AutoHotkey GUIs

Using GUI Checkbox Controls to Set Hotstring Options (AutoHotkey Technique)

Jack Dunning AutoHotkey, AutoHotkey GUIs, Checkbox controls, DropDownList Control, GoSub Command, GUI (Graphical User Interface) Pop-ups, Hotstring() Function, Hotstrings, If statements, Intermediate Level, Labels, Windows scripting , , ,

AutoHotkey Hotstrings Use a String of Characters to Turn Options On and Off—GUI Checkbox Controls Offer a Visual Display for the Active Options along with a Method for Enabling/Disabling Each Feature

Previously (in “The Coming Instant Hotstring Script (AutoHotkey App)“), we reviewed the work still needed in the InstantHotstring.ahk script. This time we implement Hotstring options using the Hotstring() function.

Converting GUI (Graphical User Interface) Checkbox controls into Hotstring options codes (and back again) involves adept programming tricks. We use GUI windows and their controls to make applications user-friendly. People find it much easier to push discreet buttons and check separate boxes than work directly with often enigmatic programming codes. That means we must build a method for translating between the user-friendly input in a GUI window and the required code. Continue reading →

The Coming Instant Hotstring Script (AutoHotkey App)

Jack Dunning AutoHotkey, AutoHotkey GUIs, DropDownList Control, GUI (Graphical User Interface) Pop-ups, Hotstring() Function, Hotstrings, Windows scripting , ,

The InstantHotstrings.ahk Script Allows the Creation and Testing of Hotstrings

Library Benefits

January 5, 2019 Update: You can find the InstantHotstrings.ahk script at the ComputorEdge AutoHotkey Free Scripts page.

I started writing the InstantHotstrings.ahk script as a demonstration of the new Hotstring() function. I planned to keep it basic. (See the previous blogs, “Create Instant Hotstrings Using the AutoHotkey Hotstring() Function” and “Using the AutoHotkey Hotstring() Function to Disable/Enable Hotstrings.”) However, as often happens, the script ballooned into much more. While it continues to demonstrate various aspects of the Hotstring() function, it now includes a number of other features worth discussing (e.g GUI DropDownList, adding Hotstring options, saving and loading files).

I plan to post the current version of the app soon, but I don’t feel it’s quite ready. So, in this blog, I review the script’s features which provide topics for my future blogs. Although not my intention, you could call this a teaser of what’s yet-to-come. I should have the script ready for posting next week. I’ll publish a notice here when I’ve added it to the ComputorEdge Free AutoHotkey Scripts page. (I didn’t want you to think that during this holiday period I wasn’t working on something.)

January 5, 2019 Update: You can find the InstantHotstrings.ahk script at the ComputorEdge AutoHotkey Free Scripts page.

In addition to the two blogs mentioned above, I will write a series of pieces about the meat and potatoes in this new app:

  1. Add Hotstring options to the activated Hotstrings and the GUI DropDownBox control.
  2. Discuss the behavior of the various Hotstring options within the Hotstring() function.
  3. Look at considerations when using the X (execute) option in the InstantHotstring.ahk script.
  4. Save temporary Hotstrings to a .ahk file.
  5. Use the FileSelectFile command to save/load Hotstrings.

Continue reading →

Create Instant Hotstrings Using the AutoHotkey Hotstring() Function

Jack Dunning AutoHotkey, AutoHotkey GUIs, DropDownList Control, GUI (Graphical User Interface) Pop-ups, Hotstring() Function, Hotstrings, Labels, Loops, Sorting Data, Windows scripting , ,

While Building Temporary Hotstrings Using the AutoHotkey Hotstring() Function, We Learn DropDownList GUI Control Techniques

In Section 12, “Instant Hotkey GUI and Menu Section” of my book Jack’s Motley Assortment of AutoHotkey Tips, I go through a number of different techniques for keeping track of impromptu Hotkeys created with the InstantHotkey.ahk script (e.g. two-deep variables, associative arrays, etc). I thought of using that script as a model for this new InstantHotsting.ahk script. However, I might offer more learning points about other aspects of AutoHotkey if I start over with a new approach to this slightly varied problem.

Continue reading →

Pressing GUI Buttons with a Single Keystroke (AutoHotkey Tip)

Jack Dunning #Directives, AutoHotkey, AutoHotkey GUIs, Forcing Expressions, GUI (Graphical User Interface) Pop-ups, Hotkeys, If statements, Labels, Windows scripting , , , ,

Sometimes We Find It Easier to Hit a Key Rather Than Click a Button

An AutoHotkey forum user posted a question about using Hotkeys to activate buttons in a GUI window. He wanted to hit the numbers 1, 2, 3, or 4, rather than clicking the individual buttons—but only for the active GUI window.

hotkeycover200While I discuss similar isolation of Hotkeys to specific active windows in my Hotkeys book, this blog provided another opportunity to show how to add more functionality to your GUIs without infringing upon other programs or Hotkeys. I attempted to make the script as simple as possible by using a number of AutoHotkey tricks. Continue reading →

Use Gui, +OwnDialogs to Glue Modal Dialogs Boxes to GUI Parent Windows (AutoHotkey Best Practice)

Jack Dunning AutoHotkey, AutoHotkey GUIs, GUI (Graphical User Interface) Pop-ups, MsgBox Techniques, Script Structure, Window Manipulation, Windows scripting ,

Save Confusion and Annoying Missteps by Creating Child Dialogs

I began working on the promised formatted date to DateTime Stamp conversion blog when I received this question from a reader:

Hi, Jack,

I’ve created a series of pop-up boxes to help me in doing telephone-service. I have two problems, both with InputBox:

  1. How can I put a comma in the prompt section? I tried things like \, and [,] but none work. I’m sure there must be a solution, but I can’t find it in browsing through your books.
  2. It is possible to include an “always on top” control for the display of an InputBox? It does not seem to work to put ”WinSet, AlwaysOnTop, ON, A” before or after an  Inputbox entry. Is there some way to make an Inputbox display automatically stay on top?

Many thanks,

Tim

Continue reading →

Calculating Timespans in Years, Months, Days in AutoHotkey, Part 2 (Understanding the HowLong() Function)

Jack Dunning #Directives, AutoHotkey, AutoHotkey GUIs, Cool Scripts, GUI (Graphical User Interface) Pop-ups, If statements, Mouse Tricks, Windows Utilities , , ,

Taking a Close Look at the HowLong() Function for Calculating Years, Months, and Days

In this blog, I discuss in its entirety the most recent AutoHotkey code for the HowLongYearsMonthsDays.ahk script (introduced in my last blog). I’ve broken it up into snippets in order to explain the purpose of each piece. To get a complete copy of the script check out HowLongYearsMonthsDays.ahk at the “ComputorEdge Free AutoHotkey Scripts” page or for a barebones version (without comments and inactive code) see “Function Calculating Timespan in Years, Months, and Days” at the AutoHotkey Forum. This blog reviews the nuts and bolts of calculating the timespan between two dates.

Continue reading →

Calculating Timespans Between Dates in Years, Months, Days (AutoHotkey Function)

Jack Dunning #Directives, AutoHotkey, AutoHotkey GUIs, Functions, Windows scripting, Windows Utilities , , , , ,

Calculating the Years, Months, and Days Between Two Points in Time Takes More Than Simple Mathematics

Years ago, I wrote an AutoHotkey timespan calculation function for keeping track of my grandkids ages. (I wrote about it in my Digging Deeper Into AutoHotkey e-book and you can find the original function in the GrandKids.ahk scripts.) Developing the function was a bit of a mindbender. As I remember, I just plowed through the project finding my way by trial-and-error. When I recently reviewed the script, I had a heck of a time figuring out what I had done. I know that I explained the steps in the book, but the script (even with the few comments) remained a mystery to me.

As I thought about it, I soon realized that I might write a better function if I changed how I viewed the problem. Continue reading →

Updating the INI Data Table File (AutoHotkey Legal ListView Part 4)

Jack Dunning AutoHotkey, AutoHotkey GUIs, Data Files, GUI (Graphical User Interface) Pop-ups, INI Files, Intermediate Level, Labels, Menus, Windows scripting ,

While It Only Takes One Line of Code to Update the INI Data File, You Must Take Into Account the INI File’s Encoding. Plus, DIY Implementation of the Other Cool ListView Features

Last time, I added code to the LegalListView.ahk script to edit and update the ListView window. This time, I add one line of code to update the same data in the LegalListView.ini file.

By updating the data table file with the edits made via LegalListView.ahk, we save any changes for future use. Continue reading →

Editing ListView GUI Control Data Tables (AutoHotkey Legal ListView Part 3)

Jack Dunning AutoHotkey, AutoHotkey GUIs, Data Files, GUI (Graphical User Interface) Pop-ups, Intermediate Level, Labels, Windows scripting ,

Once Loaded into an AutoHotkey GUI ListView, You Can Add Tools for Editing Data

With the exception of the first column, AutoHotkey does not allow direct editing in a GUI ListView control. That forces us to create separate editing controls for changing and updating content in any of the other columns. We can either add the controls to the same GUI as in the AddressBook.ahk script (shown below)—discussed in my AutoHotkey Applications e-book—or we can create a second GUI which pops-up on demand. Since putting all the controls in the same GUI creates less confusion for the ListView functions (the functions always operate on the default GUI), you might find the AddressBook.ahk example easier to implement for your application. Continue reading →

Use the ListView GUI Control to Find Duplicate Entries in Data Table Files (AutoHotkey Legal ListView Part 2)

Jack Dunning AutoHotkey, AutoHotkey GUIs, Data Files, Forcing Expressions, GUI (Graphical User Interface) Pop-ups, If statements, INI Files, Intermediate Level, Loops, Sorting Data, Windows scripting , , ,

ListView Control Functions in a Loop Work Quickly Locate Repetitious Data

In my last blog, “ListView GUI Control for Viewing Data Table Files (AutoHotkey Legal ListView Part 1)“, I introduced using the ListView GUI control to view and correct a data table file—in this case, an INI file (LegalInput.ini). While sorting and viewing a data table in the ListView control offers many benefits, the most power comes from the 11 built-in functions available for manipulating the control and editing data.

All GUI controls (e.g. Edit, Text, MonthCal, etc.) offer options you can call with the initial Gui, Add command. ListView (and its sister TreeView) include similar options plus special functions for directly manipulating the control. Last time, we used LV_Add() to load the data table rows into the ListView control. This time, we use the LV_GetCount() function (the number of ListView rows) to limit the total number of iterations in a loop, LV_Modify() to focus on each table row in sequential order, and LV_GetText() to retrieve and store data in the row. Continue reading →