Autotype is a function in some
computer applications
Application software is any computer program that is intended for end-user use not operating, administering or programming the computer. An application (app, application program, software application) is any program that can be categorized as ...
or
programs, typically those containing
forms, which fills in a field once you have typed in the first few letters. Most of the time, such as in a
web browser
A web browser, often shortened to browser, is an application for accessing websites. When a user requests a web page from a particular website, the browser retrieves its files from a web server and then displays the page on the user's scr ...
, the entries that appear in the list depend on the form's name, so as to not propose street names in a last name field or vice versa.
Background
Autotype can also refer to automatically determining a
peripheral
A peripheral device, or simply peripheral, is an auxiliary hardware device that a computer uses to transfer information externally. A peripheral is a hardware component that is accessible to and controlled by a computer but is not a core compo ...
's configuration or a program's
variables.
Autotype is defined as a "true representation of the original" (see O.E.D).
The term autotype was coined in the late 19th century and referred to a process for making photographic prints using a
carbon process. Many autotype prints were produced and the process was popular well into the 20th century, particularly since autotype prints are very long lasting (it is said that an autotype could last up to 500 years without fading).
Autotype may also refer to
halftone
Halftone is the reprographic technique that simulates continuous tone, continuous-tone imagery through the use of dots, varying either in size or in spacing, thus generating a gradient-like effect.Campbell, Alastair. ''The Designer's Lexicon''. ...
printing. The term may also apply to the Autotype Company, founded in London in 1868 as the "Autotype Fine Art Company", which was one of the pioneers in the
carbon print
A carbon print is a photographic print with an image consisting of pigmented gelatin, rather than of silver or other metallic particles suspended in a uniform layer of gelatin, as in typical black-and-white prints, or of chromogenic dyes, as in t ...
and autotype reproduction process and which still exists as a supplier of coated films.
"Autotype Fine Art Company"
''Encyclopedia of Nineteenth-Century Photography'', edited by John Hannavy
Macdermid autotype
/ref> Autotype is now part of the Platform Speciality Products group of companies.
See also
* Autotype (printing)
* Autocomplete
Autocomplete, or word completion, is a feature in which an application software, application predicts the rest of a word a user is typing. In Android (operating system), Android and iOS smartphones, this is called predictive text. In graphical us ...
* Autofill
* Context sensitive user interface
* Combo box
A combo box is a commonly used graphical user interface
A graphical user interface, or GUI, is a form of user interface that allows user (computing), users to human–computer interaction, interact with electronic devices through Graphics, gr ...
References
External links
PCMag Encyclopedia entry
Text editor features
Non-impact printing
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