The Keyboard Convert Service

by Michael S. Kaplan, published on 2005/08/20 18:50 -04:00, original URI: http://blogs.msdn.com/b/michkap/archive/2005/08/20/454114.aspx

Some of you will remember a while back about when Kate Gregory inspired me to talk about why sometimes the keyboard does not do what I tell it to!

Sometimes you think you are typing in one keyboard, but it turns out you are typing in another.

So some of the truly awesome GIFT team folks in Ireland decided that maybe there was something better that could be done about the problem than just blogging about it.

Turns out they were right -- they created the Keyboard Convert Service, a free download that will do its darndest to fix the text in these cases!

I will be trying ot out this week to see if they were able to integrate some of the feedback I gave them early in the project cycle. :-)

# Pavel Srubar on 21 Aug 2005 12:06 PM:

The description is rather vague (Keyboard Convert Service is an add-on Windows feature to the Language bar). Why should I validate my genuine Window, download 268KB and install yet another service, when nobody told me how does this work?

# Michael S. Kaplan on 21 Aug 2005 12:28 PM:

Hi Pavel --

It is of course your choice if you do not wish to do so. But I just described what its intended purpose is. So if you want an add-in that will try to correct the mistake when text was typed using the wrong keyboard, then you may want to install it and give it a try.

Ignoring WGA issues, I think anyone who downloads and tries things without understanding why they are there or what they might do is bored and looking for something to do. So when I think of WGA in those cases, you just need to decide how bored you are!

In the case where you know what the download purports to do, the potential value is obvious and understood.

# George Schizas on 22 Aug 2005 10:28 AM:

This is extremely cool! When you are writing in Greek (I suppose in other languages as well), it's extremely easy to forget pressing Alt-Shift and typing Γρεεκ (Greek) where you should be typing Ενγλιση (English). And, unlike some word macro that Microsoft Hellas had included in some old Greek Word version, this works in *every* program (except console applications) and it takes into account dead keys! Thank you!

# Michael S. Kaplan on 22 Aug 2005 11:52 AM:

Indeed, very cool, George.

And the dead key support was my idea (they had assumed it was impossible, but I explained how we get the info in MSKLC and they must have decided to integrate it!).

:-)

# Anonymous on 22 Aug 2005 1:00 PM:

If the Keyboard Convert Service that I posted about previously seems kind of like Greek to you...
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referenced by

2010/07/02 No plans to deliver a "suck it" message, though Suck It Message Potential (SIMP) would exist

2008/02/09 SGCAPS and dead keys don't mix

2007/10/23 Some thoughts on global development projects

2007/10/15 Hitting the 'right' keys (in the 'wrong' order), looking beyond damage control

2007/09/25 They say 'No news is good news', right? Unfortunately, here is some news

2006/10/26 'Managing' [List] Separator Anxiety

2005/08/30 Keyboard Convert Service goes Bidi!

2005/08/29 Keyboard Convert Service - русский вариант!

2005/08/26 The Czech is in the email

2005/08/22 Is the Keyboard Convert Service Greek to you?

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