TextSpresso Manual Menu

Hot Filter

Overview

Setting Up Hot Filter

Using Hot Filter

Special Notes

Overview

This chapter explains how to setup and use Hot Filter. Hot Filter allows you to filter the selected text in another Mac application by simply holding down a Hot Key combination or moving your mouse to a Hot Corner. When you do this, TextSpresso will ask you which filter to use and filter the selected text "in place" in the front application. You remain in the application you were using, which means you don't have to leave your work. You can even assign individual Hot Keys to frequently used filters so that you can filter text without having to select the filter in a dialog.

Hot Filter allows you to use TextSpresso with your favorite Mac applications in a tightly integrated fashion. With Hot Filter, it's like TextSpresso is a part of the OS.

Setting Up Hot Filter

You set up Hot Filter in the Preferences window. To set up Hot Filter, do the following:

  1. Select Preferences from the Edit menu. The Application Preferences window will appear.
  2. Use the popup menu to switch to the Hot Filter panel.
  3. Check the check box titled Hot Filter to turn the Hot Filter feature on.
  4. To enter a Hot Filter key combination check the Hot Key box underneath Hot Filter. Then click your mouse in the field and type your Hot Filter key combination.
  5. Check the boxes for the corners of your screen that you want to be Hot Filter corners.
  6. Click the Save button to save your preferences.

You may also assign individual Hot Keys to filters. You assign a Hot Key to a filter using the filter's editor (see the Editing Filters chapter). A Hot Key assigned to a filter will invoke that particular filter (see below).

Using Hot Filter

Using the Hot Filter feature is very easy. First make sure you've followed the above instructions to set up the Hot Filter feature. Then in another application do the following:

  1. Select the text you wish to filter. (Unlike in TextSpresso, if you wish to filter the entire document you must select all of the text before applying the filter.)
  2. Hold down your Hot Filter key combination, or move your mouse to a Hot Filter corner.
  3. Double-click the filter you wish to apply from the dialog that pops up. You can also start to type the name of the filter and the dialog will automatically select it. Then you can type return to apply it. This keeps your hands on the keyboard.

If you've assigned a Hot Key to an often used filter you only have two steps.

  1. Select the text you wish to filter.
  2. Hold down the Hot Key for the filter you want to use.

Special Notes

At this time TextSpresso does not maintain styling information (unless it's embedded in the text in tagged format). If you Hot Filter styled text the styling will revert to the default styling in your front application. If you need to filter heavily styled text or documents, we highly recommend you export the text in a tagged format (i.e. HTML, XPress), filter the tagged version, and then import the text back into your application.

Please note that TextSpresso uses the clipboard to move the filtered text around, so anything on the clipboard prior to using Hot Filter will be lost. Copying and pasting of the text to be filtered is fully automatic and should work with just about any Macintosh application which supports command-C for copy and command-V for paste.

Also note that TextSpresso is watching the keyboard from the background. As a result, the front application may itself intercept the Hot Key if it's the same as a command key combination in the front application. This will likely prevent TextSpresso from seeing the Hot Key. The front application may invoke its own command or even type characters over the selected text in the front window, possibly resulting in lost text if the front application does not support undo. You should carefully select your Hot Keys and test them with your favorite applications prior to using them while working. As a general rule your Hot Keys should contain the command key and at least one other modifier key (i.e. option, control, or shift). The higher numbered command-F keys are also usually free (i.e. command-F9, command-F10, etc.).

Finally, you may have to hold down your Hot Key for a brief moment for TextSpresso to "see" it, but don't keep holding it down. The general rule is to hold a Hot Key down for no more than a second. If TextSpresso hasn't seen it by then, let go and try again. If it still doesn't work then the front application is intercepting the Hot Key and not allowing TextSpresso to see it due to the way its event loop is designed. Use a different Hot Key or use a Hot Corner. (We may write an extension to alleviate this potential problem with some applications.)