Input Methods
Last updated
Last updated
Input Methods are typically referred to as "IMEs".
Most input methods are handled just fine by Microsoft's built-in typing solutions.
You can simply go to:
Windows Settings → Time & language → Language & region
and click "Add a language".
Here, you can choose almost any widely-spoken language in the world, and Windows will automatically install the keyboard layout, the language pack, and possibly speech files and handwriting files if they are available.
Some languages have not fared so well under Microsoft's thumb. Infamously, Vietnamese ‘Telex’ input has been terrible for years, sometimes bugging out and garbling the text as you're writing it. It seems to have been greatly improved over the last few updates though. Alternatives exist, such as UniKey, but somehow Microsoft's version performs much better when there is high CPU load or the computer is in power-saving mode — I would assume that Microsoft don't provide small, independent third-party developers access to first-class hooks in Windows, meaning that Microsoft & Friends always retain the upper hand. However, UniKey has major traction and is installed on the vast majority of computers in Viet Nam; it also provides a lot of features and customizability that Microsoft's Telex IME simply cannot.
