A simple text editor with powerful word prediction, speech feedback and speech recognitionThis version of WordQ for Chrome is US Secondary School English
See New Features and Fixes at end of this description.
Educational and Enterprise volume licensing is available. For information on obtaining a volume license please contact:
Quillsoft Ltd.
250 The Esplanade #308
Toronto, ON, Canada M5A 1J2
Toll-free from USA or Canada: 1-844-379-6737
Fax: 1-416-698-1555
International: 1-416-698-0111
[email protected]
*** Writing with ease
WordQ for Chrome is an easy-to-use standalone text editor for writing that integrates state-of-the-art word prediction, speech feedback, and Google speech recognition to support writing and editing.
WordQ suggests words to use and provides spoken feedback to help you identify mistakes. Speech recognition enables you to quickly enter individual words, phrases or entire sentences. Users of all ages who struggle with writing and editing can benefit from using WordQ.
WordQ runs offline, with the exception of speech recognition and Drive access. You can open and save documents on your Google Drive (when online) or locally (when offline). The intent is not to replicate all the features of Google Docs, but to offer a much simpler supportive writing space for note-taking, initial drafts and editing with minimal formatting.
*** Advanced word prediction
Predicted words are displayed as you type. Even if you are creative in your spelling, WordQ will still accurately predict. Usage examples are provided to help distinguish close-sounding words (including homonyms). As you move through your text, predictions are shown accurately in-context. It includes a vocabulary of about 15,000 words commonly used by writers at a Secondary school level. The associated background dictionary includes about 80,000 English words, plus common proper names for this country.
*** Hear what you write
WordQ speaks back letters, words, and sentences as you type. Any combination of these may be used. Words from the prediction list are read out loud.
Note: WordQ is specifically not designed as a universal text reader. Text reading is intended to help in the writing and editing process.
*** Speech Recognition
WordQ integrates Google speech recognition with added speech feedback, choice of automatically turning off the microphone "Never", "While editing" or "After speaking", and ability to quickly undo a recognition with the ESC key.
*** Proofreading
One of the most beneficial uses of WordQ is proofreading sentences, which uses both visual and spoken cues to help you find mistakes in word order, word form, missing words, grammar, spelling and punctuation. By listening to the flow of words you can hear whether it makes sense. You can often hear mistakes that you don’t see. A special proofreading mode uses the following approach: focus on a sentence; hear your sentence spoken; step through the sentence word-by-word to locate any mistakes (e.g., you may hear two words that sound wrong together, or you may have left out a word out); edit with word prediction support; then listen to your sentence again.
*** Topics
You can emphasize predicted words within a topical area. If you also have thoughtQ for Chrome, you can easily import topic lists automatically created there.
*** Compatibility
Documents are compatible with Google Docs (with some limitations) as text-only. A Google Docs document with notes and references created in thoughtQ for Chrome can be opened in WordQ.
*** Requirements
- Latest release of Google Chrome OS on Chromebooks (or other Chrome packaged App supported environment(s))
*** Privacy
This App uses your email strictly to check for volume and evaluation licensing. Your email is not recorded. This App also accesses your clipboard to allow copy and paste from other applications. Google will ask that you agree to both of these functions, otherwise WordQ will not be enabled. If disabled, re-enable WordQ from Google Chrome Settings.
*** Installation
WordQ for Chrome is an App that installs locally onto a PC, Mac, Linux, or Chromebook with your Gmail account. When you quit WordQ, your current working document will be saved locally and recovered when you re-launch WordQ.
WordQ for Chrome is a Google “Chrome Packaged App”, which is a brand new type of technology that runs across different platforms. As new technology by Google (that is, as yet, unfinished), there are limitations associated with security and capabilities not yet implemented or limited by Google. We are implementing what is technically possible.
By Google design, Chrome Packaged Apps are standalone and cannot interact directly with other applications or Chrome extensions/plug-ins. Also, the text-to-speech is limited by Google within a Chrome App, and some capabilities such as synchronized speech and word-by-word highlighting may be not possible with all voices. On a Chromebook, all Google OS voices do offer this feature.
After you download WordQ from the Chrome Store (about 3 – 5 minutes) it will automatically be installed and visible in the Chrome App Launcher.
When you open a Chrome browser on another machine and sign-in using your Gmail account, WordQ will automatically install in the background. Please be patient. This may take several minutes. Once installed, it will always be available. All of your WordQ settings are synchronized across machines as long as your Chrome settings: Advanced Sync Settings include synchronizing of Apps, Extensions, and Settings.
Whenever the developers update WordQ, your version will automatically update in the background.
*** Technical Support
Toll-free from USA or Canada: 1-844-379-6737
International: 1-416-698-0111
[email protected]
*** New Features and Bug Fixes:
Ver. 1.3.6
- Fixed problems related to inserting text introduced by Chrome 58
Ver. 1.3.5
- Updated About
Ver. 1.3.4
- minor fixes
Ver. 1.3.3
- Changed New Document and Open dialogs to remind user to save their current document if unsaved
- Corrected New Vocabulary dialog to allow words with apostrophes to be searched and to modify or add usage examples
- Corrected speech feedback of letters
Ver 1.3.0
- Increased size of toolbar icons
- Fixed problem with capitalization within URL and email addresses
Ver 1.2.6
- Fixed speech recognition with Chrome v49
Ver 1.2.5
- Added ctrl+M to type to allow full keyboard accessibility of buttonbar, menus, and dialogs
- Modified Google Drive file picker to include folders
Ver 1.2.4
- Added Save button to the toolbar. Saves to Drive when online; saves locally when offline.
- Fixed a bug to add .html to the file name when saving offline on a Chromebook
- updated Help
Ver 1.2.3
- Now includes adjustable letter and line spacing in Options>Appearance dialog for better reading.
Ver 1.2.2
- Fixed a bug where the microphone cannot be turned on in some situations.
Ver 1.2.1
- ***A new document is always shown when opening WordQ. The user is required to Save their document before closing WordQ. A reminder is now shown.***
- Fixed a bug where the Proofreading and Speech Recognition icons are not visible on Chromebooks
- Updated Help
Ver 1.2.0
- Integrated Google speech recognition with added speech feedback, choice of automatically turning off the microphone "Never", "While editing" or "After speaking", and ability to quickly undo a recognition with the ESC key.
- Added Speech Recognition to Options menu.
- Modified Speech Feedback dialog.
- Updated button icons and changed Proofreading icon
- Added a single apostrophe to auto-punctuation.
- Changed keystrokes involving CMD key on a Mac to CTRL key for buttons and file menu (e.g., CTRL + 1 to toggle word predictions). CMD + DOWN arrow key still used for keystroke access to predicted words.
- Updated Help
Ver 1.1.2
- Fixed a bug where the quotation marks around a word are removed when replacing that word with a word prediction
- Fixed a bug where the text cursor was not visible after pressing ESC to exit proofreading mode
- Fixed a bug where pressing ESC to undo a new word prediction mid-sentence inserted a copy of the next word
Ver 1.1.1
- Fixed recent bug where first letter of sentence was spoken after "," ":" and ";"
- Improved auto-punctuation
Ver 1.1.0
- Added personalizing user vocabulary
- Added quick undo: Press ESC to undo prediction entry
- Added keyboard accessible browsing of predicted words: ALT+DOWN (Chromebook, PC) or COMMAND+DOWN (Mac)
- Added ability to handle shared view-only documents from another user (e.g., teacher)
- Updated help file
- Fixed problem where first letter of first word in a paragraph was not spoken during sentence feedback
- Fixed problem where a space was occasionally not added after a predicted word at the end of a document
- Fixed handling of spaces after a predicted word while editing text