Macro Scheduler and Windows Automation

Technical / Scripting :: WaitScreenText causing Clipboard Copy Ctrl-C to not work

Author: gtdalsanto
Subject: WaitScreenText causing Clipboard Copy Ctrl-C to not work
Posted: Sun May 18, 2008 4:32 am (GMT 0)
Topic Replies: 0

I seem to have found a problem that occurs after using the WaitScreenText command. Using it to find text on a web page has worked very well. However, after I have executed it, I have noticed that trying to copy text from a screen to the clipboard using the keyboard commands 'ctrl-a' (select all) followed by 'ctrl-c' (copy to clipboard) will no longer work until you close/restart macro-scheduler.

Below is a simple example where I open the mgtnet.com site, wait for the main window to appear, then I issue a ctrl-a/ctrl-c to get the contents of the screen to the clipboard. I then save this data to a variable (result1). Then I put the space character into the clipboard, which basically overwrites the screen data with a space.

I then issue the WaitScreenText command, with some text that is on the mjtnet.com sites main page, which it finds with no problem. At this point, I issue the same ctrl-a/ctrl-c command, and save the contents of the clipboard to another variable (result2). Result2 does not contain the web page as expected, but it contains the space.

Also, going to applications like notepad, and copying/pasting text within notepad, work fine. However, if you go to the mjtnet.com page, and do a ctrl-a/ctrl-c, it still will not copy this data to the clipboard. It seems as if the clipboard has been disabled for only this web page.

Below is the code I used to duplicate this problem. Is there a command to reset the clipboard for this window after I have issued the WaitScreenText? or is this just a problem with the WaitScreenText command?

Thanks for your help on this issue.

'
' Start up mjtnet.com site
'
ExecuteFile>www.mjtnet.com,
Wait>2
WaitWindowOpen>Windows Scripting*
'
' Now copy this window to clipboard - ctrl-a/ctrl-c and save in result1
'
SetFocus>Windows Scripting*
Wait>0.5
Press Ctrl
Send>a
wait>0.5
Press Ctrl
Send>c
wait>0.5
Release Ctrl
GetClipBoard>result1
'
' put a space in the clipboard to overwrite contents
'
PutClipBoard>%SPACE%
'
' Now wait for some specific text on the mjtnet.com page
'
Let>WST_TIMEOUT=2
WaitScreenText>Windows Automation and Scripting Solutions
'
' Copy window again to the clipboard - ctrl-a/ctrl-c and save in result2
'
SetFocus>Windows Scripting*
Wait>0.5
Press Ctrl
Send>a
wait>0.5
Press Ctrl
Send>c
wait>0.5
Release Ctrl
GetClipBoard>result2
'
' copy of page failed. Ctrl-a/Ctrl-c no longer work until you
' exit and restart macro scheduler
'
_________________
Gary T. DalSanto
Inventive Software Designs, LLC
Gary.Dalsanto@InventiveSD.com

Technical / Scripting :: RE: Problem with MouseMove... I think

Author: armsys
Posted: Sun May 18, 2008 3:39 am (GMT 0)
Topic Replies: 12

Thanks for sharing your progress with us.
In the absence of full knowledge of your pertinent (actual) app(s) and your full script, all my comments will fail you.
Whenever programming keyboard/mouse simulation, timing is your primary concern. Under such circumstance, GetActiveWindow is always your best insurance policy. BTW, mouse simulation is relatively more responsive than PRESS ALT, PRESS CTRL, PRESS SHIFT,....etc.
I'm sorry I can't see the benefit of using GetCursorPos> here. But ultimately you're your own judge as long as your script works as intended.
Good luck.
_________________
Armstrong Wong
Armstrong Systems
Shop 10 LG Full Wing Bldg
436 Chatham Rd N
Kowloon, Hong Kong
Phone: (852) 9485 6994
email : sales@armsys.net

Technical / Scripting :: RE: Problem with MouseMove... I think

Author: tommystery
Posted: Sun May 18, 2008 3:00 am (GMT 0)
Topic Replies: 12

Somewhat, I don't need to verify that the window is active but that the mouse is at the correct coordinates. But your script gave me the idea of using the GetCursorPos>X,Y to verify the cursor pos

Here is the revised script:
SetFocus> {Windowname}
Label>Loop1
Wait>.2
MouseMove>162,565
GetCursorPos>XC,YC
If>{(%XC%=162) AND (%YC%=565)},Loop1
Wait>.2
LClick
WaitWindowOpen> {Windowname2}
SetFocus> {Windowname2}
Wait>.2
FindImagePos>C:\macrolive\submit.BMP,SCREEN,20,0,XPos,YPos,NumFound
Label>Loop2
Wait>.2
MouseMove>XPos_0,YPos_0
GetCursorPos>XC,YC
If>{(%XC%=%XPos_0%) AND (%YC%=%YPos_0%)},Loop2
Wait>.2
LClick

Let me know what you think.

Technical / Scripting :: RE: Problem with MouseMove... I think

Author: armsys
Posted: Sat May 17, 2008 11:40 pm (GMT 0)
Topic Replies: 12

Perhaps I misunderstood your problem.
_________________
Armstrong Wong
Armstrong Systems
Shop 10 LG Full Wing Bldg
436 Chatham Rd N
Kowloon, Hong Kong
Phone: (852) 9485 6994
email : sales@armsys.net

Technical / Scripting :: RE: Problem with MouseMove... I think

Author: tommystery
Posted: Sat May 17, 2008 8:15 pm (GMT 0)
Topic Replies: 12

Thanks for the tip, that does seem like a cleaner way of doing it.

Technical / Scripting :: RE: Problem with MouseMove... I think

Author: armsys
Posted: Sat May 17, 2008 3:21 pm (GMT 0)
Topic Replies: 12

Hi tommystery

Your script's robustness could be strengthened as follows:
For the purpose of demo, assume the window of interest is "Microsoft Word"
Let>WF_TYPE=2
SetFocus>Microsoft Word*
Label>Loop1
Wait>.2
GetActiveWindow>Win,x,y
If>{(pos("Microsoft Word",%Win%)=0)},Loop1
MouseMove>Pos_X,Pos_Y
LClick

Hope it helps.
_________________
Armstrong Wong
Armstrong Systems
Shop 10 LG Full Wing Bldg
436 Chatham Rd N
Kowloon, Hong Kong
Phone: (852) 9485 6994
email : sales@armsys.net

Technical / Scripting :: RE: Problem with MouseMove... I think

Author: tommystery
Posted: Sat May 17, 2008 2:28 pm (GMT 0)
Topic Replies: 12

Thanks for the tip.

Do you think it would help to structure the script in this manner:

SetFocus>
GetActiveWindow>
MouseMove>
Wait>1
MouseMove>
Wait>1
LClick
Wait>1
SetFocus>
GetActiveWindow>
FindImagePos>
MouseMove>
Wait>1
MouseMove>
Wait>1
LClick

Or am I just wasting execution time? Considering the entire script, I need it to execute (in its entirety in <30s) {this is just a sample/part} but it also cannot fail under any circumstance. I figure that by inserting MouseMove twice I'm making sure that the mouse moves to the correct co-ordinates.

Beginners :: RE: Communication between Master and Slave Scripts

Author: ichiban
Posted: Sat May 17, 2008 7:58 am (GMT 0)
Topic Replies: 4

Thanks

Technical / Scripting :: RE: Problem with MouseMove... I think

Author: armsys
Posted: Sat May 17, 2008 3:49 am (GMT 0)
Topic Replies: 12

Hi tommystery,
Whenever programming keyboard/mouse simulation, timing is alway your major concern becasue Macro Scheduler executes the keyboard/mouse simulation so fast that Windows often fails to catch. For example, in the worset scenario, the Windows is busy in indexing 200GB of folders and files and defragmenting 2 2TB hard drives simultaneously. Then, your script will definitively fail.

Rule of Thumbs:
1. Always set the right focus;
2. Always double check if it's exactly the window you're working (focusing) on. Don't rely on WaitWindowOpen>. The safest way is to use GetActiveWindow> to verify if the active (focused) window is exactly the one you want.
Just my 2 cents. Hope it helps.
_________________
Armstrong Wong
Armstrong Systems
Shop 10 LG Full Wing Bldg
436 Chatham Rd N
Kowloon, Hong Kong
Phone: (852) 9485 6994
email : sales@armsys.net

Technical / Scripting :: RE: Problem with MouseMove... I think

Author: tommystery
Posted: Sat May 17, 2008 3:21 am (GMT 0)
Topic Replies: 12

@ larkspur, so you've experienced this problem as well?

@mtettmar, the window names are actually derived from an application that I'm developing hence why the use of placeholders. It doesn't really matter as the GUI is simple Java; and the window which has opened on several occasions in this instance of the program is not coded to open ANYWHERE in the script. And as I said, the log shows that it hangs in the correct loop (as it's waiting for the window to open).

The most logical cause of this problem that I can think of is that the LClick is executed before the mouse finishes moving. I've added wait>1 (I didn't know that you could use 0.1) and we'll see how the script runs. I was just curious to know if this was a known problem so I could get a more definite answer.

Technical / Scripting :: RE: Ampersand (&) in a dialog label

Author: JRL
Posted: Fri May 16, 2008 11:28 pm (GMT 0)
Topic Replies: 11

mtettmar wrote:

An ampersand before a character marks that character as the shortcut key, and underlines it. To make an ampersand visible specify two together, as Rain has shown.

Yes that's true for an item that performs a function such as a button. My concern was specifically for a label. I would expect a label to handle an ampersand as text.

Moving on the the issue of help files as a sleep aid. (I thought djek's comment was funny... I think that was the intent.) Most help documents for most software packages are written in a reference format. That is, they are meant to be a reference for users who already have an idea what they are doing. There are tutorials to help people get started and begin to understand how the software works. There is also the magic "Record a Macro" capability. After that the help documentation in a reference format should be adequate even desirable for expediency. One thing that is lacking for Macro Scheduler is that 1800 page hard cover edition of "The Macro Scheduler Bible" and its accompanying 200 page paperback "Macro Scheduler for Dummies" Perhaps someone will write those someday. In the mean time, there is ample reading for someone getting started with Macro Scheduler.

In my opinion, the main problem for advanced users of Macro Scheduler seeking help, is the expansive nature of this software. Because Macro Scheduler is so flexible, because it touches on nearly every aspect of the Microsoft Windows operating system and is capable of interacting with practically any program ever written to run on the Windows platform, an all encompassing manuscript for Macro Scheduler would be.... what?...Everything ever written about Microsoft Windows and all Windows compatible software?

Just a thought,
Dick

Technical / Scripting :: RE: Detect Dialog Altered

Author: JRL
Posted: Fri May 16, 2008 10:38 pm (GMT 0)
Topic Replies: 8

jpuziano wrote:

Hi JRL,
Very nice...

Thank you.

jpuziano wrote:

Lets say the user selects Item2 in the dropdown then immediately changes their mind and selects Item1 again. What is now in the dialog is exactly the same as what's in the file on disk... however on hitting Cancel, it will prompt the user to save changes anyway... and the user might think... save what? These are the same values I started with... I never did a save...???

JRL wrote:

It functions in the way that I would expect a Microsoft program to function.

I altered the script above because the close message that asked if you want to save did not have a "Cancel" option as most Microsoft programs do. The message now includes a cancel option.

Technical / Scripting :: RE: Problem with MouseMove... I think

Author: larkspur
Posted: Fri May 16, 2008 8:03 pm (GMT 0)
Topic Replies: 12

I don't know if this is of any help or not, but I put a Wait>0.1 before my LClicks after a MouseMove and that seems to make it more stable. In some cases, I use a longer Wait time if it needs it.

Beginners :: RE: Communication between Master and Slave Scripts

Author: mtettmar
Posted: Fri May 16, 2008 6:57 pm (GMT 0)
Topic Replies: 4

More than happy to explain "what's going on behind the code" - but need a question before I can provide an answer. Which code are you referring to? What part of it do you need more explanation for? Ask away.

If you're referring to the tip linked to by Me_again - that uses a technique that enumerates all IE shell windows to find the IE window with the URL matching the one specified. Once it finds it it then sets an object reference to that IE object. You can then access IE's objects and properties, such as the Document Object Model (DOM). The IE DOM allows you to interact with elements within the document such as links, form fields and all other html tags. If you want documentation on the IE Document Object Model I'd need to refer you to Microsoft's web site although there are some basic examples here in the forums and included with Macro Scheduler. But for an in depth reference you'd need to refer to Microsoft.
_________________
Regards,
Marcus Tettmar
Blog: http://mjtnet.com/blog/
Please do not email or PM me with private support requests - post questions to the forum so that everyone benefits. For fast, guaranteed private support please send email via our web site.

Beginners :: RE: Communication between Master and Slave Scripts

Author: ichiban
Posted: Fri May 16, 2008 6:28 pm (GMT 0)
Topic Replies: 4

I was trying to do it with IEAUTO.dll But the tip has given me some ideas, thanks. Wish this place provided explanations on whats going on behind the code. Being fed code is like feeding man a fish.