Version 4 Windows Activation - serious bugs

[terrypin]

Within minutes of installing v 4.0.3.1 I'm getting erratic behaviour. Windows Activate is not working properly. The first macro I tried, which was working fine, is now going haywire. Its opening commands activate an application window before typing text to it. But now in v 4 the text is getting typed to the Script Editor. Until it's fixed I'll have to revert to v 4.0.2.1.

 

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Terry, East Grinstead, UK

[Cory]

Can you create a simple demonstration macro others could try to confirm?

[terrypin]

Can you create a simple demonstration macro others could try to confirm?

 

 

I've reverted to previous version now and so can't do that. But I expect it will be very easy to reproduce. The first few commands of my macro were as follows. Instead of doing what they had been doing correctly in v 4.0.2.1, in v 4.0.3.1 they resulted in '3v' being entered into the Notes tab of Script Editor.

 

 

Window Activate: Jasc Paint Shop Pro

Wait for Window Title: Jasc Paint Shop Pro

Keystroke Speed: 50 milliseconds

Repeat Prompt Start: Store in variable %Count%

Text Type (Simulate Keystrokes): <ALT>t

Delay: 100 milliseconds

Text Type (Simulate Keystrokes): 3

Delay: 100 milliseconds

Text Type (Simulate Keystrokes): v

Delay: 100 milliseconds

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Terry, East Grinstead, UK

[Phonemes]

I can confirm these problems. The situation appears to be much the same as with the initial version 4 release. Window title activation macros fail in the same way as they used to in that release. The macros are not triggered initially, but they do fire off after alt-tabbing away and back to the application.

 

I don't have that many window title activation macros. Most are used in rather old Dutch dictionary software, the type of software that is not mousewheel-compatible (but not 16-bit). The problem doesn't arise in a more recent dictionary application that I use.

[acantor]

Try changing Window activation property "Window Gains Focus" to "Window is Opened."

 

I am not sure of what the difference is, except that my commands that worked with the former in ME3 now seem to require the latter in ME4.

[Phonemes]

Try changing Window activation property "Window Gains Focus" to "Window is Opened."

 

I am not sure of what the difference is, except that my commands that worked with the former in ME3 now seem to require the latter in ME4.

 

Hi Alan,

 

Thanks, that worked. That is to say, it works for those older dictionaries. The more recent one - which had no problem with 'gain focus "activation" - isn't triggered by "Window is Opened" activation.

[stevecasper]

Can you create a simple demonstration macro others could try to confirm?

Hey Terry,

 

I'm not able to duplicate this error on my machine. My code, which I built based off of your example looks like this:

Window Activate: Jasc Paint Shop Pro
Wait for Window Title: Jasc Paint Shop Pro
Keystroke Speed: 50 milliseconds
Repeat Prompt Start: Store in variable %Count%
 Text Type (Simulate Keystrokes): <ALT>t
 Delay: 100 milliseconds
 Text Type (Simulate Keystrokes): 3
 Delay: 100 milliseconds
 Text Type (Simulate Keystrokes): v
 Delay: 100 milliseconds
End Repeat

<WINDOW ACTIVATE Title="Jasc Paint Shop Pro" Exact_Match="FALSE" Wildcards="FALSE" _IGNORE="0x0006"/>
<WAIT FOR WINDOW TITLE Title="Jasc Paint Shop Pro" Partial="TRUE" Wildcards="FALSE" Indefinite="TRUE" Hours="0" Minutes="0" Seconds="0"/>
<KEYSTROKE SPEED Delay="50"/>
<REPEAT PROMPT START Store="TRUE" Variable="%Count%" Left="Center" Top="Center" Monitor="0"/>
<TEXT TYPE Action="0" Text="<ALT>t"/>
<DELAY Flags="\x02" Time="100"/>
<TEXT TYPE Action="0" Text="3"/>
<DELAY Flags="\x02" Time="100"/>
<TEXT TYPE Action="0" Text="v"/>
<DELAY Flags="\x02" Time="100"/>
<END REPEAT/>

 

I'm using an older version of PSP, so that may make a difference (PSP 7)... but mine runs seamlessly.

 

* It activates the program (which I discovered needed to have a picture already called up and a portion of it selected)

* "Effects" menu

* 3D effects

* Inner bevel

 

BTW, this was done on my home computer which, if I remember correctly, is not too far different from yours:

Vista Ultimate 32 bit SP1

2.6 GHz Intel Quad core 2

4 Gigs Ram

Dual NVidia G-Force 9600 - SLI

[terrypin]

Thanks Steve. As soon as I finish the current macro project (with 4.0.2.1) I'll re-install 4.0.3.1 and do some more tests methodically. Come to think, maybe I'll install it to a new folder so that I can run both versions.

 

But all I did was break off development, close ME Pro, install 4.0.3.1 (which came up sweetly with my MEX file) and run my work-in-progress macro. Which then failed as described, prompting my post.

 

Edit: It sounds very similar (apart from the Debug aspect) to the issue I raised 6 weeks ago here

http://pgmacros.invisionzone.com/index.php?showtopic=3754

which was never resolved.

 

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Terry, East Grinstead, UK

[Cory]

You could always install MS Virtual PC to test. It's free. I've been using it to test deployments and with one exception it's been working really well. Also I think VMWare has a free version. It's also a good way to create a VM with nothing else installed to look for compatibility issues.

[chris]

I guess I'm having some trouble identifying the problem. Are you using F9 in the script editor to duplicate this problem? Or, does it occur when you use the macro's activation (or right-click in Explorer and select "Run Now")?

[terrypin]

I guess I'm having some trouble identifying the problem. Are you using F9 in the script editor to duplicate this problem? Or, does it occur when you use the macro's activation (or right-click in Explorer and select "Run Now")?

 

Thanks Chris. I've spent most of today trying in vain to reproduce it myself! If I don't do so soon I'll be happy to conclude it was some sort of bizarre race or conflict that caused it originally. Especially as it looks like no one else apart from Phonemes has had similar problems.

 

That F9 issue I reported was different, although it gave similar results to this - which I originally ran by hotkey.

 

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Terry, East Grinstead, UK

[Cory]

Terry you just posted another strange issue and a mouse move speed test where apparently it sometimes moves quickly and sometimes much slower. Are you certain there aren't other programs or utilities running on your system that could be causing all these problems? Have you attempted to replicate these symptoms in Safe Mode on your PC with no other applications running?

[paul]

Let me add a small contribution - I've reported on some of these issues before.

 

MEP's presence (especially the latest version) causes my machine simply to stop in one of two ways:

- the machine turns to treacle, and everything takes 20-30 seconds to achieve. Bringing up Task manager in order to terminate MEP requires that I bring up 2 copies of Task manager, and the 1st one won't appear until MEP has gone. Once MEP has been terminated, the machine comes back to life. This behaviour does not occur frequently - perhaps 3 times a day or less (and perhaps this has improved with the latest version - I'm not sure).

- This next one is new to the latest version of MEP. Typing and mouse movement are ignored repeatedly for periods lasting no more than 10 seconds or so. For eaxmple, the first two words of this message are "Let me". I actually typed "Let me add...etc.", but everything after "Let me" simply never appeared. After waiting the required 10 seconds or so, I could then resume typing; but note my original 'add..." never appeared.

I sometimes experience this behaviour perhaps as often as every 3-4 minutes, then not for some hours. Killing MEP prevents this problem completely.

I am using Remote Desktop. MEP is running ONLY on the local machine. But this behaviour occurs ONLY on the remote machine, even though MEP is not running there.

This behaviour occurs across a multiplicity of applications - UltraEdit, SQL Server, Firefox.

[terrypin]

Thanks both. See the Good News I just posted in that other thread!

 

I've been on this case for over a week, with help from at least two experienced users in XP forums and newsgroups. You name it, I've tried it! Well, an exaggeration, but you get the picture.

 

Safe Mode was a scary place, Cory! Haven't used it for a couple of years , and never on this 16-month old PC. But I stayed long enough in its alien environment to establish the problem was still there. (Understandably, in the light of the AWC cause.)

 

Longshot, Paul, but you're not using a wireless keyboard? The first time I had similar symptoms to those you describe it was a while before I tred a fresh battery. Same with mouse. Intermittent issues like this are a real PITA. I hope yours don't prove as obscure as this one was

 

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Terry, East Grinstead, UK

[paul]

Longshot, Paul, but you're not using a wireless keyboard? The first time I had similar symptoms to those you describe it was a while before I tred a fresh battery. Same with mouse. Intermittent issues like this are a real PITA. I hope yours don't prove as obscure as this one was

Neither keyboard nor mouse is wireless!

[Cory]

I have been experiencing intermittent several second frozen periods on my system. The mouse and all input will freeze and but media player will keep playing the video of the Astronaut's EVA. I have MEP on the local system and I also have MEP running on a remote Terminal Server. I have also noticed the same behavior on the remote system. I had been thinking it was something else on my local system but the remote system has none of the suspect utilities.

 

Just now I had another oddity. I closed MEP locally to get the freezing to stop and started hearing what sound like cheap laser blasts special effects. It's my ClipMate doing acknowledging copy operations but I'm not doing any copy operations. They started into rapid fire and would not cease until I closed my TS session. It's RDClip on the other end but I'm not doing any macros that do clipboard operations over there either. I re-opened it and all is fine now. Something's going wiggy. Please understand I have no proof it's MEP, just a suspicion.

 

One speculation I have is that I periodically switch users in Vista and it seems to me that MEP might be getting confused when I come back. Just total speculation though.

[Cory]

This might be going OT but here's another good one. Just went back to Terminal Server session that had been idle for awhile and none of the macros would respond. I right clicked on the tray icon and got the menu that an hourglass for several minutes. During that time I tried to copy something and it complained that the clipboard was unavailable and that it might be in use by another program. MEP was completely unresponsive and the machine was lagging really bad so I killed the process. Things quickened right up and the clipboard was accessible again. Could it be some problem between RDClip.exe and MEP?

[paul]

That sounds very like the treacle problem I described above!