The Beginner's Guide to AutoHotkey - AutoHotkey Basics Tutorial

AutoHotkey Tutorial for Beginners teaching the basics of AutoHotkey. All the video lessons are with practical examples and by the end of this tutorial, you will be able to create your own AutoHotkey scripts.

You could also watch:

0:00:00 Intro
While you watch, I encourage you to write out the AutoHotkey scripts yourself. Just pause the video, if it goes to fast. It is designed for that.

0:00:30 Install and setup AutoHotkey

0:03:12 Hotkeys
Hotkeys are often called shortcut keys, because they are triggers for actions. For example pressing a key combination (ctrl + q to launch an application).

0:08:34 Hotstrings
Hotstrings are mainly used to expand abbreviations as we type them, where AutoHotkey will replace words for other words automatically.

0:15:15 Variables
As in any other programming language we use variables as placeholders for values. Creating a variable is clever, especially if we want to reuse the value and/or change the value.

0:19:55 Arrays
We use an array to store a collection of variables of similar data types and we are able to easily index the different variables.

0:28:35 Open folders, programs, and websites
AutoHotkey is often used for opening folders, programs and specific websites. This guide will show you how.

0:34:49 InputBox. Get user input
An InputBox in AutoHotkey is used to prompt the user to enter a value.

0:45:04 Control the system volume
We create a simple script that can mute/unmute your system volume as well as turning the volume up and down.

0:49:06 Automate your internet browser
Learn to automate web sites.

1:01:19 AutoHotkey and Excel
Make basic Excel automation with easy AutoHotkey scripts.

1:14:33 Create random variables
Creating random variables in AutoHotkey is not the most used feature, however I use them occasionally. Especially when I am automating game theory stuff.

1:21:49 Run scripts at Windows startup
This lesson will teach you to have your AutoHotkey scripts starting at Windows startup.

Connect with me:

#autohotkey #automation #ahk

[andersjensenorg]

UiPath is an RPA tool, that lets you automate everything with drag and drop. And it is FREE!

[lancetschirhart]

FINALLY someone actually did it. AHK is such a cool tool but no one is putting out the material to teach it. Please continue, take this further, broader and more in depth, and thanks so much.

[WhatIPaidAndWhatItsWorth]

Excellent tutorial, I'm 27 minutes in and already have uses for each lesson taught so far. I can't believe it took me this long to find this information. Thank you!

[megadisc]

I was looking for this 😂 last night

You're amazing

[redstone_mason]

I only recently discovered that this exists, and it is very fun to use. So glad u made these tutorials lol

[JonathanDewetfunlifegod]

Thanks for making this tutorial. It was the perfect introduction to Autohotkey.

[erikeggenbakstad]

Takk Anders, I used AHK a lot before but forgot most of it.
I don't even understand my old scripts 😂
So thank you!

[paulconcannon]

Great video, easy way to learn AHK which I am determined to become an expert in due to some tasks I need to perform at work. But I do have to say you need to start doing ASMR!! You have a very soothing voice!

[Paxtiny]

Hi Anders,

Thank you for the tutorials! Could you increase the resolution? It's very hard to decypher the text in Notepad :)

Great work and keep them coming!

[izaorkwis]

Thank you, thank you! This is the first time I manage to understand an AHK tutorial and follow it from beginning to end! So useful!

[amazagx]

Hi! This is great stuff. You explain it pretty well !
Thank you!!

[Poopeh_le_pieux]

the thumbnail is so funny : we can see on your face that autohotkey is as fun as it is painful xD

[ericzuckerburg]

thank you very much, very good tutorial.

[ArisMelachroinos]

On 48:30 what you have written is wrong. You should write "return" bellow every hotkey. If you press +NumpadAdd then the volume does not go up, but it goes up, down, and mutes simultaneously.

[TrentonTompkins]

I tried to do this tutorial and the first message I got was one saying that this script requires AutoHotKey v1.X. They are on 2.X now - time to make a new video!

[shonilcha]

This is a real godsent video for me to understand the AHK basics. Your method of understanding is really calm and understandable. I have been assigned a task to cut paste a huge excel file with like 20 sheets within them into 20 new Excel files. Is this possible via AHK, where I cut the entire sheet from the master excel sheet and save it into a new excel file with that sheet's name?

[RAimotion]

You sound like a dane like me. Cheers good video!

[leisagrenland]

I’ve learned a lot from your totorial videos and think they are great. Can you show how to use a auto hotkey in a program to wait 4 mins then activate the next page keyboard button?

[TheMorrogoth]

@1:21:00

Fn = Fn-1 + Fn-2

0, 1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, 21, 34, 55, 89, 144, 233, 377, 610, 987, 1597, 2584, 4181, 6765, 10946, 17711, 28657, 46368, 75025, 121393, 196418, 317811, 514229

Very well put together video. However I've yet to find an answer to a problem I have with AHK...

I've written a program in BAT (I've been working on it for years now) and I'm trying to use AHK to dynamically control where the CMD prompt is placed on the screen - And moving that prompt to any monitor. I've figured out how (through the v2 online manual) to center the prompt:

HotIfWinActive(HomogenizeMe)
{
WinGetPos, , &Width, &Height, "HomogenizeMe.bat"
CenterPos:
CenterX := (A_ScreenWidth / 2) - (Width / 2)
CenterY := (A_ScreenHeight / 2) - (Height / 2)
PosX := CenterX
PosY := CenterY
GOTO UIPos
InputPos:
PosX := 10
PosY := 10
GOTO UIPos
UIPos:
WinMove PosX, PosY, , , "HomogenizeMe.bat"
}

I'd like to allow for the user to pick between centering and inputing their own X, Y position (IE: 10, 10, etc).

Can this be done dynamically? I'm not able to find how to send AHK variables from the BAT files (where I would have the user make the choice - And thus send the user to the correct label).

[WhiteN]

I followed your tutorial until the part inputing " Switch ErrorLeveL.." then AHK said this line does not contain a recognized action. Great tutorial btw ♥