Those of you who play/ perform with acoustic guitar,  do you use a compressor pedal? I've been reading that even for softer finger style play it can make a positive difference and highlights nuances...  I have never tried one but thinking on it.
 
Thanks. 

The problem with most guitar compressor pedals is that are designed for the transient and tonal characteristics of an electric which are vastly different from an acoustic. Most of them are derivatives of the MXR DynaComp which was designed from the ground up as an electric guitar effect and as such colors the transients and tone in a manner not suitable for acoustic. When I was looking for an acoustic compressor, I went through my collection of electric guitar compressors and wasn't happy with the results because of this.
 
I ended up buying a relatively cheapo Hotone KOMP which claims to be optical and found it perfect for my needs with my acoustic. There are also pricier options such as the MXR Studio Compressor which I've had my eye on but haven't tried yet. There's also the Effectrode PC-2A which purports to be an LA-2A inspired comp packaged as a guitar pedal. 

Are you familiar with the compressor section that resides in the BodyRez feature of the TC Helicon Play Acoustic ? ( advanced settings) it includes: Threshold, Attack, Makeup gain Ratio and Release setting/ presets. So far I just use the " Basic" preset, and wondering if someone might suggest some numbers for those advanced settings. 

I've managed to buy a few older DBX MC6 compressors. They're full featured compressors in a small housing that works well on pedal boards. I wish DBX would resurrect this unit in a sturdy metal housing - I think it would sell a ton. They're great for guitars in general and I have one each for acoustic, electric and bass rigs. Very nice to have 20 DB of clean gain available - plus you can use them for splitting channels as they're full stereo ins and outs - with line and instrument impedance switches. Great units with full meters etc.

I do it with my Boss CS2 pedal.
It works reasonably well, but I only use a very light compression.
 
The danger in compressing an acoustic guitar during a performance is that they're generally noisy instruments.  The background noise gets more prevalent as you compress.

I like a ribbon Mic followed by eq and a dbx compressor. I usually do a low cut below 80 and a high boost prior to the compression.

The best way too handle string whistle or the noise strings make when you slide your fingers on them is to get better at not making the noise by lifting your fingers or using the two highest unwound strings to guide your slide.

When i use a sdc, i don't boost the high end.

Some dreadnaughts get a low shelf reduction to reduce boom.

What Silvercn said.. I just bought the TC Helicon Play Acoustic and sure the harmonizer is killer, but the big bonus is what the device does for my acoustic guitars. Huge difference. They also sell a Body Rez pedal around $100 if you don't need the Vocal box. 
So yes I do use compression on my Acoustics and love it. Sits in a mix real nice now. Almost eliminates using a mike,,, almost.. 

I think from your posts, I'm going with some light compression on my Play Acoustic/ Body Rez feature. I think the Play Acoustic all said and done is an awesome piece of gear.... the web interface to set it up and arrange / download vocal presets is geat!

Sorry that was funny, I thought your second post was a reply to the thread and not the OP. 
So my answer makes no sense. But yes the TC has a real nice simple compressor built in. The default setting was pretty close for me. I backed off on the Chorus and reverb a bit. I also picked a setting with a little less Boomyness from the Body Rez options. I use little folk size guitars and this really makes them sound like full size boxes. 
So far I'm playing around with the harmonies just using the first 5 pre sets. I find I can almost leave it on 2 high and just kick it in on the chorus. I need to explore the software I only installed it and used it to change the name of one patch. 
WHat I haven't looked into Can you change patches with MIDI? 

Well I kind of shifted the focus to the TC . I only use maybe 5 vocal presets and like you, mainly just on chorus...sometimes keep on whole song ..but then maybe a double or the " Thicker you" setting, since a distinct harmony would get irritating. I have no clue about using MIDI. I did get the Switch 3 pedal, which makes looping a lot easier, AND switch # 3 can be used to kick in an extra guitar effect at times! Without that, the guitar settings are global.
So back to compression, I was kind of fishing to see if there was was some stand out for acoustic. Apparently not. Honestly, for live play I don't think anyone, including me will really stop and notice compression taking place!! But I do at times go overboard for a hobbiest musician, seeking the best sound ...