codemirror for just one-line-textfield?

I have a one line textfield. (input type='text')

I don't have a textarea.

This textfield allows the user to enter small strings in a simple DSL. To give you an idea they look like this:

from milan to london
from italy(rome,florence) to uk

I was thinking to replace this textfield with codemirror

my questions are:

is using code mirror for one line textarea a good idea ?
has anybody done this ?
are there any other approaches to make a textfield more 'colourful' ?

Thanks,

Solution

Well, there is a way to make a single-line editor using rich capabilities of CodeMirror. First, you'll have to add a full-featured CodeMirror object (use a textarea).

Assume you've got var cm = CodeMirror(...). (Use value: ""). Then do

cm.setSize(200, cm.defaultTextHeight() + 2 * 4);
// 200 is the preferable width of text field in pixels,
// 4 is default CM padding (which depends on the theme you're using)

// now disallow adding newlines in the following simple way
cm.on("beforeChange", function(instance, change) {
    var newtext = change.text.join("").replace(/\n/g, ""); // remove ALL \n !
    change.update(change.from, change.to, [newtext]);
    return true;
});

// and then hide ugly horizontal scrollbar
cm.on("change", function(instance, change) {
    $(".CodeMirror-hscrollbar").css('display', 'none');
    // (!) this code is using jQuery and the selector is quite imperfect if
    // you're using more than one CodeMirror on your page. you're free to
    // change it appealing to your page structure.
});

// the following line fixes a bug I've encountered in CodeMirror 3.1
$(".CodeMirror-scroll").css('overflow', 'hidden');
// jQuery again! be careful with selector or move this to .css file

This works just fine for me.