Set specific preferences for Macro Express 3 and set which macro file to use.
This article describes how to install Macro Express on a network and share the same macro file.
To accomplish this you need to install Macro Express on a computer, select the location of the macro file, set the preferences the way you want them, export the preferences, and install Macro Express along with the preference settings on each computer.
Install Macro Express
Choose a computer that you want to use as your ‘baseline’ computer. Log on as an administrator and install Macro Express.
Select the Macro File
By default, when it first runs, Macro Express will create an empty macro file in the user’s My Documents folder. If you want your users to use a specific macro file or if your users will share a single macro file, then you will need to load that macro file now. Click File, Open Macro file and navigate to the correct location.
The macro file must be in a folder where the users have read/write/create/modify privileges.
Set the Preferences
Open the Macro Express Editor and click Options and Preferences. Set the preferences the way you want them for your users. Pay particular attention to the following:
- If all of your users will be sharing a single macro file you must enable File Locking of Macro Files found in the Network section of the preferences. This allows more than one copy of Macro Express to safely access the same macro file. You may also want to enable the ‘Automatic Synchronization Update’ option. On some versions of Macro Express 3 these networking options are off by default.
- If all of your users will be sharing a single macro file you must enable File Locking of Macro Files found in the Network section of the preferences. This allows more than one copy of Macro Express to safely access the same macro file. You may also want to enable the ‘Automatic Synchronization Update’ option. On some versions of Macro Express 3 these networking options are off by default.
- Again, if all of your users will be sharing a single macro file, you may want to turn off the automatic backup option found in the Backup section of the preferences. Set the Schedule to Never.
- Again, if all of your users will be sharing a single macro file, you may want to turn off the automatic backup option found in the Backup section of the preferences. Set the Schedule to Never.
- In the Startup preferences you may want to turn off the Splash Screen, the Quick Start Guide, and Start Editor on startup. You probably want to enable Run on Windows’ Startup.
- Make sure you set the paths found in File Paths to folders where each user has read/write/create/modify privileges.
- In the Startup preferences you may want to turn off the Splash Screen, the Quick Start Guide, and Start Editor on startup. You probably want to enable Run on Windows’ Startup.
Export the Preferences
Once you have selected the location of the macro file and set the preferences you are ready to export the preferences. Click Tools, and Export Program Configuration. Navigate to where you want to save the file. For reasons that we will explain in a moment, we recommend that you use the file name ‘defprefs.mcf’.
Install Macro Express along with the Preference Settings
Put the installation files in a shared folder that is accessible from all the computers where you will be installing Macro Express.
The Silent Install feature allows you to install Macro Express on a computer without seeing any of the installation dialogs. It also allows you to copy the preference settings to the computer and enter the license information into Macro Express. A complete description of the Silent Install feature can be found in the Advanced Installation topic of the Macro Express help.
Use the defprefs.mcf file created above with the CONFIGFILEPATH option to copy the preference settings during install. Use the LICENSENAME and LICENSECODE options to enter the Macro Express license information during installation.
There is one last step to perform. Copy the defprefs.mcf file into the folder where the Macro Express program files have been installed. This must be done before a user runs Macro Express for the first time on their computer. The preferences stored in defprefs.mcf will only be read the first time a user runs Macro Express.
The Macro Express installer provides a shortcut for this step. If you put defprefs.mcf in the same folder as the Macro Express installation program, the installer will automatically copy defprefs.mcf to the folder where the Macro Express program files are installed.
– Applies to Macro Express v 3.5 through v 3.11b
