14 DAY TRIAL // We're pretty used to doing things automatically. Well, rather to getting them done with the help of the computer. Automated tasks are of great value in these speedy times we are living. A couple of settings ending with a push of a button will cause a myriad of things to start off.
And this is possible only thanks to computers. Automatic launchers have taken over the desktop computers and allow you a quicker access to the most used applications. No more searching for the shortcut on desktop or lagging with accessing Windows Start menu in their search. A simple key stroke on the keyboard and the software is launched and ready to assist you.
Using the text editors has also been improved and nowadays we make fewer mistakes due to automatic correction and grammar spelling. And with the help of macros, fixed preset phrases can be written much faster.
If you are in the line of writing then phrase express may come in extremely handy, especially if you employ it at home. The reason is that it is absolutely free for home use. For commercial use, however, you will have to pay a $19.95 fee.
There is no interface as, after installation, Phrase Express will sit quietly in system tray waiting for your commands. The tray menu gives you access to the Settings of the program, adding new fixed phrases and more.
What does it do?
Phrase Express is primarily designed to help you type faster and with less effort. It relies on the copy/paste function in order to introduce the preset phrases in the document. These can be anything from the headline of an email to closure and even entire documents. The flexibility applied to the software permits the user to add as many phrases as s/he wants and develop a large list of abbreviations to be used during typing and be automatically transformed in full formal phrases.
If you need to apply time and date stamps to the document, typing them in manually is obsolete with Phrase Express. The application will automatically insert these in with just a few clicks effort from your part.
The tray menu grants you access to all the options of the software. The easy access to user defined common phrases, time stamps, salutations, websites and macros is a simple method to finish your reports faster.
Besides the text auto-fill capabilities, Phrase Express can also act as a program launcher. It has already included some of the most commonly used Windows programs, but you can create your own list with the least hassle.
All the configuration of the software is done from the Settings menu where phrase editing, and settings up the program are available. And additional tab called Statistics will give you information on how much time and money you have spent while using Phrase Express. That is if you are remunerated for your typing activity.
The typing rate and the hourly wage can be changed according to your standards and the software will automatically do the math for you and tell the number of characters pasted, phrases used with Phrase Express and the money saved in the activity.
The downside is that the hourly wage does not go any lower than 5$ and $500 is the top limit. Also, there is no way to change the currency and American dollars is the only money accepted. There are limits in what concerns the average typing rate, the max reaching 250 characters per minute and the minimum stopping at 20 characters per minute. But in this case, the parameters are alright as the values are in accordance with reality (from what I know).
Regarding the editing of the preset phrase, there is nothing complicated about it. In the lower part of the window there are the "New Folder" and "New Phrase" buttons that will assist you. A set of fixed phrases which I'm sure that you'll find valuable is already available.
The folders the software comes equipped with refer to time and date stamps, auto-correct entries (just like in MS Word or OpenOffice), common phrases ("Thank you for...", "My apologies...", email replies etc.), abbreviations, salutations, keyboard shortcuts for launching various programs and website links. The list already available can be customized by the user and enlarged with absolutely no restriction.
The most impressive are the abbreviations and the auto-correct list, which will allow you to write formal letters using the abbreviations used in instant messaging chats. The application will transform everything according to your settings. Thus "btw" automatically turns into "by the way" or "iirc" becomes "if I remember correctly" in an instant.
Auto-correct entries are composed of two sections: "AutoCorrect_common" comprising special characters and webpages and the second is "AutoCorrect_English" composed of Contractions folder and Beginning of a word folder.
Trying some of the examples in OpenOffice resulted in utter failure while others worked like a charm. To give you an example, I tried to misspell some of the webpages in "AutoCrrect_common" folder just to give it a test. None of them worked, although Phrase Express was obediently sitting in system tray and I made all the effort to type in the autotext correctly. In other cases like abbreviations or beginning of a word or special characters, there was absolutely no problem.
The Settings area of the application allows you to adapt the software behavior to your own needs. General options and features dealing with enabling various modules like Statistics or make a short beep on autotext detection are available.
In this tab, there is also an option reading Expert Options. This is dedicated to those that want to get the most out of Phrase Express. Those that dare to make some changes here will discover new ways of using the application. As the program lets you define the same autotext for multiple phrases, you can set the number of characters the pop up menu to close. Also, the Global Autotext prefix lets you define a fixed prefix for any autotext. The HTML help file explains these options too, so your only worry is to put them to the best use possible.
Compared to the fixed phrases which are very easy to configure, program launching is a bit more difficult. The reason is that you have to type in the command for opening a certain file at pressing the keyboard shortcut combination. Other software kept it simple and allowed the user to browse for the location. In Phrase Express the principle is the same, but instead of browsing for the executable you must type the location by hand. That is pretty tough if the executable is buried deep.
The Good
Phrase Express is great when working with text and highly flexible as well. Typing formal e-mails is a cinch and all the hassle of finding the right words each time is avoided.
It acts as a program launcher as well, and permits you to start the most used programs from a touch of the keyboard.
$19.95 for commercial use, but absolutely free if you use it at home.
The Bad
Creating the command for launching the applications from the keyboard may be quite a hassle for a beginner and even for the average user.
Some autotexts did not work during our testing.
You may encounter some problems with AutoCorrect while using MS Word, but the help file will show the steps to eliminating the problem.
Statistics is also a little rough on the edges and adding more currencies as well as removing the maximum and minimum hourly wage would be a good idea.
The Truth
It is highly flexible when working with text, but when it comes to program launching, there is still work to be done. Not all the users are accustomed to typing in locations and most of them just need to browse to the location of the executable.
Although the interface is not quite what you would expect it to be, it's extremely easy to use and will not pose any problems during handling.
Phrase Expression will help you include autocorrect in any text processor, regardless of its complexity (Notepad and Wordpad included).
If you are not interested in its text pasting capabilities, the little that remains proves to be quite difficult to handle (auto launching the softwares is not such a smooth operation as you might think).
Here are some snapshots of the application in action:
