As a student with low vision and dysgraphia, I spend a lot of time typing for school, writing content for my website, instant messaging with friends, and writing emails. A lot of people don’t realize the role that my dysgraphia diagnosis plays in typing; even though I know how to spell, I often find myself reversing the orders of letters or spelling words incorrectly, and low vision means that there are times where these errors go undetected unless I really go back and proofread something letter-by-letter (which can lead to eye strain).
One strategy that has helped me a lot is the use of text expanders to help with streamlining the writing process and copying repetitive information or templates, and I started using the Espanso text expander to help with notetaking and putting together discussion board posts when using my computer. Here is how I use the free Espanso text expander software with dysgraphia and low vision.
What is Espanso? What is a text expander?
Also called text replacement, text expanders “expand” acronyms or shortcuts into longer words, phrases, or sentences. For example, on iOS devices the default text replacement example is “omw”, which expands to “on my way!” and is not case sensitive. This automatically inserts the phrase “on my way!” whenever “omw” is typed.
Espanso is a free and open-source software that can be used on Windows, MacOS, and Linux computers across multiple applications, including (but not limited to) productivity applications, websites, emails, and so much more. Espanso can be used to automatically insert a variety of text content, such as dates, templates for writing, definitions, phrases, and formatted text. Espanso can be downloaded online for free and does not require an internet connection for use— all settings are stored locally on the user’s device.
Related links
- Espanso website
- Assistive Technology For Dysgraphia
- Ten Ways To Reduce Eye Strain From Screens With Technology
Prerequisite skills for using Espanso text expander
Because Espanso is privacy-focused and designed to be used offline on the user’s own computer, it is a bit more complicated to set up compared to the other types of applications I usually share. To set up Espanso, users will need to have a basic idea of how to use the terminal/Command Line on their computer, as well as how to edit text files with a text editor (not a word processing software like Word or Google Docs). As for using Espanso, users will need to memorize or keep track of keywords/triggers for Espanso so that they can use the software effectively.
How to configure Espanso
Espanso is supported on Windows 10 and later (requires 64-bit architecture), MacOS 10.13 and later, and has several options for Linux as well. For Windows and Mac users, the Espanso will be visible in the Status Bar once installed, which looks like a text cursor with wings.
To configure Espanso, I recommend opening the Command Line terminal and typing “espanso path” without quotation marks. From there, copy the file path and paste into the File Explorer/File Manager application.
Within the Espanso folder, there are two sub-folders for config and match. Match/base is where all of the keywords are stored so that Espanso knows what phrases or information to replace keywords with— some users may prefer to create separate files for specific types of matches such as those used for writing emails. Config directories show where Espanso should be used; by default, all keywords are available across all applications, though users may want to create separate app-specific configurations (e.g. Teams) that have certain shortcuts enabled.
Related links
- How I Document Accessibility Preferences With Low Vision
- Mainstream Technology and Low Vision: Keyboards
- How I Organize Digital Files For My Classes
How to set up Espanso matches
Espanso works by matching “trigger” and “replacement” text— writing the “trigger” keyword will replace it with the “replacement” text while the user is typing. Espanso is powered by the YAML format, which is straightforward to edit in a text editor like Notepad or Notepad++.
To set up an Espanso match:
- Open the Match/Base YML file in a text editor like Notepad or Notepad++
- Under the Matches: heading, format text using the following code snippet as an example, noting the spaces used for indentation:
- trigger: ":espanso"
replace: "Hi there!”
After saving the file, Espanso should automatically update so the user can access the text expander. So if I type the phrase :espanso (no quotes), it would replace the phrase with Hi there! If I didn’t mean to type that, I can use the backspace key to undo the phrase being inserted and revert back to :espanso.
Espanso has a tremendous amount of documentation on how to add other types of matches such as date/time, capitalization, word matches, and more, which I have linked below for further reading.
Related links
How I personally use Espanso matches
As a graduate student with low vision and a writer with a background in data science and assistive technology, I set up Espanso matches on my own device in the following contexts:
- Expanding acronyms that I use frequently, such as “atech” into “assistive technology” or medical diagnoses
- Inserting long legal definitions that I frequently have to cite, such as the definition of assistive technology, or descriptions of technology features that I’m frequently asked about
- Citations for papers
- Code snippets
- Math symbols
- Email templates
- Words that I frequently misspell in the same way
- Acronyms for notetaking or for writing essays, which can make it easier for me to copy from a board/video
It’s worth noting that I am the one setting up the phrases used by the text expanders, and that they aren’t generated by AI or someone else. I use Espanso as a way to make it easier to insert my own words and content, not to get them from somewhere else.
Related links
- How I Manage Dysgraphia In Online Classes
- How I Create Citations For Research Papers With Low Vision
- Adapting Math Symbols: Math Problems and Low Vision
- Adapting Digital Equations: Math Problems and Low Vision
- Ten Templates For Emailing Professors
- How I Organize Emails In College With Low Vision
- How I Take Notes During Video Lectures With Low Vision
Adding packages to Espanso
One of the reasons I really like Espanso is because I can install packages with pre-set shortcuts/matches, which can also be edited if needed. The Espanso Hub is a free source for identifying packages, which can be installed by typing “espanso install <package name>” without quotation marks in the Command Line terminal, replacing <package name> with the desired package name listed on the Espanso Hub.
For students with low vision and/or dysgraphia, packages on the Espanso Hub that may be of particular interest include:
- Misspell-en (fixes several common typos in the English language)
- Common-latex (used for inserting basic math in LaTeX)
- Single-steno (convert single letters into common English words)
- Spanish-accent (adds accented characters, also available in other languages)
Users can edit packages within the Espanso folder/files to fit their own needs.
Related links
- Espanso Hub
- Learning To Type With Low Vision
- Make Proofreading Feedback Accessible For Low Vision
- Language Learning Tips And Resources For Low Vision
Keeping track of Espanso matches with low vision
To make it easier to remember Espanso matches, users can browse a list of matches on their device at any time by selecting the Espanso icon on the Status bar, or using the keyboard shortcut Alt+Spacebar / Option+Spacebar on MacOS. This will open a list of available snippets, which the user can then search either using the trigger word or the desired text replacement to find the text they want to use. This renders in a small font size, and the list of keywords is not accessible for screen readers as of December 2024.
While I have reported this issue, the current workaround I have used for screen reader users is to create a list of shortcuts in a Word document, which does not update automatically whenever I create or add new matches but is easier to search through. Alternatively, I use Windows Magnifier to enlarge text. Ideally, I would like to have the option to browse lists with a screen reader or have an option to open the search tool in a larger window from the Status Bar.
Related links
- Reading Dialog Boxes With Low Vision
- Windows Magnifier and Low Vision
- Designing Accessible Documents With Microsoft Word
- How To Create Custom Keyboard Shortcuts in Windows
Espanso accessibility and using Espanso with assistive technology
As I mentioned in the previous section, the Espanso text expander search tool is not compatible with screen readers and cannot be resized in larger print, but I have been able to enlarge it with Windows Magnifier on my own computer.
When it comes to editing matches, I prefer to use Notepad or Notepad++ since I can enlarge the font size in both programs and access it with large print or with a screen reader. Espanso files can also be edited in VSCode using schemas for the Red Hat YAML extension, though I have not personally used this.
Since Espanso triggers are input via keyboard, I haven’t encountered any accessibility barriers related to low vision or nonvisual access outside of user errors when typing, which can lead to matches not being inserted correctly. I did try using Espanso with dictation/speech-to-text, which worked as intended but can be awkward to use due to the use of symbols and other non-alphanumeric characters.
Related links
- Computer Lab Accommodations For Low Vision Students
- Accessible Python IDEs For Low Vision
- How To Use Dictation As Assistive Technology With Mainstream Devices
Examples of where I use Espanso text expander tools
Espanso can be used in any application on my computer, and I’ve used it in a few different contexts. Some examples of ways to use Espanso text expander tools include:
- Taking notes for classes in a note taking application— I personally use OneNote for many of my classes, and it’s helpful for writing large amounts of text quickly.
- Writing papers or essays in Microsoft Word or on discussion board posts in the web browser— note that I do not use it for exams or timed essays without prior approval.
- Inserting blocks of text for my website
- Running web searches or research database searches that have several keywords or components
- When I lost my voice, I used Espanso with a text-to-speech tool for producing synthesized speech on my computer.
While this isn’t specifically related to low vision, I also recommended this tool to someone who had a stroke and needed an offline text expander tool that they could use at their job.
Related links
- How I Outline Research Papers With OneNote
- How I Use Microsoft OneNote With Low Vision
- Low Vision Assistive Technology For Discussion Board Posts
- How To Run Effective Web Searches
- How I Find Research Sources In Accessible Formats
- iPhone Accessibility Settings For Occipital Stroke
More resources on using text expanders with dysgraphia
- Want more examples of assistive technology and typing strategies for dysgraphia? Read How I Manage Dysgraphia In Online Classes and Learning To Type With Low Vision
- Interested in learning more about how I write with low vision and dysgraphia? Browse Reading And Writing Archives | Veronica With Four Eyes (veroniiiica.com)
- Looking for another tool for writing with low vision and dysgraphia that can help with note-taking? Check out Tips For Using VDWrite In The Classroom With Low Vision
Published June 10, 2024. Updated December 2024