Macro
About AceMacro
AceMacro
License
Using AceMacro
Tips on Using Macro's
Launching a macro from a batch
file
About AceMacro
AceMacro is a macro recording and replaying utility. You can record and
replay windows keyboard and mouse events. AceMacro is an optional add-on into
Automize, to record and replay macros. Please visit our website at
www.hiteksoftware.com for details. AceMacro was provided into Automize
5.x and 6.x as a free optional addon with no support. This feature is not
available in 7.x.
This feature is not supported in Automize 5.x and later for the following
reasons:
1) Feature is not cross platform compatible
2) Very little user interest in this feature
3) Macro record/replay is always fundamentally unreliable
Using AceMacro
To Record a new Macro: Hit the "Record New" button. Then enter the
desired name and hit ok. Then start recording.
To Stop a Recording: Use the F1-F12 keys. You can select which key
to set as the stop key.
To Replay a macro: Hit the replay button. You can stop the replay
at any time using either Ctrl+Esc or Ctrl+Alt+Del.
Loop during replay: After recording, make sure that you stop the
recording using F1-F12 key. If you stop the
recording using the "Stop Recording" button, looping will not work during
replay.
Do not record MouseMoves: Mouse Moves account for ~95% of all
events. You can quicken a macro by choosing this option. Make sure that you
mouse click on the Root of all cascading menu's.
Tips on Using Macro's
- There are many things that may (actually will) go wrong during a macro
replay. Please be patient and intuitively try and understand the reason
for the failure.
- You can speed up a macro by not recording mouse moves. However, if you
choose this option, be sure to click on the root of every cascading menu
(like the start menu).
- You can use the 'Start Button' and the subsequent drop up/down menus to
launch your application. However, remember that everytime you install a
new application, the location of the icons in the Start Menu, Programs
Menu etc. change.
- It is recommended that you launch an application from the 'Start
Button' and type in the full path to the application using your keyboard
(Do not go via the browse button). This is the most time consuming way
to launch an application, but is also the most reliable.
- Keep your macro's short (less than 30s). Use them in simple tasks to
replay carriage returns, enter passwords, or close programs etc.
- Always close all other programs before recording a macro. Only open
those programs that your Macro will work on.
- Ensure that your screen is exactly the same while recording a macro as
it will be during a scheduled replay.
- Make sure that an application window has not been resized between the
time you record and replay the macro.
- The macro will click on all the wrong places on the application window
if it has been resized.
- Build up your macro in stages, i.e. record ~15 seconds first and then
replay. If it works, then increase the recording time.
- You can replay a recorded macro in a batch file!! See the help section
on using AceMacro Pro Macros within a batch file.
- Files/directories may change contents between the time you record a
macro and the scheduled run time, hence the file location may change! and
you may boot up the wrong file.
- One way to ensure that a file is always at the top of a directory is by
naming it aaa or 11 etc.
- You can mix in a 'Print Screen' during a macro run to store a snapshot
of your screen in memory and view it using paint. This may help you to
debug the cause of a macro failure during its scheduled run.
- Be aware of timing issues!! A file residing in memory will open very
quickly during your macro recording. However, during its scheduled run,
it may not reside in memory and may take twice as much time to launch.
Any mouse or keyboard input in this time gap will not be replayed
- Do not use the icons in the bottom/side taskbar or system tray to
launch applications. The icons in these loactions change positions and
the macro will launch the wrong application.
- AceMacro works by mouse location only. All buttons, text boxes etc. in
an application should always be in the same location for a macro to work
correctly. The best way to achieve this is to open the application window
'Maximized'. Most windows applications will remember how they were last
opened. Hence, open an application, Maximize and close it, before
recording a macro on it.
- If you are using a macro on text files, make sure that your system
opens the textfile using Wordpad rather than Notepad. Notepad does not
remember how it was last opened and generally opens randomly all over
your screen. Wordpad remembers how it was last opened and can be opened
Maximized.
Launching Macro's from your
programs/batch files
The Macro Recorder and Replayer is called Macro.exe. It can be launched
from the command line to replay your recordings. Hence you could use it from
any of your batch files or executable programs. You have to be in the
Macro.exe directory [WorkingDir] to launch it.
Example use in a batch file:
cd [WorkingDir]
Macro.exe macroname
IMPORTANT: Macro.exe has start with capital M, not small m
Please note:If there are spaces in the path, the path needs to
be enclosed in parentheses.
If you chose the standard options during installation, the syntax will
be:
cd "c:\program files\Automize"
Macro.exe Macroname