This is pretty much why there is no "append". "with space", "with comma"? "with new line" - before or after the appending. Etc. There would have to be a whole sub-menu of extra options to catch just the common cases.
The same issue applies to selecting multiple clipboards and pasting them all when people request some sort of additional insertion between them. The one you want is probably not the same as the one anyone else wants.
What I may add is an Append Text to Variable action, rather than requiring Set Variable to Text and using the variable in the token. And as @JimmyHartington notes, then a Prepend will also be useful.
I would be thrilled if there was a new action called “Append Text to Variable”. I append text a lot for things like making logs, queueing up commands, etc. I understand Peter’s concern about the separation characters.
My view is KM shouldn’t put any separation characters in when appending/prepending. Anything fancy like that and I end up calling Shell functions anyway.
Um thanks, but as I said, I already append text to a lot of things, and that’s how I do it. Do you not see the value in an Append Text to Variable action? It would make my code shorter. Also, there’s a bit of a bug in your example. If MyVariable is empty, the code you gave will put an extra carriage return before the text in your action. So that’s not exactly an appending action in your example. I’m sure you can fix your example, but it would be clearer if there was a new action that did appending.
It is not a bug; it is by design.
I take "append" to mean add something to something that already exists.
If you don't want the CR, then just remove it from the Set Variable action.
So, no, I personally do not see the value in having a separate "Append Text to Variable" action, since it can easily be achieved with existing Action.
The same approach is used in every programming language I have used: x = x + "append this"
That's 22 saved characters per action ("%Variable%%%Variable%%"), times perhaps 20 append actions per macro, times hundreds of macros. And an enormous gain in clarity. If those numbers are accurate that would save me approximately 44,000 characters of typing. Maybe nobody else uses append as much as I do, but I'm entitled to say I would be thrilled to see a new action. But I expect to lose this fight. I understand the minimalist philosophy to KM. Even so, I'm sure we could make a list of KM actions that are redundant and only there for clarity and simplicity.
I hope I don't get banned for having a differing opinion. I love KM and use it a lot every day.
No problem with opinions or requests. Many new/changed features have been provided in response to user requests. It is not up to me -- @peternlewis will weigh how well it fits in with the KM design and the cost/benefit and respond accordingly.
No one would ever get banned for respectfully stating a requested feature.
I have noted this down, and it is possible I will some ways to append in a future version, either with explicit actions, or with additional output options.