Introduction To Macros

A macro is like a tape recorder that you turn on to record all your keystrokes until you turn off the recorder. Macros are a very powerful feature. Macros can modify or change hundreds of records in seconds. Any keystroke sequence that can be performed consistently can be recorded in a macro and replayed at any time.

Using macros can be very efficient and helpful but keystrokes must be consistent. For instance, you may change a field value in many records using a macro. However, if changing this value occasionally causes a message to display on the screen, this will cause the macro to fail because the steps are not consistent for each record.

It is important to know exactly what should happen when you run a macro. For this, you need practice. Try to routine on a copy of your database or in the Demodb database. When you are confident with the consistent results, then you can apply run the macro in your Masterdb database.

When you create a macro, it is strongly recommended to use only keystrokes as much as possible and leave the mouse alone. If you try to use the mouse, Collect! records the exact position of the mouse pointer. This may be different from one computer to another and may cause anomalies when running a macro. Using keyboard keystrokes and shortcut keys will create a macro that is reliable no matter which computer the macro is running on.

Create a macro to use for one time, or save it with a unique name so that you may recall it and reuse it again.

Please refer to How To Use Macros for information on creating and using macros.

See Also

- Macro Menu
- Edit Macro Menu
- How To Use Macros