Umlaut

The name Umlaut should tell you everything, especially if you've made contact with Germans or Austrian and their specific cultures. The idea behind this application is to make it easier for individuals not owning German/Austrian-specific keyboards to enjoy the same freedom as if they did. By using a series of key combinations, you'll be able to type your texts with the inclusion of the right symbols, no stress added.

This program is by far one of the most silent. If it weren't for the icon in the Taskbar, you'd probably not even know it existed and made your life so much easier. The symbols in question, the umlauts (äÄ/öÖ/üÜ/ß) can be easily triggered with the use of the AltGr key. The key combinations are indeed intuitive.

For an uppercase umlaut, you'll also have to press the Shift button. Thus, the combination of keys will be AltGr + Shift + the letter upon which the umlaut is based, meaning a,o,u, or s, for uppercase, while for lowercase the Shift button will be excluded from the sequence.

The application doesn't really bring any adjustable options. In fact, the only other possible change a user can bring to the app is in regard to if it will or won't start once the OS has loaded. This program is more of a tool directed at those who commute between German and any other language. It makes it easier for non-umlaut keyboard users to achieve grammar perfection by using the appropriate symbols.

In the end, Umlaut is a neat, simple tool designed to aid individuals to improve their virtual writing skills by offering the opportunity to insert umlauts wherever needed without making it at all difficult. It might be a niche app, but it most likely will be popular in Austria, Germany, and any other Deutsch-speaking area.