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DataLoad User Guide
Most commands are aliases for keystrokes
Built-in commands also exist for special operations
Use commands to hide complex keystroke definitions
Commands allow a single definition for regularly used actions
Command Groups enable multiple definitions of each command

DataLoad Commands

DataLoad commands are used to give user friendly names to complex or frequently used activities. Commands may be built-in to DataLoad to provide additional functionality while others are aliases for commonly used or complex keystrokes. Command names are not case sensitive and may be entered in upper or lower case in the DataLoad spreadsheets. Each type of command is documented below.

Keystroke Aliases

Commands that are keystroke aliases are used to hide complex keystrokes behind a more user friendly command name. For instance, to "Save & Proceed" in Oracle E-Business Suite 11i/R12 the following keystroke combination is required:

\%F%V

DataLoad includes a standard Save & Proceed command called *SP that is an alias for those keystrokes, i.e. when *SP is used in a spreadsheet DataLoad will actually send the Save & Proceed keystrokes. Using the command alias makes the spreadsheet easier to read and understand. Also, if the keystroke sequence needs to change then only the command definition needs to be changed and no changes are required in the spreadsheet.

Multiple definitions can exist for each command because the keystrokes required for the command can vary between applications, for example the keystroke shortcut to create a new record may be different in Oracle E-Business Suite, SAP and Sage. A Command Group contains all the definitions for a particular application. Before running a Macro load the Command Group must be set via the drop list on the DataLoad toolbar.

Commands and Command Groups may be created, edited and deleted in DataLoad. To do this, open the Macro Commands window using the toolbar icon or with the Edit->Commands menu entry. When a new Macro load is created the default commands are added to the load. If the Commands or Command Groups are later changed then this only affects that load. To save those changes such that they become the default and are used for all future loads the "Make Default" button should be pressed. Similarly, to overwrite a load's commands with the defaults the "Load Defaults" button should be pressed.

While new commands can be added, DataLoad comes with a large number of pre-configured commands. These are listed below.

DataLoad Command
Application Action(s)
   
TAB Press the Tab key
ENT Press the Enter key
*UP Press the up arrow key
*DN Press the down arrow key
*LT Press the left arrow key
*RT Press the right arrow key
*SAVE Save the current record
*SP Save & proceed
*FE Open the field editor
*PB Navigate to the previous block
*NB Navigate to the next block
*PF Navigate to the previous field
*NF Navigate to the next field
*PR Navigate to the previous record
*NR Navigate to the next field
*IR Insert a new record
*CL Clears the form field but does not delete any data
*ER Clears a record from the form fields but does not delete it
*DR Delete the current record
*FR Navigate to the first record
*LR Navigate to the last record
*SB Press the Spacebar. This is useful for toggling the setting
of radio buttons and check boxes instead of using the mouse.
*ST Select the entire field
*FI Open the find window
*FA Find all records
*QE Put the form in to the query enter mode
*QR Run a query when the form is in query enter mode
*BM Open the block menu. This is used in Oracle E-Business
to select the block or tab to which to navigate.
*AX Sends the Alt + X keystroke where X is a single letter (A-Z).
See Note 1

Note 1 In most applications the menus, buttons and other controls can usually be activated by using the Alt key combined with one other key. DataLoad provides *AX so that all possible Alt key combinations are available as a DataLoad command.

Built-in Commands

The following commands are built-in to DataLoad to provide additional functionality beyond sending data and keystrokes to applications. These commands cannot be edited or replaced in the commands window. The built-in commands are listed in the following table. Click the command name for more information about using each command.

Command
Application Action(s)
   
*SLN or *SL(N) Pause the load for N seconds
*CW(window) Change to window window
*ML(coordinates) Position the mouse at coordinates and press the left button
*MR(coordinates) Position the mouse at coordinates and press the right button
*DL(coordinates) Position the mouse at coordinates and double click the left button
PROMPT(message) Prompt the user with message and wait for a response
PHP(function) Calls a PHP function when Scripting used with a Macro load

Further commands are available that are specific to Browser Control loads and they are detailed here.