This topic describes how hotkeys are used in FullSpeed.
A hotkey is a key or key combination which, when pressed, causes something to happen immediately.
A macro hotkey (or "direct hotkey") is a hotkey you can press to invoke (run) a FullSpeed macro, from within some other program.
You can assign or change a macro's hotkey using the Change hotkey button in the macro options toolbar:
The Action dialog hotkey is a hotkey you can press to display FullSpeed's Action dialog from within some other program.
You can assign or change the Action dialog hotkey in the Options dialog, on the Target application options page:
Because many Windows programs use hotkeys, conflicts between the hotkeys you assign in FullSpeed and those used in other programs are likely from time to time. But avoiding or bypassing hotkey conflicts is not hard to do.
Symptoms of hotkey conflicts
| ® | A hotkey which "used to work" in FullSpeed or in some other program no longer works there. |
| ® | When opening a program or assigning a hotkey you get a message like "The hotkey cannot be assigned" or "The hotkey is already in use by another program". |
| ® | Hotkeys work on some days but not others. The order in which programs are started determines which has use of a particular hotkey. If you start Program A and it registers a hotkey with Windows, then you start Program B, Program B will be prevented from registering that same hotkey. But on a different day you might start Program B first, so that it gets to register the hotkey with Windows. In that case, if Program A is then started it will not be allowed to use the hotkey. |
Tips for avoiding or bypassing conflicts
| ® | Choose hotkeys carefully. Experiment a bit by assigning a hotkey in FullSpeed, then trying it while other programs you commonly use are running. If the hotkey cannot be assigned or does not invoke the macro, try a different hotkey. |
| ® | Use the Action dialog for running macros. You only need one hotkey for displaying the Action dialog in your target applications, while you may need up to ten hotkeys to have them assigned to individual macros (one for each macro). Using one hotkey instead of several can help avoid hotkey conflicts with other programs. |
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The quick way to run macros from the Action dialog:
Using the Action dialog requires more keystrokes than using a direct hotkey to run a macro. But you can speed up the process greatly if you avoid using the mouse.
With the Action dialog showing, just press the number key on the keyboard matching the macro number you want to run; i.e., if you want to run macro 3, press the 3 key. For most people this is quicker than clicking on the macro's link. |
