Ask HN: Dyslexic co-founder – any practical tips?

https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=14511752

by Kepler-295c • 9 years ago

9 5 9 years ago

news.ycombinator.com

I have a dyslexic co-founder. Does anyone know of a cheap service that can proof-read emails for him on short notice? Perhaps zirtual, although it looks to have scope that goes beyond just proof-reading (also it's kind of expensive).

Any other tips to help dyslexics?

tarr11• 9 years ago

I've found that preferring voice communications is helpful (better that text, slack, email etc)

Also, if they are customer facing, try and have them use templates when possible to minimize the amount of text to write.

If they misspell things, just try to let it slide and focus on the bigger issue.

wingerlang• 9 years ago

Maybe use text expanders with pre-written snippets. Spell check should be native in the OS no?

trcollinson• 9 years ago

I'm dyslexic. Have you noticed this being a problem for your cofounder? With spelling and grammar checkers that are frankly rather brilliant, I haven't had a lot of trouble in years. I still make mistakes (read back on my comments on hn and you'll find examples). I even occasionally make mistakes in important business settings. I generally just explain I am dyslexic and then correct the mistake. It has never caused a problem.

When I was in college (I went to law school) I wrote a lot. I learned two things from this. First, as a dyslexic I can practice spelling and writing just as I practice my coding skills and improve on my skills. Second, if something, like a legal document, matters a lot, have it proof read by a lawyer. Most documents, emails, etc, do not need a massive amount of proof reading. Even non-dylexic people make mistakes when writing!

swtf• 9 years ago

I'm dyslexic as hell. I'm pretty sure I can type. Even worse I'm a developer :)

video-host• 9 years ago

As a non-native speaker, I find Grammarly pretty handy.

Ask HN: Dyslexic co-founder – any practical tips?

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