📝 alex — Catch insensitive, inconsiderate writing.
Whether your own or someone else’s writing, alex helps you find gender favoring, polarizing, race related, or other unequal phrasing in text.
For example, when We’ve confirmed his identity is given, alex will warn
you and suggest using their instead of his.
Give alex a spin on the Online demo ».
$ npm install alex --global
Using yarn:
$ yarn global add alex
Or you can follow this step-by-step tutorial: Setting up alex in your project
alex checks things such as:
garbageman alex suggests garbage collector; if you write landlord alex suggests proprietor)like a man alex suggests bravely; if you
write ladylike alex suggests courteous)learning disabled alex suggests person with learning disabilities)obviously or everyone knows alex
warns about it)master and slave alex suggests
primary and replica)butt 🍑 alex warns about it)…and much more!
Note: alex assumes good intent: that you don’t mean to offend!
See retext-equality and retext-profanities for
all rules.
alex ignores words meant literally, so “he”, He — ..., and the
like are not warned about.
sindresorhus/SublimeLinter-contrib-alexdustinspecker/gulp-alexkeoghpe/alex-slackyohanmishkin/ember-cli-alexswinton/linter-alexbrown-ccv/alex-recommendsreviewdog/action-alexw0rp/aleskn0tt/alex-browser-extensionstefanjudis/alex-js-contentful-ui-extensionnickradford/figma-plugin-alextlahmann/vscode-alexThe CLI searches for files with a markdown or text extension when given
directories (so $ alex . will find readme.md and path/to/file.txt).
To prevent files from being found, create an .alexignore file.
.alexignoreThe CLI will sometimes search for files.
To prevent files from being found, add a file named .alexignore in one of the
directories above the current working directory (the place you run alex from).
The format of these files is similar to .eslintignore (which
in turn is similar to .gitignore files).
For example, when working in ~/path/to/place, the ignore file can be in
to, place, or ~.
The ignore file for this project itself looks like this:
# `node_modules` is ignored by default.
example.md
Sometimes alex makes mistakes:
A message for this sentence will pop up.
Yields:
readme.md
1:15-1:18 warning `pop` may be insensitive, use `parent` instead dad-mom retext-equality
⚠ 1 warning
HTML comments in Markdown can be used to ignore them:
<!--alex ignore dad-mom-->
A message for this sentence will **not** pop up.
Yields:
readme.md: no issues found
ignore turns off messages for the thing after the comment (in this case, the
paragraph).
It’s also possible to turn off messages after a comment by using disable, and,
turn those messages back on using enable:
<!--alex disable dad-mom-->
A message for this sentence will **not** pop up.
A message for this sentence will also **not** pop up.
Yet another sentence where a message will **not** pop up.
<!--alex enable dad-mom-->
A message for this sentence will pop up.
Yields:
readme.md
9:15-9:18 warning `pop` may be insensitive, use `parent` instead dad-mom retext-equality
⚠ 1 warning
Multiple messages can be controlled in one go:
<!--alex disable he-her his-hers dad-mom-->
…and all messages can be controlled by omitting all rule identifiers:
<!--alex ignore-->
You can control alex through .alexrc configuration files:
{
"allow": ["boogeyman-boogeywoman"]
}
…you can use YAML if the file is named .alexrc.yml or .alexrc.yaml:
allow:
- dad-mom
…you can also use JavaScript if the file is named .alexrc.js:
// But making it random like this is a bad idea!
exports.profanitySureness = Math.floor(Math.random() * 3)
…and finally it is possible to use an alex field in package.json:
{
…
"alex": {
"noBinary": true
},
…
}
The allow field should be an array of rules or undefined (the default is
undefined). When provided, the rules specified are skipped and not reported.
The deny field should be an array of rules or undefined (the default is
undefined). When provided, only the rules specified are reported.
You cannot use both allow and deny at the same time.
The noBinary field should be a boolean (the default is false).
When turned on (true), pairs such as he and she and garbageman or garbagewoman are seen as errors.
When turned off (false, the default), such pairs are okay.
The profanitySureness field is a number (the default is 0).
We use cuss, which has a dictionary of words that have a rating
between 0 and 2 of how likely it is that a word or phrase is a profanity (not
how “bad” it is):
| Rating | Use as a profanity | Use in clean text | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2 | likely | unlikely | asshat |
| 1 | maybe | maybe | addict |
| 0 | unlikely | likely | beaver |
The profanitySureness field is the minimum rating (including) that you want to
check for.
If you set it to 1 (maybe) then it will warn for level 1 and 2 (likely)
profanities, but not for level 0 (unlikely).
Let’s say example.md looks as follows:
The boogeyman wrote all changes to the **master server**. Thus, the slaves
were read-only copies of master. But not to worry, he was a cripple.
Now, run alex on example.md:
$ alex example.md
Yields:
example.md
1:5-1:14 warning `boogeyman` may be insensitive, use `boogeymonster` instead boogeyman-boogeywoman retext-equality
1:42-1:48 warning `master` / `slaves` may be insensitive, use `primary` / `replica` instead master-slave retext-equality
1:69-1:75 warning Don’t use `slaves`, it’s profane slaves retext-profanities
2:52-2:54 warning `he` may be insensitive, use `they`, `it` instead he-she retext-equality
2:61-2:68 warning `cripple` may be insensitive, use `person with a limp` instead gimp retext-equality
⚠ 5 warnings
See $ alex --help for more information.
When no input files are given to alex, it searches for files in the current directory,
doc, anddocs. If--mdxis given, it searches formdxextensions. If--htmlis given, it searches forhtmandhtmlextensions. Otherwise, it searches fortxt,text,md,mkd,mkdn,mkdown,ron, andmarkdownextensions.
This package is ESM only:
Node 14+ is needed to use it and it must be imported instead of required.
npm:
$ npm install alex --save
This package exports the identifiers markdown, mdx, html, and text.
The default export is markdown.
markdown(value, config)Check Markdown (ignoring syntax).
value (VFile or string) — Markdown documentconfig (Object, optional) — See the Configuration sectionVFile.
You are probably interested in its messages property, as
shown in the example below, because it holds the possible violations.
import alex from 'alex'
alex('We’ve confirmed his identity.').messages
Yields:
[
[1:17-1:20: `his` may be insensitive, when referring to a person, use `their`, `theirs`, `them` instead] {
message: '`his` may be insensitive, when referring to a ' +
'person, use `their`, `theirs`, `them` instead',
name: '1:17-1:20',
reason: '`his` may be insensitive, when referring to a ' +
'person, use `their`, `theirs`, `them` instead',
line: 1,
column: 17,
location: { start: [Object], end: [Object] },
source: 'retext-equality',
ruleId: 'her-him',
fatal: false,
actual: 'his',
expected: [ 'their', 'theirs', 'them' ]
}
]
mdx(value, config)Check MDX (ignoring syntax).
Note: the syntax for MDX@2, while currently in beta, is used in alex.
value (VFile or string) — MDX documentconfig (Object, optional) — See the Configuration sectionimport {mdx} from 'alex'
mdx('<Component>He walked to class.</Component>').messages
Yields:
[
[1:12-1:14: `He` may be insensitive, use `They`, `It` instead] {
reason: '`He` may be insensitive, use `They`, `It` instead',
line: 1,
column: 12,
location: { start: [Object], end: [Object] },
source: 'retext-equality',
ruleId: 'he-she',
fatal: false,
actual: 'He',
expected: [ 'They', 'It' ]
}
]
html(value, config)Check HTML (ignoring syntax).
value (VFile or string) — HTML documentconfig (Object, optional) — See the Configuration sectionimport {html} from 'alex'
html('<p class="black">He walked to class.</p>').messages
Yields:
[
[1:18-1:20: `He` may be insensitive, use `They`, `It` instead] {
message: '`He` may be insensitive, use `They`, `It` instead',
name: '1:18-1:20',
reason: '`He` may be insensitive, use `They`, `It` instead',
line: 1,
column: 18,
location: { start: [Object], end: [Object] },
source: 'retext-equality',
ruleId: 'he-she',
fatal: false,
actual: 'He',
expected: [ 'They', 'It' ]
}
]
text(value, config)Check plain text (as in, syntax is checked).
value (VFile or string) — Text documentconfig (Object, optional) — See the Configuration sectionimport {markdown, text} from 'alex'
markdown('The `boogeyman`.').messages // => []
text('The `boogeyman`.').messages
Yields:
[
[1:6-1:15: `boogeyman` may be insensitive, use `boogeymonster` instead] {
message: '`boogeyman` may be insensitive, use `boogeymonster` instead',
name: '1:6-1:15',
reason: '`boogeyman` may be insensitive, use `boogeymonster` instead',
line: 1,
column: 6,
location: Position { start: [Object], end: [Object] },
source: 'retext-equality',
ruleId: 'boogeyman-boogeywoman',
fatal: false,
actual: 'boogeyman',
expected: [ 'boogeymonster' ]
}
]
The recommended workflow is to add alex to package.json and to run it with
your tests in Travis.
You can opt to ignore warnings through alexrc files and control comments.
A package.json file with npm scripts, and additionally using
AVA for unit tests, could look like so:
{
"scripts": {
"test-api": "ava",
"test-doc": "alex",
"test": "npm run test-api && npm run test-doc"
},
"devDependencies": {
"alex": "^1.0.0",
"ava": "^0.1.0"
}
}
If you’re using Travis for continuous integration, set up something like the
following in your .travis.yml:
script:
- npm test
+- alex --diff
Make sure to still install alex though!
If the --diff flag is used, and Travis is detected, lines that are not changes
in this push are ignored.
Using this workflow, you can merge PRs if it has warnings, and then if someone
edits an entirely different file, they won’t be bothered about existing
warnings, only about the things they added!
Not a question. And yeah, alex isn’t very smart. People are much better at this. But people make mistakes, and alex is there to help.
See contributing.md on how to get “X” checked by alex.
It’s a nice unisex name, it was free on npm, I like it! :smile:
No automated tool can replace studying inclusive communication and listening to
the lived experiences of others.
An error from alex can be an invitation to learn more.
These resources are a launch point for deepening your own understanding and
editorial skills beyond what alex can offer:
The 18F Content Guide has a helpful list of links to other inclusive language guides used in journalism and academic writing.
The Conscious Style Guide has
articles on many nuanced topics of language. For example, the terms race
and ethnicity mean different things, and choosing the right word is up to
you.
Likewise, a sentence that overgeneralizes about a group of people
(e.g. “Developers love to code all day”) may not be noticed by alex, but
it is not inclusive. A good human editor can step up to the challenge and
find a better way to phrase things.
Sometimes, the only way to know what is inclusive is to ask. In Disability is a nuanced thing, Nicolas Steenhout writes about how person-first language, such as “a person with a disability,” is not always the right choice.
Language is always evolving. A term that is neutral one year ago can be problematic today. Projects like the Self-Defined Dictionary aim to collect the words that we use to define ourselves and others, and connect them with the history and some helpful advice.
Unconsious bias is present in daily decisions and conversations and can show up in writing. Textio
offers some examples of how descriptive adjective choice and tone can push some people away, and how regional language differences can cause confusion.
Using complex sentences and uncommon vocabulary can lead to less inclusive content. This is described as literacy exclusion in this article by Harver. This is critical to be aware of if your content has a global audience, where a reader’s strongest language may not be the language you are writing in.
See contributing.md in get-alex/.github for ways
to get started.
See support.md for ways to get help.
This project has a Code of conduct. By interacting with this repository, organization, or community you agree to abide by its terms.
Thanks to @iheanyi for raising the problem and @sindresorhus for inspiring me (@wooorm) to do something about it.
When alex launched, it got some traction on twitter and producthunt. Then there was a lot of press coverage.
Preliminary work for alex was done in 2015. The project was authored by @wooorm.
Lots of people helped since!
FAQs
Catch insensitive, inconsiderate writing
The npm package alex receives a total of 13,785 weekly downloads. As such, alex popularity was classified as popular.
We found that alex demonstrated a not healthy version release cadence and project activity because the last version was released a year ago. It has 1 open source maintainer collaborating on the project.
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