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[Fred1]

I'd like to abbreviate some more complex expressions by using the TextExpander app in MC-fields - but that doesn't work.

Why is this and how can i make it work?

Thanks for your help!

[glynor]

You'd have to ask Smile to be sure, but I'd guess it is because MC doesn't use standard AppKit UI window controls.

For the record, it also doesn't use standard Windows UI controls.  JRiver has their own ground-up UI "kit", which is why MC exists for OSX and Linux in the first place.

[Fred1]

I don't think TextExpander is to blame here.

MC doesn't accept input from any external app (including AppleScript) when you want to paste clipboard contents to a MC-field.
Only simulated keystrokes are possible with AppleScript.

So it is hardly possible to automate the input of complicated expressions if you don't want to type them over and over.
That should be possible in MC.

MC is the only app (on OSX) for me where TextEdit fails to input snippets.
So Smile can't help here.
It is JRiver's turn.

[glynor]

So Smile can't help here.
It is JRiver's turn.

I said nothing about blame.

I said you'd have to ask them how it works to be sure.  MC does not use AppKit UI elements. It won't use AppKit UI elements. That's never going to change (it means there is no MC on OSX).

So, if the way something works requires a native AppKit UI element, then it isn't going to work.  JRiver can emulate some things, but not everything the private APIs of AppKit provide, and even that would take time. And if they wanted to make this work, they'd need to know specifically from Smile exactly what they need to emulate.  I don't see that technical detail here.

The same thing applies on Windows. For example, MC doesn't have native Windows 7/8 "snapping" either.  They emulate it somewhat, but it doesn't work quite the same. Same stuff applies there (and has for years).

So, I don't know how TextExpander does what it does (I have and use it too, though I'd not tried to use it with MC), but if it "hooks" into the AppKit UI elements, it isn't going to find MC looking the same. If people care, the only hope would be to ask Smile for guidance, and provide it here to JRiver, if they give you good guidance.  If the good folks at Smile contact JRiver, I'm sure they'd talk to them and see if there was anything they could do to help.

[Fred1]

This is not only a problem with TextExpander (Smile) but is the case with every other tool like TextExpander. So TextExpander is only one example.

As i said before, even AppleScript isn't able to paste a clipboard's content into a MC-field (whereas pasting via CMD-V is possible). Only keystrokes sent by AppleScript are accepted by a MC-field.
But that's unfortunately not a clever way to make a library of text snippets to work with.

That's the drawback of proprietary solutions, i fear.