Retrieves text from a control.
| ControlGetText, OutputVar [, Control, WinTitle, WinText, ExcludeTitle, ExcludeText] |
Parameters
| OutputVar | The name of the variable in which to store the retrieved text. |
| Control | Can be either ClassNN (the classname and instance number of the control) or the name/text of the control, both of which can be determined via Window Spy. When using name/text, the matching behavior is determined by SetTitleMatchMode. If this parameter is blank or omitted, the target window's topmost control will be used. |
| WinTitle | The title or partial title of the target window (the matching behavior is determined by SetTitleMatchMode). If this and the next 3 parameters are omitted, the Last Found Window will be used. If this is the letter A and the next 3 parameters are omitted, the active window will be used. To use a window class, specify ahk_class ExactClassName (shown by Window Spy). To use a process identifier (PID), specify ahk_pid %VarContainingPID%. To use a window group, specify ahk_group GroupName. To use a window's unique ID number, specify ahk_id %VarContainingID%. The search can be narrowed by specifying multiple criteria. For example: My File.txt ahk_class Notepad |
| WinText | If present, this parameter must be a substring from a single text element of the target window (as revealed by the included Window Spy utility). Hidden text elements are detected if DetectHiddenText is ON. |
| ExcludeTitle | Windows whose titles include this value will not be considered. |
| ExcludeText | Windows whose text include this value will not be considered. |
ErrorLevel
ErrorLevel is set to 1 if there was a problem or 0 otherwise.
Remarks
Note: To retrieve text from a ListView, ListBox, or ComboBox, use ControlGet List instead.
If the retrieved text appears to be truncated (incomplete), try using VarSetCapacity(OutputVar, 55) prior to ControlGetText [replace 55 with a size that is considerably longer than the truncated text]. This is necessary because some applications do not respond properly to the WM_GETTEXTLENGTH message, which causes AutoHotkey to make the output variable too small to fit all the text.
The amount of text retrieved is limited to a variable's maximum capacity (which can be changed via the #MaxMem directive). As a result, this command might use a large amount RAM if the target control (e.g. an editor with a large document open) contains a large quantity of text. However, a variable's memory can be freed after use by assigning it to nothing, i.e. OutputVar =
Text retrieved from most control types uses carriage return and linefeed (`r`n) rather than a solitary linefeed (`n) to mark the end of each line.
It is not necessary to do SetTitleMatchMode Slow because ControlGetText always retrieves the text using the slow method (since it works on a broader range of control types).
To retrieve a list of all controls in a window, use WinGet ControlList.
Window titles and text are always case sensitive. Hidden windows are not detected unless DetectHiddenWindows has been turned on.
Related
ControlSetText, WinGetText, Control, ControlGet, ControlMove, ControlFocus, ControlClick, ControlSend, #MaxMem
Example
ControlGetText, OutputVar, Edit1, Untitled -