.f3 - # - Chapter 13 - Macros .rm70 .mt5 .mb5 .pl66 .tc .tc 13. MACROS ............................................# 13. MACROS A macro is essentially a pre recorded sequence of key strokes that you wish to execute. Each macro may contain up to 255 characters, and is stored in a macro file. Several macro files are provided with the Word Fugue package. They all end with the extension .MAC The standard one WF.MAC will always be loaded on startup. The files provided are:- WF.MAC standard macros for word processing SINGLE.MAC definitions for box drawing characters, concentrating on single lines. DOUBLE.MAC definitions for box drawing characters, concentrating on double lines. GREEK.MAC allows access to the Greek character set (as supported by the IBM PC) EUROPE.MAC allows access to the European characters supported by the IBM PC. PASCAL.MAC assorted macros for pascal programmers. Each macro has an identifying character that is used to activate it or replay it. These identifiers are the numbers 0 to 9, and the letters A to Z. Lowercase and uppercase letters are treated the same. You can only load one macro file at a time, but you can use macros to load other macro files and execute macros from there. In addition you can load a different macro file to execute a single command, and the return to your original macro file. You can have a set of macro files in each directory you use if necessary, since Word Fugue looks in the current directory when loading a macro file. When first started, Word Fugue will look for the macro file WF.MAC in the default directory and if it does not find it there, will look in the defined home directory. .tc Recording A Macro ..................................# Recording A Macro Before you can use macros, you need to set them up. The simplest method is to record a sequence of key strokes. You achieve this by pressing Alt R at the start of the sequence, and Alt R again when you have finished. You will be prompted with a list of macros in the macro file, and you will be asked to choose one to use as the repository of the characters you have just recorded. Use the cursor movement keys to highlight the macro you wish to store the keystrokes in, and press Return. You will then be prompted for a name for the macro, which is displayed whenever a list of available macros is displayed. Enter something meaningful, and if possible, prefix it with the letter that will be used to activate it. You need to be sure that the sequence of keystrokes you enter is correct, since they will be replayed exactly as you entered them. However, if necessary, you can edit the stored macro command to correct it. .tc Editing A Macro ....................................# Editing A Macro Macros recorded within WordFugue can be edited on a character by character basis using the built-in macro editor. Enter the command Alt E to edit a macro from the current set of loaded macros. A list of the current macros will be displayed, and you select the one you want by use of the cursor keys to highlight the appropriate one, and pressing Return to select it. First, a prompt box will ask for a new name for the macro, which you can accept as is, or change. You should always include the activation letter in the name, for ease when replaying. The macros numbered 1 to 9 are activated by the numbers 1 to 9, while those numbered 10 to 35 are activated by pressing the letters A to Z in that order. The macro will appear in another window. It can be edited using the cursor keys, and the  or  keys. Most characters you type will be inserted literally into the macro.  will delete the macro.  will end the session in the macro editor.  will undo any changes made to the macro. In case you need to enter any of these special keys as part of the macro, press the  key to enter Literal mode. In this mode, all keystrokes will be inserted into the macro without any interpretation. In order to terminate the edit when in this mode, you will need to press  again in order to enter the Return or ESC characters. .tc Saving A Macro File ................................# Saving A Macro File If the macro you have recorded are to be of any use in later sessions of Word Fugue, you will need to save the file containing them. The command sequence Alt W will save the macro file. You will be prompted to enter a file name, with the current file name being displayed. You can either edit it, or press Return to accept it. If the filename already exists, you will be prompted with Overwrite File? (Y/N) . If you enter Y the file will be overwritten. If you press N or ESC, the file will not be overwritten. In this situation you will need to enter the command again and type in a different file name. .tc Playing Back A Macro ...............................# Back A Macro Having set up a macro, you can now play it back. There are several commands available to do this. .tc Activate Macro 1 to 9 ...........................# Activate Macro 1 to 9 These macros can be activated by pressing Alt1 to Alt9 using the numbers on the main keyboard above the letters. (Not the numeric key pad - they will not work!!). You should place you most often used macros in slots 1 to 9, since they are the easiest to activate. .tc Activate Macro ..................................# Activate Macro This command waits for the next keystroke, and if it is a macro identifier, activates that macro. Press Alt M or ESC (wordstar compatible command). The top line will display choose macro to apply. If you enter 0 to 9 or A to Z, the appropriate macro will be activated. Press any other key to abort playback. This command assumes that you know which macros you have available, and will not display any list. The macro will be replayed once. .tc Choose Macro From List ..........................# Choose Macro From List This command displays a list of available macros for you to choose from. Press Alt 0 to activate this command. You select the macro you want by use of the cursor control keys to highlight the one you want, and press Return to select it. The menu will disappear, and the macro will be replayed once. If you change your mind, press ESC to abort the command. .tc Replay Macro Many Times .........................# Replay Macro Many Times Press Alt - to activate this command. This command displays a list of available macros for you to choose from. You select the macro you want by use of the cursor control keys to highlight the one you want, and press Return to select it. The menu will disappear, and you will be prompted for the number of times to replay the macro. If you change your mind, press ESC to abort the command. You will be told how many times the macro can fit in the replay buffer. Enter a number and press Return. The macro will replay the number of times you entered. This is especially useful with the line drawing macros. .tc Find And Apply Macro ............................# Find And Apply Macro This function allows you to apply a macro to text that the Find / Replace command highlights. Press Ctrl Q M and a pop up search window will display. Enter the text to be searched for. You will then be prompted for the macro to replay. A list of available macros for you to choose from will be displayed. You select the macro you want by use of the cursor control keys to highlight the one you want, and press Return to select it. You then enter the search / replace options. Refer to the chapter on Find/Replace for more information on these. The cursor will be positioned at the end of the found text, and you will be prompted whether to apply the macro or not (unless you specified the N option for Do Not Ask). If you select Y then the macro you selected will be applied to the text. .CP10 .tc Example Macros ..................................# Example Macros 1 Delete Word Left: 4 Spell check this word: D Date dd month yyyy: @@D8 H HRHighness: Her Royal Highness Queen Elizabeth II X Datestamp file at EOF: 0 ..Changed @D6 @T0 00 Set marker 0 Go to bottom of file and insert text ..Changed followed by a blank Insert date Insert time Terminate line with CR Return to marker 0 Switch off marker 0 .tc Loading A Macro File ...............................# Loading A Macro File There are 2 methods of loading a Macro file, the first to load a file for usage, and the second to load a file to replay only one macro and then to re-load the original macro file. This second command is very useful for extending the number of macros available by placing less frequently used ones on a separate file. .tc Load A Macro File ...............................# Load A Macro File Pressing the command Alt L will prompt you for a file name to load as a macro file. The default extension for a macro file is .MAC. You may use wild cards to search the directory. If you press ESC you can abort the load process, and the currently loaded file remains loaded. Otherwise the new macro file will be loaded for use. You can have different macro files for different tasks, such as the line drawing macro files supplied with Word Fugue and the Pascal macros also supplied. Once a macro file is loaded using this command, it remains loaded until you load another file. .tc Temporarily Load A New Macro File ...............# Temporarily Load A New Macro File This command loads a new macro file to enable you to execute one command from the file. The old macro file is then reloaded. Press Ctrl J I M and you will be prompted for the name of the macro file to load. You will then be presented with the list of available macros for you to select one to replay. You select the macro you want by use of the cursor control keys to highlight the one you want, and press Return to select it. The macro will be replayed once, and then the original macro file will be reloaded. If you change your mind, you can press ESC at any stage, and the process will abort and the original macro file will reload.