FAQ

Frequently asked questions

How do I refer to Inputlog in my report?

Please note that Inputlog is a research instrument that is free to the research community. If you publish research in which inputlog has been used, please include a fill reference to the following publication:

Leijten, M., & Van Waes, L. (2013). Keystroke Logging in Writing Research: Using Inputlog to Analyze and Visualize Writing Processes. Written Communication 30(3), 358–392 | DOI: 10.1177/0741088313491692 | PDF

Is it possible to open Inputlog analyses files (xml) in Microsoft Edge or Chrome?

The Inputlog analysis output is an xml-file that contains Javascript code. Newer versions of Google Chrome, Firefox and Windows Edge refuse to open these files in order to protect the user for potential hacking threats.
A work-around, pending a modification of the Inputlog reporting, is using the ‘old’ Internet Explorer—that is still available in Windows 10/11—as your default browser to view these Inputlog analysis files in a proper layout.

How?

Use the Microsoft Edge Instruction, or follow this procedure:

Procedure 1:
Open the File Explorer and select a file with an xml extension.

  • Right-click the file name and select Properties.
    The Properties pop-up windows has a button ‘Change…’ next to the ‘Opens with: ‘ entry.
  • Click on ‘Change’ and select ‘Internet Explorer’ from the list of alternative access methods.

Note: If Internet Explorer is not available, you have to search for it. There is a looking glass symbol in the lower left corner of your screen. Click on it and enter ‘Explorer’. The search tool will list Internet Explorer. Doubleclick the app (as it is called) to open it. Now it should appear among the alternatives when going to the file properties.

Procedure 2:
Enable IE mode in Microsoft Edge:
<instruction>
1. Open Microsoft Edge on Windows 10.
2. Click Settings and More (ellipsis) button on the top-right corner.
3. Select the Settings option.
4. Click Default browser.
5. Under the Internet Explorer compatibility section, turn on the Allow sites to be reloaded in Internet Explorer mode toggle switch.

Alternatively, you can also right-click on the browser tab that has been opened to show the xml-content, and select “Reload in Internet Explorer Mode.

Which format is used for the log and analyses files?
Inputlog uses a standardized XML structure. This feature allows users to easily adapt and convert the files to other applications. Another advantage of XML is also that researchers can easily merge Inputlog data with data of other (logging) applications. For instance, in a study about live-subtitling we merged the Inputlog data with the Swift XML-output of the broadcasted subtitles. Eyetracking data can also be merged more easily. Finally, research data from other programs can be structured in the same way as the Inputlog output, which allows it to be imported in Inputlog to conduct complementary analyses. The conversion of the Scriptlog files is an example of this functionality.
Do I need a registered MS Word version installed on my computer?
No, that is not necessary. However, if you are interested in the revision process, or would like to generate process graphs, MS Word is the required word processing environment.

If you don’t want to activate MS Word when the Record log session is started, you can deactivate this automatized procedure by changing the settings in the menu.

Is there a privacy setting that avoids logging passwords?
Yes, there is. It is possible to switch off all recording taking place outside the Inputlog Word document. To do that, go to Menu bar and select File > Options > Logging in the Inputlog user interface.

In the ‘Logging’ tab you can check the ‘Wordlog Restricted’ option. If checked all logging outside the main Word document is blocked. However, the title of, for instance, the web page visited is still recorded, together with the time spent there. But no keystroke logs are logged any more.

Can I share my personal installation code?

We ask you NOT to share your personal installation code, unless you want to use Inputlog in a computer class or lab setting at your school or university. In that case, you can install the program on up to 100 computers with your code. So, your students or pupils don’t have to apply for an installation code via the website.

If your ICT coordinator asks for an MSI-installation (Microsoft Installation), please, contact us.

Does Inputlog only log within MS Word?
No. Inputlog registers every keystroke and mouse movement in any Windows application, not only in a custom designed writing environment.
However, Inputlog is designed in such a way that extra chraracteristics are identified when text is produced in Microsoft Word (e.g., also position of the character typed and actual length of the document) is logged in that case. This information is, for instance, the basis for the revision analysis and replay module.
In other words, not only writing processes in MS Word as such can be observed with Inputlog, but also related processes like chat sessions or consulting websites or dictionaries.
Can I use Inputlog on a Mac?
Inputlog runs in a Windows environment. To run Inputlog on a Mac, there are two options, depending on the configuration of your system.

Option 1: Boot Camp
The first option is to install Inputlog via Boot Camp. Boot Camp allows you to choose whether to run Mac OS X or Windows when you power on your Mac. To install Inputlog, boot your Mac into Windows and follow the general Inputlog installation instructions in the manual.

Boot Camp is the most performant way to run Windows on your Mac, but takes quite some time to install and requires a large amount of free disk space.

Option 2: Virtual machine
An alternative to Boot Camp is running Windows in a virtual machine. Virtual machine software such as VirtualBox, Parallels, and VMWare, allow you to run one operating system (in this case Windows) within another operating system (in this case Mac OS X).

We refer to the Mac installation instructions for more detailed information.

What are the minimum requirements to run Inputlog 8?
  • Operating system:
    Microsoft Windows 7 or later
  • Processor:
    1 gigahertz (GHz) or faster 32-bit (x86) or 64-bit (x64)
  • MS Word:
    2003 or later
Can I log speech input in Inputlog?
Yes, Inputlog can integrate the input of dictation devices using speech recognition software.

More specifically, we opted to integrate the most widely used speech recognition software by Nuance: Dragon NaturallySpeaking. The specially designed logging add-on in the speech recognizer enables researchers to integrate the dictated text with the data logged by Inputlog. Via a Python script, an XML file of a recorded speech session is merged with the basic Inputlog data file, including both the dictated text and the related voice input.

The result is a single file that can be used for further analysis of multimodal writing sessions in which speech input is combined with keyboard and mouse.

Why should I use the Inputlog copy task?

The Inputlog copy task is an instrument that allows you to measure the participants’ typing skills from different perspectives. The Inputlog copy task is available in more than 10 languages. The ‘copy task analysis’ provides a detailed analysis of the task. 

Especially when you plan to conduct a pause analysis in your experiment, the copy task analysis provides a valuable addition to the participants’ personal characteristics with respect to their typing skills.

For more information: https://www.inputlog.net/copy-task/

Why is the automatic spell checker in MS Word disactivated when I start logging?

When you activate an MS Word document with Inputlog the automatic correction and spelling features are switched off (grammar and spell checker, automatic capitalization etc.). The reason is that this allows us to log revisions more accurately, as we do not have full control over the underlying algorithms Microsoft uses for these automatic corrections.

However, when your study is less interested in revision and is dependent on these automatic corrections, you can manually activate them via the standard menu settings. Moreover, you can also change the setting in the Inputlog options that controls add-ins. To do this, go the the menu bar and select File > Option > Logging. Then check or uncheck ‘Disable Word Add-ins’. .

Why do I get the warning "Microsoft has blocked macros from running"?

This warning can be caused by two issues:

  1. MS Word setting for automatic back-up: If your standard setting in MS Word is such that you automatically save a version of your text every X minutes, this setting might conflict with the Inputlog logging settings, especially the versioning option.
    What to do? Disactivate the automatic back up setting in MS Word (and – optionally – activate the versioning option in Inputlog if you want to stire a timed version of the text in progress.
  2. Conflict with add-ins: As by default Inputlog disactivates any add-in in MS Word. This might conflict with your MS Word settings that might activate certain add-ins (like the spelling checker, or Endnote).
    What to do? Change the Inputlog setting as follows: File < Options < Logging and then disactivate “disable Word Add-ins.
    (Optional: activate the version saving setting)

Reference
If you publish or present a paper in which Inputlog has been used, please refer to the following article:

Leijten, M., & Van Waes, L. (2013). Keystroke Logging in Writing Research: Using Inputlog to Analyze Writing Processes. Written Communication 30(3), 358-392
DOI: 10.1177/0741088313491692
PDF

Creative Commons
Inputlog is published under the following Creative Commons licence:
Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives | 4.0 International (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0)