fredk

I recently had a similar discussion in the new ProMacro forum. There is a ME option to check the WINDOW that is open with an IF condition. If you stray outside, the macro could be terminated. From where that discussion lead, you would need a series of tests to continually check if you were still within that window. I had the same thing happen - totally out of control macro and since ME generally does its thing, I could not even remember which key(s) to hit to end the chaos I was watching. A brief quote from that thread: "When I run macros where text typing or other interactive events occur I always toss in an "If Not Window on Top" > "Activate Window" command to avoid the problems you mention. Even if it isn't user interaction sometimes processes on the machine will silently steal focus so for any big time macros I always include this." Again, a long macro sequence would require continual checks.

Thanks Aha. But.... do I have to throw in these couplets before each series of typing or event so that when I'm part way through the macro and accidently switch windows, the macro will again be checking that I'm still in wordpad? Or is it enough to have that couplet at the beginning of the macor (I think not). That is If NOT WINDOW, Activate window Command A (type "quick brown fox") If NOT WINDOW, Activate window command b (cursor down 3 lines) If NOT WINDOW, Activate window command c (type "more text" If NOT WINDOW, Activate window command d (text prompt box) etc

Okay, I see the following "feature" in the new MacroExpressPro: "Restricting Playback Use the macro scope properties to define when a macro can play back or not. Assign macros to play back in all Windows programs (Global), in only one specific window (Window Specific) or program (Program Specific), or in every program except the one you define (Global Except)." I gather this feature is not available in "ordinary" MacExp?? Does this feature TRULY restrict the macro to one one window, say WordPad, and if I accidently move the mouse to another window(as I did yesterday - xmouse brings a window to the fore), the macro either stops or keeps running in the background WORDPAD window?? As I hint in parenthesis, I accidently strayed outside of wordpad yesterday and the macro kept spewing commands to everything and anything before I could terminate the darn thing. Fortunately, one of the only commands it did not execute is FORMAT C:!!!!! (G) If it really does restrict, I'm interested - this is not the first time I've managed to stray to another window or desktop and watch the ENTERTAINMENT BEGIN!!!

Looking forward to the fix.

No takers on this one, huh? I would like to know why the internal MacroEX command to mute/unmute does not work?

Vista Home Premium (32bit), sp1. I need this working or well, I will have one very unhappy sleeper on my hands!!! I notice on that screen (Audio Control) where you can pick your macro function a number of them are NOT available on "this" system but audio mute/unmute IS AVAILABLE supposedly. Also the audio toggle does not work. Well, I found a workaround using a third party program, nircmd, which Macro Express can launch and then nircmd has command line parms that turn on/off speakers. It would be nice to have the internal command working since it suggests it should work.

Just checked an even trying to just use a hotkey and manually trigger the Mute/Unmute does not appear to work.

I recently went to Vista and am trying to use a macro that I had (under xp) to silence the computer at a certain hour (to not disturb the other half) and then unmute it the next morning. It does not seem to be working. Ideas?

We are considering adding the ability to automatically pause a macro if a Window loses focus. Our Keyboard Express product has this feature. In the meantime, what I do in my macros is to see if the Window has focus and give it focus if it does not. Something like this: If Not Window Title "pgmacros.com" on top Activate Window: "pgmacros.com" End If Thanks for the idea (and cyberchief, too) since I have panicked when I occasionally lose focus and the macro runs "wild" in the wrong window. I guess I should put this kind of check in each of my macros.

Hey, quite remarkable although, as you said, it is a tad bit slow, especially on the entire window search. Thanks for sharing. I guess now that there may be a tool to find 'buttons' I may need to learn how to actually PRESS the darn button using MacroExpress.

I would be interested in whatever you have cooked up that would make it easier to identify webpage data. I have managed to "log" to one webpage email using ME where the titlebar has unique title info. It logs in and then the title changes and the macro ends. On another site, the titlebar remains the same (log in type text in titlebar) and so ME logs in but then the macro finds the titlebar unchanged and it flings my "log in" macro text into the ether again and again with unpredictable results.

Here's two places that google found. There were some others. http://www.winguides.com/registry/display.php/53/ And http://msdn.microsoft.com/library/default....trysettings.asp

<<You have your macro determine if the currently logged on user has administrative rights by attempting to write to a 'protected' area of the registry. If the write is successful, then the user does have admin rights. For example, you may try to write to: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Insight Software Solutions\Macro Express\TestValue >> Hope you don't mind my dropping into this thread but I've seen the REGISTRY options in MacroExpress and now you really have my curiousity piqued. I've dabbled in the Registry, creating new keys on someone's suggestion and deleting ones that I have found for one reason or another were not removed when software should have cleaned up after itself so I'm not totally afraid of THE REGISTRY (portentious music in background). But for purposes of ME, could I just create some key down there (oh, I have looked at the help items) in the registry to just hold data that I might not want lurking in a file? Yes, I know they would not be coded but it would still be a place that folks might not look for a password or userid or such. Thanks.

I realize that I have some macros that I would prefer to limit to specific programs rather than having them be wide open GLOBALs. But some of them could be used in any editor or word processor such as Wordpad, Notepad, Winword.... But it can be tedious compiling that list of programs each time to add them one at a time to each of those macros. Any way to copy that list? Hmm, I guess I could use a macro to automate it somwhat, huh? (G)

Thanks for the welcome. Actually, it was not much.... I started by clicking on a blank line and was offered to create a new macro. Went for that. Then picked "Window Title" as the Activation method. Typed "WinSock" as the title and went for the Scripting Editor. There I only picked the one comand from the Windows' list. HideWindow and again typed "WinSock" as the response. Then I ran it. WinSock did disappear but then so did MacroExpress. I could see it's button on the taskbar (not its icon in the Task TRAY) but there was NO Window. Clicking on that button got me a flash showing the window being restored but there was no window. It was still HIDDEN. Clicking again showed it again on the taskbar and again the flash but NO window. Maybe just a fluke??? Or maybe I should not have chosen an Activation Method initially, leaving that for the HideWindow command where I again picked WinSock. I'm sure it was user error. Are you programmer or just a very knowledgeable user who also wrote a book? (G) Reason I ask is because it would be nice to allow Alt-key combinations for shortcut keys, too, along with the PREFIX key. It would double the number of hotkeys that could be used with the PREFIX key and come close to that old dos SmartKey program I mentioned above. (I still use it in a dos window for some repetitive tasks or numbering items or filling in data as well, as with my boilerplates in dos editors (G)) Thanks for the response. Fred

I think I licked that problem - I activated it as a Window Command altho, I thought that I specified WinSock for the title but it seemed to close other open windows. So, now, is there a way to get this macro to HIDE WinSock when it pops up automatically so that I don't have to intervene and run the macro? As you may be able to tell I am quite new to MacroExpress. But it comes closest to my beloved SmartKey as anything I've found for Windows. Now if only I could create Shortcut Keys for the Alt and Ctrl keys as well as lower and upper case (G) I could recreate my SmartKey sets pretty completely.

I was trying to use the Hidewindow Command to hide an "errant" WinSock window. I somewhat succeeded but it appears that the macro I created seems to hide any window (g) and not just that one. I clearly did something a bit too powerful. Any help appreciated.