"DESKTOP_MULTI_ACTION" Command

Owned by Joseph Hamdan
Last updated: Jun 11, 2024
2 min read

Description: This command is used to perform more complex operations such as holding Shift on the keyboard and many other desktop operations.

Usage Scenario: suppose we have a collection of files/folders where we must select only specific ones using one file/folder as a starting point, same as we can do when we use the mouse and SHIFT button.

Procedure: Define steps that navigate to the place where the files/folders are located and define a step that clicks on the file/folder which is a starting point. Then using Desktop_Multi_Action, select Key_Down with SHIFT to activate pressing SHIFT button. Then you can add steps using Desktop_Hotkeys with RIGHT to move to the right or LEFT to move to the left. Finally, you can add a step with Desktop_Multiaction with Key_Up with SHIFT to indicate that pressing SHIFT is finished. Your steps will look like this:

Starting Desktop_Multiaction activates pressing and holding SHIFT key on your keyboard

image-20240611-154644.png

Desktop_Hotkeys with RIGHT activates pressing the Right arrow hotkey on your keyboard

image-20240611-154727.png

Ending Desktop_Multi_Action step which activates dropping the pressed SHIFT key on your keyboard

Desktop commands are controlled by Locator Timeouts under User Execution Preferences. If the locator timeout is not sufficient enough for the command to find the element, you can increase Locator Timeout to give the step more time to work. It’s recommended to use 20 seconds for desktop commands.

The following video demonstrates how these steps get executed:

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