Tell me more ×
Ask Different is a question and answer site for power users of Apple hardware and software. It's 100% free, no registration required.
up vote 1 down vote favorite

I notice that the autocorrect in Lion uses the character positions in order to suggest which correction to be made:

For example, if I type thst really fast, it will correct it to that but if I type thet, it corrects it to they.

This makes sense on a Qwerty keyboard, since the s is by the a, and the t is next to the y. However, it wouldn't make much sense on a different layout such as Dvorak.

Does Mac OS X Lion take into account which keyboard layout you are using and offer suggestions based on keys that are nearby the typo?

What if I created an entirely new keyboard layout, and use that instead of a keyboard layout which comes with Lion?

share|improve this question
Apple doesn't disclose the inner workings of its autocorrect algorithm on any OS. It's going to be difficult to get a definitive answer to this. – Ian C.♦ Apr 2 '12 at 18:23
Can't you test Dvorak for yourself and thus answer that question? I don't think there is any connection between spellcheck/autocorrect and keyboard layouts. – Tom Gewecke Apr 2 '12 at 18:27
@TomGewecke: I'm not 100% sure that it works the way I specified above, so I can't be certain that my tests will prove or disprove anything. – Senseful Apr 2 '12 at 18:33
@Senseful So your tests do not show any change in behavior when you switch between qwerty and Dvorak layouts? – Tom Gewecke Apr 2 '12 at 22:39

1 Answer

up vote 1 down vote

Apple has a patent on the autocorrect feature for mobile phones (and possibly for desktops as well). There was a lawsuit over iPhone vs Samsung autocorrect: http://gizmodo.com/5884179/apple-is-now-suing-samsung-over-autocorrect . Moving right along, apple's autocorrect does use keyboard layout to predict a replacement word: http://www.slate.com/articles/technology/technology/2010/07/yes_ill_matty_you.html . Lion will only try this feature if it can recognize the keyboard layout you are using based on a keyboard standard.

share|improve this answer
Of course autocorrect uses the keyboard in iOS, because the keyboard determines the spellcheck language. This is NOT the case in OS X, the keyboard choice has no connection to spellcheck, which is determined by preference settings. – Tom Gewecke Apr 2 '12 at 22:41

Your Answer

 
discard

By posting your answer, you agree to the privacy policy and terms of service.

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged or ask your own question.