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Macro Scheduler — May 2010 Newsletter

Macro Scheduler 12 Released!
Workflow Designer & MacroScript SDK Updates
New Software Testing Course Featuring Macro Scheduler
v12 Dialog Stuff
Other News/Articles
Staying in Touch

Macro Scheduler 12 Released!

Registered Downloads/Upgrades | Evaluation Downloads | New License Sales

I am pleased to announce that Macro Scheduler 12 is now Shipping!

Here’s a quick round up of some of the exciting changes and new features in v12.

Faster and More Powerful Custom Dialogs; Improved Dialog Designer

The biggest change to Macro Scheduler is regarding Custom Dialogs. We’ve completely re-engineered the way custom dialogs work to give you access to more object properties while also improving responsiveness. We’ve added real-time event handlers so you can respond immediately to button clicks and other object events without the need for cumbersome “action loops”. You can get and set object properties immediately at any time. A new property editor in the Dialog Designer gives you access to all available properties and a visual menu designer means there’s no need to edit any code inside a dialog block.

So if you’re one of those people using Macro Scheduler to create user interfaces you’ll find you can customise your dialogs a lot more and make your dialogs much more responsive. Even if you only create the odd simple dialog you’ll find the new system is simpler.

  • More properties
  • More responsive
  • Real time object event handlers (e.g. button OnClick)
  • Enhanced property editor
  • Visual Menu Designer

Scripting Enhancements

But if you don’t care about Custom Dialogs there are many more scripting improvements. Version 12 offers an option to give variables local scope. We’ve added native Excel functions, process functions, array functions, more string functions, improved the screen image recognition functions, added 64 bit registry support, added RegEx support to window functions, and added system tray functions. We’ve addressed some issues sending keystrokes to old 16 bit apps and Citrix applications. A new loop construct has been added: While/EndWhile.

  • Local Scope
  • Native Excel Functions
  • Process Handling Functions
  • ArrayCount and ArraySort Functions
  • More String Functions
  • Improved Image Recognition Functions
  • 64 Bit Registry Support
  • System Tray Functions
  • RegEx Window Title Matching
  • While/EndWhile Loop Construct

Multi-Tabbed Editing

We’ve made even more improvements to the editor. We’ve added editor tabs so you can now open more than one script at once! Right click on a filename anywhere in your code (e.g. in an Include or Macro line) and open it in another tab. You can right click on a subroutine name – in a GoSub statement for example – to have the cursor placed on the corresponding Subroutine line. Variable breakpoints allow you to set debug breakpoints based on variable values. We’ve added a search bar to the watch list so you can find variables quickly. Code folding is now remembered between sessions. Better integration with WebRecorder: A button launches WebRecorder and outputs the code you record into your macro.

  • Multi-Tabbed Editing
  • Variable Breakpoints
  • Remembered Cold Folding
  • Open Files From Code
  • Jump to Subroutines
  • Integration with WebRecorder
  • Variable Search

Reorder Groups; Share Macros; Templates

In the main Macro Scheduler window v12 allows you to move and re-order groups using drag and drop. Quickly import macros by dragging .scp files from Windows Explorer into Macro Scheduler. Linked Groups allow you to share macros with colleagues by linking a group to a network folder and have new macros in that folder show up automatically. Quickly create a new macro from an existing one by right clicking and selecting “Duplicate to New Macro”. We’ve added templates. “File/New From Template” allows you to create a new macro from an existing .scp file.

  • Drag and drop macros
  • Duplicate macros
  • Share macros with Linked Groups
  • Resort/Reorder Groups via Drag and Drop
  • Templates

Custom Triggers
Create any kind of script trigger using MacroScript. Define your own checks and logic using script code to cause a macro to fire based on your own rules.

AutoLogon for Vista/Windows 7
Reliable AutoLogon for Vista/Windows 7/Windows 2008. Specify a username and password in macro properties and if Windows is locked or logged out when the macro is scheduled AutoLogon will log in to Windows, run the macro and then log out again. Note, we’re discontinuing AutoLogon support for XP which was problematic. Vista/Windows7/Windows 2008 offers a much safer, more reliable mechanism for performing an AutoLogon.

And that's not all. For a more complete and detailed list of changes please see the version 12 Release Notes.

Downloads/Upgrades

Registered Downloads/Upgrades | Evaluation Downloads | New License Sales

Registered users with valid, up to date, maintenance can download version 12 from the registered user area here.

Workflow Designer & MacroScript SDK Updates

MacroScript Workflow Designer and the MacroScript SDK are now available with the Macro Scheduler 12 script engine.

Registered Downloads/Upgrades | Evaluation Downloads | New License Sales

New Software Testing Course Featuring Macro Scheduler

If you’re new to Automated Software Testing or looking to expand your knowledge you wouldn’t go far wrong with Randy Rices’ training courses.

Rice Consulting specialise in software testing training, certification and consulting. Their new Practical Software Test Automation course focuses on the basics of software test automation and expands on those topics to learn some of the deeper issues of test automation. The course includes hands on exercises using Macro Scheduler.

The course is aimed at Software Testers, Test Automators, Developers and Test Managers.

I’m told an e-learning version of the course is also in the works and I’ll let you know more when I hear about it.

v12 Dialog Stuff

For you dialog old-timers used to the way dialogs work in v11 and earlier I’ve posted a crib sheet for the new system here:

http://www.mjtnet.com/usergroup/viewtopic.php?t=6110

sarver311 has posted an example of a dialog that implements a drill down lookup list and demonstrates some of the new techniques:

http://www.mjtnet.com/usergroup/viewtopic.php?t=6161

If you have any nice dialog examples or tricks you wish to share please post them to the beta forum.

JRL points out that since Macro Scheduler is built with Delphi most of the dialog objects and properties are inherited from Delphi so for more detailed information about them the Delphi documentation can be consulted:

http://www.mjtnet.com/usergroup/viewtopic.php?t=6162

Other News/Articles

Staying in Touch

There are a number of ways of getting in touch with us. For support there's the forums and our help desk. It should be noted that the forums are primarily for peer-to-peer discussion and while I try my best to monitor new posts I may sometimes miss some. In contrast our help desk is monitored continuously and every ticket gets a response.

Feel free to reply to this email if you wish to contact me personally, and I'll do my best to answer, but this mail box does tend to get jammed up with out of office responses and other bounces. So if I miss your email I apologise. If you don't get a response, it's nothing personal - drop me a line via the help desk instead. I can't always be available, but there will always be someone on the support desk.

You can also follow me on twitter: http://twitter.com/marcustettmar

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