TextExpander tip: Temporarily Disarming An Abbreviation
We’ve all done it. Once in a great while, we go to type an abbreviation, and the little “pop” sound lets us know that the abbreviation is being used in TextExpander already.
But sometimes, we really do want the actual abbreviation, no expansion, thank you. Here’s a down-and-dirty way to keep the “pop” in check:
1) Type the first letter of the abbreviation.
2) Press the left arrow key, followed by the right arrow key.
3) Finish typing the abbreviation.
Arrow keys clear the key log–that’s why it works!
(Thanks to Greg for passing this tip along!)
April 28th, 2007 at 12:32 pm
[...] I have heard from a few friends and customers that “.c” is a terrible abbreviation for the © symbol. It tends to drive people crazy when they are trying to type “.com”. Originally, I didn’t think it was a problem, because TextExpander will only expand abbreviations at the beginning of a word. But it’s happened to me, too. It’s possible to do something that causes TextExpander to clear its key log, like using the arrow keys, and then it will be as if the .com is coming at the beginning of a word. [...]
May 15th, 2007 at 12:04 pm
Nice tip! Note that if your cursor is positioned at the end of your document, you can just hit the right arrow which will clear the keylog but won’t move the cursor (since it can’t go any farther to the right). Save a keystroke! (Yeah, only a TextExpander user would care about a SINGLE keystroke!)
May 18th, 2007 at 4:05 pm
Great idea, Nik. Especially since one is often at the end of the document when typing. That works great.
Nothing wrong with being obsessed about shaving off one more keystroke. Is there?