Lua Macro Recorder with UI

This section will guide you through creating a macro recorder using Lua. The macro will allow users to record, save, and play back macro actions in a UI format.

Key Components

1. UI Library: Utilize a UI framework (e.g., LÖVE or similar) to create buttons and display saved macros.
2. Macro Recording: Record user actions and store them in a list.
3. Save and Playback: Provide functionality to save recorded macros and play them back.

Code Implementation

The following code snippet outlines a simple macro recorder with a user interface.

Required Libraries

-- Import libraries (if applicable)
-- Note: Depending on your actual GUI framework, this may require specific imports or modules.

Macro Recorder Code

-- Macro Recorder with UI

-- Global Variables
local macros = {}  -- Holds saved macros
local currentMacro = {}  -- Holds the current recording

-- Function to start recording a macro
function startRecording()
    currentMacro = {}  -- Reset the current macro
    print("Recording started...")
    
    -- Code to log user actions goes here
    -- Example: currentMacro[#currentMacro + 1] = "Action1"
end

-- Function to stop recording a macro
function stopRecording()
    print("Recording stopped. Macro recorded.")
end

-- Function to save the recorded macro
function saveMacro(name)
    -- Validate input name
    if type(name) ~= "string" or name == "" then
        error("Invalid macro name. It must be a non-empty string.")
    end

    macros[name] = currentMacro  -- Save the macro with the provided name
    print("Macro saved as: " .. name)
end

-- Function to play a saved macro
function playMacro(name)
    -- Confirm macro exists
    if not macros[name] then
        error("Macro not found: " .. name)
    end

    print("Playing macro: " .. name)
    -- Code to execute the saved macro actions goes here
    -- Example: for _, action in ipairs(macros[name]) do executeAction(action) end
end

-- Function to display saved macros
function showSavedMacros()
    print("Saved Macros:")
    for name in pairs(macros) do
        print("- " .. name)
    end
end

-- Main loop (for illustrative purpose; should be adapted for actual UI framework)
function mainLoop()
    while true do
        -- Mock UI for demonstration
        print("1: Start Recording")
        print("2: Stop Recording")
        print("3: Save Macro")
        print("4: Play Macro")
        print("5: Show Saved Macros")
        print("6: Exit")

        local choice = io.read()  -- Mock input for console app

        if choice == "1" then startRecording()
        elseif choice == "2" then stopRecording()
        elseif choice == "3" then 
            print("Enter macro name:")
            local name = io.read()
            saveMacro(name)
        elseif choice == "4" then 
            print("Enter macro name to play:")
            local name = io.read()
            playMacro(name)
        elseif choice == "5" then showSavedMacros()
        elseif choice == "6" then break
        else print("Invalid choice. Try again.")
        end
    end
end

-- Run the main loop
mainLoop()

Explanation of Functions

• startRecording: Initializes a new macro recording.
• stopRecording: Finalizes the current macro recording.
• saveMacro: Saves the current recording with a user-defined name after validation.
• playMacro: Plays back a specified saved macro. Checks if the macro exists before attempting to play.
• showSavedMacros: Displays the names of all saved macros for user reference.
• mainLoop: Provides a basic interface for user interaction to run the macro functions.

Conclusion

This Lua example illustrates how to create a GUI macro recorder with functionalities to record, save, and play back macros. Make sure to integrate it with a suitable UI library for practical use and testing. This example can be further expanded based on specific UI frameworks available for Lua.

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