Do you work with foreign languages or mathematical copy? Do you enjoy searching through Microsoft Word's Equation and Symbol dialogs to insert the special characters that you need? Then stop reading, because Accent Composer will be of no use to you.

Accent Composer provides simple hotkey combinations that let you insert practically any special character into just about any Windows interface. It includes a default list containing hundreds of Unicode symbols, and you can add more as necessary. You can even assign hotkey combinations to short text blocks, such as addresses or professional titles. The default "Compose" key is the right-hand Alt key (but you can select another key if you wish). If you need to type the pi character, for example, you'd press Alt-g-p.

When you launch Accent Composer, you're presented with a well-written and well-organized Help screen that explains how to use the program and customize its options. There's also a helpful PDF that shows you the default keystrokes necessary to call up all of the default sequences. If you can't find the special character or symbol you need in this chart, you can easily add your own. The sequences themselves are easy to memorize, and there is practically no lag when you type them in. I can see this program being extremely useful for anyone who frequently works with mathematical or scientific copy, or who needs to type in foreign languages on a standard English keyboard.

--Kim Saccio-Kent