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Introducing

REGEX++ is an NVDA add‑on that puts the speed and precision of regular expressions (regex) right inside any text editor or editing area – even those that don’t offer built‑in regex tools. Whether you need to clean up messy documents, search through thousands of lines of code, or replace recurring text patterns across an entire file, this add‑on provides a fully accessible, keyboard‑driven dialog that clearly speaks every match, line number, and replacement result through your screen reader. It works by intelligently managing the clipboard to simulate paste actions, making it compatible with virtually any traditional desktop application.

Hotkey

Press ALT+Windows+F while focus is in any editable text field (the add‑on automatically skips browser address bars, File Explorer, and other non‑editable areas). The search and replace dialog will appear instantly.

Important note regarding the hotkey: If you press this shortcut while focus is not inside a supported editable text field, the add‑on will intercept the command and display a clear notification, such as "Regex Replace is only available in a text edit field", instead of forwarding the keystroke to Windows. This prevents the Windows Feedback Hub from opening accidentally—an especially valuable safeguard for Windows Insider users who may have that shortcut reserved by the operating system.

How to Use the Add‑on

1. Open any text editor or move focus to a text area you can type into (for example, Notepad, WordPad, code editors, or plain‑text fields in traditional desktop applications). Please note: this add‑on does not work inside the main content area of web browsers such as Chrome, Firefox, or Edge.
2. Press ALT+Windows+F. The search and replace dialog will open.
3. Type your search term or regex pattern into the Regex Pattern box. You can also select a recently used pattern from the drop‑down list; the add‑on automatically saves your last 15 patterns for quick reuse.
4. As you type, the dialog performs a live search (with a brief delay for performance) and instantly scans the entire document—or only the selected text if you tick the In Selection Only checkbox. All matches are listed in real time, and the status bar clearly reports the total number of matches found.
5. Each match appears with its full line of text and corresponding line number. Use the Up and Down Arrow keys to navigate through the list; NVDA will read the line content and announce the selected match position (for example, “Selected: 3 of 12”).
6. Press Enter on any match in the list to jump directly to that line in your document. The cursor will land precisely on the matched text, and NVDA will speak the matched content for confirmation.
7. To perform a replacement, enter your desired replacement text in the Replace With box. Click Replace to change only the first occurrence, or click Replace All to update every match simultaneously. After a Replace All, the add‑on automatically double‑checks the document to verify that no unintended matches remain, giving you extra confidence.
8. After each replacement action, the add‑on announces exactly how many changes were made. It also safely restores your original clipboard content afterwards, so you never lose any data you had copied previously.
9. Need help building a regex pattern? Click the REGEXGuide button. This opens a separate reference dialog containing a categorized cheat sheet with 259 regex rules across 34 categories—from basic anchors and quantifiers all the way through advanced Unicode properties, lookaround combinations, log parsing, and source‑code patterns. Browse the list by category, listen to the description (and, for many rules, a ready‑made replacement example) for each entry, and press Enter (or click Use Pattern) to copy the pattern—and, when available, the matching replacement text—directly into the dialog’s fields. Every category label, rule title, and description is fully translatable, so you can browse and learn regex in your own language.
10. When you have finished, press Escape or click the Close button. The dialog will disappear, and you will return to your document with all applied changes already in place.

What's Inside the REGEXGuide

The built‑in cheat sheet currently holds 259 rules organized into 34 categories, grouped here into five broad learning tracks so you can jump straight to what you need:

• Regex Foundations (10 categories): Basic Elements, Quantifiers, Character Classes, Grouping & Alternation, Lookaround Assertions, Advanced Grouping, Conditional Patterns, Named Groups & Backreferences, Lookaround Combinations, and Unicode Properties. Everything from anchors and character classes up to atomic groups, possessive quantifiers, and Unicode script matching.
• Everyday Data (9 categories): Emails & Network, Email Advanced, Phone Numbers, Dates & Times, Dates & Times Advanced, Numbers & Financial, Numbers & Financial Advanced, Text & Identification, and Identifiers & Codes. Ready‑made patterns for addresses, phone numbers, currencies, percentages, UUIDs, hashes, IP addresses, and more.
• Web & Documents (4 categories): URLs & Web Advanced, HTML & XML Advanced, Markdown, and CSV & Delimited Data. Rules for parsing links, tags, Markdown syntax, and delimited data files.
• Code & Logs (3 categories): Source Code Patterns, Log Parsing, and File Paths & Filenames. Handy for developers cleaning up code, scanning log files, or validating file paths.
• Text Cleanup & Validation (8 categories): Text Cleanup, Line & Whitespace Handling, Duplicate Detection, Case Conversion Helpers, Quoted Strings & Escaping, Validation Patterns, Social Media, and Screen Reader Text Processing. Includes rules aimed specifically at screen reader users, such as stripping ANSI escape codes and box‑drawing characters from terminal output.

Many rules—especially the more advanced ones—include a matching replacement example alongside the pattern, so you see not just how to find something but how to transform it, directly inside the guide.

Powerful Features Built for Blind Users

• Live match preview: See every match as soon as you type, with real‑time speech feedback – no need to hit “Find” first or wait for a separate search process.
• Line‑by‑line match list: Each result displays the full line of text and its line number. You can select any match with a single keystroke and jump to it instantly, without cycling through irrelevant results.
• Smart search across large documents: Use plain text, word boundaries, or advanced regex patterns (\d+, \w+@\w+\.\w+, etc.) to locate exactly what you need, even in files with thousands of lines.
• Replace with confidence: Replace one occurrence or all at once. The add‑on announces the number of replacements and then automatically verifies that no matches remain—something no built‑in find‑and‑replace dialog does.
• Clipboard safety: The add‑on uses the clipboard only during the replace action and always restores whatever you had copied before. You’ll never lose your data.
• Works in any editor: Whether it’s Notepad, WordPad, a code editor, or a simple text field inside a traditional desktop application, this tool detects editable text areas and works seamlessly. However, it does not function inside the content area of web browsers (e.g., Chrome, Firefox, Edge) – the add‑on will automatically ignore browser address bars and web page editing areas.
• Built‑in regex cheat sheet (REGEXGuide): 259 ready‑to‑use patterns across 34 categories—from core syntax to emails, dates, numbers, HTML/Markdown, log files, source code, and screen‑reader‑specific text cleanup. Browse by category, listen to descriptions and replacement examples, and insert any pattern (and its matching replacement) with a single key press – perfect for learning regex or building quick searches, in your own language.
• History for patterns and replacements: The last 15 patterns and replacements are saved and available in drop‑down lists, so you can reuse them without typing again.
• Case‑sensitive toggle and in‑selection search: Refine your search with a single checkbox for each option.
• Smart hotkey interception: If the hotkey is pressed outside an editable field, the add‑on displays a clear error message instead of passing the keystroke to Windows, ensuring you never accidentally trigger the Feedback Hub or other system functions.

How This Add‑on Improves Your Daily Work

• Saves hours of manual editing: Instead of scrolling line by line to change a date format, an email address, or a repeated typo, you write one pattern and replace every instance at once.
• Eliminates keystroke fatigue: No more pressing Control+F a hundred times and hand‑typing replacements. A single shortcut opens everything you need.
• Brings regex power to every program: Many lightweight editors (and even some rich applications) don’t include regex support at all. This tool fills that gap, giving you professional search capabilities wherever you type.
• Keeps you informed: NVDA speaks the total match count, the currently selected match, replacement results, and even alerts you if a pattern is invalid – all without leaving the keyboard.
• Makes learning regex easy: The REGEXGuide acts like an interactive reference with 259 categorized rules and worked replacement examples. You can explore patterns by topic, understand what they do, and immediately use them in your document.
• Works with your existing tools: No need to change your favourite text editor. The add‑on adds smart searching on top of whatever application you already rely on.

Why Choose This Over Built‑in Find and Replace?

Most find‑and‑replace dialogs in text editors only show you one match at a time, force you to cycle through results blindly, and rarely announce how many matches were found or replaced. They often lack regex support entirely, and even when they do support it, the feedback for screen reader users is frequently incomplete—you might simply hear “not found” with no clue whether your pattern is incorrect or there are genuinely no matches. This add‑on transforms that frustrating experience: it gives you a complete overview of every match, speaks every line number and match count, allows you to jump instantly to any occurrence (not just the next or previous one), and always confirms that replacements actually happened. It turns a guess‑driven, time‑consuming task into a smooth, transparent, and remarkably fast workflow.

Try It Today

If you regularly edit text, code, configuration files, or any kind of document, this add‑on will quickly become an essential part of your NVDA toolkit. It brings professional‑grade search and replace to every corner of your computer, all through a simple, accessible dialog. Download REGEX++ now and experience how much faster and more pleasant text editing can be when your screen reader and your editor work together perfectly.

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