If PhraseExpress pastes the clipboard instead of the phrase contents, please increase the "Clipboard restore delay" which defines the delay in milliseconds after PhraseExpress restores the original clipboard contents.

PhraseExpress buffers the current clipboard contents before it uses the clipboard to insert text into an application. The original clipboard content is then restored after the delay specified here. Increase the delay on slow Macs or under heavy CPU load.

The "Paste delay" specifies the wait time before PhraseExpress pastes the phrase after switching focus to the target application. Increase this delay, if phrases are not pasted properly or into the wrong application.

The phrase trigger detection can be restricted to specific programs that you can specify here.

By default, PhraseExpress uses the RTF(D) text format only to paste formatted phrases through the clipboard.

if you need to paste formatted phrases in web browsers, enable the option "Add HTML format to output of formatted phrases".

PhraseExpress then sends boths, the RTF(D) and the HTML version of the phrase. The HTML format is less specific than the RTF(D) text format and other target application can decide on their own which format they use, which may lead in less than ideal results.

Secure input is a macOS security feature that hides text input of sensitive from other applications running on your Mac. The dots in password input dialogs are such secured input dialogs.

While secure input is enabled by any program, other programs including PhraseExpress cannot listen to your text input anymore to detect autotext input to trigger text replacements.

Every application, such as browsers, can enable such input and carefully developed applications disable the secure input mode if not required anymore.

However, unfortunately, some programs developers may not disable the Secure Input state after it is not required anymore, with the result, that no other program on the Mac can listen to your keyboard anymore. In such case, also PhraseExpress is not able to detect autotexts anymore.

PhraseExpress cannot disable Secure Input remotely but at least inform you, that Secure Input is enabled to give you a hint why autotext text replacements don't work anymore. You would then need to quit the App that engaged Secure Input to relase it.