PyUserInput is a group project so we've moved the project over to a group organization:?https://github.com/PyUserInput/PyUserInput?. That is now the active development repository and I'll be phasing this one out, so please go there for the latest code and to post new issues. This should be corrected on PyPI in the next version update of PyUserInput.
A module for cross-platform control of the mouse and keyboard in python that is simple to use.
Mouse control should work on Windows, Mac, and X11 (most Linux systems). Scrolling is implemented, but users should be aware that variations may exist between platforms and applications.
Keyboard control works on X11(linux) and Windows systems. Mac control is a work in progress.
Dependencies
Depending on your platform, you will need the following python modules for PyUserInput to function:
- Linux - Xlib
- Mac - Quartz, AppKit
- Windows - pywin32, pyHook
How to get started
After installing PyUserInput, you should have pymouse and pykeyboard modules in your python path. Let's make a mouse and keyboard object:
from pymouse import PyMouse
from pykeyboard import PyKeyboard
m = PyMouse()
k = PyKeyboard()
Here's an example of clicking the center of the screen and typing "Hello, World!":
x_dim, y_dim = m.screen_size()
m.click(x_dim/2, y_dim/2, 1)
k.type_string('Hello, World!')
PyKeyboard allows for a range of ways for sending keystrokes:
# pressing a key
k.press_key('H')
# which you then follow with a release of the key
k.release_key('H')
# or you can 'tap' a key which does both
k.tap_key('e')
# note that that tap_key does support a way of repeating keystrokes with a interval time between each
k.tap_key('l',n=2,interval=5)
# and you can send a string if needed too
k.type_string('o World!')
and it supports a wide range of special keys:
#Create an Alt+Tab combo
k.press_key(k.alt_key)
k.tap_key(k.tab_key)
k.release_key(k.alt_key)
k.tap_key(k.function_keys[5]) # Tap F5
k.tap_key(k.numpad_keys['Home']) # Tap 'Home' on the numpad
k.tap_key(k.numpad_keys[5], n=3) # Tap 5 on the numpad, thrice
Note you can also send multiple keystrokes together (e.g. when accessing a keyboard shortcut) using the press_keys method:
# Mac example
k.press_keys(['Command','shift','3'])
# Windows example
k.press_keys([k.windows_l_key,'d'])
Consistency between platforms is a big challenge; Please look at the source for the operating system that you are using to help understand the format of the keys that you would need to send. For example:
# Windows
k.tap_key(k.alt_key)
# Mac
k.tap_key('Alternate')