There are many utilities that allow the input of any unicode characters, given their (hexa)decimal codes. But that's really cumbersome. This software allows searching for a character by its name, then copies it to the clipboard in order to be pasted anywhere.

Installation

On Windows: there is no setup yet, just unzip the file. Run uibn.exe.

Others: download the source code, install wxPython 2.8.x.x. Run uibn.pyw (you may need to set its permission first). Tested on Ubuntu; I have no idea if it works on Mac OS.

Usage

The program automatically hides itself. Right click the notification area icon (all systems) or press Alt+"+" (numpad +) to show it (only on Windows).

Type the character name in order to search for it. Press up/down arrow to navigate the list. Press enter or click the Copy button to copy the character to the clipboard; the program will hide itself again.

Press esc or the Hide button to hide the program. In order to close it, close the window.

The characters are sorted by use (the most copied will appear first)

Help wanted

If you know a standard way to add a global shortcut to show the program window on Linux (or for specific window managers) and on Mac OS, please drop me a line.

To Do

• Make it customizable (notification icon on/off, custom shortcut, sort by usage on/off, etc)

Author

Conrado PLG (conradoplg at gmail dot com)