A better use of text expanders

I’ve loved the idea of text expanders for a long time, tools that allow you to type a short snippet like “;addr” and it instantly converts into a full string (such as your full mailing address).

Over time though, I’m finding it more helpful to use it for specific quick keys rather than expanding larger blocks of text for a few reasons.

Learn to type quickly

If you spend much time at a computer each day, it’s worth taking some time to learn to type more quickly, as the results will save you many hours in the future. Ali Abdaal has a great video about that, which you can see here:

He encourages the use of the 10 Fast Fingers site, which I agree with. Spend some time working on your typing, no matter how fast or slow you are right now.

Tricky product keys

By typing quickly, I have less need for some of the common uses of text expanders. However, I am finding some great benefit to putting license keys and similar items in there.