Espanso: Text expander and more

Abbreviated

Article from Issue 272/2023
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Espanso is a cross-platform text expander that can do far more than simply replace text modules.

A text expander replaces predefined abbreviations with stored text modules. One example of this is wkr, which expands to With kind regards after entering the abbreviation. The AutoKey [1] tool I used until a year ago was no longer fit for purpose because it only works on Linux and only on X11 – which leaves Wayland out in the cold.

As an alternative to AutoKey, Espanso [2] has been available since 2019, and it goes beyond simply replacing abbreviations in texts. The text expander, written in Rust, runs on Linux, macOS, and Windows. You can install the application on Linux for Debian, Ubuntu, and other derivatives using a DEB package or as a DIY binary package. There are also AppImages and packages for Snap. Only the Arch User Repository (AUR) wants you to build Espanso directly. If your distribution is not directly supported, you can use the AppImage or build a package yourself. The developers are looking to extend this support over time.

Start by running the echo $XDG_SESSION_TYPE command to check whether the system uses X11 or Wayland as the session type. Depending on the result, you may need to select different packages or source code in each case, as described in the installation instructions [3]. Listing 1 shows the setup of the DEB package under X11. To do this, first download the package, then run apt to install and make sure that the installation worked (lines 1 to 3). Finally, introduce the Espanso service to systemd (line 4).

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