AutoKey is a desktop automation utility for Linux and X11. It allows you to create scripts and assign hotkeys to these scripts, allowing you to execute them on demand in whatever program you are using.
Compatibility with various distro and keyboard layout
Personally I did not test it on all the Linux distro and all the different keyboard layout. However, according to the developer of Autokey:The core part of AutoKey is sending and receiving keyboard events via the X server. It supports multiple X interfaces and should therefore be compatible with virtually any version of Linux running an X server. Full unicode support is provided and it should in theory work with any keyboard layout.Theoretically, it should work for all Linux distros and keyboard layout.
Installation
(the following installation instruction is based on Ubuntu)Open a terminal and type:
1 | sudo add-apt-repository ppa:cdekter/ppa |
2 | sudo apt-get update |
1 | sudo apt-get install autokey-gtk |
1 | sudo apt-get install autokey-qt |
Usage
Go to Applications -> Accessories -> Autokey.
You will see on the left pane two folders named My Phrases and Sample Scripts. The My Phrases folder is binded to the hotkey “Ctrl + F7“.
To get a feel of the capability of Autokey, open a text editor and press Ctrl + F7, you should see the context menu with Address option. When you select the Home address field, you should see the address pasted to the text editor.
Usage: creating your own hotkey
To create your own hotkey, go to File -> Create -> New Top Level Folder.
The Top Level Folder is the container for all your phrases and scripts. You can assign a hotkey to it and call it up in any applications. To assign a hotkey, simply highlight the TopLevel Folder entry and click the Set button beside the Hotkey option. You can then choose the modifier key (Ctrl, Shift, Alt or Super) and the shortcut key.
After creating the top level folder, the next thing is to create a phrase or a script.
Phrase
The Phrase is a snippet of text that you use frequently. With a quick press of the shortcut key, you can quickly insert the phrase to the document that you are working at.
Go to File -> Create -> New Phrase. Enter the phrase content in the big text area and assign a shortcut key in the Hotkey option below.
Other than assigning hotkey, you can also use a abbreviation for the phrase. For example, I have set the abbreviation “mte” to the phrase “http://maketecheasier.com”. Now I just need to type “MTE” and it will automatically be replaced with the full URL.
Scripts
For those who have knowledge of scripting, you can add your script, assign a hotkey and get it to run anywhere else. For those who know nuts about scripting, the “Record Marco” function can help you to record simple keyboard events.
Posts
