WordQ 6 supports writing with a wide variety of document editors and includes a fully accessible PDF viewer/editor with the support of word prediction, speech feedback, customizable topics, ThoughtQ dynamic topics, and proofreading. Speech recognition is available to complement WordQ using the latest Microsoft Voice Typing (online) and Voice Access (offline)
Using WordQ with document editors is described here.
Note: WordQ runs offline. However, you must be online to to use speech recognition, to get topic word definitions as well as discover information about these words as they relate to a topic using online search, and to receive updates.
(Visible by default)
(Labels visible by Options>Preferences...>Show labels on toolbar buttons)
Note: Labels must be visible if the user requires complete keyboard accessibility
Options: Show/hide Options to customize WordQ
F6 Topics: Show/hide Static topics
F7 TQ: Show/hide ThoughtQ dynamic topics
F8 Mic: Toggle speech recognition on/off
F9 Words: Show/hide word predictions
F10 Speech: Turn speech feedback on/off
F11 Read: Start/stop reading selected text
To use WordQ with Google Docs, Slides, and Forms, you must turn on the following settings in Docs: Tools>Accessibility.
WordQ will consider creative spelling when making its predictions.
Whenever there are no words in WordQ’s dictionary beginning with the letters that you type, WordQ will suggest words that take into consideration possible spelling/typing mistakes.
Also, when you highlight a word, creative spelling will be considered when predicting words, i.e., spellchecked.
To turn off creative spelling:
If you select the wrong predicted word by mistake, you can quickly undo it by pressing ESC. The last word will be erased, and you can now select the correct word or continue typing.
Usage examples are provided to help distinguish close-sounding words (including homonyms).
A triangle symbol beside a suggested word indicates that there is a usage example available for that word.
Move over a predicted word and pause to see/hear the usage example.
Move the cursor anywhere within your document and click for in-context word prediction.
Suggested words will appear based on the cursor location.
There may also be a usage example to assist you with the selection.
Speech is turned on by default. Click the Speech button (F10) to toggle speech playback on/off.
Words typed or selected from the prediction list will be read aloud.
As you complete each sentence by adding punctuation it will be read back to you when you enter <space>.
See Options>Speech Feedback for choosing what text you want spoken.
Select your text that you want spoken. Click the Read button (F11) to have it read out loud.
At any time while your text is being read aloud, you can turn off the reading by clicking the Read button (F11) again or within your document.
See Proofreading below for a more advanced way of listening to your text.
See Options>Speech Feedback for choosing the voice that you want.
Hold down a LEFT, RIGHT or UP arrow key to move through a document without distraction. The word prediction box will temporarily disappear allowing you to also use the DOWN arrow key.
When you stop, the prediction box will re-appear after a short pause.
Alternately, you can toggle the prediction box On/Off by clicking the Words icon (F9) and move while the box is hidden.
A combination of letters, an “abbreviation,” may be defined to represent a word or phrase, e.g., “iwbt” for “I want to book a ticket for ”.
When you type an abbreviation followed by the SPACEBAR, it expands to the assigned word or phrase.
You can create your own set of abbreviations that are easy for you to use and remember. There is no limit on the number of abbreviations that may be saved in one set. (Options
Note: Create your own abbreviation-expansions under Options>My Words...>Abbreviations
Choose Options>Exit or click on the Close button on the WordQ buttonbar.
All changes to your User Profile (settings, vocabulary, word usage, abbreviations, pronunciations, topics) are saved automatically when you close WordQ.
You can change the saving options under Options>Preferences.
One of the most beneficial uses of WordQ is proofreading. You can listen to your work being read aloud while your text is simultaneously highlighted. The voice acts as an unbiased observer reading exactly what you have written. Mistakes, such as misspellings, missing words, or poor word order, stand out as sounding strange. Word prediction, supplemented with speech feedback, makes editing easy while you are learning a proofreading strategy.
If you hear a mistake, you can then step through the sentence word-by-word to locate the mistake. For example, you may hear two words that sound wrong together. You may have left a word out in between words or one of the words may be incorrect.
See Options>Speech Feedback for choosing the voice that you want.
See Options>Speech Feedback for choosing the voice that you want. Voices that support word-by-word highlighting are indicated by *.
Type your text as best as you can. Don’t worry about punctuation for the moment. When you have finished typing a section, use proofreading as described before to have WordQ read your text back to you.
If you’re not sure about punctuation, experiment. Put in a comma or a question mark where you think it might go.
Listen to the sentence(s) being read back. The speech will automatically pause at each punctuation mark and the intonation will change. Make changes until you are satisfied with how it sounds.
A topic is a list of words or short phrases that you might use when writing about a topic. They are emphasized in the word prediction when a topic is active and are shown in the right-hand pane of WordQ as writing hints. Some of these words may be outside of WordQ's regular dictionary.
Within the list you can hear the words spoken, get word definitions, and discover information about these words as they relate to the topic using Google.
The list remains visible when a topic is active to provide an ongoing reference when writing.
WordQ provides two different ways of using topic words:
In both cases, the use and functionality of Topics is the same.
A ThoughtQ dynamic topic is a list of words or short phrases automatically generated from an keyword for potential use when writing about a topic. They are emphasized in the word prediction in purple when the ThoughtQ topic is active and are shown in the right-hand pane of WordQ as writing hints. It can be changed at any time; for example, between sentences or paragraphs. You can also search and discover related information to ThoughtQ topic words through a web search feature.
Although a ThoughtQ topic is not saved with your profile, its topical words can be copied and added to a static topic. See Static Topics - Import Words from ThoughtQ.
To use a ThoughtQ topic:
To get a definition of a word:
To search and discover related information:
My Topics are lists of words or short phrases that you create and customize for potential use when writing about a topic. They are emphasized in the word prediction in blue when the My Topics are active and are shown in the right-hand pane of WordQ as writing hints.
A topic is created and saved with your profile from a list of words that you add:
• one-by-one
• from a list in a text file
• from text copied to the clipboard, or
• from ThoughtQ
To use My Topics:
To turn off My Topics:
To get a definition of a specific topic word:
To search and discover related information:
To create a new topic:
To delete a topic:
To add topic words/phrases one-by-one:
A list of words and short phrases (up to 45 letters) can be imported into a topic if it is saved in a text-only (.txt) file with a RETURN at the end of each line.
To add a list of topic words (or short phrases) from a text file:
WordQ can automatically learn topic words from any text that has been copied to the clipboard. This is most useful to quickly create topic words from a recent source of information or a topical area not revealed in ThoughtQ
First, open up an application, such as a web page, with content that you are interested in using. Then select and copy the text (usually all the text) to the clipboard.
Note: The application must allow you to copy text.
To add topic words from the clipboard:
To add a list of topic words (or short phrases) from ThoughtQ:
WordQ works alongside of both Microsoft Voice Typing (online) and Voice Access (offline) for entering text using speech recognition.
At any time, you have the choice of typing with the keyboard, using word prediction, or speaking straight into your text.
See Options>Help>Support for video examples of using speech recognition and WordQ.
Minimum requirements:
Voice Typing: Windows 10(v22H2), Windows 11(v22H2)
Voice Access: Windows 11(v22H2)
You will be asked to select the speech recognition method. Choose Voice Typing
Now you can use the Mic button to toggle Voice Typing on and off.
A Voice Typing popup will also appear that you can choose various options, toggle the microphone on and off, and get help.
When Voice Typing is listening, simply speak into your microphone and whatever you say will be converted into text.
Voice Typing continues to write what you say until you explicitly turn off listening, typically by starting to type.
Once you have resumed typing, WordQ's proofreading strategy and in-context word prediction are useful to help you edit recognized text.
Note: To use Voice Typing ensure that Voice Access is turned off if already activated.
After you turn on Voice Access, note the bar at the top of Windows.
An Options button at the right-hand-side allows you to manage the microphone, additional options, choose a Voice Access language and to quit Voice Access. You can also get help on using Voice Access.
When Voice Access is listening, simply speak into your microphone and whatever you say will be converted into text. While listening, you can alternate using speech recognition with typing and using word prediction. WordQ's proofreading strategy and in-context word prediction are useful to help you edit recognized text.
WordQ PDF is an application within WordQ that allows you to open PDF documents (local, cloud or web) for accessible* reading and writing. In addition to general reading of a PDF document, it is perfect for completing assignments and tests that are provided as PDFs. You can fill in form fields or add your own text boxes; add sticky notes; and mark up text with annotations. All of these can be edited at any time.
All WordQ functions are available to work with a PDF document including:
*Documents that have been scanned must be converted first by OCR
Complete instructions are available in PDF Viewer/Editor User Guide
Open a PDF document from your local or cloud drive:
Open a PDF document from the web:
Here, you can add personal words or phrases to your WordQ vocabulary such as the names of family and friends. While WordQ includes many common names, adding your own names helps WordQ identify ones that are important to you.
To add a word or a phrase:
To add words as you type:
To add a Usage Example:
To add a Synonym(s):
To share your vocabulary:
Misspelled and unrecognized words are shown here for you to review
To accept words for prediction:
To delete misspelled words:
Note: Leaving words in the spelling list does not affect word prediction. You may accept or delete words at any time.
Select My Words...>Abbreviations from the Options menu.
To add an abbreviation-expansions:
To share your abbreviation-expansions:
You can modify how words are pronounced.
Change pronunciations of certain words (e.g., your name) if the current pronunciation is inaccurate by spelling out how you think it should be spoken.
To add a pronunciation exception:
To share your pronunciation exceptions:
Choose this menu item to turn using abbreviations ON/OFF.
Modify how the prediction word list is displayed.
Words
Number of words. Choose the number of words (1 – 9). (Default = 5)
Font. Select the Font button and choose the font, style and size. The prediction box automatically changes size with any font changes.
Display synonyms turns the display of synonyms On/Off. (Default = ON)
Display usage examples turns the display of usage examples On/Off. (Default = ON)
Order of predicted words
Most likely shows predicted words in most likely order. (Default)
Alphabetical shows predicted words in alphabetical order.
Layout
Vertical list displays predicted words vertically, which is generally easier to read. (Default)
Horizontal list displays predicted words in a single row.
Position of List
Follow text cursor displays predicted words following the text insertion cursor as you type. (Default)
Leave in place displays predicted words at a fixed location as you type. You can drag the list to another location using the title bar that is shown only when this option is selected.
Modify how word prediction works.
Word prediction
Predict new words that I use enables WordQ to automatically add correctly spelled words to your vocabulary. Novel and misspelled words are put aside for you to review. See Review misspelled or unrecognized words above. (Default = ON)
Predict words from the WordQ Dictionary suggests words from the WordQ Dictionary when appropriate words cannot be found in your vocabulary. (Default = ON)
Predict next words displays the words that are most likely to follow the word you have just selected. (Default = ON)
Adapt predictions based on how I combine words enables WordQ to learn which words you use to follow one another. If you have trouble with grammar, you may want to leave this option unchecked. (Default = OFF)
Predict words based on creative spelling enables WordQ to consider creative spelling when making its predictions. Whenever there are no words in WordQ’s dictionary beginning with the letters that you type, WordQ will suggest words that take into consideration possible spelling/typing mistakes. Also, when you highlight a word, creative spelling will be considered when predicting words, i.e., spell checked. (Default = ON)
Following a word prediction
Add spaces and adjust punctuation. You can choose to let WordQ automatically add a space after you select a predicted word. When you type a punctuation mark, WordQ will remove this training space, place the punctuation and add any necessary spaces. (Default = ON)
You may also choose to:
- Add 1 space after you end a sentence. This is the common rule with computer fonts. (Default)
- Add 2 spaces after you end a sentence.
Capitalize the first word of the next sentence. This option is only available when the previous option is selected, and only works if you immediately begin typing the next sentence after typing an end-of-sentence mark. (Default = ON)
To keep your vocabulary from learning new words:
To predict words from only your vocabulary:
Modify how word predictions are selected.
Keyboard selection (Default = ON)
Select by number enables selection of predicted words by either the number line or numeric keyboard. (Default = ON)
- Use the number line uses the numbers above the letters to select predicted words. (Default)
- Use the numeric keyboard uses the numbers on a numeric keypad (on extended keyboard) to select predicted words.
Mouse selection (On by default)
- Point and click to select a word enables selection of predicted words by a mouse/trackpad. (Default = ON)
Choose a text-to-speech voice and modify it.
To adjust the voice:
Volume adjusts the speech volume. The maximum volume is the current Windows volume setting.
Reading Speed adjusts the reading speed of the selected voice.
To change the reading voice:
Select Speech Feedback...>Feedback from the Options menu.
Typing feedback
Speak letters helps you confirm which character you have typed. Each letter is spoken as you type it. (Default = OFF)
Speak words helps you detect spelling errors. Each word that you type or select is spoken. (Default = ON)
Speak sentences helps you hear the word flow in a sentence to decide whether the proper words and punctuation have been used. (Default = ON)
Program feedback
Read word predictions lets you hear predicted words when you point to them. (Default = ON)
Read user interface items lets you hear application menus as well as right-click pop-up menus. (Default = OFF)
Read items in ThoughtQ and My Topics lets you hear topic words. (Default = ON)
Choose this menu item to indicate that you are using online Voice Typing.
A microphone button will be added to the WordQ buttonbar to toggle the listening on and off.
Deselect this menu item to hide the microphone button.
Note that choosing Voice Typing will deselect offline Voice Access if it had been previously turned on.
Choose this menu item to indicate that you are using offline Voice Access.
A microphone button will be added to the WordQ buttonbar to toggle the listening on and off.
Deselect this menu item to hide the microphone button.
Note that choosing Voice Access will deselect online Voice Typing if it had been previously turned on.
You can modify keystrokes used to control WordQ buttons in this dialog.
Note: The use of Ctrl and Shift will influence whether you can use a Function Key, Number or Letter.
Use New User... menu item to create a new user profile with a specific language, vocabulary and voice. You may create and save multiple profiles. You will be asked to save your current profile before creating a new profile.
Use Open User... menu item to open a previously saved user profile with a specific language, vocabulary and voice. You may open and use one profile at a time, but can can switch at any time. You will be asked to save your current profile before opening another.
Use Save User... menu item to manually save the current user profile with a specific language, vocabulary and voice with any changes that you may have made.
Use Save User As... menu item to save the current user profile with a different name.
You can certain saving and display preferences dialog.
Save on Exit controls saving your User Profile (settings, vocabulary, word usage, abbreviations, pronunciations, topics) on closing WordQ. By default, WordQ always saves everything.
Make a backup copy backs up your User Profile in case of corruption. By default, WordQ makes a backup once a week. If WordQ detects a corrupted User Profile, it will ask you whether you want to open the backup copy.
Show labels on toolbar buttons sets whether to show button labels. (Default = OFF)
Open at Login sets whether to have WordQ automatically run when logging into your Windows account. (Default = OFF)
Exam Mode turns off WordQ features that may not be allowed during exams/assessments. In particular, those features that may be deemed unfair or allow “cheating.”
A teacher or exam supervisor typically initiates this mode and chooses the time limit.
Prior to starting Exam Mode it is important that the user loads their personal vocabulary and configures their Speech Feedback.
After choosing Exam Mode, a warning dialog will be displayed indicating the following features are turned off and not available:
Optionally, you may choose to turn off:
Choosing the Exam Mode time limit:
Choose Check for Updates to check for and download an updated version of WordQ.
Choose Support to view the WordQ 6 online video support page. For full support, please view Quillsoft Support