Rotating thru many Window programs

[krgifford]

I often have several (5-6) programs running in separate window. I rotate thru these programs by holding down the ALT key and then press TAB key for each program. What I want to do is have a hotkey that will quickly move me to the 6th program. I've tried using series of <ALT><TAB> and also used <ALTD><TAB> but neither one seems to do the program rotatation correctly. Does anyone know how to do this?

[rberq]

Window Activate command should do it. If not, add command Set Window Order / Remove topmost status and put on top.

[stevecasper]

I often have several (5-6) programs running in separate window. I rotate thru these programs by holding down the

ALT key and then press TAB key for each program. What I want to do is have a hotkey that will quickly move me to

the 6th program. I've tried using series of <ALT><TAB> and also used <ALTD><TAB> but neither one seems to do the

program rotatation correctly. Does anyone know how to do this?

Do you always want the 6th window, regardless of what that window title is? If so you might want to do something

like this:

 

Text Type: <ALTD>
Repeat Start (Repeat 5 times)
 Text Type: <TAB>
Repeat End
Text Type: <ALTU>

<TEXTTYPE:<ALTD>><REP3:01:000001:000001:00005:0:01:><TEXTTYPE:<TAB>><ENDREP><TEXTTYPE:<ALTU>>

 

If you have 6 windows, and you want to go to the last one, you need to set the repeat to 5 (because 6 will either

bring you back to the window you started on, or it will take you to the desktop if you are running Vista).

 

Or you could do this:

 

Text Type: <ALTD><SHIFTD>
Repeat Start (Repeat 2 times)
 Text Type: <TAB>
Repeat End
Text Type: <SHIFTU><ALTU>

<TEXTTYPE:<ALTD><SHIFTD>><REP3:01:000001:000001:00002:0:01:><TEXTTYPE:<TAB>><ENDREP><TEXTTYPE:<SHIFTU><ALTU>>

This will perform a Shift+Alt+Tab which goes backwards, so it doesn't have to repeat as many times to get to the

last window.

 

If you are running Vista (as I am) you need to set it to repeat 2 times, otherwise 1 time should suffice.

[krgifford]

Do you always want the 6th window, regardless of what that window title is? If so you might want to do something

like this:

 

Text Type: <ALTD>
Repeat Start (Repeat 5 times)
 Text Type: <TAB>
Repeat End
Text Type: <ALTU>

 

Well, I used the above script and I'm getting a weird reaction. I'm using FireFox 3.0.3 and I've got it set for FireFox to open new window in a Tab window. What I do is go to a website, and then click on one of it's hypertext which opens into a Tab window and I do this to get six Tab windows open. Using the keyboard ALT & TAB, I can move to the appropriate 6th Tab window, but using MacroExpress, it put me back to prior Tab window (the 5th window). Continuing using MacroExpress put me at 4th Tab window, 3rd, etc, and will eventually put me to the FireFox window prior to the I just opened. Any more ideas?

[stevecasper]

Well, I used the above script and I'm getting a weird reaction. I'm using FireFox 3.0.3 and I've got it set for FireFox to open new window in a Tab window. What I do is go to a website, and then click on one of it's hypertext which opens into a Tab window and I do this to get six Tab windows open. Using the keyboard ALT & TAB, I can move to the appropriate 6th Tab window, but using MacroExpress, it put me back to prior Tab window (the 5th window). Continuing using MacroExpress put me at 4th Tab window, 3rd, etc, and will eventually put me to the FireFox window prior to the I just opened. Any more ideas?

I'm just a little confused. If you are using Tabs in Firefox, then Alt+Tab shouldn't work at all. Ctrl+Tab should be how

you cycle through your tabs. In which case you'll want something more like this:

 

Text Type: <CTRLD>
Repeat Start (Repeat 5 times)
 Text Type: <TAB>
Repeat End
Text Type: <CTRLU>

<TEXTTYPE:<CTRLD>><REP3:01:000001:000001:00005:0:01:><TEXTTYPE:<TAB>><ENDREP><TEXTTYPE:<CTRLU>>

 

Or if you want it to just go back one, rather than forward 5:

Text Type: <CTRLD><SHIFTD>
Text Type: <TAB>
Text Type: <SHIFTU><CTRLU>

<TEXTTYPE:<CTRLD><SHIFTD>><TEXTTYPE:<TAB>><TEXTTYPE:<SHIFTU><CTRLU>>

 

I just tested both of these out in Firefox. I opened 6 completely different websites from Gmail to Thottbot and a couple

of blogs. No problem getting either of these to work for me. If you're continuing to have problems, you may need to

introduce some delays into your macro to make sure your computer has time to process the commands.

 

What I think you might be doing is tabbing forward too few times (or too many). You have 6 tabs open, you only need

to tab forward 5 times... though that would only explain if you were accidentally going too far forward...

 

Can you copy the exact ME code you're using into a reply here so we can take a look at it?

 

Be sure to put it between [ codebox ] and [ /codebox ] tags (without the spaces).

 

EDIT - I just noticed I had a 6 in the Scripting Code where I should have had a 5... the 5 was present in the Direct Editor

code, though, so it shouldn't have made an extreme difference, since copying from the DE is the best way to transplant code

into your own macro, but I thought I should mention the error.

[terrypin]

Well, I used the above script and I'm getting a weird reaction. I'm using FireFox 3.0.3 and I've got it set for FireFox to open new window in a Tab window. What I do is go to a website, and then click on one of it's hypertext which opens into a Tab window and I do this to get six Tab windows open. Using the keyboard ALT & TAB, I can move to the appropriate 6th Tab window, but using MacroExpress, it put me back to prior Tab window (the 5th window). Continuing using MacroExpress put me at 4th Tab window, 3rd, etc, and will eventually put me to the FireFox window prior to the I just opened. Any more ideas?

 

Those aren't separate programs then, as you said in your original post. They're separate tabs in Firefox - which you didn't mention! Here, I use Ctl+Tab to cycle through FF tabs.

 

--

Terry, East Grinstead, UK

[kunkel321]

On the topic of Alt-Tab: I went to the MacExp onboard help file and did a search for "alt tab." I found the following..

 

 

 

"Copy and Paste Between Two Applications

 

 

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 

Below is a simple example of how to set up a copy and paste routine between two applications. You can use this as a guideline for creating routines between your specific applications.

 

 

 

You might be tempted to try and use the ALT+TAB key to switch between programs. This is actually not always reliable and in fact, will not even work via Macro Express on some computers due to the low level nature of this key command. The solution is to use the ACTIVATE command. ..."

[krgifford]

You might be tempted to try and use the ALT+TAB key to switch between programs. This is actually not always reliable and in fact, will not even work via Macro Express on some computers due to the low level nature of this key command. The solution is to use the ACTIVATE command. ..."

 

Well I've been getting strange response when trying to TAB thru running Window programs in the last few days. Today I started several IE windows and no FF windows, and then tried it, and I got some popup from one of the running program. So it appear that the use of ALT & TAB in MacroExpress is indeed unreliable. I should have mentioned that I'm running XP Pro SP3 and ME Ver 2.1e with the keyboard plugged thru a USB port, and this may be the cause of the weird tabbing response. Can anyone confirm this so I will know that I need to upgrade ME to ver 3.x?

[acantor]

The "Activate" command is the way to go, but there are situations when you want to switch between two applications, but cannot know in advance what they will be. For example, copy text from Firefox OR Internet Explorer, and paste it in WordPad OR Notebook OR WordPerfect OR Word.

 

Rather than write different macros for each case, or create a single macro to cover every scenario, you may want to use Alt + Tab, but manually set the two applications before you activate the macro so that the windows are in the "correct" order.

 

If you do this, and find Alt + Tab unreliable, also try these other key combos for task switching:

 

Shift + Alt + Tab

 

Alt + Esc

 

Shift + Alt + Esc

[stevecasper]

I honestly think we need more descriptive information about what exactly KGiff is trying to do. If he is really trying to

cycle through various tabs within a single browser, the Activate Window command is definitely not going to work.

 

From what I've read from his specific posts, he wants to go immediately from the window he is on to either the 5th window

away (6 of 6 assuming the window he's on is counted as 1 of 6) or the 5th tab away (again 6 of 6). From the information

given so far, he has never mentioned the 6th window/tab is a specific application, only that he wants to be able to run a

macro that will take him to the window/tab furthest from the one he is on. This is not necessarily going to have anything to

do with Activate Window commands.

 

We just need more detail of what he's trying to do.