This page is a collection of useful ＆ simple AutoHotkey scripts. If you are not familiar with ahk, first see: AutoHotkey Basics.
The Num Lock and ScrLk keys are almost never used. The Caps Lock is also a problem for many people because it is easy to hit by accident. You can disable them.
; set the default state of the lock keys SetCapsLockState, off SetNumLockState, on SetScrollLockState, off ; disable them $NumLock::Return $ScrollLock::Return $CapsLock::Return
; make Caps Lock key do Control CapsLock::Ctrl
For more key syntax, see: AutoHotkey Key Notations.
; make the capslock key behave as menu/AppsKey CapsLock::AppsKey
The ▤ Menu key is actually very useful. See: What's the Use of the ▤ Menu/App Key? The Fantasticality of the ▤ Menu Key❕.
Disable ❖ Win key, but don't disable 【❖ Win+‹key›】 combination.
;; disable Win key behavior of popping up the Start Menu, but don't disable Win+‹key› combination ~LWin Up::Return ~RWin Up::Return
;; disable some Win+‹key› combination #1::Return ; disable Win+1 #r::Return ; disable Win+r #e::Return ; disable Win+e
Note: the 【❖ Win+l】 (lock computer) cannot be disabled. (possibly a few others) See also: Windows Logo Key Shortcuts List.
;; disable the Win key completely Lwin::return ; disable left Win Rwin::return ; disable right Win
If you are using Microsoft Keyboards, you can just disable the ❖ Win key using the bundled IntelliType. (open it in the Keyboard control panel) But even with IntelliType, it still won't disable 【❖ Win+l】. See also: Microsoft IntelliType Hacks.
#F1::Return ; disable Windows Help
RWin::AppsKey ; make the right Win key behave as AppsKey
;; swap Alt and Ctrl ;; this doesn't work perfectly, when you need to press Shift or others with Alt or Ctrl Ctrl::Alt Alt::Ctrl
It is useful to have a single button to switch to last window or last application.
; set Left Windows Key for switching to previous window/app $LWin::Send !{Tab}
〔☛ How to Set Key to Switch to Browser for {Mac, Linux, Windows}〕
$F2::Send ^x ; cut $F3::Send ^c ; copy $F4::Send ^v ; paste
$#Del::FileRecycleEmpty ; Win+Del to empty trash (recycle bin)
open recycle bin:
$F5::RUN ::{645ff040-5081-101b-9f08-00aa002f954e} ; open trash (recycle bin)
Many keyboards have special buttons to control sound level, but they are a pain to use. Because, the button change volume by a tiny amount. You have to press it 5 or 10 times. If you hold it, for a second nothing happens, then all of a sudden it became too loud.
The following script changes volume by 10%, using Ctrl and the + and - on the numberpad.
;; Win+NumpadSub decrease sound volume, Win+NumpadAdd increase sound volume $#NumpadAdd::Send {Volume_Up 5} ; increase sound level $#NumpadSub::Send {Volume_Down 5} ; decrease sound level
If you have a multimedia keyboard with special keys such as Microsoft Ergonomic Keyboard, and want increase sound volume by one of its special button, here's what you can do.
Create a file of the following content and save it as increase_sound.ahk:
#NoTrayIcon Send {Volume_Up 5} ; increase sound level
Then, use IntelliType to assign the keyboard's special button to launch the script.
You can set mouse wheel to adjust volume, with a visible volume bar. In the following, press F1 starts the Volume Mixer, then you can use mouse scroll wheel to change with visual feedback.
; F1 to activate Sound Level control (Volume Mixer) $F1::Run "C:\Windows\System32\SndVol.exe"
; Pause/Break key closes browser tab Pause::Send ^w ; close browser tab ; make F11 and F12 to switch tabs in Firefox $F11::Send ^{PgUp} ; prev tab $F12::Send ^{PgDn} ; next tab
Windows has many different keyboard shortcuts to close the window. For example, 【Alt+F4】 closes the application, 【Ctrl+F4】 or 【Ctrl+w】 closes current tab or window in browsers, Esc usually closes dialog boxes. (See: Microsoft Windows Keyboard Shortcuts) All these can be thought of closing the current visible box. You can define a easy key, so that it'll close the current browser tab, or window, or application. Here's a example:
;;; make the “Pause/Break” key to close window or tab. ; which key to send depends on the application Pause:: IfWinActive ahk_class ATH_Note { ; ATH_Note is Windows Mail ; Ctrl+F4 Send !{F4} } IfWinActive ahk_class Notepad { ; Alt+F4 Send !{F4} } Else IfWinActive ahk_class Outlook Express Browser Class { WinMinimize, A } Else IfWinActive ahk_class IrfanView { Send {Esc} } Else ; IE, Firefox, Google Chrome, Opera { Send ^w } Return
The code checks what application is the current window, by the IfWinActive lines. When you want a hotkey to check what is the current window or if it exists, you can use
“IfWinActive” or “IfWinExist”.
To find out what is the window's “ahk_class”, right click on the AHK icon and chose “Window Spy”, then click on a window you want.
Suppose you want a hotkey that launches a browser, but if it is already running, just switch to it. Here's how.
; F7 to launch or switch to Firefox $F7:: IfWinExist Mozilla Firefox { WinActivateBottom, Mozilla Firefox } Else { Run "C:\Users\Public\Desktop\Mozilla Firefox.lnk" } Return
It would be great to have a key to maximize the current window to full screen size, and press again to restore to the original size. See: AutoHotkey: Script to Toggle Maximize Window.
You can also hide/minimize current window, like this:
; make Insert key to hide (minimize) current window $Insert::WinMinimize, A
Note: in Microsoft Windows 7, you can maximize by 【❖ Win+↑】 and restore by 【❖ Win+↓】. 〔☛ Windows Logo Key Keyboard Shortcuts〕
You have many personal hotkeys. In some situations, you want these hotkeys to be off temporarily. You can create a hotkeyX, so that it'll disable all your hotkeys, and press hotkeyX again to turn all your hotkeys back on. Here's a example:
; make the scroll lock key (ScrLk) toggle all hotkeys. $ScrollLock::Suspend
When hotkeys are suspended, the AutoHotkey icon in your system notification area changes to S.
; swap middle/right buttons $RButton::MButton $MButton::RButton
for why you want to do this, see: Swap Mouse Buttons: Right-Click ＆ Middle-Click for {Window, Linux}.
Here's my hotkey setup files. https://github.com/xahlee/xah_autohotkey_scripts