[SOLVED] A Shortkey Win-5 (in the numpad) under w8.1

[Contro]

I have certain problems with the shortkeys in windows 8.1
One is the combination win+5 from the numpad keyboard.

When i press wht Windows key happen nothing, but when is depressed appear the "initial" screen :



The purpose of the combination win+5 is open a folder.

Whe I press 5 appear both : the initial screen and the folder. How can I configure to appear only the folder when this combination is executed ?

Note : i mean the "initial" screen flash and after appear the folder...
In others temptation the "initial" screen remain forefront, others dissapear but the folder opens hidden by the firefox window....
Seems very rare to me.
Perhaps exist a way to condition the behavior of the "initial" screen.

Best Regards

[Contro]

I am using the combination win-5 from Phrase Express

I have observed the system don't allow to configurate a shortkey from the properties of a folder. Seems only Ctrl-alt-letter or number.



The ctrl-end command is for go to the end of the folder.

Best Regards

[IainB]

@Contro: If the Win+5 hotkey is reserved in Windows 8.1 as the system hotkey to display that Metro Tile panel, then you could consider using some other combination hotkey that is unlikely to be used by anything else.
I suggested a way to do this in the post Give yourself at least another 26 unique hotkey combos with Microsoft's remapkey

It's a dead simple (but not really obvious) approach for avoiding any likely potential present and future conflict with reserved system hotkeys.

[Contro]

@Contro: If the Win+5 hotkey is reserved in Windows 8.1 as the system hotkey to display that Metro Tile panel, then you could consider using some other combination hotkey that is unlikely to be used by anything else.
I suggested a way to do this in the post Give yourself at least another 26 unique hotkey combos with Microsoft's remapkey

It's a dead simple (but not really obvious) approach for avoiding any likely potential present and future conflict with reserved system hotkeys.

But IanB, the combination win+ seems not to be reserved

Only the windows key take effects. If I close phrase express no effect under win+5

Other strange thing is this :

Using the utility WinHotKey Configuration I obtain the desired folder only deactivation the numpad !!!!!!!!!!!!! ( that is to say that the number 5 in the keypad is no active !!!!). And works fine !!!!!!

I was trying now with a little script beginning with #numpad5::

[IainB]

...But IanB, the combination win+ seems not to be reserved
Only the windows key take effects. If I close phrase express no effect under win+5
Other strange thing is this :
Using the utility WinHotKey Configuration I obtain the desired folder only deactivation the numpad !!!!!!!!!!!!! ( that is to say that the number 5 in the keypad is no active !!!!). And works fine !!!!!!
I was trying now with a little script beginning with #5::
__________________________________

Sorry, I had misunderstood your post. Now I begin to understand, I think.
Maybe PhraseExpress could be the cause of this odd behaviour?
Where you say:

...When i press wht Windows key happen nothing, but when is depressed appear the "initial" screen :

This sounds very much like what you can do in AutoHotkey, where an action is triggered not on the key being pressed, but on the pressed key being released ("de-pressed").

[Contro]

How can I do IainB ?

I have observed what you say also in windows 8.1 . The screen appear when the key is de-pressed

The most of the times appear and dissapear remaining the folder I want to open.

Also fail the Phrase Express script sometimes opening the screenshots folder, but not the month, only the year....



I have downloaded the last free version of Phrase Express, but is the same.

[Contro]

With little script open well the folders

Code

#NoEnv  ; Recommended for performance and compatibility with future AutoHotkey releases.
; #Warn  ; Enable warnings to assist with detecting common errors.
SendMode Input  ; Recommended for new scripts due to its superior speed and reliability.
SetWorkingDir %A_ScriptDir%  ; Ensures a consistent starting directory.
#numpad5::
Run, "O:\PANTALLAZOS"
Run, "O:\PANTALLAZOS\2017"

In the example opens two folders.

I need this going well with Phrase Express.

Perhaps running the autohotkey script inside Phrase express.
What I don't want is a single resident for this purpose is possible.

Then I will need to use variables of the year and month of the screenshot to open the exact folder, and navigate after opening to its end.

[Contro]

Exist actually a remapping tools really effective for windows 8.1
I am reading in several places is a complex modification in the windows registry. And with impredictible results....



I have read there is not Resources Tool kit for windows 8.1....

So not remap keyboard tool... ?

[IainB]

@Contro: (responding to your points above)

1. PhraseExpress:

• I have trialled PhraseExpress on and off, over the years, and it always seemed buggy/unreliable/kludgy to me, so I never used it beyond brief, disappointing intermittent trials. In any event, I reckon it is pretty much redundant if one has AHK installed and if AHK is being put to good use (e.g., with AutoCorrect.ahk).
  
• It may be that I still misunderstand what your requirements are here, but I would therefore suggest that you dump PhraseExpress and don't waste any more valuable time on trying to get it to work properly, or trying to figure it out or trying to conform to its peculiar idiosyncrasies. It's a kinda "black box".

2. Navigation to specific folders:

• If you wanted a hotkey to (say) open Windows Explorer and jump to a particular screenshots folder - e.g., in (say) C:\Users\%userprofile%\Pictures\Screenshots - when you press the hotkey Win+5, then just create an AHK script to do that (as you seem to have been attempting already, above).
  
• If you then want to (say) navigate to a particular "favourite" subfolder within that, then use the Windows Explorer navigation to do that.
  
• But even that seems a tad tedious. Using specific AHK or PhraseExpress hotkeys to perform that subfolder navigation would seem to be reinventing a perfectly good wheel, being inefficient and defeating the objective of having a GUI with good ergonomics in the first place, thus I don't see the point in doing that, so I can't really offer any useful advice on that approach.   
  
• Otherwise, to quickly navigate to subfolders, rather than tediously engineering specific hotkeys, I would suggest that you could consider using tools such as, for example:
  
  1. FARR
  2. FileBX
  3. LaunchBarCommander
  4. Listary
  5. the folder Bookmarks function in xplorer².
  (I'd recommend experimentation/trial using of all of these, as, though they might overlap in some areas, one will likely discover that they each have their peculiar/useful advantages and can complement one another.)

3, Keyboard mapping:

• Take a look at this useful DCF discussion thread: Mini-review of 1-hour software by Skrommel: CAPshift v1.7 and ShiftOff v1.2
  
• Microsoft's remapkey.exe is described and downloadable from here: Tip - dispatching the CapsLock gremlin with Microsoft's remapkey.exe There is a dead link there to an article on another website, which is on Wayback:  How do I... Turn off the Caps Lock key on my keyboard? | TechRepublic
  
• Instead of wasting time raising half-understood objections to keyboard mapping, please just suck-it-and-see. Microsoft's remapkey will not disappoint, and it works seamlessly with all Windows versions from Windows 98 through to Windows 10-64 PRO. The only thing I have found to be a problem is that major Windows updates sometimes zap the registry settings made by remapkey, so the proggy then has to be re-run once, the system rebooted, and all keys are thus mapped back to what you wanted. Apart from those update resets, the keyboard mapping is otherwise persistent and stable (which is what one would probably expect from a Microsoft key-mapping product).

[Contro]

Thanks IainB, I'll take a good look and comment.

I want to experiment a little now with autohotkey, and comment too....

Thanks a lot.

1. I am using the free from several years. 2007 or so. I have created a lot of phrases. Is not simple for me to change. Unleast I can migrate easily to other similar platform.
I am used - for one time - to the commands of phrase express. As you know my memory is not my strong point....

[Contro]

Sigo haciendo algo mal. Tendré que revisar si estoy aplicando un compilador antiguo.
me da un par de errores al compilar.

Voy a bajarme un compilador nuevo. No tiene mucho sentido que el ahk funcione bien (salvo el error windows del UAC desactivado) y que el exe de errores al compilarse.

[wraith808]

Sigo haciendo algo mal. Tendré que revisar si estoy aplicando un compilador antiguo.
me da un par de errores al compilar.

Voy a bajarme un compilador nuevo. No tiene mucho sentido que el ahk funcione bien (salvo el error windows del UAC desactivado) y que el exe de errores al compilarse.

I am still doing something wrong. I'll have to check if I'm applying an old compiler. It gives me a couple of errors when compiling.

I'm going to get a new compiler. Doesn't make much sense that the ahk works well (except for the disabled UAC windows error) and that the exe errors when compiling it.

(For those that don't speak the language in question, I've thrown it in google translate and posted the translation)

[Contro]

Sigo haciendo algo mal. Tendré que revisar si estoy aplicando un compilador antiguo.
me da un par de errores al compilar.

Voy a bajarme un compilador nuevo. No tiene mucho sentido que el ahk funcione bien (salvo el error windows del UAC desactivado) y que el exe de errores al compilarse.

I am still doing something wrong. I'll have to check if I'm applying an old compiler. It gives me a couple of errors when compiling.

I'm going to get a new compiler. Doesn't make much sense that the ahk works well (except for the disabled UAC windows error) and that the exe errors when compiling it.

Sorry wraith808 this answer don't go still in this forum.
When I have the full answer I will answer IainB.

Best Regards

P.d. I am trying the script in ahk, autoit and batch to try under photo express. Firts attemps go bad.

[wraith808]

Sigo haciendo algo mal. Tendré que revisar si estoy aplicando un compilador antiguo.
me da un par de errores al compilar.

Voy a bajarme un compilador nuevo. No tiene mucho sentido que el ahk funcione bien (salvo el error windows del UAC desactivado) y que el exe de errores al compilarse.

I am still doing something wrong. I'll have to check if I'm applying an old compiler. It gives me a couple of errors when compiling.

I'm going to get a new compiler. Doesn't make much sense that the ahk works well (except for the disabled UAC windows error) and that the exe errors when compiling it.

Sorry wraith808 this answer don't go still in this forum.
When I have the full answer I will answer IainB.

Best Regards

P.d. I am trying the script in ahk, autoit and batch to try under photo express. Firts attemps go bad.

You wrote a post in a language that most here probably don't speak, so I posted a translation.  That is all.

[Contro]

0. I am using FileBX from windows xp. But I haven't see the option for variables paths.
0. I have used Launchy in the past, but don't remember the option to launch a variable folder.
0. I have used FARR in the past and I must revise now : "Customize hotkey triggers to launch and perform specific searches, or copy selected text to the clipboard at launch .". Have one of the best forum.
0. I have used LaunchBarCommander in the past, but some reason (I am more used to PE - phrase express) i don't continue using. Have one of the best forum.
0. Listary. As long as i can remember is a paid option and I prefer now freeware
0. the folder Bookmarks function in xplorer². I think is paid option and I prefer now a freeware.

I think my past actions are conditioned for the system in that moment. Now i am used to run several virtual machines. With 32 GB RAM DDR4 I think I can address to more than one resident for this purpose.
I have the possibility to use AHK or a launcher similar to Phrase Express.
FARR and LaunchBarCommand are the first line to try.

I am trying also to find alternatives to phrase express. Even the possibility to migrate de scripts from one to another. And better is have a free option :


1. https://www.phraseexpander.com/order/, is not free, but have the possibility to migrate scripts from Phrase Express. But perhaps with my present RAM I don't need the option. Only substitute some disfunctional hotkeys...
2. Keypirinha A lightning fast and flexible keystroke launcher for Windows. No installation required (portable). Extensible with Python3 plugins.
3. Pulover’s Macro Creator Pulover’s Macro Creator is a Free Automation Tool and Script Generator. It is based on AutoHotkey language and provides users with... ( I have tried in the past, but for some reason I continue with PhraseExpress). I suppose by simplicity . Managing the RAM. Also has a forum sharing with ahk forum.
4. Executor , is also a hotkey manager. I don't know is manage variable paths.
5. Strokes Plus . I remember use StrokeIt in the past. As many times in the past i need to simplify. Too many hotkeys to memorize. Too many programs running....
6. synapse . I find this and sound interesting. For try something different from time to time. I don't understand this program and even think is for Linux... Vala Language
7. I have now a functional ahk script and perhaps i can disable the disfunctional script in phrase express until they solve the problem (BTW : they don't answer in the pe forum)
I Keep Trying

[Contro]

I have this script from Flipeador in ahk forum.

Code

#NoEnv  ; Recommended for performance and compatibility with future AutoHotkey releases.
; #Warn  ; Enable warnings to assist with detecting common errors.
SendMode Input  ; Recommended for new scripts due to its superior speed and reliability.
SetWorkingDir %A_ScriptDir%  ; Ensures a consistent starting directory.
#numpad5::
Loop, Files, O:\pantallazos\%A_YYYY%\%A_MM%.%A_YYYY%\*.*, FD
    LF := A_LoopFileName

OpenFolderAndSelectItems("O:\pantallazos\" . A_YYYY . "\" . A_MM . "." . A_YYYY, LF)

OpenFolderAndSelectItems(DirName, Files, Flags := 0)
{
    Local Items, Each, FileName, ITEMLIST, PIDL, R
    
    DirName := StrLen(DirName) < 4 ? SubStr(DirName, 1, 1) . ":" : RTrim(DirName, "\")
    Items   := []

    For Each, FileName In (IsObject(Files) ? Files : [Files])
        If (FileExist(DirName . "\" . FileName))
            Items.Push(FileName)

    If (!Items.MaxIndex())
        Return (-2)

    VarSetCapacity(ITEMLIST, Items.MaxIndex() * A_PtrSize)

    For Each, FileName In Items
    {
        DllCall("Shell32.dll\SHParseDisplayName", "Str", DirName . "\" . FileName, "Ptr", 0, "PtrP", PIDL, "UInt", 0, "Ptr", 0)
        NumPut(PIDL, ITEMLIST, (A_Index - 1) * A_PtrSize, "Ptr")
    }
    
    DllCall("Ole32.dll\CoInitializeEx", "Ptr", 0, "UInt", 0)
    DllCall("Shell32.dll\SHParseDisplayName", "Ptr", &DirName, "Ptr", 0, "PtrP", PIDL, "UInt", 0, "Ptr", 0)
    R := DllCall("Shell32.dll\SHOpenFolderAndSelectItems", "Ptr", PIDL, "UInt", Items.MaxIndex(), "Ptr", &ITEMLIST, "UInt", Flags)
    
    DllCall("Ole32.dll\CoTaskMemFree", "Ptr", PIDL)
    Loop (Items.MaxIndex())
        DllCall("Ole32.dll\CoTaskMemFree", "Ptr", NumGet(ITEMLIST, (A_Index - 1) * A_PtrSize, "Ptr"))
    DllCall("Ole32.dll\CoUninitialize")

    Return (R ? -1 : 0)
} ;https://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/windows/desktop/bb762232(v=vs.85).aspx

Goes well as a ahk file, but after compiling give me errors. I have decided to update ahk.
I don't see a clear method to inhabilitate a script in PE without deleting, so limited the script only running Virtualbox. Seems works fine and have no effects.

If i can't compile for any reason i wll charge the ahk in startup delayer or propose in the startup folder.

The main reason for this crisis may be solved, but I will experiment with FARR and LaunchBarCommander until total solution.

Best Regards

[Contro]

I have installed FARR and LaunchBarCommander.
Also Keypirinha.
And recover Power Tray from Lopesoft.
At first glance I don't see this program in the web because is not in development in English
I work hard in this program some years ago. It's not a good portable, but I install in portable mode and then restore the configuration file.
Keypirinha seems powerful and some aspects don't differ from FARR, but the configuration is less GUI, using an ini file to be edited directly by the user. Not all users may be in comfort with this...
On 30.09.2008 I wrote down in my CRM : Don't like LaunchBarCommander . Use a simple superior bar... . I don't remember what I mean by that, but at the present moment is a powerful launcher . I suppose an initial configuration that bothers me some years ago. Now "My First Dock" , after revising my comment, is also a powerful dock i can place on top of the screen.
I have four personalyzed menus with power tray that will require a couple of hours  - minimum - to adapt to any other launcher...

FARR have some learning curve, as LaunchBarCommander or Power Tray.

I am compelled to try ahk scripts now I have some concepts clear and some help to do it.

But FARR and LaunchBarCommander are installed and I take a slow look from time to time.

Best Regards

[IainB]

I forgot to mention:
Give yourself at least another 26 unique hotkey combos with Microsoft's remapkey

[Contro]

I forgot to mention:
Give yourself at least another 26 unique hotkey combos with Microsoft's remapkey

Thanks indeed IainB 

[IainB]

Quote from: IainB on 2017-09-03, 06:33:06
I forgot to mention:
Give yourself at least another 26 unique hotkey combos with Microsoft's remapkey
Thanks indeed IainB 

Oops! i forgot that I had already mentioned it earlier!!   
(I just saw it now.)

[IainB]

@Contro:

... 0. Listary. As long as i can remember is a paid option and I prefer now freeware...
_______________________________

I re-read this thread as it came up as a search result for something I was looking for. I noticed the above-quoted statement of yours about Listary and thought I should let you know that the basic Listary is, in fact, $FREE, whilst the Pro version is $PAID.

The $FREE version is perfectly useful for my purposes, though I find Listary itself to be too intuitive/invasive in use - it keeps sort of "getting in the way", anticipating what I am typing about, and so, rather than having it running all the time, I tend to only enable it for short periods when I specifically need to use some of its unique/peculiar features.