• cobysev@lemmy.worldEnglish
      262·
      18 days ago

      I used to hate touchscreen keyboards, but then I learned about swipe-to-text. Now I can swipe words on a digital keyboard faster than I can type them on a physical keyboard. I can’t go back to pressing individual keys now unless it’s on a desktop computer keyboard.

      • SkaveRat@discuss.tchncs.de
        12·
        18 days ago

        Started using Swype in 2011 or so. Been using swiping input ever since

        Still annoyed that it was discontinued. Its usability, keyboard layout and spelling detection was so much better than what the android keyboard offers

        RIP Swype

        • cobysev@lemmy.worldEnglish
          3·
          18 days ago

          I’ve been using Gboard, Google’s keyboard. I don’t like it and am currently trying to de-Google my life, but I haven’t found a better swipe-to-text keyboard yet.

          You’d think it would be easy to replace Gboard. Ever since Google started inserting AI into everything, half my words don’t swipe correctly, or they’ll give corrective suggestions on the top bar that are way off the mark. It was way better about 5 years ago. But it seems most keyboards are also using AI to predict swiping, so I can’t find any that work better at the moment.

          • neonchaos@lemmy.mlEnglish
            10·
            18 days ago

            Check out heliboard. Open source, private, and is pottery ready to setup with glide typing using gboard’s module

            • idefix@sh.itjust.works
              6·
              18 days ago

              Swiping with Heliboard is very frustrating. In my native language, I have to rewrite 50% of the words. I’ve never managed to make it write “c’est” for example.

              • silly goose meekah@lemmy.world
                4·
                18 days ago

                I found that I was able to purposefully train my heliboard. type the word you want it to learn, and try to swipe it right afterwards. Keep tapping the word you want in the suggested words at the top while you do this. Do that a few times and it should learn the word. I made mine type c’est in like 2 minutes, and my heliboard is configured to english and german

          • elements@lemmy.worldOP
            6·
            18 days ago

            A good FOSS one is FUTO, which works better than Gboard I think for swipe texting. You can also do it with Heliboard (truly FOSS) if you import a library for it, which is also what I use. Let me know if you need help!

            • Cris@lemmy.worldEnglish
              7·
              18 days ago

              I was gonna say, I love Futo keyboard, and use it quite happily, but it’s worth remembering that it’s source available rather than open source

              Still a great project though! I’m typing on it right now :)

              • elements@lemmy.worldOP
                5·
                18 days ago

                Yes, I’m aware of their weird licensing but didn’t want to go down a rabbit hole on what they claim vs what the consensus is. I did try to squeeze in that heliboard was “truly FOSS” to help specify in a minor manner what solution is best.

                I’m happy you’re here keeping me honest!

      • dovahking@lemmy.world
        3·
        18 days ago

        I’ve been trying to degoogle and this exact reason had become an obstacle. No other keyboard I’ve tried is as accurate at swipe typing as gboard. And I’ve been swiping since the feature was new, so now I’m awfully slow at key typing.

        • TonyOstrich@lemmy.world
          7·
          18 days ago

          Have a look at Heliboard. It’s open source. To get swipe you have to import a component that is extracted from GBoard that doesn’t come with the app, but it can be acquired from… places.

      • Zen_Shinobi@lemmy.world
        3·
        18 days ago

        I can’t figure swip texting lol. The perk of physical keys is I don’t have to even look at the phone to type. I can turn text-speech on use the bumps on the keyboard

      • rollerbang@lemmy.world
        2·
        18 days ago

        Only if you suck at typing I guess. I make use of swiping keyboards as well for the past… 12+ years I think.

    • ewigkaiwelo@lemmy.world
      5·
      18 days ago

      Exectly my thoughts recently! My smartphone is starting to show some problems with its screen and it’s a Xiaomi device which makes it very hard/unpleasant to get root access to reinstall the OS (you have to download a windows app and use it to share your data and reasons for voiding your contract by asking to get root access) so I thought maybe there are non-touchscreen smartphones and when I tried looking for one I only got dumb phone suggestions and I realized that such a phone would have to have a specific version of Android that is not designed around touchscreen technology. I’m not sure what I want, but the options seem to be polar extremes without a middle ground option, something between a smartphone and a dumbphone that will be helpful in detoxifying from doom scrolling and yet still usable for productive activities.

      I really hope that in the near future we’ll see some change in the direction towards smartphones that are not made only for watching videos, playing games, but to some combinations of useful ideas from both dumb and smartphones, like having a decent screen to be able to use maps and with also a “mechanical” keyboard or smth. But then again physical keys will have problems like if they would be made from cheap plastic, there always will be downsides…

        • ewigkaiwelo@lemmy.world
          2·
          18 days ago

          Yes BB seems to be the closest option but in order to unlock it’s bootloader you also need to authorize on some manufacturer’s site which is (to my understanding) a concern in the “consumer’s right to repair” way - if I can’t upgrade a system after its support ends the phone becomes e-waste, and giving your phone number, name, email address to the Chinese government is at least questionable from privacy standpoint. I could be exaggerating though

          • Kiloee@discuss.tchncs.de
            3·
            18 days ago

            That’s part of what I meant with less proprietary requirements. I can’t speak from a current point of view, I just know I loved mine back in the day but it was also a pain to set up because it wasn’t company issued and thus not connected to a big server that handles some things. Not sure if they still need that, back then they did.

  • SaltyIceteaMaker@lemmy.ml
    8·
    18 days ago

    just fyi, if you go into developer settings there should be a full on Linux terminal by now i use that instead of tmux

    • rikonium@discuss.tchncs.de
      4·
      17 days ago

      It’s a Clicks keyboard case, got some long-timers in the mobile journalism space involved and looks pretty neat. I’d have gotten one but no model for my 13 mini personally but they support a number of iPhone and Android models. (minor caveat but USB-C iPhone’s have to toggle between data and power I believe - or something like that for the USB-C port built-in.)

      • Kerm@lemmy.world
        7·
        17 days ago

        Hello!! The difference between UserLAnd and Termux is that UserLAnd does not force you to use only one distro (ex. Package Manager and etc.) like Termux - Termux uses apt with their own Repo’s that might not have new package versions. Using UserLAnd, you could install any distro on your phone! Kind of like it… It feels right how it should be😇

    • sylphio@lemmy.ml
      1·
      17 days ago

      Is UserLAnd still maintained? Assuming I found the right forge, the last activity is 4 years old. While I agree that a piece of software can simply be finished, I worry about compatibility in the moving ecosystem of Android.