Check for Updates Make sure you have the latest information! TidBITS Publishing Inc. Take Control of v1.1 TextExpander Michael E. Cohen COVERS4 Version $10 Help Catalog Feedback Blog Click here to buy the full 100-page “Take Control of TextExpander” for only $10! Table of Contents Read Me First Updates and More .....................................................................4 Basics .....................................................................................5 What’s New in Version 1.1 ..........................................................6 Introduction TextExpander Quick Start Meet TextExpander Get TextExpander ....................................................................12 Run the Snippet Creation Assistant ............................................14 Know Your Interfaces ...............................................................16 Make and Use a Simple Snippet .................................................19 Learn the Types of Snippet Content ...........................................25 Create and Use Complex Snippets Add Formatting and Pictures .....................................................28 Meet the Macros ......................................................................31 Place the Cursor ......................................................................32 Insert the Clipboard or Another Snippet ......................................34 Include Special Keys ................................................................35 Include Dates and Times ..........................................................36 Make a Fill-in Snippet ..............................................................39 Organize Your Snippets Make Groups and Arrange Them ................................................44 Organize a Group’s Contents .....................................................48 Save, Add, and Import Groups ..................................................49 Customize Group Settings ........................................................54 Find Your Snippets Browse Your Snippets ..............................................................57 Search and Filter Your Snippets .................................................59 2 Click here to buy the full 100-page “Take Control of TextExpander” for only $10! Set TextExpander Options Manage Your Interfaces ............................................................61 Set Expansion Options .............................................................64 Set Auto-capitalization Options .................................................66 Back Up Your Snippets Automatically ..........................................68 Create Snippets as You Go Set Up Your Services ...............................................................72 Use Hotkeys ...........................................................................73 Create a New Snippet ..............................................................75 Edit the Last Expanded Snippet .................................................77 Share and Sync Snippets Export Your Snippets ...............................................................78 Sync with Dropbox ..................................................................79 Script with Snippets Script with AppleScript .............................................................81 Script with the Shell .................................................................84 Combine Scripting Snippets ......................................................86 Appendix A: Use TextExpander touch Exchange Snippets with Your Mac ..............................................87 Expand in the App ...................................................................92 Expand in Compatible Apps ......................................................93 Learn More About This Book Ebook Extras ..........................................................................96 About the Author .....................................................................97 About the Publisher .................................................................98 Copyright and Fine Print Featured Titles 3 Click here to buy the full 100-page “Take Control of TextExpander” for only $10! Read Me First Welcome to Take Control of TextExpander, version 1.1, published in July 2012 by TidBITS Publishing Inc. This book was written by Michael E. Cohen and edited by Tonya Engst. This book covers how you can use versions 3 and 4 of Smile’s TextExpander text-substitution utility to make your writing, programming, and editing far more efficient and enjoyable. If you want to share this ebook with a friend, we ask that you do so as you would with a physical book: “lend” it for a quick look, but ask your friend to buy a copy for careful reading or reference. Copyright © 2012, Michael E. Cohen. All rights reserved. Updates and More You can access extras related to this book on the Web (use the link in Ebook Extras, near the end; it’s available only to purchasers). On the ebook’s Take Control Extras page, you can: • Download any available new version of the ebook for free, or purchase any subsequent edition at a discount. • Download various formats, including PDF, EPUB and—usually— Mobipocket. (Learn about reading this ebook on handheld devices at http://www.takecontrolbooks.com/device-advice.) • Read postings to the ebook’s blog. These may include new information and tips, as well as links to author interviews. At the top of the blog, you can also see any update plans for the ebook. Sponsored by Smile This book was sponsored by Smile. Special thanks for an enjoyable project to Brian Bucknam, Greg Scown, Jean MacDonald, and Philip Goward. If you bought this ebook from the Take Control Web site, it has been added to your account, where you can download it in other formats and access any future updates. However, if you bought this ebook elsewhere, you can add it to your account manually; see Ebook Extras. 4 Click here to buy the full 100-page “Take Control of TextExpander” for only $10! Basics Here are a few “rules of the road” that will help you read this book: • Menus: Where I describe choosing a command from a menu in the menu bar, I use an abbreviated description. For example, the abbreviated description for the menu command that creates a new snippet in TextExpander is “File > New Snippet.” • Contextual menus: Contextual menus appear when you Control- click various elements on a Macintosh screen, including Dock items and files in Finder windows. To describe opening a contextual menu, I usually I tell you to Control-click an item on the screen. If your mouse offers a right-click option, or if you use a trackpad or other means of opening a contextual menu, you should feel free to use the method you prefer. • Finding System Preferences: I sometimes refer to settings in System Preferences. To open System Preferences, click its icon in the Dock or choose System Preferences from the Apple menu. When the System Preferences window opens, click the icon of the pane whose settings you want to adjust. I refer to these panes using an abbreviated notation such as “the Network preference pane.” • Finding TextExpander’s preferences: I often refer to TextExpander preferences that you may want to adjust. Don’t confuse the TextExpander preferences with the system-wide settings found in System Preferences. To access TextExpander’s preferences, when the application is showing its menus, choose TextExpander > Preferences. You can also click the Preferences icon in the TextExpander window’s default toolbar. If you have hidden TextExpander’s menus when the window is showing (and, yes, that’s one of TextExpander’s preferences) choose TextExpander Preferences from the TextExpander quick-access menu (see Know Your Interfaces for more about the quick-access menu). • Path syntax: This book occasionally uses a path to show the location of a file or folder. For example, TextExpander stores its setting backups in your Home folder’s Library folder, inside the 5 Click here to buy the full 100-page “Take Control of TextExpander” for only $10! TextExpander folder in the Application Support folder. The path to that location is: ~/Library/Application Support/TextExpander. The ~ (tilde) at the beginning of the path tells you to start from your Home folder. For example, if you log in to your Mac with the user name betty then ~/Library/Application Support/TextExpander is just another way of writing /Users/betty/Library/Application Support/TextExpander. • User Library: The library folder mentioned in the previous paragraph, ~/Library, is normally invisible in 10.7 Lion and 10.8 Mountain Lion. To see it, hold down the Option key and choose Go > Library in the Finder. What’s New in Version 1.1 This version takes into account improvements in TextExpander itself in its transition from TextExpander 3 to TextExpander 4, as well as some changes in how it fits into Apple’s ecosystem. • The fabulous fill-in macro enhancement: In TextExpander 3, the fill-in macro capability enabled you to create a snippet containing form elements that you could fill in when you expanded it. TextExpander 4 supercharges fill-ins and provides a set of easy to use macro editors. Make a Fill-in Snippet has been completely rewritten to describe this greatly enhanced feature. • Snippet Creation Assistant: When new users open TextExpander 4 for the first time, a Snippet Creation Assistant gives them the opportunity to create and try out snippets. A new Run the Snippet Creation Assistant section covers this. • The end of MobileMe: Apple closed the