INI Files

How to Use the Windows Registry to Save Data Table Records

Jack Dunning AutoHotkey, GUI (Graphical User Interface) Pop-ups, INI Files, Intermediate Level, Loops, Saving Files, Windows Registry , , , ,

Saving To-Do List Data Items in the Windows Registry Allows Interactive Realtime Updates from the GUI ListView Control

ToDoListReg

The GUI ListView control acts like a data table (i.e. interactive rows and columns). The ListView control includes a number of functions for adding, inserting, modifying and deleting rows and columns,—plus, even more functions for sorting and selecting rows, as well as, retrieving data. I’ve used the AutoHotkey ListView control for a to-do list (shown at right), an address book,  a calorie counting app and listings of icon images embedded in files. (I consider all of these apps educational tools or starting points for AutoHotkey scripting—not final products.)

The AutoHotkey ListView control operates in the same manner as Windows File Explorer—automatically sorting on clicked column headers with editing available in the first field of the selected row on a second click. When included in a GUI (Graphical User Interface), the control adds a great deal of flexibility to any data table display, but it does not automatically save the data. You must write that code yourself. Continue reading →

Why AutoHotkey for Grandparents?

Jack Dunning AutoHotkey, Children's Educational Apps, Cool Scripts, Hotkeys, INI Files, Intermediate Level, Windows scripting , , , , ,

Remember All Your Grand Kid’s Birthdays and Their Ages! There’s No Limit to the Number of Ways You Can Amuse Your Grandchildren with AutoHotkey, Plus It Gives Your Brain a Much Needed Workout!

If you only have one grandchild, then you probably won’t have much trouble recalling his or her birthday or age. In that case, you may not have much interest in the grandbotslittle AutoHotkey GrandKids.ahk script. However, AutoHotkey offers much more which can enrich your offspring’s offspring’s education and entertainment—including a one-line script which verbalizes out loud the letters and numbers on the computer keyboard. But more importantly, learning to write AutoHotkey scripts exercises your mind—something everyone needs.

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Some of the scripts in this blog may not make AutoHotkey look easy, but you’ll find the first steps to AutoHotkey literacy quite simple. For a comfortable startup, check out this Introduction to AutoHotkey.

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Continue reading →

Why AutoHotkey for Students?

Jack Dunning AutoHotkey, Beginning, Clipboard Routine, Cool Scripts, Editing Tools, Hotstrings, Menu, System Tray, Programming, Web Pages, Windows scripting , , ,

Ten Reasons Why Every Student Should Use the Free AutoHotkey Windows Tools! AutoHotkey Helps You So Much Academically That You’ll Think You’re Cheating! Plus, It’s Delicious Brain Food and Helps Get You a Job!

Using AutoHotkey should be mandatory for every student from high school on through college! Not merely because learning AutoHotkey invigorates the brain cells (which it does!), but robotsexismit makes all your Windows tasks so much easier that it seems unsporting. AutoHotkey takes the grunt work out academia making learning fun…almost.

(If you know a student who uses a Windows computer, then do him or her a favor by sending him or her a link to this article. If he or she doesn’t already know about AutoHotkey, he or she will thank you profusely.)

For those unfamiliar with the free open-source scripting language, AutoHotkey offers simple, yet powerful, commands for adding enhancements to any Windows computer. In addition to their simplicity, the little apps work in any Windows program or on any Web page. For a brief overview, see this “Introduction to AutoHotkey: A Review and Guide for Beginners.” Continue reading →

Too Much Planning Can Get in the Way of Good Scripting (AutoHotkey Quick Reference Part Five)

Jack Dunning AutoHotkey, Hotkeys, INI Files, Intermediate Level, Programming, Reference, Regular Expressions (RegEx), Web Pages, Windows Clipboard , , , , , ,

While Preplanning Script Writing Can Be Useful, Don’t Take It Too Seriously—Sometimes It Only Makes Sense to Rewrite Everything

The AutoHotkey script writing process rarely runs in a straight line. Often I start with a vague concept of what I want to do then start fiddling with the tools. Unlike when building a toolshed or bookcase, I rarely begin with a complete plan or blueprint for an AutoHotkey script. In fact, the code may undergo numerous changes during the debugging and problem-solving phases.

sarcastictweetsFor anyone who builds things, this approach may be disconcerting. Afterall, you can’t afford to build a house by trial-and-error. The cost of wasted materials would be prohibitive. Traditionally, we spend a great deal of time in the planning phase to make sure we avoid expensive mistakes. Even in computer programming, large projects come together much better after extensive planning. But with smaller projects such as AutoHotkey scripts the opposite may be true. I often start a script with only a vague idea of what I want to do. As I work on it, the possibilities expand and I often change course. Continue reading →

Ryan’s RegEx Tester for Building INI Data Files (AutoHotkey Quick Reference Script, Part Five)

Jack Dunning AutoHotkey, INI Files, Intermediate Level, Programming, Reference, Regular Expressions (RegEx), Web Pages , , ,

Sometimes It’s Quicker and Easier to Use Ryan RegEx Tester Rather Than Writing an AutoHotkey Script

I used Ryan’s RegEx Tester in an earlier blog to create Web links without writing an AutoHotkey script. This time I take advantage of this powerful tool by using it to extract data for insertion into the regexrobotcartoon INI file discussed in the last blog on this topic. The fact that you can paste any text into the top of the RegEx Tester, add a Regular Expression (and a substitution expression for RegExPlace()), then extract the altered text from the bottom pane makes it a unique AutoHotkey app. This capability alone can motivate someone to learn how to write Regular Expressions.

Note: This series of blogs discusses the evolution of the AutoHotkeyQuickRef.ahk script which takes advantage of the hidden index in the AutoHotkey.com Web site.

Continue reading →

Using INI Files for Web Address Letter Case-Sensitivity Problems (AutoHotkey Quick Reference Script, Part Four)

Jack Dunning AutoHotkey, INI Files, Intermediate Level, Reference, Regular Expressions (RegEx), Web Pages , , , ,

The Wrong Capitalization of Letters in URLs Can Cause Page Access Failure—A Trick for Using an INI File to Solve Case Problems in AutoHotkey

In an effort to take advantage of the hidden index built into the AutoHotkey.com site, I’ve started writing a script I call AutoHotkeyQuickReg.ahk which parses the downloaded pages. The first step involved those searches which downloaded a command page.

AutoHotkey Library Deal
AutoHotkey Library Deal

The original version of the AutoHotkey Quick Reference script pops up a MsgBox which displays the syntax of the command, then offers the option to open the Web page in the default browser. Recently, I added a new feature which parses and displays information about the built-in AutoHotkey variables whenever detecting the “Variables and Expressions” page. However, I had to find a way to deal with the problem of letter case (capitalization) sensitivity. Get it wrong and either the Web page doesn’t come up or the right data won’t load. Continue reading →