13

The Samsung keyboard has a Quick Symbol key, where ".,?" are on the same key and accessed similar to the T9 method (don't know if this is standard for Android keyboards).

A good idea, but how can I quickly enter an ellipsis (three dots)? The best I could come up with is:

dot space del dot space del dot

Quite clumsy, but much faster than tapping dot and then twice wait until a next tap wont change the dot anymore. There surely must be a better way?

Update

On the Galaxy Tab there is no option to choose another keyboard layout; apparently on other Samsung devices there is (see GAThrawn's answer). Here you can see what options I can choose from:

Locale and Text Samsung keypad settings

3 Answers 3

3

I recommand you to install AnySoftKeyboard (available in Android Market), it a bloody good keybaord, by pressing 1 sec. on [.] key there is an additional key wit the three dots ! What I also find great in this keyboard is that you can install your country keyboard what the standard Androïd keyboard does not provide... Test it ... you will adopt it !

2
  • I'm able to change the keyboard layout of the standard Samsung keyboard under Input language; but I do like AnySoftKeyboard. It even features no-delay umlaut keys, which would have been my next question...
    – pesche
    Jan 19, 2011 at 23:05
  • Switched from AnySoftKeyboard to GO keyboard, as there is a layout featuring buttons with the German umlauts and also the "vanish" button which makes the keyboard disappear (could find this with AnySoftKeyboard).
    – pesche
    Oct 27, 2011 at 2:52
1

You know you may get an additional set of related characters on holding a key pressed for a while on Android's native keyboard. I have a Nokia 6 with clean Android Nougat. You can enter the dots of ellipsis character (not three dots/periods/full stops/decimal points) by first switching to the numeric mode (using the ?123 key at the bottom left) and then holding the dot key (between the space bar and the Enter key at the bottom right). Since the dots of ellipsis is the only additional character envoked this way, it is simply entered on releasing the key…

enter image description here

1
  • 1
    it might be worth cropping that screenshot a little ;)
    – Dan Brown
    Jan 15, 2018 at 16:38
0

It sounds like you're using the Samsung Keypad with "Portrait keypad type" set to 3x4 Keypad, and "XT9" switched off?

For starters, your device has a lot of different keyboard types pre-installed, if you switch to a different keyboard or mode, you can just press "..." with 3 presses on the "." button.

Before I go into your other keyboard options, you can teach the phone the "..." sequence as a new learned "word". Go into Settings -> Locale and text -> Samsung keypad, you should now see an option XT9 make sure that this is ticked, and then you can go into XT9 advanced settings and scroll down until you see XT9 my words press Add word and type in the three dots as if they were a word and save.

Now when you're typing you should be able to do it as dot (wait) dot dot which is slightly faster.

Alternatively change your keyboard mode, go into Settings -> Locale and text -> Samsung keypad, Portrait keypad types one of your options here is Qwerty keypad this keypad looks a lot like a normal computer keyboard, and you can just press dot dot dot without any need for pauses.

Finally you should also have the Swype keyboard pre-installed on a Galaxy Tab, to turn this on go into Settings -> Locale and text -> Select Input Method and pick Swype. This looks a lot like the Samsung Qwerty keyboard, and you can use it the same way to do dot dot dot, it also a totally different and fast (once you've had some practice) way to enter words by swiping your finger across the keyboard. Swype should pop up a tutorial to show you how to do this when you first switch it on.

5
  • I don't have the option Portrait keypad types under Samsung keypad, no way to choose another keyboard. With Swype I haven't practised much yet, I will give it a try; the AnySoftKeyboard mentioned by @Cedric works nice though.
    – pesche
    Jan 19, 2011 at 23:02
  • @pesche fair enough, I like Swype, not everyone does - use what you like the best. It might not be exactly called Portrait keypad types on yours, but you should have an option called something similar that lets you pick between the different Samsung keypad layouts.
    – GAThrawn
    Jan 19, 2011 at 23:26
  • see the updated questions for the options available to me. Where do you have the keypad types option?
    – pesche
    Jan 20, 2011 at 14:44
  • @pesche It's above Input language on your second screenshot, I've also got a few more minor options on that page. I am looking at this on a Froyo Galaxy S's Samsung Keypad settings, but I'd have assumed that the Qwerty option would have been there on the Tab as it makes far more sense on a large screen than T9. in the Portrait Keypad types I have "Qwerty Keypad", "3x4 Keypad" (this is the T9 style) and "Handwriting box 1" & "Handwriting box 2" options.
    – GAThrawn
    Jan 20, 2011 at 15:54
  • Quicker way to switch to Swype: long-press any text input box and a menu should pop up with "Change input type" or something like that. May 23, 2011 at 19:15

You must log in to answer this question.

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged .