Dkey allows entering of text using the numeric key pad in a fashion similar to SMS texting with a phone. This is known as disambiguation. DKey speaks the letters and suggested words as text is entered. When text is accepted it can be pasted into the window with focus as if it had been entered directly with the keyboard. It is also possible to keep the text in the DKey window, in which case it may also be printed. Settings are accessed using the mouse pointer.

Speech is provided using  the current Windows Speech voice. XP and Vista each come with a sample voice already installed and others can be obtained (look for SAPI 5 voices).

Dkey has been tested on Windows XP and Vista and required numeric keypad as provided on desktop keyboards  (laptops can be a problem) or On Screen Keyboard programs like Grid 2.

DKey is Open Source Software and is Licensed under the GPL (2).

Installing

Download the latest installer from the Filessection of this space (see Files tab above) and run it (e.g DKey-0.2.0.exe). This will create a Dkey item in the Start menu and optionally on the desktop and/or quick launch bar.

Settings

You can get at the settings by clicking in the space between buttons (and clicking again to return). Options are

• Font - used for all text in Dkey
• Print font - font used in printing
• Text colour & BG colour - text and background colours for text in Dkey
• Sel Text colour & Sel BG colour - for selected items in the wordlist
• Spell, Say word, spell and Word - how words are spoken as they are formed (are always spoken in full when accepted)
• Show Labels & Hide Labels  - show or hide labels above Text Output and Word List
• Display text in window or Inject text to other program window with focus (a word at a time)

You can also change the size and postion of the DKey window by dragging as usual. The size of the Text Output and world list controls can be altered by dragging the ...... markers next to them. All settings are rembered.

Speech can be adjusted using the windows settinsg using the link in Start menu -> Dkey or through WIndows' Control Panel -> Speech -> Text to Speech.

The current settings are stored in a file .dkeyrc that can be found in C:\Documents and Settings\<Username>\Application Data\Dkey (also known as %appdata%\DKey). It is hand editable and can be deleted to reset to defaults.

Operation

Run DKey and adjust settings as above (you may get no speech the very first time you run DKey, so try running again before looking for sound problems) . If you want text to go to anotehr program then run the program you want to enter text into and ensure the correct window has focus (has blinking I in it). Dkey remains floating above all other Windows.

Ensure Num Lock is on so the keypad acts as numbers and not cursor movement. Use the number pad to operate. Keys are as follows.

                      / - prnt sttngs  * - print         - - clear window

7 - abc      8 - def              9 - ghi

4 - jkl      5 - mno            6 - pqrs

1 - tuv       2 - wxyz            3  -  .

0 - Accept                            Del - Delete  + - Next in list

As you type letters a selection of possible words are presented in the word list window. The top one is selected and spoken. You can use '+ next' to select other words. '0 - Accept' is used to type the word in the other program and also empties the output window and wordlist. Use '3 .' to end the sentence, using . ! or ? as available in the Word List window.

An alternative mobile phone style button/key out is also available and can be accessaccessed via the 'dkey mobile layout' icon in the start menu or by using the -m command line switch.

Adding Words

The file "dkey_wordlist.txt" in My Documents or Documents is parsed when dkey starts up and words listed in it are added to the in memory dictionary. The file format is one word per line with word followed by number indicating its posiiton in the list of possibiities (if more than one).  0 is 1st in the list. Empty lines and lines starting with # are ignored.

Developer Notes

You can get the latest source from Subversion and can run dkey.py directly.

You will need the following Python modules:

• python 2.5
• pywin32
• pyhook
• pygtk
• gladewin32
• SendKeys

The installer is created by running mkdkey.bat and you will need py2exe and Inno Setup (don't forget to edit the version number in setup.py and dkey.iss). See mkdkey.bat for important notes for getting sound to work on target machines.