%Var%

Quick and Dirty Multi-Line Text Formatting (AutoHotkey Tip)

Jack Dunning %Var%, AutoHotkey, Editing Tools, MsgBox Techniques, Tooltip Pop-ups, Windows scripting ,

Formatting Text for Various AutoHotkey Tools Can Get Tedious—Use AutoHotkey Section Continuation to Simplify the Work

In the MouseMeasure.ahk script (discussed last time), I added a pop-up window displaying instructions on how to use the app. I formatted the text with a number of new lines and tabs. Usually, this would have required careful placement of the special escape characters, but not this time.

When adding instructions to a MsgBox, we often resort to adding returns (`r), newlines (`n), and tabs (`t) to create the desired layout. While this works, it often produces perverse effects—especially when using individual line continuation techniques to wrap the code for display purposes. However, AutoHotkey offers an alternative type of code continuation which makes text formatting quick and easy— continuation sections (Method #2).

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AutoHotkey Tip of the Week: AutoHotkey Hotstring Menus for Text Replacement Options

Jack Dunning %Var%, AutoHotkey, Hotstrings, Menus, Parsing Data, Send Command , , ,

Put Hard-to-Remember AutoHotkey Hotstring Replacements in a Menu

Beginning AutoHotkey Hotstrings 200px

Light Bulb!

This tip expands on Chapter Eight of my book Beginning AutoHotkey Hotstrings, “Make Your Own Text AutoCorrect Hotstring Pop-up Menus with AutoHotkey” and Chapter Nine, “How to Turn AutoHotkey Hotstring AutoCorrect Pop-up Menus into a Function.” You can use these techniques in your AutoHotkey scripts to make the selection of similar Hotstrings easier to remember by selecting from a menu. Continue reading →

AutoHotkey Tip of the Week: Add Power to Any Command with Forced Expressions (%)—October 7, 2019

Jack Dunning %Var%, AutoHotkey, Children's Educational Apps, Forcing Expressions, Windows scripting , ,

Use the Forced Expression Operator (%) to Adapt AutoHotkey Commands On-the-Fly

Light Bulb!Most AutoHotkey Version 1.1 commands use plain text as parameters. That means AutoHotkey interprets the text exactly as written—no quotes needed and no variables accepted. In version 1.1, this would limit the commands except for the availability of the traditional (or legacy) double-quote text replacement operator (%var%).

The %var% technique allows us to substitute any variable directly into an AutoHotkey command. However, using the forced expression operator (%) adds even greater flexibility and power to almost any AutoHotkey code. In many cases, rather than developing complicated subroutines, you can use this technique to embed expressions and functions directly into version 1.1 AutoHotkey commands. Continue reading →

Comparing Today’s AutoHotkey Version 1.1 and the Future Version 2.0 (Part 5—Replacing V1.1 gLabels with V2.0 GuiControl.OnEvent())

Jack Dunning %Var%, AutoHotkey, GUI (Graphical User Interface) Pop-ups, Intermediate Level, Labels, Version 2.0, Windows scripting , ,

AutoHotkey Version 2.0 Drops the GUI gLabel in Favor of the Object OnEvent() Function

In AutoHotkey V1.1, the primary method for adding action to GUI pop-up windows employs the gLabel inserted into a GUI control’s options. As AutoHotkey moves to object-oriented programming in V2.0, the Gui.OnEvent() function replaces gLabels.

Launch Window V2In AutoHotkey V2.0, each GUI control responds to different Gui Events. For example, with the Gui Button control, you can register OnEvent() functions for Click, DoubleClick, Focus, and LoseFocus, while the Edit control directly supports Change. You register each type of initiating action you use with the OnEvent() function. In fact, you must register an event before AutoHotkey will respond. Continue reading →

Using the Raw Option—Plus a Secret Hotstring Trick (AutoHotkey Tip)

Jack Dunning %Var%, AutoHotkey, Forcing Expressions, Hotstrings, Menus, Send Command, Windows scripting ,

Both Hotkey Modifiers and Special Characters Might Disappear When Used in Regular Text. Usually, You’ll Find the Raw Mode the Easiest Solution for Vanishing Characters. Plus, a Secret AutoHotkey Hotstring Trick!

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When I started working on this blog I thought I would hammer out a simple explanation of when to use the Raw option in AutoHotkey…and to a large degree I do that. However, in the course of testing both the Raw option and the backtick Escape Character, I discovered a secret undocumented feature of Hotstrings. In some special cases, it may come in handy for changing Hotstrings on-the-fly.

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Using Associative Arrays to Solve the Instant Hotkey Data Recall Problem (AutoHotkey Technique)

Jack Dunning %Var%, Arrays, AutoHotkey, Forcing Expressions, GUI (Graphical User Interface) Pop-ups, Intermediate Level, Windows scripting , ,

While Many Other Approaches Work (Sort of), AutoHotkey Associative Arrays Provides a Simple Solution

Elegant Solution

Refinement and simplicity are implied, rather than fussiness, or ostentation. An elegant solution, often referred to in relation to problems in disciplines such as mathematics, engineering, and programming, is one in which the maximum desired effect is achieved with the smallest or simplest effort.

In the last few blogs, I figured out a number of solutions for returning the insertion text via Hotkey combinations for multiple GUIs in the InstantHotkey.ahk script. Many of these approaches worked, yet I continued searching for a more elegant answer. Now, I present my best solution (so far) which includes the use of an AutoHotkey associative array. Continue reading →

Matching Instant Hotkeys with a Loop (AutoHotkey Tip)

Jack Dunning %Var%, AutoHotkey, Forcing Expressions, Hotkeys, Intermediate Level, Labels, Windows scripting ,

Sometimes You’ll Find a Loop a Simpler Way to Match Things

ProgrammingRobot

“…stuck in an infinite loop. Like I just said, it’s so depressing to get stuck in an infinite loop. Like I just said, it’s…”

If you’re new to AutoHotkey with little or no scripting experience, then this blog may venture too far into the weeds. I don’t like to put off new users because the journey into Windows scripting is well worthwhile. Most find it easy to get started with AutoHotkey with many simple-to-implement tools. However, it takes a little time to understand the nuances of the more advanced techniques. I recommend that AutoHotkey noobies start with the basics such as found in the “Introduction to AutoHotkey: A Review and Guide for Beginners” page. You’ll obtain immediate, rewarding results with basic AutoHotkey. Then, as your comfort with scripting increases, introduce yourself to more of AutoHotkey’s power with some of the slightly elevated topics.

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In the last blog, by writing the IH_VarText(Var) function, I created a clever (even if I do say so myself) yet uneasy technique for linking the Instant Hotkey combination to the insertion text by converting the key combination (full of illegal variable characters) to a legal two-deep variable. While this worked, in most cases, it left a number of holes in the subroutine. Unless I added a trap line for every possible illegal key (e.g. the semicolon ” ; “ key, the slash ” / ” key, the hyphen ” ‘ ” key, etc), errors might occur. I needed to make a change. Continue reading →

Two-Deep Variables for Tracking Data (AutoHotkey Trick)

Jack Dunning %Var%, AutoHotkey, AutoHotkey GUIs, Forcing Expressions, Hotkeys, Intermediate Level, Windows scripting , , ,

When You Find No Obvious Way to Link Specific Data to an Object or Another Value, You Might Try Saving It to a Variable within a Variable

Sometimes you encounter a scripting situation where saving data to just any random variable doesn’t do the job. While creating variables and storing values is simple enough, you may find it difficult to recall those values at the right time. It’s important to know you’re getting the right data when you want it. Maybe using the value of a variable as a variable name (two-deep) will give you what you need. Continue reading →

Create Multiple GUI Pop-Ups in a Single Script (AutoHotkey Scripting)

Jack Dunning %Var%, AutoHotkey, AutoHotkey GUIs, GUI (Graphical User Interface) Pop-ups, Intermediate Level, Menu, System Tray, Windows scripting , ,

This AutoHotkey GUI (Graphical User Interface) Trick Builds New GUIs (Graphical User Interfaces) On-the-Fly and in the Same Script without Conflicts

Library Benefits

I originally wrote the InstantHotkey.ahk script as a practical demonstration of how to use the Hotkey GUI control. The script’s major downside involves the need to run a new instance of the app for each new Hotkey combination/insertion text pair. Adding the #SingleInstance Off directive solved the problem of loading the same script multiple times, but the System Tray clogged with icons after initiating a number of Instant Hotkeys simultaneously. (I couldn’t just eliminate the System Tray icons (#NoTrayIcon or Menu, Tray, NoIcon) because I could quickly lose track of the various Hotkeys. Plus, eliminating tray icons presents other dangers.)

I combined the script with my master AutoHotkey script by including a Hotkey and the Run command (^!h::Run, InstantHotkey.exe). This avoided the problem of multiple conflicting GUIs in the same script—although it did nothing about the System Tray icon overload.

My recent work inspired me to solve the problem by uniquely naming the GUIs. In the course of writing the new script, I added a number of other useful techniques which I plan to cover in future blogs. Stayed tuned! You might find a few of them quite helpful. Continue reading →

Automatically Launch Apps at Windows Startup (AutoHotkey Tip)

Jack Dunning %Var%, Auto-startup, AutoHotkey, Beginning, Intermediate Level, Windows Clipboard, Windows scripting , , ,

Discover Autohotkey Tricks By Perusing Code In Other Scripts, Plus How to Load Any Windows Program at Startup

Many users find it easy to manually setup a program to auto-launch whenever they log onto Windows, but creating a shortcut and placing the new file into the Windows Startup folder requires a number of steps. With AutoHotkey, the same actions take just one command.

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