Tips for Recording Efficient Macros

Tips for recording efficient macros:

  1. Prefer keyboard-macros over mouse-macros since keyboard-macros are more reliable. Keyboard doesn't care about screen coordinates, window-positions, monitor resolution. Even though the mouse recorder tries to record mouse in "relative" coordinates, sometimes it fails. Use common keyboard-combinations like Alt - to get to the menu, Alt+F4 to close a window, Esc - to close a dialog box, arrow keys - to navigate to an item
  2. Do not record mouse moves. Unless required. Record mouse-clicks only. Open "Settings" - "Recording" and disable mouse-moves recording.
  3. Speed-up your macros by decreasing delay-commands. Select the parts of the macro you wish to speed up and perform the "reset delays" command (Menu - "Edit" - "Bulk edit delays"
  4. Start at a known location, end-up at an known location. When recording a keyboard macro, make sure the first one or two keystrokes move the cursor to a known location. For example use the HOME keystroke to move it to the beginning of a line, or Ctrl+HOME to move it to the beginning of a file. Use Ctrl+Right-Arrow, Ctrl-Left-Arrow to move between words etc etc. Same for macro-endings: make sure the ending of your macro "prepares" everything for the next iteration. For instance - moves the cursor to the next line. Move the focus to the next item in the list, etc. etc. Think iteratively.
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