Steve Sharp
11-10-2005, 05:00 PM
<img src="http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/media/users/16781/textplus0.jpg" /> <br /><br /><b>Product Category:</b> Productivity<br /><b>Manufacturer:</b> <a href="http://www.smartcell.com">SmartCell Technology, LLC</a><br /><b>Where to Buy:</b> <a href="http://www.handango.com/brainstore/PlatformProductDetail.jsp?siteId=311&productId=166232">Handango</a> [Affiliate]<br /><b>Price:</b> $19.99 USD <br /><b>System Requirements:</b> Windows Mobile for Pocket PC 2003 or above; at least 700 KB free memory; a desktop computer (Windows 98 or above); and ActiveSync 3.7 or above. The program must be installed to main memory.<br /><br /><b>Pros:</b><li>Eases and expedites the creation of text messages, documents, or emails;<br /><li>Cheaper than nearly all of the major competitors' software of this type;<br /><li>The dictionary of words is easily customizable by the user;<br /><li>Tightly integrates into existing text typing features;<br /><li>Includes TextPlus database support, including medical, military, and foreign language dictionaries.<b>Cons:</b><li>The initial vocabulary of included with the software is relatively small;<br /><li>Must be installed to main memory;<br /><li>The customized database can eat up a good deal of memory.<br /><b>Summary:</b><br />SmartCell Technology’s TextPlus 1.1 has been a tried-and-true application for Palm for years, and it has finally made it onto the Windows Mobile scene. This intuitive text interface works like the Operating System’s puny, built-in predictive text on steroids. TextPlus 1.1 speeds typing and SmartCell provides free downloadable databases for specialty and foreign language applications. If you’re tired of tapping out whole words and want a program that learns to suggest words that you most commonly use, TextPlus 1.1 may be just the ticket. <br /><br />Read on for the full review!<!><br /><PAGEBREAK><br /><br /><img src="http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/media/users/16781/Textplus-1.jpg" /><br /><i>Figure 1: TextPlus 1.1 tightly integrates into existing input modes.</i> <br /><br /><span><b>So Many Words, So Little Time</b></span><br />It's happened to all of us, at one time or another. We’re out somewhere, and we need to respond to an email or text message or modify a text document, and we dread the cumbersome task of having to tap out words, one letter at a time, on a small fingerboard or virtual keyboard. Yeah, okay, so the OS has “predictive text” turned on, but there’s probably a one in ten chance that it’s actually going to guess the word that you’re trying to type. The built-in predictive text, to me, is often more of an annoyance than a help.<br /><br />The folks at SmartCell Technology obviously felt our pain, and began to offer TextPlus 1.1 to the Pocket PC market. TextPlus is not new product, by any stretch, and has been offered to those using Palm OS for some years past. I might add that the program has racked up a loyal following and many awards and accolades over the years for the Palm OS. There are two main reasons for the program’s past success, and they are the same reasons that I believe that TextPlus 1.1 will also find a receptive market with the Pocket PC market. It is a no-brainer to use, and it suggests a list of words which are likely candidates for the word that I’m trying to spell out.<br /> <br /> <li>Tightly integrates into all of the writing functions supported by the Pocket PC OS and writing applications;<br /><li>Provides predictive, commonly used short phrases;<br /><li>It bases its word suggestions on the user's frequency of use. <br /><br /><img src="http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/media/users/16781/Textplus%202aa.jpg" /> <br /><i>Figure 2: TextPlus 1.1 suggests short phrases, in addition to words.</i><br /><br /><span><b>Words to Tap By</b></span><br />TextPlus 1.1 gets better and better the more it is used. This is a good thing, from a productivity standpoint, but can have a drawback in the aspect of memory usage. The standard dictionary that comes with the program contains about 11,000 words. There are about 100,000 words in the English language; however, most people’s vocabulary is more like 20,000 or 30,000 words, and we don’t use but maybe one-third of those on a regular basis. When using TextPlus 1.1, if a word is entered that is not in the dictionary TextPlus will ask if you would like to add this word to the dictionary. Adding words to the dictionary obviously increases the words that are recognized and suggested by the predictive text, but adding words also increases the amount of main memory that is taken up by the program.<br /><br />Adding a few words here and there will not make a dramatic difference in the memory usage, but SmartCell has anticipated that some eloquent users with large vocabularies may want to add many words to the dictionary. For that reason, they've provided a control that limits the amount of memory that the program’s dictionary can utilize. The user has the ability to specify how much memory the dictionary can use, and when that limit is reached, no more additions are allowed.<!><br /><PAGEBREAK><br /><br /><img src="http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/media/users/16781/Textplus-2.jpg" /> <br /><i>Figure 3: TextPlus displays several likely candidates for the word that is being typed.</i> <br /><br /><span><b>Saving Time by Saving Taps</b></span><br />I tried to measure how many taps TextPlus saved compared to typing with no predictive text input, and using the one that's built into the OS. I chose a 50-character sentence, with common words, and did it all three ways. Of course, it took 50 taps, plus spaces to do it with no help. With the built-in predictive text, it took 45 taps, and with TextPlus it took 38 taps. The secret to getting the best use out of the program lies in its ability to “learn” words that each user commonly uses, and suggest that word. However, the real strength of the program comes from suggesting a list of words, not just one word as the built-in program does. Depending upon the first couple of letters of the word in question, TextPlus will suggest as many as ten words that match the first two or three letters. Therefore, the odds of it suggesting the word that is being typed is 10 times greater than the built-in predictive text feature. <br /><br /><img src="http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/media/users/16781/textplus-3.jpg" /><br /><i>Figure 4: Desktop software allows the user to add, import, or convert language-specific databases.</i><br /><br /><span><b>Conclusions</b></span><br />SmartCell Technology has a tried and true program in TextPlus 1.1. The program is very competitive in price compared to similar products. With additional dictionaries to support foreign languages and specialty fields, along with customizable standard dictionaries, the program provides the flexibility and features that most users will find beneficial. It’s still no fun to tap out messages on my Pocket PC’s virtual keyboard, but I must say that TextPlus 1.1 does help to ease the aggravation of creating and modifying messages. Handango and Pocket Gear offer free trial downloads, and I recommend giving it a try. <br /><br /><i>Steven Sharp is a senior systems analyst by day and a freelance writer by night. He is a 39-year-old native and lifelong resident of Huntsville, Alabama. He has been freelancing for 16 years and his first book,</i> The Art of Managing Everyday Conflict<i> was released by Greenwood Publishing Group in May of 2004.</i>