Description of Autohotkey scripts

Dozens of Opportunities

Many of the top-line auto hotkey programs provide you with dozens of choices for those common poker tasks. Some of the tools and shortcuts are amazing, or at least pleasantly surprising. Two or three of the best hotkey software programs work with the most popular online poker rooms. But any player wishing to use auto hotkey scripts should make sure the rooms accept this type of software. There have been some issues about “legality,” primarily based on the accusation that this turns players into “bots.”

What should you look for when you want to try an auto hotkey program? See if you can find software that shows the basic operations in a simple user interface. You also want hotkey programs that will work with both ring games and tournaments. For example, you could set up a hotkey or short series of key strokes to tell the online poker software to bet a defined amount on the flop, the turn and the river. You don’t have to type in a dollar amount or make a percentage-of-the-pot decision. In some programs you can define up to five hot keys for specific bets – before you start the session.

General Terms

In general terms, Auto Hotkey scripts are used to launch a program, send keystrokes and to send mouse clicks during play. While the simple use of hotkeys to make basic poker moves is not a problem for most online rooms, hotkey software can be customized to do much more than simply bet $10 when you hit the “0” key, for example.

Some creative players write more complex instructions, creating an executable file that can run on computers without hot keys. This is the beginning of the “bot” issue for many companies and online poker rooms. 

Everyone who spends a part of his or her day playing online poker would like to be able to indicate some of the basic decisions by simply hitting a single key on the computer keyboard. This would speed up the game, allow players to bet specific amounts at certain times during a game or tournament, and could prevent mistakes from typing in the wrong number of hitting the wrong “button.”

Auto Hotkey scripts allow players to do this. In fact, a few companies have created basic software programs that let the player define specific bet amounts or other poker decisions then assign a single keystroke to that move. (Keep in mind there are several programs that let you create hot keys but Auto Hotkey is a specific open-source product.)

Relatively Simple

There are a couple of ways to look at hot key use in online poker. You could go to one of the “finished” products available. Some of these take you one step closer to creating your own hot keys, eliminating much of the programming that you might have to do otherwise. Some programs are true pokerbots that can be installed so they interface with your poker room. This latter device still generates some controversy in the online-poker industry. A couple of these “bot” programs come with a price tag of $100 or higher.

You could also choose the Auto Hotkey software. It’s a free, open-source program that lets you create some of your own hot keys and scripts for what you want the computer to do in specific situations. A single keystroke or short series of keystrokes can implement a number of basic poker decisions.

When you are considering some sort of hotkey-creation software, look for those that have templates. These will speed up the process of creating scripts and get you to the playing stage more quickly. Finished scripts run when you double click the file name and press Enter. It’s just like running any other program.

One of the great things about hot-key scripts is that they can be defined to work only in the active window and not in other windows. Combination key strokes can be created to allow players to be more accurate in making their poker decisions. This prevents single keystrokes from putting the wrong decision into action.

In addition to all the creativity allowed with auto hotkeys you will also have a lot of support, since there are hundreds of articles on the subject in addition to an active Auto Hotkey forum.