Compatible platforms: Win2k, XP, Vista, 7

Version highlighted in this post: 0.6

Portable version: Available at the page linked above. Just make sure to grab file (toward the bottom of the blog entry) that says “Texter Executable.” Throw it on your USB drive and you’re good to go.

If you’re the type who obsesses over shortcut keys and has people shaking their heads whenever they watch you use your computer without touching your mouse, text substitution app Texter is for you.

Texter is built for those efficiency-minded folks who find themselves typing out the same set of info over and over. The easiest way to understand how it works is through a simple example.

Let’s say you find yourself typing your postal address often. First, you’d type your full address into the large box seen in the above screenshot. Then, in the ‘Hotstring” field, you’ll want to define the trigger word to be something you’d never otherwise type. Let’s go with ‘addy’ for this example. “Trigger” tells Texter which action or key stroke will kick it into action. We’ll go with ‘Space’ here.

Now, anytime you type ‘addy’, irrespective of what program you’re working in, as soon as you hit the spacebar after typing a-d-d-y, your address (formatted just the way you entered it into Texter will magically replace the word ‘addy’.

The program is actually much more powerful than just the simple example highlighted here, but our example is how you’ll use the program most of the time. For more details on the advanced uses of Texter, be sure to check out its explanation at Lifehacker. (Lifehacker editor Adam Pash is the person behind the app.) In addition to a well-written description of Texter, the page also contains a couple of great videos that show the program in action.