TouchPal 3.0 User Manual

1. Basic Input

2. Layout & Language

3. Words & Dictionary

4. Customization

5. Options

6. Registration

7. Contact Us

Quick Start>

1. Basic Input

1.1 Predictive Input

1. Tap the keys with the letters "a", "c", "k" for the word acknowledge.
   

2. Select the default candidate "acknowledge" from the list by pressing the "SPACE" key.
   

3. Click on a word directly to select a non-default candidate.
   

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1.2 Precise Input, Symbols and Uppercase

1. Precise Input:
   Slide Left for the letter on the left "e"; Slide Right for the letter on the right "r".
   
2. Punctionation:
   Slide Down for the punctuation on the bottom "-". (In Full Qwerty layout, slide down on either of the two letters to input the punctuation in between)
   
3. Uppercase:
   Slide Up for the uppercase letters: "J", "K"; Slide Up on the "SPACE" key for a CAPS lock.
   
4. Number:
   Slide Up and then Down Further for the number on the top "0". (In 9-key PhonePad layout, use the same way to input numbers, even though numbers are shown on the right bottom)
5. Expand:
   Press & hold for a second to expand all the possible characters on the key, especially for the accent letters and for the letters near the border. Press "BACKSPACE" to exit the expanded view.
   

Precise Input Mode: When you want to input some uncommon words (e.g., password, email address), you could disable the dictionary-based prediction and enter the "precise input mode": Slide Up on BACKSPACE.

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1.3 Input "Enter"

Slide DOWN on "BACKSPACE" key to input "Enter".

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1.4 Input "I'll", "It's", "so-called", ...

To input a word with some symbol, such as "I'll", "It's", "so-called", you should tap on the symbol directly instead of sliding down. For example, for <I'm>, you should tap [ui], [ui], [m &].

To input a custom word NOT in the dictionary, you should slide down on the symbol and hold for a second. For example, to add the word < 'cuz>, you should slide down on [ '] and hold for a second, then precise input "cuz".

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1.5 Smart punctuation

When you are enabling "Add SPACE after word", every word you select will be followed by a SPACE. However, when the selected word is in the end of a sentence, you may not want the auto-added space. You can resolve this issue by sliding left on SPACE button to remove the preceding space and input a period (".").

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1.6 Accent Letters

(Note: accent letters are not shipped with the default English QWERTY. You may need to download an additional language pack for inputting accent letters)

Press & hold a key to show all the related accent letters. For example, press & hold the key [a s] will show "à","á","â","ã","ä", etc.

In some language packs, accent letters can be inputted as a symbol.

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1.7 Shortcuts on SPACE and BACKSPACE

• Slide UP on SPACE for CAPS Lock
• Slide DOWN on SPACE for Auto-Space ( add a space after each selected word)
• Slide LEFT on SPACE for a period (".")
• Slide RIGHT on SPACE for Tab

• Slide UP on BACKSPACE for Precise Input Mode (no prediction based on dictionary)
• Slide DOWN on BACKSPACE for Enter in normal mode; for More Candidates when selecting candidates
• Slide LEFT on BACKSPACE for Delete Whole Word

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2. Layout & Language

2.1 Switch layout among T+, Full Qwerty and 9-key PhonePad

Sweep left or right over a half of the screen on the main view to switch layouts. TouchPal currently supports three different layouts:

• T+ layout: Each key has two letters and two symbols.
• Full Qwerty layout: Each key has a single letter.
• 9-key PhonePad layout: Keys are organized similar to traditional 9-key phone pad.

Note: To input Numbers on the 9-key PhonePad layout, please also slide Up and then Down further.

* This is a Professional-only feature.

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2.2 Install/Switch languages

Install a language pack:

1. Download a language pack from our website (www.cootek.com)
2. Run the CAB file directly on the device
3. Soft reset your device

Switch language:
Slide DOWN on the "abc" tab, and then select the language from the list.

Note: Some features are not available in all languages, e.g., mistyping correction, context-based prediction.

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2.3 Resize keyboard

Slide UP or DOWN on the Option tab to resize the keyboard.

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2.4 Adjust key location

You can drag'n drop the SPACE key to bottom-left or bottom-right of the keyboard

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2.5 Mistyping Correction

Full Qwerty layout supports mistyping correction by default. The keys on the Full Qwerty layout are small, but don't need to press precisely on the keys. Instead, you only need to tap in the area around the key. The Mistyping Correction Engine will automatically correct the input.

On T+ layout or 9-key PhonePad layout, you can select "Enhanced Mistyping Correction" to enable this feature. Note that once this is turned on, there will be more candidates in the list, and sometimes it could be less efficient.

The "Correction on reduced size" option will allow you to turn on mistyping correction only when the keyboard is resized to a smaller size.

Note: This feature may not be available in all languages.

(* This is a Professional-only feature. )

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2.6 Context-based prediction & correction

In most traditional input solutions with prediction or correction, user often finds it frustrating to input words like "of" and "if", "is" and "us", "go" and "to", etc. Because they are close to each other, in many cases the keyboard will either predict the wrong word, or correct the word by mistake.

TouchPal can resolve this problem by predicting based on context. For example, if you have just inputted "even", the following word is more likely to be "if" than "of".

Select "Predict based on context" in the option to enable this feature.

Note: This feature may not be available in all languages.

(* This is a Professional-only feature. )

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2.7 Next word prediction

When you have inputted a word, TouchPal can predict the next word based on a built-in phrase dictionary. For example, after you have inputted "look", the list will predict "forward", "at", "for", etc.

Select "Predict next word " in the option to enable this feature.

Note: this feature does NOT work when the "Add SPACE after word" is turned off.

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2.8 Landscape mode

TouchPal supports Landscape mode. You don't switch TouchPal to Landscape mode. Instead, you should switch your device to Landscape mode, and TouchPal will switch to Landscape mode automatically.

In Landscape mode, some features are disabled. For example, you cannot resize the keyboard, and you won't see the candidate word list. There are still many limitations in Landscape mode, but we will add more features in the future.

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3. Words & Dictionary

3.1 Word association

• Slide DOWN on a word candidate to bring up "associated words" list.
• Slide LEFTon a word candidate to input v.+ed (e.g., "test" -> "tested")
• Slide RIGHT on a word candidate to input v.+ing (e.g., "test" -> "testing")
• Slide UP on a word candidate to input v./n.+s (e.g., "test" -> "tests")

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3.2 Adjust word priority

• Press & hold the predicted word to change the priority.
• You can only adjust the priority of the user-defined custom words.

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3.3 Add/Remove custom word

Add a custom word: Use Precise Input in Predivtive Mode to type a custom word. If the Option "Add user words quietly" is selected, the new word will be added to the dictionary automatically. (Note: if you are in Precise Input Mode, the new words will NOT be added.)

Add a custom word with symbols: You can add a custom word like "C++", "I'm", "someone@somewhere.com", etc. To add such a custom word, you should press-hold each symbol when using precise input. For example, to add "C++", you should first precise input "C", then slide down and hold for the symbol "+", twice.

Using a custom word with symbols: To input "I'm", press key "[u i]", "[u i]", "[m &]". Do NOT slide down for the symbol; tap directly on the key with the symbol instead.

Remove a custom word: If you mistyped a custom word and want to remove it from the dictionary, type this word and press-hold it until a menu pops up. Then select "Remove this word from dictionary".

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3.4 Edit/Backup custom word dictionary

Custom words are stored in a text file named "user_dic.txt" under folder "Program Files/TouchPal/Surfaces/<language>". For example, the English custom word dictionary is stored at "...Surface/english". Note that in Windows Mobile explorer, you may not see the extension ".txt".

Upgrade from V2 custom word dictionary :

1. Copy your V2 custom word dictionary (e.g., "eng_user_dic") to the V3 installation folder "Program Files\TouchPal\Surfaces\<language>".
2. Rename it to "user_dic".
3. Reboot your device.

Edit custom word dictionary:

The V3 custom word dictionary is stored in Unicode. It is recommended to edit your custom word dictionary on your PC with Notepad and save as Unicode text. If you open and edit the file in Word Mobile, please do NOT save as word format, and you should reboot after editing (Important!).

The custom words are stored as "<word> <priority>". The priority can be 0-7, where 7 is the highest priority and 0 is the least priority.

You can copy this file to any other folder to backup your custom list. PLEACE backup your custom word dictionary for each upgrade or reinstallation.

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4. Customization

4.1 My Sentences

Define a custom sentence:

1. Open a text editor (e.g., Word Mobile, SMS)
2. Enter the sentence you want to define (e.g., "Thanks a lot!")
3. Copy the sentence to clipboard.
4. Slide DOWN on the "123" or "<!>" tab. Press-hold a slot until a pop up window says "The sentence has been saved successfully."

Define a custom sentence with parameter:

For example, you want to define a sentence "See you in * mins" where * is a parameter that you'd like to enter each time you use the sentence.
To define such a sentence, all the steps are the same as above, except in step 2, you should replace the paramter with "&*". (e.g., "See you in &* mins".)
* You can only define 1 parameter in each sentence.

Define a password:

You can define passwords by using "***<your password>". They will be displayed as "*********" in the list. For example, to define a password "Dt1&Y!", you may follow all the steps above, and enter the string "***Dt1&Y!" in step 2.

Use the defined sentences:

Slide DOWN on the quot;123" or "<!>" tab and select the sentence from the list.

* This is a Professional-only feature.

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4.2 My Commands

You can slide down on the "Control" tab to get a list of all the defined commands. You may also define your own command, e.g., "CTRL ALT+ Z"

Define a custom command:

1. Open a text editor (e.g., Word Mobile, SMS)
2. Enter a command string corresponding to the command, which is further described below.
3. Copy the sentence to clipboard.
4. Slide DOWN on the "Control" tab. Press-hold a slot until a pop up window says "The command has been saved successfully."

1. A command is defined via a string. You need to copy this string and set it as the customized content for a My Command, following the foregoing Step 1> to Step 4>.

Following is how to define a command string:
A command string has 8 parts:

Flag0: Whether this command needs a key press down. Usually, this flag is set to be 1.
Flag1: Whether this command sends data or not.
Flag2: Whether this command needs a CTRL key pressed.
Flag3: Whether this command needs a SHIFT key pressed.
Flag4: Whether this command needs an ATL key pressed.
Flag5: The virtual key code of the command.
Flag6: The index in the English Alphabet of the CHAR used in the command. (i.e. “001” is for “A”, “002” is for “B” …)
Flag7:  The display name of this command.

Examples:

CTRL + C: “10100067003My Copy”

* This is a Professional-only feature.

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4.3 My Emoticons/Smilies

You may find emoticons/smilies in the Symbol view ("<!>" tab). You can define your own emoticons/smilies. For example, "^_^" for a smile face.

Define a custom emoticon/smily:

1. Open a text editor (e.g., Word Mobile, SMS)
2. Enter the emoticon you want to define (e.g., "^_^")
3. Copy the emoticon to clipboard.
4. Switch to "<!>" tab and turn to the emoticon page by sliding left/right. Press-hold an emoticon until a pop up window says "The emotion symbol has been saved successfully."

* This is a Professional-only feature.

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4.4 ".net" button

The ".net" button in the Symbol (<!>) view is in blue. This is a special key that you could customize to any other symbols. For example, you may define it to be ".info" or even "@msn.com". To define the content, please follow the same steps as My Sentenses.

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4.5 Skins

TouchPal supports different skins. The skin files are stored at the "Program Files\TouchPal\Resources" folder. You may download skins from our website www.cootek.com, or create your own skins by replacing the original skin files.

Note: we only support one skin at a time. Once you change the skin, the old skin will be replaced by the new one.

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4.6 Sound effect

Enable/Disable sound effect: You can go to Option tab and enable/disable sound effect by the "Enable sound effect".

Note: we only support one skin at a time. Once you change the skin, the old skin will be replaced by the new one.

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5. Options

There are three pages in the Option view. You may turn pages by sliding left or right on the screen.

Add new words quietly: when you input a new word, it will save the words automatically without prompting you for confirmation.

Add SPACE after word: when you select a word candidate, it will add a following space after the word. This option can be switched on/off on the main view by sliding DOWN on the SPACE key.

Show word candidates inline: it will show the default word candidate in the text area. Enabling this option may cause poorer performance on some device.

Precise input mode: it will disable the prediction based on dictionary. You may enable this feature when you're inputting password, email address or other uncommon names. This option can be s witched on/off on the main view by sliding UP on the BACKSPACE key.

Set as default SIP: it will keep TouchPal as the default input method even after the soft reset. Note that sometimes it won't work if other input method also tries to stay as default.

Less sensitive on sliding: it will reduce the sensitivity of the gesture detection.

Enable sound effect: there will be sound effect when you press a key or flow the keyboard.

Enhance mistyping correction: it will enable mistyping correction on T+ QWERTY layout and 9-key PhonePad layout.

Correction on reduced size: it will enable mistyping correction automatically when you resize the keyboard to a smaller size.

Predict based on context: it will enable context-based prediction. The prediction will be based on what you have typed. For example, if you have typed "even" and then typed "of", it will predict "if" since "even if" is a known phrase.

Predict next word: it will enable next-word prediction. After you have selected a word candidate, it will predict the next word based on a phrase dictionary.

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6. Registration

TouchPal works in two modes: Prefessional mode and Standard mode. In the first 15 days, TouchPal works in Professional mode. After the evaluation period expires, TouchPal will switch to Standard mode with some advanced features disabled. To register for TouchPal Professional, you need to pay via PayPal.

The fund raised from our registered users will sponsor our continueous development. So if you like this software, please support us by purchasing TouchPal.

Registration Instruction:

1. Get your Owner Name or Challenge
   Go to your device's Start -> Settings -> Personal -> Input -> "TouchPal", and click "Activate". Your Owner Name and Challenge will be displayed in the pop up dialog.
2. Online Payment
   If your device can access Internet, you can click the "Purchase" button directly. Otherwise, you can visit www.cootek.com/purchase.aspx on your PC. Enter your registration email, then fill in the Owner Name OR Challenge. (We recommend you register with your Owner Name because you can use the same registration code if you change devices in the future.) You will then be directed to PayPal and make the payment.
3. Activate TouchPal
   After you have paid via PayPal, you will be redirected back to the website and a Registration Code will be shown to you. Go to the dialog mentioned in Step 1 and fill in the registration code then click "Activate". You will be prompted the successful registration.

If you met any problem during the registration or payment, please write to us at paypal@cootek.com and we will resolve your problem as soon as possible.

After you have registered TouchPal, please keep your registration code in case you need it when your device has a hard reset.

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7. Contact Us

If you have any questions or feedback, please feel free to contact us at feedback@cootek.com.

You can also go to our forum (www.cootek.com/forum) to provide feedback, download language packs or skins.

Please check our website (www.cootek.com) once a while for updates or important notice.

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