Restore Saved Mouse Location?

Questions & Suggestions
1

I have a KM macro that performs a number of actions in one app (idoceo), then opens another app (MS Word) and ends, allowing me to edit text. Then I have another KM macro that saves and closes Word and brings the first app back to the front. I would like to be able to store the mouse location from the first KM macro (first app) in a variable, then when I return to that first app, restore the mouse location.

I can set up separate KM actions to do the two desired steps (store, restore), but they don't work as intended, possibly because KM treats the stored variable as a local variable that gets deleted when the action ends. I need to store that mouse location globally so that it can be subsequently used elsewhere in another macro.

Is that possible? Is there a way to store the mouse location somewhere in KM so it can be used in other KM macros?

Thanks!

2

You can do the following

image

As long as the variable does not start with Local_, Instance_ (case insensitive), it will be treated as global stored variable.

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3

This example shows how much easier it would be if KM had predefined actions for such things. :slightly_smiling_face:

"Save current Mouse position"

and

"Restore saved Mouse position"

@pauhana would have found them and would not have had to ask. :man_shrugging:

Edit: However, then he would have had no contact with the very helpful people on this forum. Everything has advantages and disadvantages :wink:

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4

Just remove the Local__ prefix and it becomes a global variable.

(Oops, just realised @macdevign_mac beat me to it.)

5

I'm assuming the last action is an alternative to the second one but can't think of a reason why it might be preferred.

6

Except they would, because the problem wasn't with them getting/setting the pointer position but with having that value persist so it could be used in a different macro.

7

You could post a pack of commonly used favourites that new users can download and install if you like. There's no real difference between a favourite and a "predefined action". However, I feel that the forum is an extension of the app, so for simple things like this, it's usually only a couple of minutes' work to make them yourself, and it's a good way to learn about the logic of variables etc. As you say, advantages and disadvantages.

8

Searching the forum is frequently worth the effort.

Search results for 'restore mouse location' - Keyboard Maestro Discourse

9

Sorry for the long radio silence... end-of-semester madness here in Japan.

The solution turned out to be quite simple. Following Macdevign_mac's suggestion, I set a global variable for the mouse position in one macro. I could then restore that mouse position in another macro, and it works perfectly!

I agree with FrankB, it would have been easier if KM had a predefined action for mouse position, but then, as he also noted, I would never have 'met' all the helpful people in this forum.

As I get to know more about KM's incredible macro capabilities, I'm sure I'll be coming back for more help. Again, thanks, everyone!

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