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So, we've all seen the latest gaming keyboards and mice with support for

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macros, but the assumption being made here is that every customer knows what

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they are and what they're good for without anyone actually taking the time to explain it. So, in just a few words,

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a macro is a way of creating a faster, easier shortcut that lets you perform an

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otherwise multiplestep process in just

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one step. They're most often created to speed up and simplify the execution of

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repetitive tasks. Some applications like Microsoft Office actually have excellent

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built-in support for macros, allowing you to create your own shortcuts to

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execute complicated presscripted strings of commands. Something I used to use

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quite often in my old job in marketing and product management when sorting out

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gigantic spreadsheets. But most of the programs you use, including games, have

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no or very limited inherent macro support. So that is where fancy

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peripherals with macros come in. While some allow macros to be recorded

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directly on the device, most use their own custom software to create multi-step

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commands and save them to a small built-in memory chip on the device where

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they can be executed with a single button press. This allows the user more

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flexibility to customize their macros. All right, Ninus, this seems pretty

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simple. I pre-record something like, "Lol, that's so funny. Thanks for

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sharing it." Then I only have to press one button to have the perfect reply

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ready every time someone sends me a sweet picture of like a cat wearing a

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hat or something. What could I want to customize about that? Well, actually a

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couple of things. The most important of which is the recorded delay between each

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of the discrete commands. That pre-programmed input bit from before is

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a perfect example. Normally, I can only type as fast as my fingers can move. But

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an email client or word processor could easily accept that entire sentence all

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at the same time. In this case, I would actually want to execute my macro with

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no delay. But that's not always ideal.

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In a game, it might be beneficial to create a macro that calls in a holy

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strike, waits 2 seconds, activates a lightning resistance buff, and then 3

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seconds later casts, I don't know, Firefly Swarm or something like that.

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So, you can see how this would be a great thing to be able to control.

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Generally speaking, macros support playing back with the same delay with

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which they were recorded, injecting a fixed delay, or removing all delays for

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instant input, with some supporting manual input of the delays. While this

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feature is most often present on products targeted at gamers, there are

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plenty of legitimate uses for reprogrammable keys that support macros

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outside of games as well. And in fact, when the Logitech G15 keyboard first

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launched with its impressive 18 programmable G keys, it was a gamer and

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productivity enthusiast dream come true, and both of

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those groups of people were flocking to buy it. So, there you have it. If you've

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got a gaming keyboard or mouse, there's actually a very good chance that using

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the software included with the aforementioned computer peripheral will

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unlock this functionality for you. And once you get the hang of using macros,

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they're fast and easy to create and very, very useful. Speaking of very

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useful, Josh from Fractal Design gave me a call the other day about advertising

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on Techquy and he kind of goes, "Well, yeah, I was talking to some of your

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viewers and they were telling me they're tired of hearing you blab on and on

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about sponsors at the end of every video. So, if we do this, I want to do

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something a little different. Instead of a normal integration where you talk

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about our quality PC cases and power supplies with minimalistic Scandinavian

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design and outstanding customer support, I just want to buy the sponsor spot and

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watch you get pied in the face instead. I figure that'll be pretty fun for

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everyone. So, I pondered his idea for a moment and then it hit me. I've done

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worse for 20 bucks. Never mind what one of these sponsor spot costs. So, here we

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go.

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So, um, if you guys appreciate Josh's approach to sponsoring Techquicki and

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you want to see more of it, hit up the Fractal Design Facebook page linked in the video description and give it a big

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old like. While you're at it, don't forget to like this video and share it

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if you liked it. Dislike it if you disliked it, and leave a comment with

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your favorite uses for macros or any suggestions you have for future fast as

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possible episodes. Thanks for watching, and as always, don't forget to subscribe

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if you haven't already.