Articles from the Microsoft Knowledge Base
Return to the Tips and Troubleshooting Page.
[ Top of Page ]
If, at any time during a Windows session, CapsKey is run AFTER the Recorder, CapsKey may render Recorder macros inoperable. If this occurs, Exit Recorder then restart it.
To correct this problem, run CapsKey before you run Recorder.
[ Top of Page ]
Run Recorder.
From the Macro menu, choose Record.
In the Shortcut Key group box, select a key from the drop-down list. Entering a macro name is optional.
From the Record Mouse list box, choose Ignore Mouse.
Select Start to begin recording the macro. All keystrokes you type will be recorded and all mouse actions will be ignored.
Important: All commands you don't want recorded in the macro, such as starting Works, should be done with the mouse, and all other commands must be done from the keyboard.
To stop recording the macro, press CTRL+BREAK and select Save Macro. Return to the Recorder and choose Save from the File menu to save the macro for future use.
The macro can now be played back by pressing the shortcut key you assigned. For the macro to be available, Recorder must be running and the macro file must be open. You may add the macro filename to the LOAD= line of the WIN.INI file to have it automatically load.
For more information on Recorder, query on the following words in the Microsoft Knowledge Base "macro and recorder and windows".
[ Top of Page ]
Cannot play back to obscured window
-or-
Playback window does not exist
These errors occur when you use the mouse to manipulate program icons that are minimized and on the desktop.
[ Top of Page ]
Playback window does not exist
Keystroke-based macros do not depend on the locations or sizes of objects; thus, they are not sensitive to changes in these reference points.
Example of Keystroke Macro
Execute the Recorder program.
Minimize Program Manager.
From the Recorder menu, choose Macro Record.
Begin recording the macro, using the following settings:
Playback (Group Box)
| To: | Same Application |
| Speed: | Fast |
| Record Mouse: | Everything |
| Relative to: | Screen |
While holding down the ALT key, press the TAB key repeatedly until Program Manager is highlighted. Release both ALT and TAB to restore Program Manager.
Press ALT+F, R to choose Run from Program Manager's File menu.
Type
clock.exe
and press ENTER to run the Clock program.
Type CTRL+BREAK to stop recording.
Save the macro.
Steps 1-4 must be performed because the Program Manager may be minimized at the start of the macro. If so, it will not respond to the File Run command given in step 5. These steps ensure the Program Manager is open.
[ Top of Page ]
This article discusses an undocumented and unsupported command line parameter. Microsoft does not support or encourage the use of this parameter, but provides this article as information only. Use this parameter at your own risk.
Recorder Playback Aborted!
Recorder and Macro and Command and Line and Windows
[ Top of Page ]
This article discusses an undocumented and unsupported command line parameter. Microsoft does not support or encourage the use of this parameter, but provides this article as information only. Use this parameter at your own risk.
From the Program Manager, click the Recorder icon.
From the File menu, choose Properties.
Specify the optional parameters in the Command Line box.
RECORDER.EXE <filename>
where <filename> is the name of the Recorder file you want to load. If the file is not in the same directory as Recorder, then the path needs to be specified before the filename. The following starts Recorder and loads the file TEST.REC:
RECORDER.EXE TEST.REC
Auto-Executing Macros
Optionally, you can have Recorder automatically execute a macro that is defined in the macro file. The syntax of the line that does this is
RECORDER.EXE -h <shortcutkey> <filename>
where <filename> is the Recorder filename you want to load and <shortcutkey> is the key defined in the macro that is being loaded. The -h switch tells Recorder to use the hotkey defined immediately after the -h. For example, if a macro is defined in the macro file TEST.REC that used the shortcut key ALT+F10, the command line to execute this macro when starting Recorder is
RECORDER.EXE -h %F10 TEST.REC
Note the % in this example. This signifies the ALT key. The following table explains the key sequences:
| Key | Sequence |
|---|---|
| ALT | % |
| CTRL | ^ |
| SHIFT | + |
It is possible to use all these keys in conjunction with the keys listed in the drop-down list box in the dialog box that appears when you choose Properties from the Macro menu. A sample command line is as follows:
RECORDER.EXE -h %^+F10 TEST.REC
Depending on your version of Windows, there are up to three ways to automatically run macros when you start Windows.
To start Recorder from the MS-DOS prompt when you start Windows and have it execute a macro, use the following command line during startup:
WIN RECORDER.EXE -h %^+F10 TEST.REC
NOTE: If you are entering this command line into a batch file, you need to use a double percent sign, %%. A single percent sign is interpreted as a null character and does not perform the desired function.
-or-
Run the macros from the RUN= or LOAD= line in the WIN.INI file (for example, enter "RUN=mymacro.rec" in the WIN.INI file [without the quotation marks]).
-or-
In Windows 3.0, Use the following steps to automatically execute your Windows Recorder macro without having to include the command line parameters:
a. From File Manager, highlight a Recorder macro document file.
b. From the File menu, choose Associate.
c. Type "recorder.exe -h <shortcutkey>" (without the quotation marks), where <shortcutkey> is the hotkey for your macro.
For example, if a macro was defined in the macro file MYMACRO.REC that used the shortcut key ALT+F12, type the following in the Associate dialog box:
recorder.exe -h %f12
NOTE: Using CTRL+Shortcutkey does not work in this situation. The symbol for CTRL "^" is reserved in the [EXTENSIONS] section of WIN.INI. Using CTRL in the hotkey causes the following message:
No macro file - ignoring shortcut key MACRONAME.REC
d. Place the name of the macro file on the LOAD= or RUN= line of the WIN.INI file.
-or-
Start Windows from MS-DOS, specifying the macro filename (for example, type "win mymacro.rec" [without the quotation marks]).
Note that all macro files run from any command line, including File Manager and the MS-DOS Executive, execute files automatically using the specified shortcut key.
[ Top of Page ]
This error seems to occur most often when the View PERT Chart command is active and the keystrokes are played back at Fast speed. To avoid this problem, have the macro playback at Recorded Speed, or use the mouse to record the macro.
Open Project and enter one task.
Switch to Windows Program Manager and open Recorder.
From the Recorder Macro menu, choose Record.
Name the Macro "Project" (without the quotation marks). Enter a "q" for the shortcut key. Playback should be set to Same Application, and the Speed should be Fast. Choose OK.
Reactivate Project.
Using the keyboard commands, choose PERT Chart from the View menu.
Using the keyboard commands, choose Print from the File menu. Choose OK.
Switch back to Recorder.
From the Recorder dialog box, choose the Save Macro button. Choose OK.
Press CTRL+Q.
At this point, the Recorder will start the playback and will display a dialog message. The error line will say "Playback Window does not Exist."
[ Top of Page ]
Press ALT+F to choose the File menu. Press R to choose Run. When the run dialog box appears, type
pbrush
and press ENTER.
Press ALT+SPACEBAR to bring up the Control menu. Press X to maximize the window and the press ENTER.
Press ALT+F to open the File Menu and then press O for the Open command.
Follow the rest of the steps outlined in the lesson. When the macro is executed, Paintbrush will maximize and the entire logo will be captured.
[ Top of Page ]
Playback window does not exist
-or-
Playback window no longer exists
[ Top of Page ]
The Microsoft Windows Recorder program cannot be used to create a macro that can completely end a Windows session. A macro cannot be recorded to continue past the "This will end your Windows session" dialog box message. Once this message is reached, you must to manually choose OK or press ENTER to fully exit Windows.
[ Top of Page ]
[ Top of Page ]
TAB
TAB
Yours very truly,
ENTER
ENTER
TAB
TAB
John D. Doe
the first two TABS may not work correctly, and ENTER may display as a page break in certain cases.
Use SHIFT+ENTER instead of ENTER.
[ Top of Page ]
Load Recorder as an icon by pressing SHIFT while double-clicking your mouse on the Recorder icon within the Program Manager.
Open the file you want to edit within Notepad.
Type a string that you would like to use to replace the current string in the file. (For example, if you want to replace "Rename" with "REM," type "REM"). After typing the string, select it with the mouse or press SHIFT+<an ARROW key>.
From the Edit menu, choose Cut.
Move to the point in the file that you want to start the search (normally at the top).
From the Search menu, choose Find.
Type the string that you want to replace.
Press ENTER (this should highlight the first occurrence of the string).
Double-click the Recorder icon.
a. From the File menu, choose New. b. From the Macro menu, choose Record. c. Enter a name for the macro. d. Choose a hot key that will not conflict with other keys used by Notepad (for example, ALT+BACKSPACE). e. Select Start.
Recorder will record keystrokes only by default, unless you change it.
Press DEL, then SHIFT+INSERT, and then F3 (this should replace the first occurrence of the word and find the next).
Press CTRL+BREAK (this will stop the recorder).
Choose Save.
Use the hot key to play back the macro and replace the rest of the occurrences of the string.
Using the Macro
When you want to use the macro later, do the following:
Run Recorder.
From the File menu, choose Open, and select the macro you created.
Run Notepad and open the file.
Type a replacement string.
From the Edit menu, choose Cut to place the string in the Clipboard.
Go to the place in the file that you want to start the search.
From the Search menu, choose Find and select the string you want to replace.
Type the hot key that you used in step 9d in the "Creating the Macro" section (each time that you press this, it will find the next occurrence of the string and replace it).
[ Top of Page ]
One-key macros can be used to allow single keys to function as two keys pressed simultaneously (for example, SHIFT+CTRL). This ability may be of particular interest to people unable to press more than one key at a time.
For example, a macro can be used to execute the CTRL+ESC key combination when you press the F11 key, which is rarely used by applications.
A macro file containing such a macro, or a collection of similar macros, can be entered on the LOAD= or RUN= line of the WIN.INI file, allowing the macros to be immediately available upon entering Windows.
[ Top of Page ]
[ Top of Page ]
Report files are exported in tab-delimited ASCII format; are given a .TXT extension; and can be opened in Microsoft Works as a Word Processor, Spreadsheet, or Database file. Although Microsoft Money data files can be exported as .QIF files (Quicken interchange format), this format is not directly supported in Microsoft Works.
Because all transactions in Microsoft Money can be placed in reports, the best way to export Microsoft Money data for Microsoft Works use is usually as a report.
The process for translating a .QIF file into Tab delimited format is as follows:
Choose Open Existing File from the File menu in Microsoft Works. Select the file by changing to the appropriate subdirectory, typing the full filename, and pressing ENTER. Open the file as a Word Processor file.
Press CTRL+HOME to move to the beginning of the file.
The next step involves using the Select Replace command. For each command, type the Find What and Replace With entries as follows, then choose Replace All. Note: ^p, ^^, and ^t are special characters used with the Find and Replace commands (^p = paragraph mark, ^^ = caret mark, and ^t = tab character).
| Find What | Replace With | |
|---|---|---|
| ^p^^^p | &&& | |
| ^p | ^t | |
| &&& | ^p |
The file is now in tab delimited format, but will still have the one-letter descriptor at the beginning of each field. For example:
| D9/22/91 | T1,000.00 | N1249 | PDeposit |
To remove an entry, for example the "D" before the date, use the Select Replace command. In this example, find ^pD and replace it with ^p. (^p is used in this case because the D is preceded by a paragraph mark.) The "T" before the amount could be removed by finding ^tT and replacing it with ^t, as could the other descriptors, which are preceded by a tab -- N and P in this case.
Delete any extraneous information in the first (header) and last records.
From the File menu, choose Save As, select the Text format, and press ENTER. The file is now ready to be opened as a Database or Spreadsheet file. The Windows Recorder could be used to automate the process if you have many Microsoft Money files to import.
The third-party product discussed here is manufactured by a vendor independent of Microsoft; we make no warranty, implied or otherwise, regarding this product's performance or reliability.
[ Top of Page ]
| Key(s) Pressed | Interpreted As |
|---|---|
| ALT+CTRL+F11 | Not read |
| F11 | ALT+UP ARROW |
| F12 | ALT+PAGE UP |
| SHIFT+F11 | ALT+SHIFT+INSERT |
| SHIFT+F12 | ALT+SHIFT+DELETE |
| ENTER | CTRL+M |
| CTRL+F12 | ALT+F12 |
| CTRL+F11 | ALT+F11 |
| CTRL+BACKSLASH(\) | CTRL+DEL |
| PERIOD | PERIOD |
| MINUS SIGN | K+PERIOD |
| PLUS SIGN | PLUS SIGN |
| ALT+PLUS SIGN | ALT+DOWN ARROW |
| ALT+MINUS SIGN | Not read |
| CTRL+MINUS SIGN | CTRL+DEL |
| CTRL+PLUS SIGN | CTRL+ALT+END |
| SHIFT+PLUS SIGN | INS |
| SHIFT+MINUS SIGN | DEL |
This problem appears to be related only to the Tandy 1000 series of computer.
[ Top of Page ]