Use of %user_input% vs %variable%user_input%

Questions & Suggestions
7

Hi @ronald. Like @tiffle I always use the longer form:

%Variable%local_MyVar%

Also, during development and debugging I often use the following in Display Text (display text in a window) actions:

local_MyVar : [%Variable%local_MyVar%]

and

local_MyVar
⋯⋯⋯⋯⋯⋯⋯⋯⋯⋯⋯⋯
%Variable%local_MyVar%

I use a KM macro to do all three. The steps are simple:

  • select local_MyVar.
  • press Hyper+v, Hyper+w, or Hyper+x, respectively.

(For those not familiar with Hyper, that's short for ⌃⌥⇧⌘. Many people using Karabiner-Elements to remap their Caps Lock key to ⌃⌥⇧⌘. I think I first heard about this from Brett Terpstra: A Hyper Key with Karabiner Elements, full instructions. All Mac automators need to check out Brett's site.)

If you are interested in this macro, it's available here: Augment or Filter Text

As the name implies, it's more general purpose (and can be configured), but the three expansions mentioned above are configured out of the box.

This macro may be of no use for anyone that has Typinator or TextExpander, but for those that don't, it can save a lot of keystrokes.

BTW, this topic came up during a recent Automators podcast. I wrote about it here and here.

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