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There is a higher rate of dyslexia in designers - but design tools don't have good spell check?

almost 5 years ago from Eliot Slevin, Nostalgia Maker

  • Billy MitchellBilly Mitchell, almost 5 years ago

    I'm a dyslexic designer. I have struggled in the workplace to gain respect when typos slip through that non-dyslexics think are careless mistakes.

    I use Grammarly with the Chrome plugin. It integrates with almost all web text fields and has a robust contextual spellcheck. I think it integrates with some apps also. I find it frustrating that in many design programs you have to enable spellcheck in the settings menu or it does not exist at all. Nothing annoys me more than polishing a design and then finding out a word is misspelled.

    I've found that Google search does a good job of correcting your spelling in a contextual way. It would be awesome for someone to developed an app that allowed short phrases to be corrected from the "did you mean..." output.

    6 points
    • Scott ThomasScott Thomas, almost 5 years ago

      I feel you 100%.

      My peers would always make fun of my spelling mistakes. I also tend to drop words and add it in my head when I read it even out loud. I never knew my problem, until my mid 20's with a doctor. It transition to work and I am very self conscious about it.It takes me around 20min to write 2-3 line emails. Luckily, I become more upfront with it with our clients. I just flat out say, "Sorry I am dyslexic, you may see some mistakes time to time. We try catch them the best we during these quick turn arounds." Usually, I have project manager or content manager proof read or just review it.

      3 points
    • Richard Quay, almost 5 years ago

      Yes about google search! I also use Alfred "spell" and "say" to check and make sure I am actually using the right word.

      2 points
    • John PJohn P, almost 5 years ago

      Use a plain text editor with spellcheck built, write all and I mean all your copy in that then copy+paste it into your work.

      I'm not dyslexic and have pretty good spelling but even I do this when working in software without spellcheck. Not worth the risk to do it any other way.

      No real excuse not to work this way and I'm always frustrated when I receive .ai files from designers in their 30s full of 12th grade spelling errors.

      0 points