Macro 'drifts' off point after a while

[sylph]

I use my Workspace Macro Pro to enter information into web forms on the internet at multiple sites while I sleep. I schedule them to run every one, two, or five minutes from around 2am until around 4am, sometimes longer, depending on how many I do, of course. I usually create the one macro, and then edit and 'save as' that macro several times but inserting different information into the edit. I then run each and every macro to make sure they are performing correctly. These macros have a run life or around one to two weeks before they are deleted.

I've found time and time again, when I create a macro to run every night at a particular time - I create several instances of the same macro, but inserting different information each time - after a couple of days the macro is clicking just slightly above the target of where I've originally programmed it to click. The mouse click seems to drift upwards by up to a centimetre sometimes, but usually only about 4 or 5mm, enough to render the macro completely useless.

I usually program my macro to close the window its working on as it's last command, but when the 'drift' happens, I end up with up to 40 windows still open when I check in the morning. Quite often, the 'close group' command won't work because there is a Windows error window that has to be closed on each page before this can function, due to the macro clicking madly in places that it was never intended to be clicking. Very time consuming and annoying to say the least to have to close all of these windows individually!

I have experimented by taking a screen dump of the website that I am creating a macro for to see if the website has actually changed in layout even slightly, thinking that that would throw the macro out. But no, this hasn't been the case. I can only assume, therefore, that my Workspace Macro Pro is suffering some sort of software dementia and is getting confused along the way.

The only workaround that I have been able to come up with, is to place my mouse clicks around the lower extemities of any radio button or executable buttom on the site as possible, and hope that that will be enough to accommodate the 'drift' over the course of the macro's run life. The only problem with this then, is the fact that I have a very sensitive mouse at present that is a bit hard to control sometimes unless one has a very steady hand (this can be replaced and will be soon). All this is very time consuming though, and I'm wondering why the original problem happens in the first place? Having to re-do the macros is not only more time consuming, but darned annoying - I detest having to do anything twice, especially when it was done correctly in the first place.

I've read through the forum, has no one else had this problem? Do the techs have any solutions or suggestions for me please?

Cheers
Sylph

[Vandana]

You can try using keyboard short cuts instead of mouse click for e.g. to close a window you can use Alt+F4 shortcut instead of clicking on cross button and to select a radio button, use Tab key to get focus on radio button then hit Spacebar to enable it. This will surely help you in resolving drifting problem of mouse click.

[sylph]

Thanks for that tip. However, I've tried that as well, there can sometimes be dozens upon dozens of tab stops on any of these sites, very time consuming to have to carefully count how many tab stops I have to go through to get to my next destination click, and although I have experimented with this as a possible solution in the past, the software dementia kicks in once again and often 'forgets' how many tabs have been inserted. I've checked them in the edit against the site, they can be right, but something gets lost in the running of the macro. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't. I have tried clicking halfway down the web page to get nearer my target, thus having less tab stops, but that ultimately suffers the same fate in the running, also the tabs stops are so unpredictable.

When I say that sometimes it works, and sometimes it doesn't, I mean that I can sit and run the same macro over and over, and sometimes it works, and sometimes it doesn't. That's not good enough, is it?

I think there should be an answer to the original problem of why the drift is happening in the first place, rather than me having to spend even MORE time trying to find a workaround that is so much more complicated and tedious than using the software as it was intended to be used and just simply being able to click where I want it to click, and have it stay on target.

I've also found that when I'm using the 'save as' function through the edit function, I change text information and then run the macro to check it, the 'drift' I was talking about often happens, even though I have only edited text information that doesn't lengthen or shorten the original macro, I may only edit one character to change it to another. It beggers belief!

Techs?

[sylph]

Still no answer to my question? Why?

I have a suggestion for the techs as well, if you are replying to a post about a problem, it would be helpful if you could denote your tech status under your forum name so that new posters like myself know when a tech person has answered - or at least sign off as such. I've noticed that most of the answers to other posts by what I can only assume to be tech people, only have the status of 'member' under their name, apart from the Administrator. It would be helpful to know if questions were being answered by people who can give a definitive answer, or those who are just trying to help. No offence to those just trying to help.

Is 'Vandana' a tech person? If not, thank you very much for your suggestion. If so, I'm still waiting on an answer to my question of why this is happening.

Can it be fixed? If not, then I've wasted my time, effort, and money. I'd appreciate a reply, please.

[forumsupport]

Hello sylph,

We recommend you to call our support staff at 1-888-484-3535 x 2 and one of the Technical Support Specialists should be able to help you resolve the problem over the phone. Alternatively, you can email us your contact number at techsupport@tethyssolutions.com and we can call you.

[sylph]

Thank you forumsupport, I'm in Australia, so I'll use the email option later today. I have a house full of kids today, some mine and some not (show day holiday). *sigh*