- as far as what you can name entries. For example, when naming an entry you can only use letters, numbers, _ and - . No special characters allowed! Also one-character titles are NOT allowed.

This frustrates the heck out of me. Is there another expander program out there that is fast like IT but doesn't have the restrictions? I do not need a built-in line count, only expansion capability.

Anyone here try Phrase Expander?

Thanks!

expander - Chi

[ In Reply To ..]
I use one called Breevy. It's got a 30-day trial and is, I believe, $29.99 to purchase. Also has tech support in a forum from the developer himself and he asks for suggestions and if he can change ot fix things at that time, he will do so.

Thanks!! - Tester

[ In Reply To ..]
Downloaded the free trial of Breevy. Thank you for the info!!

added suggestion - Chi

[ In Reply To ..]
I put in a search on Google for the phrase "typing expander software" and lots of things come up.

I tried IT a few times and hated it, hated it even more after I saw what it had in it and how much it would cost for someone else's useless to me entries. No thanks. IT isn't the best thing since sliced bread, no matter what others tell you and how much they hound you to buy it.

Everyone has to find what works for them. IT just wasn't all it.

I am still using ITV. One character entries - gigigi

[ In Reply To ..]
One character entries go into the word list in V version, just put 1 character for name. IT personnel answer questions on the IT forum.

Single-letter abbreviations are possible in - Instant Text

[ In Reply To ..]

In Instant Text 7 just click on View singles glossary in the Glossary menu and edit it to your liking.

You can decide how many entries you want to see come up in the advisories for each letter. I use just one for each letter such as a=> and - l => left - t => the etc.

These single letter expansions come up in the Word advisory. However, you can have them come up in the Phrase advisory and expand them with the Phrase marker or the Phrase expander (i.e. space bar) depending whether you use the Instant Text or the Classic Options under Marker selection. All you need to do is check "Display Singles in Phrase advisory" under Options/Singles

I love Instant Text - Best program ever

[ In Reply To ..]
I've tried quite a few expander programs over the years and I think that Instant Text wins hands down.

When you first starting to use Instant Text, (just like any other new program), there is going to be a learning curve. But once I cleared that initial learning curve, I found Instant Text to be the most versatile and powerful program that I've ever worked with. I've been using it for years now and I'll never give it up!

Personally, I would suggest that you stick with it until you get beyond that initial learning curve, and then I think you'll see just how great it really is.

Then again, just like with anything else in life, what is a good fit for one person may not be a good fit for another person. If you're used to using a different expander and your new expander works slightly differently than your old one, you're going to get frustrated unless you're willing to stick with it. And that's true whether it's an expander program or a new company's transcription platform. You have to stick with it in order to learn it good enough to utilize it to its full potential.

There are some solutions - ITVPro lover!

[ In Reply To ..]
I used a converted glossary from Smart Type. I DO NOT use any of the glossaries that come with the program. I had to quarantine them to keep them turned off.

Smart Type allowed "singles." I have never gotten the "singles" to work in ITVPro, BUT...

If you are working in a Word-based platform where you can use autocorrect, you can run it right alongside the ITVPro and put your "singles" in there.

I do this. AC corrects some finger twists and auto corrects misspellings for me. In ITVPro, if I type "i" then "i" comes out. With autocorrect on too, I type "i" and I get "I."

Of note here, if you are converting from using autocorrect only to using ITV you'll have conflicts. I have never used autocorrect so it had only the default stuff in it and this was an easy thing to do.

If you want to autoformat, say to have capped and bolded headings, use ITV rather than autocorrect.

Anyone wanting information about expanders, just email me. I have spent years explaining them and messing with them, and I can even give you a glossary for ITVPro if you need one. I have made a lot of money with it over time.

Singles - Cathy

[ In Reply To ..]
In ITV you have to make sure you are using the singles dictionary you want and then under advisories also make sure you have the minimum number of letters per word set correctly. If you want to use i for I, you have to set this to 1 so that it will show up.

You don't need special characters in your short forms with Instant Text. - SM

[ In Reply To ..]
Those special characters break your keyboarding rhythm. One method would be to double key the same letter. That's much faster than stretching for odd characters.

You haven't tested IT long enough to say it has restrictions. Read through the manual at least once so you have an idea of how you can get more power out of IT when a specific situation arises.

Au contraire - Tester

[ In Reply To ..]
This isn't about "need" as much as WANT.

The WHOLE POINT of having a personalized glossary is to be able to TAILOR IT TO HOW YOU LIKE IT. I have used the same special-character abbreviations and combos thereof for over 20 years in a SYSTEM THAT WORKS. Just because YOU don't want special character short forms DOES NOT mean that OTHERS DO NOT.

New software means learning new habits that - SM

[ In Reply To ..]
could very likely turn out to be far more productive than the old habits.

Are you familiar with the keyboard? - Tester

[ In Reply To ..]
If you're familiar with the keyboard, then you know that typing the equal sign and other special characters DOES NOT break one's rhythm.

Special characters - Cathy

[ In Reply To ..]
I love Instant Text and use that as my expander. I have both ITV and the IT7 trial (on 2 separate computers). ITV is limited in some respects compared to IT7, so I use AutoHotKey along with it. You can use both at the same time as long as you don't have the same keystrokes assigned to different commands in each. AutoHotKey is a free download (just Google). You can use special characters for expansions. If that is the only thing that is bugging you about IT, go ahead and use both. I have a lot of macros and keyboard commands in AHK and use IT mostly for expansions and some normals.

Expander - MT

[ In Reply To ..]
I use speedtype. I love it! You can use special characters, whatever abbreviations you want, you can keep lists separate if you work for more than one company, etc.

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