Tech Tip Today: Predictive Text

Autocorrect fail, we're coming for you.

Most people who text on their smartphone are all too aware of the autocorrect fail phenomenon —  when you go to type some seemingly innocuous word or phrase into a message, only to find, to your horror, that it self-corrects into an inexplicable or embarrassing term that starts with the same handful of letters.

What may be the most cringe-inducing element of these autocorrect fails is that autocorrect, or predictive text, as it’s known, is based in part on the program’s “memory” of words that have been typed in the past. So if your text’s prediction is that you meant to type “head lice” instead of “head start” to your child’s teacher, well, that can cause some interesting miscommunication.

It turns out there’s a way to avoid the trauma of text fails. Check out this week’s Tech Tip of the week with Francie Black.