Frequently asked questions

Yes. Vikey is free and open source under the GPL-3.0 license. The source code is on GitHub.

Each time you finish a word, Vikey checks whether the keys you pressed are an English word or a Vietnamese word typed in Telex, then fixes the word and switches mode if needed.

• In Vietnamese mode, typing "sorry" gives "sory"; Vikey fixes it to "sorry" and switches to English.
• In English mode, typing "truowfng" becomes "trường", and Vikey switches to Vietnamese.

When a word means something in both languages, Vikey looks at how common each reading is and at the words around it. For example "cos" is usually "có", while "video call thí" is "video call this".

Vikey was tested on almost 2 million words: messages, articles, forum comments and news, in Vietnamese, English and a mix of both. The typist never switches by hand. On text that mixes English and Vietnamese, 99.73% of words come out right on average, compared with 97.85% for a normal Telex keyboard.

Yes. Vikey for Windows 10/11 (x64 and ARM64) uses the same typing engine and auto-switch as the Mac app; get it from the download page. The installer needs no admin rights. The first Windows build is not yet code-signed, so Windows SmartScreen may ask once: click "More info", then "Run anyway".

Press Delete right after. Vikey puts back exactly the keys you typed and returns to the previous language. If Vikey has just fixed several words at once, Delete deletes one character as usual.

Vikey switches right away, then pauses auto-switch for 5 seconds so your choice sticks. You can turn this off in the Vikey window. The default switch shortcut is ⌥Z.

The same as in a familiar Telex keyboard: v e r r gives "ver", and Vikey switches to English. When you finish the word, Vikey fixes it if needed: "terrible", "sorry", "issue" still come out right.

Yes. Vikey remembers whether you use English or Vietnamese in each app, for example Terminal always in English and Zalo always in Vietnamese. Turn on the per-website option to remember each site separately in Safari, Chrome, Edge, Brave, Arc, Vivaldi and Opera. It is off by default because it needs permission to read the address of the open tab.

No. Vikey supports Telex input and Unicode only.

Yes. Vikey detects your keyboard layout, so you type Telex by the letters printed on the keys as usual. When you use another language's input method, such as Japanese or Chinese, Vikey stays out of the way.

No. Vikey only checks when you finish a word, which takes about a millionth of a second, and it never reads files or goes online while you type.

Yes. Once a day Vikey checks for a new version on vikey.app, downloads it and installs it when you quit Vikey. To check now, choose "Kiểm tra cập nhật…" (Check for Updates) in the menu. You can turn off automatic updates in the Vikey window.

macOS only lets apps with Accessibility permission read the keys you press and replace them with accented letters. Everything happens on your Mac.

No. Your keystrokes never leave your Mac. Vikey only goes online to check for updates. See privacy.

Vikey is designed and developed by Tony Dinh, based on the open-source OpenKey project by Tuyen Mai. If you use OpenKey, Vikey brings over your shortcut and the languages remembered for each app the first time it opens. Remember to quit OpenKey before using Vikey.

On GitHub Issues. Include the keys you typed, the text that appeared and the text you wanted.

Quit Vikey from the menu bar, then drag Vikey from Applications to the Trash.