1. Monumental Macros
Leslie Vail, ASCI, Inc.

2. Leslie Vail President, ASCI
Summit Nashville 2017
2/16/2019 8:34 PM
Leslie Vail President, ASCI
Dynamics GP MVP
GPUG 2017 All Star 
24 Year veteran with GP
Community Contributor
© 2017 Dynamic Communities. All rights reserved.

3. Monumental Macros
What is a Macro? How Can I Use It? Real-world Examples! Creating and Editing Macros Macro Tips and Traps

4. What is a Macro?
A macro records your keystrokes & clicks

5. What a Macro cannot do use variables ask questions create a loop
make decisions
interact with Excel
launch Integrations
use if/then statements
read data from files or windows

6. How can I use macros? What is a Macro? How Can I Use It?
Real-world Examples!
Creating and Editing Macros
Macro Tips and Traps

7. How can I use macros? Eliminate clicks
Automate repetitive key sequences
Do mass changes without SQL
Import without Integration Manager
Run check links & reconcile after hours

8. Real-world examples What is a Macro? How Can I Use It?
Creating and Editing Macros
Macro Tips and Traps

9. RM Transaction Inquiry
Customer Trx Inquiry
Open Inquiry window 2 clicks
Customer ID Lookup 1 click
Open Advanced search 1 click
Select Column Lookup 1 click
Select Customer Name 2 clicks
Change filter to Contains 2 clicks
Select Value field 1 click
Total: 10 clicks
Example 1

10. SOP Document Inquiry SOP Document Inquiry Open SOP Inquiry 2 clicks
Change sort to Date 2 clicks
Put in the date range 3 clicks
History radio button 1 click
Hit Redisplay button 1 click
Expand Scrolling window 1 click
Total: 10 clicks
Example 2

11. Creating and Editing Macros
What is a Macro?
How Can I Use It?
Real-world Examples!
Creating and Editing Macros
Macro Tips and Traps

12. Creating and Editing Demos
RM Trx Inquiry
SOP Posted Yesterday
Print Inventory List
Bank Transfer

13. DEMO Creating and Editing Macros

14. Suppressing Messages Launch from shortcut bar
Logging file ':c:/macro_log.txt'
Don’t forget the single quotes!

15. Macro log contents
Troubleshoot errors

16. Remove Progress_Control lines
Delete the highlighted lines

17. Copy and Paste Remember: Edit > Select All Edit > Copy Remember:
Edit > Paste
Remember:
Delete final ‘TypeTo’

18. Advanced Macro Menu
ShowAdvancedMacroMenu=TRUE No User Interface Flash for speed Jump to specific line Pause after specific line Step through macro to debug Restart macro at specific line

19. Advanced Macro Menu 1 2 4 7 3 5 6
1. Shows you the name of the macro currently being recorded and what line it’s on.
2. Shows you the name of the macro currently being played, and what line it’s on.
3. Turns off the complete redraw and hides the interface flash thereby making the macro run twice (at least) as fast.
4. The line in the macro you want to jump to. The display below will start at the jump line. You can restart a macro to begin playing at the jump to line
5. The number of lines to display in the scrolling window.
6. Indicate where you want the macro to pause while it’s playing. This is a good way to debug the macro or stop it from executing after a certain point is reached
7. The actual lines of the macro according to the lines displayed

20. Macro Tips and Traps
What is a Macro? How Can I Use It? Real-world Examples! Creating and Editing Macros Macro Tips and Traps

21. Macro Tips Case sensitive Use ‘Select All’ to copy and paste
Remove final ‘type to’ after pasting
Eliminate message with Logging file
Use Pause to collect user input
Nest macros to combine or append
Remove Progress Control lines
Start recording on correct window
You have 60 characters for your Pause msg

22. Macro Traps Mouse click, don’t scroll
Type, don’t select from Lookup windows
Don’t close windows using X
Scrolling windows last line
Be careful with menus, they may not be visible
Don’t select from shortcuts
Security access to logging file

23. More Macro Traps Careful with lists whose content can change
Checkboxes are toggles- make sure you know their state

24. Congratulations! You are now Macro Royalty
Insert Pause
Copy & Paste
Editing Macros
Nesting Macros
Logging Macros
Highlighting Final Field
Troubleshooting Macros
Recording a basic Macro
Removing Progress windows
Disabling the macro message
Selecting from drop-down lists
Revealing and Using the Advanced Macro Menu

25. Questions?
Leslie Vail