Every once in a while, I get to test out a program that completely surprises me.   The latest example of this was PhatWare’s Calligrapher.  I am not typically a fan of handwriting recognition software.  Frankly, my handwriting is such a mess that they rarely work for me and tend to take more time to fix the "misunderstandings".  For this reason, I had been somewhat hesitant to review Calligrapher.  Much to my surprise, however, Calligrapher was able to recognize even the sloppiest handwriting and translated it into typed text with amazing accuracy.

Installation and Registration:  Simply download the file to your desktop, and install it via ActiveSync.  This will give you a 30 day trial in which you can test all of Calligrapher’s features.  Frankly, it took me less that 30 minutes to figure out how well this program works.  Register it for unlimited scribbling.

Overview: At its core, Calligrapher is a natural handwriting recognition program that can recognize print, cursive, uppercase and lowercase, numbers, and symbols.  In reality, however, it is much more than that.  In fact, it is really three complete programs in one tiny package.  Calligrapher includes the Write Pad Soft Input Panel (SIP) which allows you to write naturally within the designated write pad area on the screen.  It also includes the Write Anywhere SIP.  As the name implies, Write Anywhere is not limited like Write Pad, and turns the whole screen into a writing surface, however, it does not feature the advanced handwriting learning tools found in Write Pad.  Finally, the program includes Pen Commander, which allows you to launch prerecorded, user-defined pen commands with ease.  More than just a handwriting recognition tool, Calligrapher is a complete note taking utility. 

Character Recognition: The cornerstone of a program like Calligrapher is the character recognition engine.  If the program cannot transform my sloppy handwriting into typed text, then it is not going to last long on my device.  I admit that when PhatWare asked if I would be interested in reviewing Calligrapher, I was pretty skeptical.  I have horrible handwriting.  The kind of handwriting that, after a meeting, I can’t tell whether I am supposed to write a memo or eat a ham sandwich!  So, I decided to put Calligrapher to a real test.  If the handwriting recognition engine could decipher my chicken scratch, then it would work for anyone.  I have to admit though, I was not optimistic, and fully expected this program to land in my folder of unused Pocket PC software, collecting dust for all eternity. 

So, I set off to test the handwriting recognition in Write Pad.  I used PhatNotes (of course) to test it out, because it provided a quick and easy writing surface.  I used the phrase, "The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy brown dog!"  For those of you who are unfamiliar with this, it is a classic sentence used to test old fashioned typewriters, because it uses every letter in the English alphabet.  I also intermingled upper case and lower case letters.  As the screen shot to the right shows, except for not capitalizing the "t" in "the", Calligrapher got the sentence absolutely perfect.  I have never had that happen before with a handwriting recognition program.  Pretty impressive. 

I would also add that I wrote this sentence without training Calligrapher in any way.  Most handwriting recognition programs require an extensive program of writing curves, lines, and letters — similar to third grade writing class, before it can even begin to understand those scribbles you or I would call writing.  Not Calligrapher.  Calligrapher utilizes neural network technology and an artificial intelligence algorithm which allows it to immediately begin analyzing your handwriting with no pre-learning required.  This is not to say, however, that Calligrapher does not pay attention and learn from the way you write.  It uses an advanced Calligrapher Statistical Analyzer to accumulate data about the way you write.  Once this data has been collected (usually after 2-3 weeks), Calligrapher will begin to automatically fix many common recognition errors.

Write Pad: Write Pad is the most common means of writing in Calligrapher.  It allows you to write, using your natural handwriting, in a designated write pad area.  The handwritten text is recognized, translated, and displayed as typed text on the screen.

Additionally, for added flexibility, you can also utilize the included on-screen keyboard.  This allows you to fix any mistakes and help Calligrapher learn more about the way you write.

Write Pad also offers a number of configuration options.  First, you can specify one of the four writing modes (mixed, block print, numbers, and Internet).  Tap the "CFG" button to open the configuration manager.  From here, you can set the language for the program, and control:

•  the recognition engine,
• the user dictionary,
• the auto correct module,
• the Calligrapher Statistical Analyzer,
• the built-in keyboard, and
•  the writing pen ink color and width

Additionally, Write Pad includes a built-in character recognition utility.  This utility displays all 26 letters (uppercase and lowercase), numbers, and most common writing symbols and punctuation.  Simply select the character you want to refine, and the Calligrapher will show you the most common iterations of that letter.  As an example, the display for the letter "A" is shown at the right.  You can then select the method or methods you typically use to write each character.

That is all there is to it.  Now, all you have to do is right your note in the designated write pad area, and let Write Pad do the heavy lifting.  One thing you will notice, Write Pad does not translate your writing into text as you go.  Instead, it displays the information in a special draft area.  From here, it not only translates your handwriting into typed text, but also reviews the entire context to anticipate the word you are trying to write.  The more you use it, the better Write Pad gets at this. 

Therefore, you might notice that after the first letter it has written something completely different there than you intended, but as the word progresses, it uses the context clues to better interpret your intent.   In the example, above, I was writing the word "Juniper".  As you can see, after 6 letters, it has interpreted, "J4niae".  Add that final letter, however, and it interprets the word exactly right.  As you complete each word, tap the enter key to display it as text in your document.

Write Anywhere: Write Anywhere works exactly the way it sounds.  It allows you to write anywhere on the screen and have that handwritten text be magically translated into typed text in your document.  While I found this to be a lot of fun, the handwriting recognition engine was not nearly as good as that used by the Write Pad SIP.  I found many words which were easily recognized by Write Pad were not recognized by Write Anywhere. 

One of the advantages of Write Anywhere, however, which I really appreciated was the customizable toolbar.   Choose from 36 different command buttons to populate your toolbar.  On the toolbar screen, when you tap a button icon, it will tell you what that icon is used for before you determine whether to add it to the toolbar.

Pen Commander: Pen Commander is, in essence, the modern day version of shorthand.  You can create any shorthand shortcuts you want, which can be incredibly helpful for writing frequently repeated blocks of texts or commands .  For example, if you have a particular signature you use, you could assign it to the shorthand "sig".  Everytime you wrote that shorthand text in Write Pad or Write Anywhere, Pen Commander will automatically translate it into the complete signature. 

You can even program these PenCommander shortcuts into any of the hardware buttons on your device.  Just assign the shortcut to a button, and anytime you push that button from Calligrapher, the assigned text will appear on the screen.  This is a fantastic feature.  For example, you can program one button to type the date.  Everytime you push that button while Write Anywhere or Write Pad is open, the date will be added to your document.

Integration:  If you have PhatPad loaded, then you already know you can write notes on the screen, and save them using your natural handwriting.  If you have Calligrapher loaded as well, however, you can write a note and then tap Recognize.  PhatPad will initialize Calligrapher and translate your handwritten note into typed text.  I was amazed by this option, as significantly increased the functionality of PhatPad. 

Multilingual Support:  One of the amazing features of Calligrapher is that it not only recognizes the letters you are writing, but also uses an advanced artificial intelligence to anticipate the complete word you are most likely writing.  This thoroughly enhances the handwriting recognition engine…if, that is, it is anticipating your every move in the correct language.  If you are writing in Dutch and the program is looking for English, well, you will not get very far, and probably end up with a frustrating screen filled with gibberish.  Not to worry, though, because PhatWare thought of this problem and offers an amazing 12 language packs.  In addition to the native English, Calligrapher can be programmed to understand: Danish, Dutch, French, German, Italian, Norwegian, Portuguese (both Brazilian and European), Spanish, Swedish, and UK English.  There is even a medical pack for doctors in the United States.  These language packs cost $14.95 each, which came as a slight surprise to me.  I would have expected these to be included as part of the package, with only uncommon language packs costing slightly extra money.  At $14.95, these language packs can be prohibitively expensive for users not living in the United States.

Conclusion:  I came into Calligrapher expecting another run-of-the-mill handwriting recognition program.  In other words, another program to quickly delete from my system when I was done explaining why it would not work.  Fortunately, I did not base this review on just "kicking the tires", but took it for the full test drive.  I can freely admit that I was amazed by what I found "under the hood" of this program.  My handwriting has not been this widely recognized since fourth grade penmanship.  In fact, not only does it recognize the text I have entered, it anticipates the text I might enter in order to "guess" which word I am writing.  By the time I finish the word, it is almost always right.  Calligrapher is an extremely powerful tool, which allows you to fully customize the settings so that you can enter text your way, anywhere on the screen, and in any color.  The only downside I saw was the large amount of memory the program consumed.  At times, I found I could not use Calligrapher in conjunction with other programs because the two would consume too much memory together.  Otherwise, Calligrapher is easy to learn and use, but most importantly, it allows me to write naturally, which is something even a pen and pad of paper have trouble understanding.  It takes only a small step for me to scribble something on the screen resembling text, it is a much larger leap for this program to understand it.  Thankfully, PhatWare took that leap and much more when they made Calligrapher.   

Vital Statistics:

Name: Calligrapher 

Version: 8.4

Platform: WM 2003 SE

Also Available: WM5.  Previous versions may be compatible with other operating systems.

Developer: PhatWare

Available From: Calligrapher

                           JAMM Store 

This program has been added to the JAMM Essential Applications List.  Just use the coupon code JAMM-Essentials at the JAMM Store to receive 15% off Calligrapher.

 Price: $39.95. 

Technorati Tags: PhatWare – Calligrapher – Just – Another – Mobile – Monday

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