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TYPERTASK HELP REFERENCE
Copyright © 2012 Vista Software, Inc.
www.vtaskstudio.com
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CONTENTS:
I. INTRODUCTION
II. TYPERTASK FEATURES
1. AUTOMATED KEYBOARD TYPING
2. RUN PROGRAMS
3. DELAYS
4. WINDOW ACTIVATION
5. MOUSE CLICKS
6. CUSTOM LISTS
III. TYPERTASK KEY CODES AND VARIABLES
1. SPECIAL KEY CODES
2. ENVIRONMENT VARIABLES
IV. TYPERTASK ADDITIONAL TOOLS
1. REMOVE CLIPBOARD FORMATTING
2. SHOW TOTAL AUTOMATIONS
3. TRACK MOUSE
V. TYPERTASK TECHNICAL INFORMATION
VI. TYPERTASK LICENSE AGREEMENT
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I. INTRODUCTION
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Thank you for using TyperTask!
TyperTask is designed to help you by automating your keyboard typing. TyperTask
does this by looking for "signals," and then auto typing longer phrases. For
example, you may type your signature many times a day. With TyperTask, you
can just type "mysig" (or any other signal), and your full signature will
automatically be typed, while you are working in any program.
The basic format of the TyperTask mappings file is:
Trigger=Type This Text (one per line)
Signals can be either text or key combinations:
text=This was launched by a text trigger!
{control}{shift}{alt}W=You just pressed "Control + Shift + Alt + W"
* Hint: Please note that some key combinations may conflict with the operating
system. For example "Control+C" is the universal combo for "Copy." Avoid
these combos when setting signals. Use Control+Shift+Alt combos, or use text
signals.
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II. TYPERTASK FEATURES
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1. AUTOMATED KEYBOARD TYPING
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Typing is the primary job of TyperTask, and therefore it has advanced keyboard
control. TyperTask is able to automate nearly anything that you can do on
your keyboard by hand.
TyperTask can do normal typing, international characters, multiple lines,
cursor movement, and non-printable keys such as Control, Alt, and F1.
To use TyperTask most efficiently, you should choose unique signal keys. This
is important because you want triggers that are not usually typed, to avoid
conflicts with normal typing. For example, "the" would be a poor choice,
since it is a frequently typed word. A good method is to use special flag
characters, such as "~". You can create a group of TyperTask entries like
this:
~ty=Thank you very much!
~br=Best Regards{enter}-My Name
~1=C:\Program Files
* Hint: Another good use of TyperTask is to have it "auto-complete" phrases.
For example, a common long word like "Specifications" could be automated by
this much shorter signal:
speci=specifications
* Hint: Similarly, if you frequently misspell words like "receive", then add
entries to correct them (notice the space after "youre " below, which is a way
to only activate the trigger after the full word is typed):
recieve=receive
youre =you're
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2. RUN PROGRAMS
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TyperTask can not only automatically type for you, it can also launch
programs and websites. You indicate to TyperTask that you want to start
a program (instead of typing the name) with the "RUN:" command:
{Control}{Shift}{Alt}G=RUN: http://www.google.com
{Control}{Shift}{Alt}D=RUN: "My Document.doc"
go note=RUN: notepad.exe C:\Windows\win.ini
* Hint: Be sure to include quotes around path names if there are problems
starting the program/file.
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3. DELAYS
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TyperTask's automation capabilities also include DELAYS. The sample below
starts Notepad when you press Control+Shift+Alt+"N", waits one second
(1000 milliseconds) so the program can start, and then types a phrase:
{Control}{Shift}{Alt}N=RUN: notepad.exe{Delay=1000}Hello! {Delay=500}World!
* Hint: You can start multiple apps all with one command. This lets you start
a group of programs with a single trigger.
{Control}{Shift}X=RUN: notepad.exe{delay=250}RUN: calc.exe{delay=250}RUN: mspaint.exe
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4. WINDOW ACTIVATION
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TyperTask can activate a WINDOW (bring it to the front). This is done with the
"WINDOW:" command and providing the window title (partial titles are OK):
{Control}{Shift}{Alt}C=WINDOW: Calculator
* Hint: By combining multiple commands, you can activate a window and then begin
typing in it:
{Control}{Shift}{Alt}C=WINDOW: Calculator{Delay=1000}123
* Hint: Taking the above example a step further, you can combine
RUN + WINDOW + TYPE into a single automation command:
{Control}{Shift}{Alt}N=RUN: notepad.exe{delay=1000}WINDOW: Notepad{Delay=1000}Hello!
* Hint: You can combine multiple WINDOW commands to switch and type between
separate programs in a single TyperTask entry. This allows significant
PC automation with just a one action line.
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5. MOUSE CLICKS
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TyperTask can also activate MOUSE CLICKS. Clicks are based on the currently
active window. To perform screen-based clicks, simply have the desktop as the
active window. The following codes provide mouse actions:
{click 15, 12} --> Clicks the mouse in the current window at pixel 15,20
This would probably be on the titlebar's icon.
{click_dbl 100,200} --> Double-Clicks the mouse at pixel (100,200)
{click_right 15,12} --> Right-Clicks the mouse at pixel (15,12)
{mouse_return} --> Returns the mouse cursor to its original position.
* Hint: You can use the "Track Mouse" tool under the "Options" menu to determine
what pixel coordinates to use for mouse commands. Select this option, then
activate the window you want to automate, and the cursor position will be shown
in the TyperTask status bar (have TyperTask visible next to the acitve app).
* Hint: The following entry will switch to Calculator (if running), wait a
second, and click inside the window:
{control}{shift}{alt}C=WINDOW: Calculator{delay=1000}{click 35, 192}
* Hint: The following entry will right-click the mouse (and thus show a context
menu) in Notepad (if running):
{control}{shift}{alt}R=WINDOW: Notepad{delay=1000}{click_right 200, 200}
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6. CUSTOM LISTS
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You can create lookup lists for easy launching of programs and documents.
This feature will display a list of filenames that will be run when clicked.
Individual items are separated by semicolons (";"). For the example below,
when is pressed, a list of programs and documents is displayed:
{F7}=LIST: calc.exe; mspaint.exe; notepad.exe; %WINDIR%\win.ini
* Hint: The list window will initially show in the upper right corner of the
screen, but you can move the list to any location. The list window will
remember its last location.
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III. TYPERTASK KEY CODES AND VARIABLES
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1. SPECIAL KEY CODES
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TyperTask identifies non-alphanumeric keys (for example, the Left arrow) through
the use of "bracket codes," such as {left}. For a full list of all bracket
codes for system keys, please refer to the vTask Studio help file located at
http://www.vtaskstudio.com.
* Hint: To enter in newlines/returns, you can use {enter} or {return}.
Here are some common key codes:
{pagedown}
{pageup}
{enter}
{return}
{left}
{right}
{down}
{up}
{insert}
{delete}
{backspace}
{F1}
{F2}
{Num1}
{Num2}
{VolumeMute}
{VolumeUp}
{VolumeDown}
{controldown}
{controlup}
{shiftdown}
{shiftup}
{altdown}
{altup}
{delay=1000}
{delay=500}
{{yyyy}} = year, 4-digit
{{yy}} = year, 2-digit
{{mm}} = month
{{dd}} = day of month
{{hh}} = hour
{{uu}} = minute
* Hint: TyperTask is great for HTML editing and programming. For example, the
entry below will complete the BOLD tag, and place the cursor in the middle
of the tag:
{left}{left}{left}{left}
* Hint: Combining multiple features mentioned above, you can select text in
your editor, and then have TyperTask turn it into an HTML link:
{control}{shift}{alt}A={controldown}c{controlup}{controldown}v{controlup}
* Hint: For efficient parsing and consistency, TyperTask requires the
"Control + Shift + Alt" combination to be listed as "{control}{shift}{alt}".
In other words, it cannot be listed as "{alt}{shift}{control}" or in other ordering.
* Hint: When using combo triggers such as "{Control}{Shift}A", all keys must be
released before the automation can begin. This is to avoid conflicts with the
output text.
* Hint: TyperTask can control MEDIA commands, too. For example, the entries below will
control your PC speaker volume.
{control}{shift}{alt}{up}={VolumeUp}
{control}{shift}{alt}{down}={VolumeDown}
; This one will toggle the volume ON/OFF each time it's pressed:
{control}{shift}{alt}{pagedown}={VolumeMute}
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2. ENVIRONMENT VARIABLES
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TyperTask can also interpret ENVIRONMENT VARIABLES. These are system place
holders that are replaced with data/text at run time. They are delimited
by "%" characters. For example, the %TEMP% variable holds the folder name
for temporary files.
The operating system has numerous pre-set variables. These can be viewed by
typing "SET" in a command prompt window. They are also available in
"Control Panel - System - Advanced - Env Vars". You can also set new
variables to any value you want. Type "SET /?" for a complete explanation
and examples.
Below are some examples of environment variables:
; Opens a new command prompt window
cmd=RUN: %COMSPEC%
; Completes a path with a runtime variable
tmp=%TEMP%\temp_file.txt
; Demonstrates a custom variable that you can create
var1=Thank you for using %PRODUCT%! We hope %PRODUCT% helps you.
* Hint: Please be aware that you may need to re-login after setting custom
variables. This allows them to be refreshed & visible to TyperTask.
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IV. TYPERTASK ADDITIONAL TOOLS
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1. "REMOVE CLIPBOARD FORMATTING": This command converts any text in the
clipboard to unformatted text. This removes any fonts, colors, links, or
other formatting. This allows you to copy text from the internet and paste
it into other programs while retaining only the raw text.
No additional prompts or confirmation is shown after running; the clean
text can be pasted immediately after choosing the command.
This command is available in both the Options menu, as well as the popup
menu in the system tray icon (via the right mouse click).
2. "SHOW TOTAL AUTOMATIONS" will display a count of the number of trigger
matches (automations) performed during the current session (since TyperTask
was started), and a grand total of all trigger activations.
3. "TRACK MOUSE": This option will show the mouse location in pixels in the
TyperTask status bar. The coordinates will be based on the currently active
window. This feature is valuable for finding the positions of buttons, links,
or any other control or image. This pixel location can be clicked with the
MOUSE CLICKS command (explained above), such as {click 100, 200}.
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V. TYPERTASK TECHNICAL INFORMATION
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Reference for the "TyperTask.ini" settings:
window_left The size of the main window
window_top Window size
window_width Window size
window_height Window size
window_start Initialize as "minimized", "maximized", or "normal"
font Edit control font, such as "Tahoma,9"
file The current working file
tray Minimizes to the system tray (notification area)
wrap_text Wraps the text in the main edit control
activation_count The total number of triggers successfully used
Due to the free nature of this program, no personalized technical support
can be provided by Vista Software, Inc. staff.
Good luck with TyperTask, and please support vTask Studio if you like this
free tool! Be sure to check back for updates.
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VI. TYPERTASK LICENSE AGREEMENT
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1. All title and copyrights in and to the Software (including but not limited
to any images, photographs, animations, video, audio, music, and text
incorporated into the Software), the accompanying printed materials, and any
copies of the Software are owned by Vista Software, Inc. The Software is
protected by copyright laws and international treaty provisions.
2. You may not reverse engineer, decompile, or disassemble the Software. You
may not remove any proprietary notices, labels or marks on the program and
accompanying documentation. This Software may not be used in commercial
applications, resold, or leased without the prior written consent of Vista
Software, Inc.
3. The Software is provided AS IS and with all faults. Vista Software, Inc.
makes no representations or warranties of any kind concerning the quality,
safety or suitability of the Software, either express or implied, including
without limitation any implied warranties of merchantability, fitness for a
particular purpose, or non-infringement. In no event will Vista Software, Inc.
be liable for any indirect, punitive, special, incidental or consequential
damages however they may arise and even if Vista Software, Inc. has been
previously advised of the possibility of such damages.
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Copyright © 2012 Vista Software, Inc.
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
www.vtaskstudio.com
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