Speeding Things Up With Access Panel

In a previous post, I mentioned a number of time-saving tools: macro capabilities within Calligrapher, the Power Text feature of Agenda Fusion, the My Text feature of Pocket Informant, and Microsoft Voice Command. Today I'd like to add to that list with the time-saving text entry tool of Access Panel.

This neat tool adds shortcut capabilities in three areas: general text, date-related text, and contact-related text. When you first start it, it gives the option of importing a number of samples for each of these areas. Many are usable as they are and the remaining ones, such as an email signature shortcut, can be easily customized to fit your specific needs. You can also add new shortcuts.

The following screenshot shows off Access Panel's interface and an example of what it can do.

On the left side of the panel are the three areas of shortcuts I mentioned plus an icon for accessing help. On the right side of the panel are shortcuts to specific keys: backspace, back arrow, space, and carriage return (from top to bottom). As to the text that shows up above Access Panel, that is part of a Note. It's the part that shows the result of my tapping the "Client Visit: start*" entry within the panel. Once I (double) tap that entry, Access Panel almost instantaneously enters the text in the Note.

Similarly, the following figure shows the panel and a portion of a Note where I have selected one of the supplied sample scripts for contacts. The Note shows the text that was entered by Access Panel when I double tapped the "Dear...*" entry.

The "Sample Name" entry came from the following screen, where I selected the contact I want to write to:

Sneakily I have added a bunch of Sample Name entries to my contacts to cover up the names and phone numbers of real people. If you select a real person from your contact list, the panel will enter that person's name in the text.

A good friend of mine especially likes the date shortcuts. For the past couple of years he has used Access Panel when he is evaluating complex simulated emergency scenarios. At critical points in the scenario (a key happening or a misperformance by someone involved in the scenario), he taps the exact time entry and then makes whatever notes he wants to make corresponding to that entry. What he especially likes about it is that it enters the time to the second, as shown in the following snapshot:

Since I mentioned earlier that Access Panel is customizable, you might be interested in a look at its customization screen:

This should give you an idea of how useful this tool can be. A trial version is available for download at the link shown in the top of the post.

Take care.