Look for multiple text items when finding a window

[TimRude]

In the standard window-finding functions such as WinGetHandle, WinWait, WinExists, etc. where you specify the Title and Text as parameters, how do you look for multiple consecutive bits of text in the Text parameter?

Example: A window has a number of buttons with text on it and the WindowInfo tool shows the visible text for the window to contain:

Load
Save
Delete
Copy

I can specify any single one of these items as the Text parameter (i.e. 'Save'), but how would the the Text parameter of a WinGetHandle function need to be written to look for all of these items? I've tried the following without success:

WinGetHandle("Some App", "LoadSaveDeleteCopy")

WinGetHandle("Some App", "Load Save Delete Copy")

WinGetHandle("Some App", "Load|Save|Delete|Copy")

WinGetHandle("Some App", "Load" & @LF & "Save" & @LF & "Delete" & @LF & "Copy")

WinGetHandle("Some App", "Load" & @CR & "Save" & @CR & "Delete" & @CR & "Copy")

WinGetHandle("Some App", "Load" & @CRLF & "Save" & @CRLF & "Delete" & @CRLF & "Copy")

WinGetHandle("Some App", "Load" & @TAB & "Save" & @TAB & "Delete" & @TAB & "Copy")

If I do a WinGetText function on the window, it returns the above text with @LF separating the items. So it would seem like looking for them with @LF separating them would work, but it does not.

[Danp2]

Can you explain why you need to detect the text on each button when locating a window?

[Nine]

Here one way :

Local $hWnd = WinGetHandleEX("You apps here", "Search|Open|Reset")
ConsoleWrite($hWnd & @CRLF)

Func WinGetHandleEX($sTitle, $sText)
  Local $aList = StringSplit($sText, "|")
  Local $aWin = WinList($sTitle)
  For $i = 1 To $aWin[0][0]
    $sGetText = WinGetText($aWin[$i][1])
    For $j = 1 to $aList[0]
      If Not StringInStr($sGetText, $aList[$j]) Then ContinueLoop 2
    Next
    Return $aWin[$i][1]
  Next
EndFunc

 

[TimRude]

4 hours ago, Danp2 said:

Can you explain why you need to detect the text on each button when locating a window?

It's  a matter of making sure I have the correct window. The window's title and text are commonly used as identifiers in the Win... functions, as the help info states:

 

Quote

 

Window Text

The window text consists of all the text that AutoIt can "see". This will usually be things like the contents of edit controls (as above with "This is some text!") but will also include other text like:

• Button text like &Yes, &No, &Next (the & indicates an underlined letter)
• Dialog text like "Are you sure you wish to continue?"
• Control text
• Misc text - sometimes you don't know what it is

The important thing is that you can use the text along with the title to uniquely identify a window to work with.

 

 

In this case, the cumulative window text includes text from a number of controls. It's the combination of text on the window that uniquely identifies it as the "right" window I'm looking for. But I haven't been able to find a way to specify the text parameter in the Win... functions so that it can match window text coming from multiple sources on the window.

[Earthshine]

look at the example above you. if you know where the exe comes from that makes the window appear, you can look at the properties of the process and KNOW that is your window, verify by getting a handle and checking the controls

Edited April 28, 2022 by Earthshine

[TimRude]

1 hour ago, Nine said:

Here one way :

Local $hWnd = WinGetHandleEX("You apps here", "Search|Open|Reset")
ConsoleWrite($hWnd & @CRLF)

Func WinGetHandleEX($sTitle, $sText)
  Local $aList = StringSplit($sText, "|")
  Local $aWin = WinList($sTitle)
  For $i = 1 To $aWin[0][0]
    $sGetText = WinGetText($aWin[$i][1])
    For $j = 1 to $aList[0]
      If Not StringInStr($sGetText, $aList[$j]) Then ContinueLoop 2
    Next
    Return $aWin[$i][1]
  Next
EndFunc

 

Thanks. I had thought about writing a custom function, but was hoping I was just missing some little detail that would let the built-in functions work. And was thinking that it would be necessary to write an extender function for each of the Win... functions.

But upon reflection, since a custom function like this returns the handle, it could be nested inside the calls to any of the other Win.. functions, like this:

Local $Result = WinGetState(WinGetHandleEX("Some App", "Load|Save|Delete|Copy"))

Not as easy as if the built-in functions could handle it natively, but a solution nonetheless.

[Danp2]

@TimRudeNo need to quote the help file and I am familiar with how those functions work. 😉I just didn't understand the need to search for the text from multiple controls since using title plus text from one control is usually sufficient to uniquely identify a window.