[WT-support] Introducing wtRemote 1.0

[Laurent HAAS - F6FVY]

Hi

Please find below the description of wtRemote.

Download link : http://download.win-test.com/utils/wtRemote-1.0.zip

73

Larry - F6FVY

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wtRemote

This new companion program for Win-Test gives the possibility to use 
additional plain PC keyboard(s) or mouse(s) to trigger Win-Test Lua scripts.

The additional devices can be attached to another PC (a very low-end 
machine running XP or better can be dedicated to this task), or on your 
main Win-Test machine. This last solution makes this program very 
attractive !

A/ Using wtRemote on another PC

In this configuration, wtRemote runs on the same LAN as Win-Test and 
must be on the foreground, to receive the keyboard and mouse events from 
your main devices. Every keyboard or mouse event will trigger a remote 
command with the command text set by the user, with additional 
parameters (arguments), depending on the pressed key or the mouse button 
/ wheel. Also, a device index can be set, to allow the receiving script 
to filter the commands (in the case where you have several wtRemote 
or/and Win-Test running on your LAN).

B/ Using wtRemote on your main machine.

This configuration requires the installation of the Interception driver 
(Credit : Francisco Lopes da Silva). Open a command line, browse to the 
directory where the installer is located, and enter 
"install-interception /install" to install the driver (and 
"install-interception /uninstall" to uninstall, if needed). This 
requires administrator rights, and a reboot, to complete the installation.

Once Interception installed, start wtRemote, and check the "Enable 
settings" box to access and set the various parameters. If you have 
enough clear area on your desk, you can attach several keypads (or even 
keyboards), and/or several mouses. The auxiliary devices must be 
attached before starting wtRemote. In all cases, your main keyboard and 
your main mouse MUST NOT be selected as "auxiliary" (otherwise, they 
won't be anymore usable in your Windows environment).

In the auxiliary devices setup dialog, check the auxiliary devices you 
want to use (spot them with the small LED located on the left of the 
checkbox), and assign a different index number for each of them 
(otherwise, the devices of the same type will send the same remote 
command, and will be considered as identical for Win-Test).

In the main screen, as usual, you must set the network broadcast 
address. It can be limited to your own PC by using the loopback address 
127.255.255.255, or to a wider range, if you want to send commands to 
other Win-Test connected on your LAN. Or, you can also specify a 
destination PC by entering its name (Station name in Win-Test) in the 
main screen.

After setting all parameters, uncheck the "Enable settings" box to run 
the program. If you run wtRemote on the same PC as Win-Test, you can 
minimize its window.

 From that point, every keystroke or mouse event (button or wheel) from 
an auxiliary device will generate a remote text command with parameters 
to Win-Test. You just need to write and assign this text command to a 
script to process it. For simplicity and usability, the full command 
text with the arguments sent by wtRemote is displayed in its main 
window, or in the application tab in the taskbar for a brief time, when 
minimized.

The keypads/keyboards send the virtual keycode, the modifiers (Shift, 
Alt, Ctrl) states, and the index of the device.
The mouse(s) send events codes (left, right, middle button, or scroll 
wheel event), the wheel angle if it applies, and the index of the device.

To demonstrate the capabilities, I wrote two basic scripts (auxkbd.wts 
and auxmouse.wts) you can enhance and adapt to fit your needs. Copy (or 
move) them in your /scripts directory, and assign the text commands 
AUXKBD and AUXMOUSE for each with the script manager.

Notes :

- If you're tempted to use additional 102-keys keyboard(s), it is 
advised their layout being identical to the layout of your main 
keyboard. It will be easier to spot the keycodes transmitted as the 
first argument of the text command. Also, it is recommended to stay away 
from the "exotic" keys like PrintScreen, Scroll lock or Pause which 
sometimes generate inconsistent keycodes and/or modifiers. From my 
experience, they also sometimes depend on the keyboard layout.
- On some auxiliary keyboards / keypads, the NumLock key can be ignored 
by the system (Windows), so its state will _normally_ "follow" the Num 
Lock state of your main keyboard (it depends on the keyboard/keypad and 
connection type). In all cases, and for simplicity, only numeric keys VK 
codes are sent (and not the directions arrows codes), and the Num Lock 
key sometimes generates its own remote command (depending on the 
keyboard). To be safe, it is recommended to keep the NumLock engaged, 
and not using this NumLock key.
- Some numerical keypads have a "00" or a "000" key that internally 
generates several identical keycodes (96) in a raw, in a very short time 
(less than 100 ms). Thus, a specific process has been written to 
generate ONE remote command only, identical to the regular "0" key.
- The smarter contesters can dismantle cheap mouses and replace or 
modify the scroll wheel encoder, for a more convenient usability in some 
usages (CW speed, RIT setting etc.).

-- 
There are 10 kinds of people in the world - those who understand binary 
and those who don't.