Macro software?

[keithy397]

Hi,

I've been using Phrase Express (only because the one I had previously went out of use for some reason) for a while now but lately it's been playing up and no matter how many options I change, it's still a headache.

Does anyone know of free macro software whereby I can save frequently used phrases, email addresses, passwords etc etc.

I never realised how laborious it can be typing in your email address and password!

[cranioscopical]

You might take a look at this.

HotStrings (Autocorrect / Text Expansion) with AutoHotkey
Click here for the link to it.

Not quite free (discounted to $15 Canadian dollars for a couple of days).
(Autohotkey itself is free)

[IainB]

@keithy397:
Yes, I rather gave up on PhraseExpress some years ago.
I use a better combination now, which is $FREE***:
My oft-used shorter chunks of repeatable text I keep in AutoCorrect and the larger chunks I keep in CHS (Clipboard Help & Spell), as per notes below - also please refer the quote copied below my notes:

• AutoCorrect: This monitors the keyboard and not only does it auto-correct your spelling, but also it can expand any saved abbreviations/phrases that you might have previously kept in (say) PhraseExpress (i.e., saved chunks of repeatable text) - and this is regardless of the application you might be typing into at the time.
• CHS (Clipboard Help & Spell): This is one of the progeny of DonationCoder.com's Forum Admin (i.e., @mouser). It's actually quite a nifty database with lots of useful features. I use it all the time and it is very handy for storing chunks of text and notes that you might want to keep handy, either for information, or to put into (say) a post such as this one. That's where I had saved the quote copied below, for example.

@orbis: You could also try the excellent AutoCorrect script.
Refer: How to Get Spelling Autocorrect Across All Applications on Your System
Rather than a simple spell-checker it just seeks out most of the usual (and some perhaps not-so-usual) misspellings and auto-corrects them.

If you do not yet use AHK (AutoHotkey), then AutoCorrect could be your single biggest reason for starting to use AHK - several freeware apps (e.g., including some on DonationCoder) are written in AHK and released as code/script, so, if you know how to use AHK script, then you could tailor the apps to more precisely suit your peculiar needs, without needing to bother the original developer.

Also:

• (a) AutoCorrect is fully editable: You can personalise the words and AHK script contents (add, remove, edit) as much as you want, and
• (b) it's a "text expansion repository": It has a rather nifty feature whereby you can either import all of your most-used AHK general hotkey strings (sentences or paragraphs) as a group, or add them singly on the fly, using the default Win+H hotkey (the default can be changed).
  __________________________

Sample from the AutoCorrect.ahk file:

[Select]

;------------------------------------------------------------------------------
; CHANGELOG:
;
; Sep 13 2007: Added more misspellings.
;              Added fix for -ign -> -ing that ignores words like "sign".
;              Added word beginnings/endings sections to cover more options.
;              Added auto-accents section for words like fiancée, naïve, etc.
; Feb 28 2007: Added other common misspellings based on MS Word AutoCorrect.
;              Added optional auto-correction of 2 consecutive capital letters.
; Sep 24 2006: Initial release by Jim Biancolo (http://www.biancolo.com)
;
; INTRODUCTION
;
; This is an AutoHotKey script that implements AutoCorrect against several
; "Lists of common misspellings":
;
; This does not replace a proper spellchecker such as in Firefox, Word, etc.
; It is usually better to have uncertain typos highlighted by a spellchecker
; than to "correct" them incorrectly so that they are no longer even caught by
; a spellchecker: it is not the job of an autocorrector to correct *all*
; misspellings, but only those which are very obviously incorrect.
;
; From a suggestion by Tara Gibb, you can add your own corrections to any
; highlighted word by hitting Win+H. These will be added to a separate file,
; so that you can safely update this file without overwriting your changes.
;
; Some entries have more than one possible resolution (achive->achieve/archive)
; or are clearly a matter of deliberate personal writing style (wanna, colour)
;
; These have been placed at the end of this file and commented out, so you can
; easily edit and add them back in as you like, tailored to your preferences.
;
; SOURCES
;
; http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Lists_of_common_misspellings
; http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Typo
; Microsoft Office autocorrect list
; Script by jaco0646 http://www.autohotkey.com/forum/topic8057.html
; OpenOffice autocorrect list
; TextTrust press release
; User suggestions.
;
; CONTENTS
;
;   Settings
;   AUto-COrrect TWo COnsecutive CApitals (commented out by default)
;   Win+H code
;   Fix for -ign instead of -ing
;   Word endings
;   Word beginnings
;   Accented English words
;   Common Misspellings - the main list
;   Ambiguous entries - commented out
;------------------------------------------------------------------------------

...etc.

Near the end of the file:
;-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
; Anything below this point was added to the script by the user via the Win+H hotkey.
;-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

So it is well worth a look. I have used it for ages and wouldn't be without it (like ClipboardHelpAndSpell).   

For spelling lookup, with some etymology, I'd recommend the Concise Oxford Dictionary (10th Ed.) - if you can still find it (I think it was not $FREE but I found it in a bundle of secondhand software I bought years ago). It seems to work fine on all Windows OSes/versions from XP and up. I did have the Shorter Oxford, but that failed on later Windows versions.

-IainB (June 15, 2017, 08:50 AM)

***Note: $FREE is a relative term. The DC forum relies on donations for apps and content. The user doesn't have to donate, but I usually try to.