CINXE.COM

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Strict//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-strict.dtd"> <html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en-GB" lang="en-GB"><head profile="http://dublincore.org/documents/dcq-html/"><script type="text/javascript" src="/_static/js/bundle-playback.js?v=HxkREWBo" charset="utf-8"></script> <script type="text/javascript" src="/_static/js/wombat.js?v=txqj7nKC" charset="utf-8"></script> <script>window.RufflePlayer=window.RufflePlayer||{};window.RufflePlayer.config={"autoplay":"on","unmuteOverlay":"hidden"};</script> <script type="text/javascript" src="/_static/js/ruffle/ruffle.js"></script> <script type="text/javascript"> __wm.init("https://web.archive.org/web"); __wm.wombat("http://www.bbc.co.uk:80/accessibility/guides/word_prediction/","20200630121917","https://web.archive.org/","web","/_static/", "1593519557"); </script> <link rel="stylesheet" type="text/css" href="/_static/css/banner-styles.css?v=S1zqJCYt" /> <link rel="stylesheet" type="text/css" href="/_static/css/iconochive.css?v=3PDvdIFv" />  <title>BBC - My Web My Way - Overview: Smart word prediction</title><style type="text/css"> #archive-mothballed-message a:hover span { text-decoration:underline; } #blq-container #archived-mothball-message a { padding-left:250px; padding-top:17px; background-position: 180px 10px; } #archived-mothball-message a { display:block; height:56px; background:url(/web/20200630121917im_/http://www.bbc.co.uk/globalresources/mothball-images/i.gif) 100px 10px no-repeat; color:#666; text-decoration:none; padding-left:160px; padding-top:12px; font-size:20px; font-family: verdana,helvetica,arial,sans-serif; font-weight: normal; } </style><meta name="description" content="An overview of software that helps you type less by using predictive-text software"><meta name="keywords" content="BBC, Accessibility, disability, browser, computer, keyboard, mouse, Windows, Mac, Linux, BBC online"><link rel="schema.dcterms" href="http://purl.org/dc/terms/"><meta name="DCTERMS.created" content="2011-04-05T09:00:00Z"><meta name="DCTERMS.modified" content="Monday, 15-Aug-2011 12:21:26 BST"><link rel="schema.dcterms" href="http://purl.org/dc/terms/"><link rel="index" href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/a-z/" title="A to Z"><link rel="copyright" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20200630121917/http://www.bbc.co.uk/terms/" title="Terms of Use"><link rel="icon" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20200630121917im_/http://www.bbc.co.uk/favicon.ico" type="image/x-icon"><meta name="viewport" content="width = 974"><link rel="stylesheet" type="text/css" href="/web/20200630121917cs_/http://www.bbc.co.uk/staticarchive/89372a4380f1256f639586de4add7d4f0f0430ee.css"><script type="text/javascript">/*<![CDATA[*/ (function(undefined){if(!window.bbc){window.bbc={}}var ROLLING_PERIOD_DAYS=30;window.bbc.Mandolin=function(id,segments,opts){var now=new Date().getTime(),storedItem,DEFAULT_START=now,DEFAULT_RATE=1,COOKIE_NAME="ckpf_mandolin";opts=opts||{};this._id=id;this._segmentSet=segments;this._store=new window.window.bbc.Mandolin.Storage(COOKIE_NAME);this._opts=opts;this._rate=(opts.rate!==undefined)?+opts.rate:DEFAULT_RATE;this._startTs=(opts.start!==undefined)?new Date(opts.start).getTime():new Date(DEFAULT_START).getTime();this._endTs=(opts.end!==undefined)?new Date(opts.end).getTime():daysFromNow(ROLLING_PERIOD_DAYS);this._signupEndTs=(opts.signupEnd!==undefined)?new Date(opts.signupEnd).getTime():this._endTs;this._segment=null;if(typeof id!=="string"){throw new Error("Invalid Argument: id must be defined and be a string")}if(Object.prototype.toString.call(segments)!=="[object Array]"){throw new Error("Invalid Argument: Segments are required.")}if(opts.rate!==undefined&&(opts.rate<0||opts.rate>1)){throw new Error("Invalid Argument: Rate must be between 0 and 1.")}if(this._startTs>this._endTs){throw new Error("Invalid Argument: end date must occur after start date.")}if(!(this._startTs<this._signupEndTs&&this._signupEndTs<=this._endTs)){throw new Error("Invalid Argument: SignupEnd must be between start and end date")}removeExpired.call(this,now);if((storedItem=this._store.getItem(this._id))){this._segment=storedItem.segment}else{if(this._startTs<=now&&now<this._signupEndTs&&now<=this._endTs&&this._store.isEnabled()===true){this._segment=pick(segments,this._rate);if(opts.end===undefined){this._store.setItem(this._id,{segment:this._segment})}else{this._store.setItem(this._id,{segment:this._segment,end:this._endTs})}log.call(this,"mandolin_segment")}}log.call(this,"mandolin_view")};window.bbc.Mandolin.prototype.getSegment=function(){return this._segment};function log(actionType,params){var that=this;require(["istats-1"],function(istats){istats.log(actionType,that._id+":"+that._segment,params?params:{})})}function removeExpired(expires){var items=this._store.getItems(),expiresInt=+expires;for(var key in items){if(items[key].end!==undefined&&+items[key].end<expiresInt){this._store.removeItem(key)}}}function getLastExpirationDate(data){var winner=0,rollingExpire=daysFromNow(ROLLING_PERIOD_DAYS);for(var key in data){if(data[key].end===undefined&&rollingExpire>winner){winner=rollingExpire}else{if(+data[key].end>winner){winner=+data[key].end}}}return(winner)?new Date(winner):new Date(rollingExpire)}window.bbc.Mandolin.prototype.log=function(params){log.call(this,"mandolin_log",params)};window.bbc.Mandolin.prototype.convert=function(params){log.call(this,"mandolin_convert",params);this.convert=function(){}};function daysFromNow(n){var endDate;endDate=new Date().getTime()+(n*60*60*24)*1000;return endDate}function pick(segments,rate){var picked,min=0,max=segments.length-1;if(typeof rate==="number"&&Math.random()>rate){return null}do{picked=Math.floor(Math.random()*(max-min+1))+min}while(picked>max);return segments[picked]}window.bbc.Mandolin.Storage=function(name){this._cookieName=name;this._isEnabled=(bbccookies.isAllowed(this._cookieName)===true&&bbccookies.cookiesEnabled()===true)};window.bbc.Mandolin.Storage.prototype.setItem=function(key,value){var storeData=this.getItems();storeData[key]=value;this.save(storeData);return value};window.bbc.Mandolin.Storage.prototype.isEnabled=function(){return this._isEnabled};window.bbc.Mandolin.Storage.prototype.getItem=function(key){var storeData=this.getItems();return storeData[key]};window.bbc.Mandolin.Storage.prototype.removeItem=function(key){var storeData=this.getItems();delete storeData[key];this.save(storeData)};window.bbc.Mandolin.Storage.prototype.getItems=function(){return deserialise(this.readCookie(this._cookieName)||"")};window.bbc.Mandolin.Storage.prototype.save=function(data){window.bbccookies.set(this._cookieName+"="+encodeURIComponent(serialise(data))+"; expires="+getLastExpirationDate(data).toUTCString()+";")};window.bbc.Mandolin.Storage.prototype.readCookie=function(name){var nameEQ=name+"=",ca=window.bbccookies.get().split(";"),i,c;for(i=0;i<ca.length;i++){c=ca[i];while(c.charAt(0)===" "){c=c.substring(1,c.length)}if(c.indexOf(nameEQ)===0){return decodeURIComponent(c.substring(nameEQ.length,c.length))}}return null};function serialise(o){var str="";for(var p in o){if(o.hasOwnProperty(p)){str+='"'+p+'"'+":"+(typeof o[p]==="object"?(o[p]===null?"null":"{"+serialise(o[p])+"}"):'"'+o[p].toString().replace(/"/g,'\\"')+'"')+","}}return str.replace(/,\}/g,"}").replace(/,$/g,"")}function deserialise(str){var o;eval("o = {"+str+"}");return o}})(); /*]]>*/</script><script type="text/javascript">/*<![CDATA[*/ if (typeof bbccookies_flag === 'undefined') { bbccookies_flag = 'ON'; } showCTA_flag = true; cta_enabled = (showCTA_flag && (bbccookies_flag === 'ON') ); (function(){var e="ckns_policy",m="Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 GMT",k={ads:true,personalisation:true,performance:true,necessary:true};function f(p){if(f.cache[p]){return f.cache[p]}var o=p.split("/"),q=[""];do{q.unshift((o.join("/")||"/"));o.pop()}while(q[0]!=="/");f.cache[p]=q;return q}f.cache={};function a(p){if(a.cache[p]){return a.cache[p]}var q=p.split("."),o=[];while(q.length&&"|co.uk|com|".indexOf("|"+q.join(".")+"|")===-1){if(q.length){o.push(q.join("."))}q.shift()}f.cache[p]=o;return o}a.cache={};function i(o,t,p){var z=[""].concat(a(window.location.hostname)),w=f(window.location.pathname),y="",r,x;for(var s=0,v=z.length;s<v;s++){r=z[s];for(var q=0,u=w.length;q<u;q++){x=w[q];y=o+"="+t+";"+(r?"domain="+r+";":"")+(x?"path="+x+";":"")+(p?"expires="+p+";":"");bbccookies.set(y,true)}}}window.bbccookies={_setEverywhere:i,cookiesEnabled:function(){var o="ckns_testcookie"+Math.floor(Math.random()*100000);this.set(o+"=1");if(this.get().indexOf(o)>-1){g(o);return true}return false},set:function(o){return document.cookie=o},get:function(){return document.cookie},_setPolicy:function(o){return h.apply(this,arguments)},readPolicy:function(o){return b.apply(this,arguments)},_deletePolicy:function(){i(e,"",m)},isAllowed:function(){return true},_isConfirmed:function(){return c()!==null},_acceptsAll:function(){var o=b();return o&&!(j(o).indexOf("0")>-1)},_getCookieName:function(){return d.apply(this,arguments)},_showPrompt:function(){var o=(!this._isConfirmed()&&window.cta_enabled&&this.cookiesEnabled()&&!window.bbccookies_disable);return(window.orb&&window.orb.fig)?o&&(window.orb.fig("no")||window.orb.fig("ck")):o}};bbccookies._getPolicy=bbccookies.readPolicy;function d(p){var o=(""+p).match(/^([^=]+)(?==)/);return(o&&o.length?o[0]:"")}function j(o){return""+(o.ads?1:0)+(o.personalisation?1:0)+(o.performance?1:0)}function h(r){if(typeof r==="undefined"){r=k}if(typeof arguments[0]==="string"){var o=arguments[0],q=arguments[1];if(o==="necessary"){q=true}r=b();r[o]=q}else{if(typeof arguments[0]==="object"){r.necessary=true}}var p=new Date();p.setYear(p.getFullYear()+1);p=p.toUTCString();bbccookies.set(e+"="+j(r)+";domain=bbc.co.uk;path=/;expires="+p+";");bbccookies.set(e+"="+j(r)+";domain=bbc.com;path=/;expires="+p+";");return r}function l(o){if(o===null){return null}var p=o.split("");return{ads:!!+p[0],personalisation:!!+p[1],performance:!!+p[2],necessary:true}}function c(){var o=new RegExp("(?:^|; ?)"+e+"=(\\d\\d\\d)($|;)"),p=document.cookie.match(o);if(!p){return null}return p[1]}function b(o){var p=l(c());if(!p){p=k}if(o){return p[o]}else{return p}}function g(o){return document.cookie=o+"=;expires="+m+";"}function n(){var o='<script type="text/javascript" src="https://web.archive.org/web/20200630121917/http://static.bbci.co.uk/frameworks/bbccookies/0.6.3/script/bbccookies.js"><\/script>';if(window.bbccookies_flag==="ON"&&!bbccookies._acceptsAll()&&!window.bbccookies_disable){document.write(o)}}n()})(); /*]]>*/</script><script type="text/javascript"> if (! window.gloader) { window.gloader = [ "glow", {map: "https://web.archive.org/web/20200630121917/http://node1.bbcimg.co.uk/glow/glow/map.1.7.7.js"}]; } </script><script type="text/javascript" src="/web/20200630121917js_/http://www.bbc.co.uk/staticarchive/3ec0ef3ecb4f8feca706e9bbc08cd12f01f5e540.js"></script><script type="text/javascript" src="/web/20200630121917js_/http://www.bbc.co.uk/staticarchive/21f604032d29edfa0a166f89bd41c95004718ed2.js"></script><script type="text/javascript"> bbcRequireMap = {"jquery-1":"/staticarchive/6cabfa9be6f12b6fec5ddf61c2dca1dde868555e", "jquery-1.4":"/staticarchive/cce0a0919c693f9473535d6941613bad16a4b40f", "jquery-1.9":"/staticarchive/14a082a42c1074b40bedae2666d3204e142899f5", "swfobject-2":"/staticarchive/b02e05aa3b12cfe8510390c7eccecd0af315b0a6", "demi-1":"/staticarchive/a916559c328a465dafcc30056734651ac8fdbb4b", "gelui-1":"/staticarchive/0159feca9179b145c659298e302b55dc76dfa15d", "cssp!gelui-1/overlay":"/staticarchive/fee6b4a3b22c51a59dd3ddebfb1b765049c683f6.css", "istats-1":"/staticarchive/898d2830287e2cc32efc671addf4c2f7894523aa", "relay-1":"/staticarchive/e575c3ca2e00301b7a9a097be7fe0094e1023d9a", "clock-1":"/staticarchive/7b8bb05c3fa19067c2c4c99144d21702cc15704f", "canvas-clock-1":"/staticarchive/703fd8b8a1b4ecf9cf624195bfb9691c648d3919", "cssp!clock-1":"/staticarchive/85ca997ae2f6bd2990765422dcc5b1c386c9d0cb.css", "jssignals-1":"/staticarchive/238f1d675d1626860f85815b7ab638cd41811a06", "jcarousel-1":"/staticarchive/3b38690b91f14468826c5f05f6e3da9beb55f4b1", "gelui-1/widget": "/staticarchive/fcf01fd866ac629bad5a92592c208c3b04184cd3", "gelui-1/carousel": "/staticarchive/562f83c33cfe04062d95de8024ba03636cd0af4c", "gelui-1/core": "/staticarchive/d69cc93987af4e17f910996164dc15516614353e", "gelui-1/overlay": "/staticarchive/84bd061f5e14f0728caa8c933fe6d758b54fec5a", "gelui-1/autosuggest": "/staticarchive/ca81d8400ee443b0c31a47f1eea1c6872091dd48"}; require({ baseUrl: 'http://'+location.host+'/', paths: bbcRequireMap, waitSeconds: 30 }); </script><script type="text/javascript" src="/web/20200630121917js_/http://www.bbc.co.uk/staticarchive/1b2549937977a29e048af5c307e7f73044570f03.js"></script><script type="text/javascript"> blq.assetPath="https://web.archive.org/web/20200630121917/http://static.bbci.co.uk/frameworks/barlesque/2.60.9/desktop/2.8/"; blqOnDomReady(function() { blq.suggest_short = false; blq.addAutoSuggest(); }); blq.setEnvironment('live'); if (! /bbc\.co\.uk$/i.test(window.location.hostname) ) { document.documentElement.className += ' blq-not-bbc-co-uk'; } </script><script type="text/javascript"> /*<![CDATA[*/ function oqsSurveyManager(w, flag) { var defaultThreshold = 0.7, usePulseThreshold = (flag === 'OFF')? 1 : defaultThreshold, activeThreshold; w.oqs = w.oqs || {}; if ( w.document.cookie.match(/(?:^|; *)ckns_oqs_usePulseThreshold=([\d.]+)/) ) { activeThreshold = RegExp.$1; } else if (typeof w.oqs_usePulseThreshold !== 'undefined') { activeThreshold = w.oqs_usePulseThreshold; } else { activeThreshold = usePulseThreshold; } w.oqs.usePulse = (w.Math.random() < activeThreshold); if (!w.oqs.usePulse) { w.document.write('<script type="text/javascript" src="https://web.archive.org/web/20200630121917/http://static.bbci.co.uk/frameworks/barlesque/2.60.9/desktop/2.8/script/vendor/edr.js"><'+'/script>'); } } oqsSurveyManager(window, 'ON'); /*]]>*/ </script><script type="text/javascript"> /* <![CDATA[ */ define('id-statusbar-config', { 'translation_signedout': "Sign in", 'translation_signedin': "Your account", 'use_overlay' : false, 'signin_url' : "https://web.archive.org/web/20200630121917/https://ssl.bbc.co.uk/id/signin", 'locale' : "en-GB", 'policyname' : "", 'ptrt' : "https://web.archive.org/web/20200630121917/http://www.bbc.co.uk/" }); /* ]]> */ </script><script type="text/javascript"> (function () { if (! window.require) { throw new Error('idcta: could not find require'); } var map = {}; map['idapp-1'] = 'https://web.archive.org/web/20200630121917/http://static.bbci.co.uk/idapp/0.63.5/modules/idapp/idapp-1'; map['idcta/idcta-1'] = 'https://web.archive.org/web/20200630121917/http://static.bbci.co.uk/id/0.23.4/modules/idcta/idcta-1'; require({paths: map}); define('id-config', {"idapp":{"version":"0.63.5","hostname":"ssl.bbc.co.uk","insecurehostname":"www.bbc.co.uk","tld":"bbc.co.uk"},"idtranslations":{"version":"0.27.6"},"identity":{"baseUrl":"https:\/\/web.archive.org\/web\/20200630121917\/https:\/\/talkback.live.bbc.co.uk\/identity"},"pathway":{"name":null,"staticAssetUrl":"https:\/\/web.archive.org\/web\/20200630121917\/http:\/\/static.bbci.co.uk\/idapp\/0.63.5\/modules\/idapp\/idapp-1\/View.css"}}); })(); </script><link href="/web/20200630121917cs_/http://www.bbc.co.uk/staticarchive/5de299e7894c328ef36c25f8374ca906844e29e9.css" rel="stylesheet" type="text/css"><link href="/web/20200630121917cs_/http://www.bbc.co.uk/staticarchive/d66f72c34592c8910ede99e42064c3cca80fbc1f.css" rel="alternate stylesheet" type="text/css" title="theme_blue"><link href="/web/20200630121917cs_/http://www.bbc.co.uk/staticarchive/56a3aa4be03133df48be006f8d71a13fb0cfa543.css" rel="alternate stylesheet" type="text/css" title="theme_hivis"><link href="/web/20200630121917cs_/http://www.bbc.co.uk/staticarchive/2c7639869a8c7b35a6c1b4c67d78a3010aa40a3f.css" rel="alternate stylesheet" type="text/css" title="theme_yellow"><link href="/web/20200630121917cs_/http://www.bbc.co.uk/staticarchive/9fb7f42e8e6bf6e5d744ae0b5ae80b16f5009b6a.css" rel="stylesheet" type="text/css"><link href="/web/20200630121917cs_/http://www.bbc.co.uk/staticarchive/703cb0aabe06f394a530ef2ff31087f11ceb52b5.css" rel="stylesheet" type="text/css" media="print"><link href="/web/20200630121917cs_/http://www.bbc.co.uk/staticarchive/f4e39a99cc932976160e266245e8016da5eb1839.css" rel="stylesheet" type="text/css" media="print"><link href="/web/20200630121917cs_/http://www.bbc.co.uk/staticarchive/91e8a05f8bde6a6535e3399a8a5c1b8668e1ad7e.css" rel="stylesheet" type="text/css"><link href="/web/20200630121917cs_/http://www.bbc.co.uk/staticarchive/24a9d8b2e7132a13ce166d406159edc2b933ffdd.css" rel="stylesheet" type="text/css"><script type="text/javascript" src="/web/20200630121917js_/http://www.bbc.co.uk/staticarchive/a62d24294062812da8e65026b000b4c56dded4cd.js"></script><script type="text/javascript" src="/web/20200630121917js_/http://www.bbc.co.uk/staticarchive/cf36297804ca93709e18a7f9de289610bc97f9c5.js"></script><script type="text/javascript" src="/web/20200630121917js_/http://www.bbc.co.uk/staticarchive/243c49ff19d6f46d7fb004d73376197b8ee8e423.js"></script><script type="text/javascript" src="/web/20200630121917js_/http://www.bbc.co.uk/staticarchive/a388e83a62286e661890c2da1f02b8fd4086a088.js"></script></head><body> <script type="text/javascript">/*<![CDATA[*/ bbcFlagpoles_istats = 'ON'; istatsTrackingUrl = '//web.archive.org/web/20200630121917/http://sa.bbc.co.uk/bbc/bbc/s?name=SET-COUNTER&app_type=web&ml_name=SSI&ml_version=0.18.5&language=en-GB'; /*]]>*/</script><script type="text/javascript" src="https://web.archive.org/web/20200630121917js_/http://static.bbci.co.uk/archive_stats/modules/stats-1.0.0.js"></script> <div id="blq-container" class="blq-lang-en-GB blq-gvl-2-8"> <div id="blq-pre-mast" lang="en-GB">  </div> <script type="text/html" id="blq-bbccookies-tmpl"><![CDATA[ <div id="bbccookies-prompt" class="bbccookies-d"> <h2> Cookies on the BBC website </h2> <p> We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website.<span class="bbccookies-international-message"> We also use cookies to ensure we show you advertising that is relevant to you.</span> If you continue without changing your settings, we'll assume that you are happy to receive all cookies on the BBC website. However, if you would like to, you can <a href="/privacy/cookies/managing/cookie-settings.html">change your cookie settings</a> at any time. </p> <ul> <li id="bbccookies-continue"> <button type="button" id="bbccookies-continue-button">Continue</button> </li> <li id="bbccookies-more"><a href="/privacy/cookies/bbc">Find out more</a></li></ul> </div> ]]></script><script type="text/javascript">/*<![CDATA[*/ (function(){if(bbccookies._showPrompt()){var i=document,b=i.getElementById("blq-pre-mast"),f=i.getElementById("blq-global"),h=i.getElementById("blq-container"),c=i.getElementById("blq-bbccookies-tmpl"),a,g,e;if(b&&i.createElement){a=i.createElement("div");a.id="bbccookies";e=c.innerHTML;e=e.replace("<"+"![CDATA[","").replace("]]"+">","");a.innerHTML=e;if(f){f.insertBefore(a,b)}else{h.insertBefore(a,b)}g=i.getElementById("bbccookies-continue-button");g.onclick=function(){a.parentNode.removeChild(a);return false};bbccookies._setPolicy()}}})(); /*]]>*/</script><span id="blq-mast-background"></span> <div id="blq-container-inner" lang="en-GB"> <div id="blq-acc" class="blq-rst"> <p id="blq-mast-home" class="blq-no-images"><a href="/web/20200630121917/http://www.bbc.co.uk/" hreflang="en-GB"> <span id="blq-blocks-wrapper"> <span class="blq-home">British Broadcasting Corporation</span><img src="/web/20200630121917im_/http://www.bbc.co.uk/staticarchive/2e00d1d53e9c3bd91993196aa19a1d88589969f0.png" alt="BBC" id="blq-blocks" width="84" height="24"><span class="blq-span">Home</span> </span> </a></p> <p class="blq-hide"><strong><a id="page-top">Accessibility links</a></strong></p> <ul id="blq-acc-links"><li><a href="#blq-content">Skip to content</a></li> <li><a href="#blq-local-nav">Skip to local navigation</a></li> <li><a href="#blq-nav-main">Skip to bbc.co.uk navigation</a></li> <li><a href="#blq-search">Skip to bbc.co.uk search</a></li> <li><a href="/web/20200630121917/http://www.bbc.co.uk/accessibility/">Accessibility Help</a></li> </ul></div> <div id="blq-main" class="blq-clearfix"> <div id="archived-mothball-message" style=" background:url(/web/20200630121917im_/http://www.bbc.co.uk/globalresources/mothball-images/bg.jpg) 0 0 repeat-x #fbfbfb; "> <a href="/web/20200630121917/http://www.bbc.co.uk/globalresources/mothballing" style=" "> This page has been archived and is no longer updated. <span style=" display:block; font-size:0.5em; padding:10px 0 0 70px; font-weight:bold; "> <span style=" color:#1A75BB; margin-left:100px; ">Find out more about page archiving.</span> </span> </a> </div> <div id="top_banner"> <div id="banner_container" class="blq-clearfix"> <div id="logo"><a href="/web/20200630121917/http://www.bbc.co.uk/accessibility/" id="header"><span class="blq-hide">My Web My Way - Making the web easier to use</span></a></div> </div> <div id="blq-local-nav"> <h2 class="blq-hide">Local Navigation</h2> <ul class="blq-clearfix"><li><a href="/web/20200630121917/http://www.bbc.co.uk/accessibility/" class="nav_short">My web home</a></li> <li><a href="/web/20200630121917/http://www.bbc.co.uk/accessibility/guides/" class="nav_short current_tab">How to guides</a></li> <li><a href="/web/20200630121917/http://www.bbc.co.uk/accessibility/on_the_bbc/" class="nav_long">Disability on BBC Online</a></li> <li><a href="/web/20200630121917/http://www.bbc.co.uk/accessibility/best_practice/" class="nav_short">Best practice</a></li> <li><a href="/web/20200630121917/http://www.bbc.co.uk/accessibility/faq.shtml" class="nav_short">FAQ / Contact</a></li> </ul></div> </div> <div id="breadcrumb"> <div id="breadcrumb_trail"><span id="breadcrumb_title">You are on:</span> <a href="/web/20200630121917/http://www.bbc.co.uk/accessibility/guides/">How to guides</a> > <a href="/web/20200630121917/http://www.bbc.co.uk/accessibility/guides/words_index.shtml">I find words difficult</a> > Smart word prediction</div> <div id="sitemap_button"><a href="/web/20200630121917/http://www.bbc.co.uk/accessibility/sitemap.shtml">View sitemap</a></div> </div>  <div id="blq-content" class="blq-clearfix"> <div id="main_content"> <div class="headline_container header_long blq-clearfix"><h1>Overview: <span class="text_nobold">Smart word prediction</span></h1></div> <div class="content_wrapper"> <div class="content_container">  <div class="guides_container_introduction smartword_guides"> <p>Many people have difficulty with spelling, or would simply like to be able to type less. Software that completes words by offering a choice of correctly spelt alternatives - which will be familiar to many users from using predictive text on mobile phones or from websites that offer suggestions as you type in a search box - can often help.</p> </div> <div class="inner_content_container"> <div class="inner_content_headline_container blq-clearfix"> <h2>Overview of word-prediction software</h2> </div> <div class="inner_content"> <div class="inner_content_steps"> <p>After you type the first few letters of a word, predictive software such as Penfriend gives a number of words starting with those letters (for information, see the <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20200630121917/http://www.penfriend.biz/">Penfriend website</a>). For example, in Fig 1 a list of possible words is displayed after 'Th' has been typed in; the choices available are in the order of those words that you most often type. To complete the word, you simply select one of the words offered; the complete word is then entered in the document.</p> <p><span class="caption">Fig 1</span><img src="/web/20200630121917im_/http://www.bbc.co.uk/staticarchive/b5a0ab5017b8d534d6da6946498a722ce8994f14.jpg" width="198" height="251" alt="'Penfriend' window showing suggested words"></p> <p>Most word prediction software can anticipate common mis-spellings. Even if a word such as 'physics' is begun with the letters 'fiz', then the correct word will still be displayed in the list.</p> <p>TextHelp Read&Write (for information, see the <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20200630121917/http://www.texthelp.com/">TextHelp Systems website</a>) is software that has a number of advanced features that help with word prediction. These include <a href="/web/20200630121917/http://www.bbc.co.uk/accessibility/guides/dictionary/#homophones">checking words that sound the same</a> (homophones) and providing speech output that allows you to have the text you are typing spoken back to you. The list of words offered can be spoken as well, which is useful for people who have difficulty reading or seeing.</p> <p>A variety of other word-prediction and text-completion applications are also available. Some programmes, such as Microsoft Word, have simpler auto-correct features for common spelling mistakes and auto-text, in which you can create shortcuts for commonly used phrases.</p> <p>The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.</p> </div> <div class="back_to_top"><a href="#page-top">Back to top</a></div> </div> </div>  <a href="/web/20200630121917/http://www.bbc.co.uk/accessibility/guides/words_index.shtml" class="previous_step">Back to How to guides - I find words difficult</a> </div> </div> <div class="headline_container header_long blq-clearfix noPrint"><h2>More ways to: Make spelling easier</h2></div> <div class="content_wrapper noPrint"> <div class="content_container"> <div class="guides_container_small dictionary_guides_small"> <h3><a href="/web/20200630121917/http://www.bbc.co.uk/accessibility/guides/dictionary/">Overview: Dictionary and thesaurus software</a></h3> <p>How you can use dictionary and thesaurus software to help you spell better</p> </div> <div class="guides_container_small spellinghelp_guides_small"> <h3><a href="/web/20200630121917/http://www.bbc.co.uk/accessibility/guides/spelling_grammar/">Check your spelling and grammar</a></h3> <p>How to operate spell-checking software in commonly used programmes</p> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div id="side_content"> <div class="side_panel"> <div class="side_header"><h2>Other helpful guides</h2></div> <div class="side_content"> <ul><li><a href="/web/20200630121917/http://www.bbc.co.uk/accessibility/guides/change_fonts/">Change your fonts</a></li> <li><a href="/web/20200630121917/http://www.bbc.co.uk/accessibility/guides/voice_recognition/">Use voice recognition</a></li> <li><a href="/web/20200630121917/http://www.bbc.co.uk/accessibility/guides/speak_text/">Make your computer speak text aloud</a></li> <li><a href="/web/20200630121917/http://www.bbc.co.uk/accessibility/guides/change_colours/">Change your colours</a></li> </ul></div> </div> <div class="side_panel"> <div class="side_header"><h2>Jargon buster</h2></div> <div class="strapline_side">Find out what it all means in Webwise's A-Z glossary of computer terms</div> <div class="side_content"> <ul id="jargon_container" class="blq-clearfix"><li><a href="/web/20200630121917/http://www.bbc.co.uk/webwise/a-z/t/#toolbar">Toolbar</a></li> <li><a href="/web/20200630121917/http://www.bbc.co.uk/webwise/a-z/f/#font">Font</a></li> <li><a href="/web/20200630121917/http://www.bbc.co.uk/webwise/a-z/b/#browser">Web browser</a></li> <li><a href="/web/20200630121917/http://www.bbc.co.uk/webwise/a-z/o/#operating-system">Operating system</a></li> <li><a href="/web/20200630121917/http://www.bbc.co.uk/webwise/a-z/i/#icon">Icon</a></li> <li><a href="/web/20200630121917/http://www.bbc.co.uk/webwise/a-z/l/#linux">Linux</a></li> </ul><div class="side_foot_note"> <ul><li><a href="/web/20200630121917/http://www.bbc.co.uk/webwise/a-z/" class="link_arrow">See more computer terms on Webwise</a></li> </ul></div> </div> </div>  <div class="share_box"> <div class="side_header"><h2>Share this page</h2></div> <div class="share_box_inner"> <div class="bbc-st"> <a href="/web/20200630121917/http://www.bbc.co.uk/modules/sharetools/share?url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/accessibility/guides/word_prediction/index.shtml&appId=mwmw">Share this page</a> </div> <script src="/web/20200630121917js_/http://www.bbc.co.uk/staticarchive/83f5bedfaaaae12a1220a872db0629fb6b14a507.js" type="text/javascript"></script></div> </div>  </div> </div> </div> <div id="blq-mast" class="blq-rst blq-default-domestic blq-new-nav" lang="en-GB"> <div id="blq-sign-in"> <div id="id-status" class="blq-id-v4"> <div class="id-out id-gel"> <h2 class="blq-hide">BBC iD</h2> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20200630121917/https://ssl.bbc.co.uk/id/status" id="blq-idstatus-link"> <span class="id-icon"> <span></span> </span> <span id="blq-idstatus-text"> BBC iD </span> <span class="id-spinner"></span> <span class="blq-dropdown-arrow"> <span></span> </span> </a> </div> <div id="id-status-nav"> <div class="id-in blq-rst"> <ul><li> <a name="idDash" class="blq-nogo has-ptrt idDash" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20200630121917/https://ssl.bbc.co.uk/id/settings"> Settings </a> </li> <li> <a name="idSignout" class="blq-nogo has-ptrt idSignout" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20200630121917/https://ssl.bbc.co.uk/id/signout"> Sign out </a> </li> </ul></div> </div> </div> </div> <form method="get" id="blq-search-form" action="https://web.archive.org/web/20200630121917/http://search.bbc.co.uk/search" accept-charset="utf-8"> <p id="blq-nav-search"> <input type="hidden" name="go" value="toolbar"><input type="hidden" name="uri" value="/accessibility/guides/word_prediction/"><label for="blq-search" class="blq-hide">Search term:</label> <input id="blq-search" type="text" name="q" value="" maxlength="128"><input id="blq-search-btn" type="submit" value="Search"></p> </form> <h2 class="blq-hide">BBC navigation</h2> <ul id="blq-nav-main" class="blq-not-uk"><li id="blq-nav-n"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20200630121917/http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/" hreflang="en-GB">News</a></li> <li id="blq-nav-s"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20200630121917/http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/" hreflang="en-GB">Sport</a></li> <li id="blq-nav-w"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20200630121917/http://www.bbc.co.uk/weather/" hreflang="en-GB">Weather</a></li> <li id="blq-nav-i"> <a href="/web/20200630121917/http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/" hreflang="en-GB">iPlayer</a> </li> <li id="blq-nav-t"><a href="/web/20200630121917/http://www.bbc.co.uk/tv/" hreflang="en-GB">TV</a></li> <li id="blq-nav-r"><a href="/web/20200630121917/http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio/" hreflang="en-GB">Radio</a></li> <li id="blq-nav-m"><a href="#blq-nav">More…</a></li> </ul></div> <div id="blq-nav" class="blq-blue"> <div id="blq-nav-links" class="blq-clearfix" lang="en-GB"> <div id="blq-nav-links-inner"> <ul class="blq-nav-sub blq-first"><li><a href="/web/20200630121917/http://www.bbc.co.uk/cbbc/">CBBC</a></li> <li><a href="/web/20200630121917/http://www.bbc.co.uk/cbeebies/">CBeebies</a></li> <li><a href="/web/20200630121917/http://www.bbc.co.uk/comedy/">Comedy</a></li> <li><a href="/web/20200630121917/http://www.bbc.co.uk/food/">Food</a></li> <li><a href="/web/20200630121917/http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/">History</a></li> </ul><ul class="blq-nav-sub"><li><a href="/web/20200630121917/http://www.bbc.co.uk/learning/">Learning</a></li> <li><a href="/web/20200630121917/http://www.bbc.co.uk/music/">Music</a></li> <li><a href="/web/20200630121917/http://www.bbc.co.uk/science/">Science</a></li> <li><a href="/web/20200630121917/http://www.bbc.co.uk/nature/">Nature</a></li> <li><a href="/web/20200630121917/http://www.bbc.co.uk/local/">Local</a></li> </ul><ul class="blq-nav-sub blq-last"><li><a href="/web/20200630121917/http://www.bbc.co.uk/northernireland/">Northern Ireland</a></li> <li><a href="/web/20200630121917/http://www.bbc.co.uk/scotland/">Scotland</a></li> <li><a href="/web/20200630121917/http://www.bbc.co.uk/wales/">Wales</a></li> <li id="blq-az"><a href="/web/20200630121917/http://www.bbc.co.uk/a-z/">Full A-Z<span class="blq-hide"> of BBC sites</span></a></li> </ul></div> </div> </div>  <div id="blq-foot" lang="en-GB" class="blq-rst blq-clearfix blq-foot-grey"> <div id="blq-footlinks"> <h2 class="blq-hide">BBC links</h2> <ul><li class="blq-footlinks-row"> <ul class="blq-footlinks-row-list"><li><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20200630121917/http://m.bbc.co.uk/">Mobile site</a></li> <li><a href="/web/20200630121917/http://www.bbc.co.uk/terms/">Terms of Use</a></li> <li><a href="/web/20200630121917/http://www.bbc.co.uk/aboutthebbc/">About the BBC</a></li> </ul></li> <li class="blq-footlinks-row"> <ul class="blq-footlinks-row-list"><li><a href="/web/20200630121917/http://www.bbc.co.uk/privacy/">Privacy</a></li> <li><a href="/web/20200630121917/http://www.bbc.co.uk/accessibility/">Accessibility Help</a></li> </ul></li> <li class="blq-footlinks-row"> <ul class="blq-footlinks-row-list"><li><a href="/web/20200630121917/http://www.bbc.co.uk/privacy/bbc-cookies-policy.shtml">Cookies</a></li> <li><a href="/web/20200630121917/http://www.bbc.co.uk/contact/">Contact the BBC</a></li> </ul></li> <li class="blq-footlinks-row"> <ul class="blq-footlinks-row-list"><li><a href="/web/20200630121917/http://www.bbc.co.uk/guidance/">Parental Guidance</a></li> </ul></li> </ul></div> <div id="blq-foot-blocks" class="blq-footer-image-light"><img src="/web/20200630121917im_/http://www.bbc.co.uk/staticarchive/a8e42f8fe987b7cc9bf2d43b74b2c74b2448d2e3.png" width="84" height="24" alt="BBC"></div> <p id="blq-disclaim"><span id="blq-copy">BBC © 2014</span> <a href="/web/20200630121917/http://www.bbc.co.uk/help/web/links/">The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. Read more.</a></p> <div id="blq-obit"><p><strong>This page is best viewed in an up-to-date web browser with style sheets (CSS) enabled. While you will be able to view the content of this page in your current browser, you will not be able to get the full visual experience. Please consider upgrading your browser software or enabling style sheets (CSS) if you are able to do so.</strong></p></div> </div> </div> </div> <script type="text/javascript"> if (typeof require !== 'undefined') { require(['istats-1'], function(istats){ istats.track('external', { region: document.getElementById('blq-main') }); istats.track('download', { region: document.getElementById('blq-main') }); }); } </script></body></html>