Microsoft Garage Mouse without Borders

Snugglebugs · 02 Feb 2019

The waking up from power off was the problem annoying me!
So, as my computers and network is only at home, I dug in to the admin (W7) and set netplwiz.exe to allow me to login at start without inputting my password.
Then MWB can start its service and the mouse/keyboard on the other PC (switched on first) eventually become active on both without a temporary keyboard having to be cluttering up my table!

Tony

PS I wonder if MWB will install on a Win98 SE PC? Then I can get rid of my KVM which I use whenever I need to run some very old stuff?

Try3 · 02 Feb 2019

Tony,

I wonder if MWB will install on a Win98 SE PC

Not according to its system requirements - Supported Operating Systems: Windows 7, Windows 8, Windows Server 2003, Windows Server 2008, Windows Server 2012, Windows Vista, Windows XP Service Pack 3

You could try asking the developer if he knows about any early equivalents - Mouse without borders help board run by its creator, Truong Do

Denis

Try3 · 09 Feb 2019

The Office 2007 clipboard inhibits users trying to copy-paste to other network computers using MwoB but the standard Windows clipboard works alright as long as Settings, System, Clipboard, Clipboard history - Save multiple items is turned off. Office VBA can be used to make Office 2007 use the Windows clipboard.
- I believe that this problem also affects later versions of Office - Copy and paste using the Office Clipboard - Office Support.
- My personal solution has only been tested in Access 2007, because that's all I need it for, but there is nothing in the VBA used that has been subject to any changes in later versions

There are three parts to 'my' personal solution:- a Function, an Access macro, a Quick Access Toolbar item.
- As shown below, the Function was derived from one provided by Dirk Goldgar, MS Access MVP 2001-2015 Access tips: DataGnostics
- Whilst there might be neater ways of arranging this whole set, I have been content to leave it as it is.
- You'd need to tinker with the Function code for use across the other Office applications because they do not have the awkwardness that Access has in working with selected text.
- I believe that Word, Excel, … versions could just write the function as a simple macro that can be linked directly to a QAT item.

1 Function

Microsoft Garage Mouse without Borders-function-sendtoclipboard.png

Code:

Function fncSendToClipboard()
' Derived from Dirk Goldgar's fncLCaseSelectedText  - MS Access MVP 2001-2015     Access tips: www.datagnostics.com/tips.html
' Send the selected text to the Windows clipboard instead of the Office clipboard
' so it can be pasted in computers that have their Windows clipboards linked by MwoB [Mouse without Borders]
     Dim ctl             As Access.Control
     Dim lngSelLength    As Long

     On Error Resume Next
     Set ctl = Screen.ActiveControl
     If Err.Number <> 0 Then Exit Function  ' No active control
     On Error GoTo 0
     With ctl
         lngSelLength = .SelLength
         If lngSelLength = 0 Then Exit Function  ' No text selected
         Shell "cmd.exe /C echo " & .SelText & "|clip"
     End With
End Function

2 Access macro

Microsoft Garage Mouse without Borders-access-macro-sendtoclipboard.png

3 Quick Access Toolbar item

Microsoft Garage Mouse without Borders-access-qat-item-sendtoclipboard.png

To use this facility, I select the text I want and click on the QAT icon. I am then free to paste the text wherever I want in the MwoB-linked computers.

Denis

klepp0906 · 10 Apr 2019

Two questions (anyone know if multiplicity works both ways, or just client server?)

Currently using this and it works well. Coming from synergy2 which worked up until 1903 which broke its border handling with multiple displays on the same machine.

this is superior in that it handles relative mouse movement in games on other pcs much better than Synergy (huge pro)

cons are that it (best I can tell) requires a tray icon running whereas synergy did not. (does a means exist to get rid of this?)

also that when moving files between the pc's, it creates some arbitrary folder on my otherwise clean desktop whereas synergy did not. (any way around this?)

so trying to find the best hodgepodge of features.

Most importantly it would be bi-directional/dynamic client/server. It would require just the service running after set-up (aka no tray). And finally, it would allow file transfer without an arbitrary folder being created.

Does this software exist? :P

Try3 · 10 Apr 2019

1 System tray icon - All I am aware of is using Taskbar settings, Select which taskbar icons appear to allow it to sit in the group above the ^ symbol on the Taskbar.

2 I have never found a way around the folder it makes when copying files between computers. I gave up on using MwoB for file copying and put a shortcut to each network computer's Desktop in every SendTo folder instead.

3 There is no notion of client-server in MwoB. Apart from the initial setting up sequence, they are all just networked computers that are running MwoB so you could say they are bi-directional & are treated as peer-to-peer.

You could try asking the developer if he knows about any ways of doing what you want - Mouse without borders help board run by its creator, Truong Do

Denis

klepp0906 · 10 Apr 2019

Try3 said:

1 System tray icon - All I am aware of is using Taskbar settings, Select which taskbar icons appear to allow it to sit in the group above the ^ symbol on the Taskbar.

2 I have never found a way around the folder it makes when copying files between computers. I gave up on using MwoB for file copying and put a shortcut to each network computer's Desktop in every SendTo folder instead.

3 There is no notion of client-server in MwoB. Apart from the initial setting up sequence, they are all just networked computers that are running MwoB so you could say they are bi-directional & are treated as peer-to-peer.

You could try asking the developer if he knows about any ways of doing what you want - Mouse without borders help board run by its creator, Truong Do

Denis

thank you for the reply. Yes i am aware there is no client/server in MWB and thats the functionality im after. I was inquiring if Multiplicity functioned in the same manner or a more traditional manner such as the first incarnation of synergy (client/server must be indicated and is only 1 way).

I attempted to have mwb create its folder, create a symlink to it elsewhere, and hide its folder on the desktop - seemed to work, but was marginally better at best.

So far it seems im stuck with giving up on the copy/paste functionality (and using network shares as i have been) and just sucking up the tray icon which is admittedly much more minor than the copy/paste behavior and bidirectionality (or otherwise).

Just trying to avoid installing multiplicity if it doesnt function in the manner i seek as far as copy/paste and no designated client/server as sometimes I need to manually move to a 2nd machine, and be able to backtrack to the first without being bound to 1 keyboard/mouse.

Othertimes i dont and I can put the extra kb/mouse away as theyre wireless anyhow.

I digress. Thanks again.

Try3 · 10 Apr 2019

Looking at the Multiplicity screenshots, there seems to be a System tray icon shown whenever the UI is minimised. Perhaps you'd have to install it to look in any Help pages to discover if/how it can be hidden.

Perhaps you could get your questions answered in the Stardock community [there's a link at the top of that webpage] but I couldn't even see how to navigate into a Multiplicity-specific section of that forum.

Perhaps you could start a new thread in TenForums called something like Trying to find info on Stardock Multiplicity.

Denis

klepp0906 · 10 Apr 2019

yea thats my next step i think. For now i went over to the MWB page you linked and posted in the 75 page long thread in the hopes the creator reads it :)

Will give that a few days and likely pursue multiplicity in the near future if MWB shortcomings irk me enough.

Ultimately ill return to synergy when they relaunch the new version, but who knows how long that will be. MWB does what it does really well, hasnt flinched thus far, just those few annoyances :P

Reminds me, should i ever decide to be a software developer, options options options :P Alotta OCD/anal among us :)

AndreTen · 10 Apr 2019

In my case, mice and kbs are working bidirectional. I can control both systems with any mouse or kb I choose.

Also working with dual boot systems, although, when switching, 1st time you have to click on apply (think my systems have different IPs when booting to different system).
Regarding logon to system and making tweaks to do so... no need, just check enable or disable CAD

Microsoft Garage Mouse without Borders-image.png

klepp0906 · 10 Apr 2019

AndreTen said:

In my case, mice and kbs are working bidirectional. I can control both systems with any mouse or kb I choose.

Also working with dual boot systems, although, when switching, 1st time you have to click on apply (think my systems have different IPs when booting to different system).

yes, bi-directional works for me as well. Was inquiring if that was the case in multiplicity. Irrelevant if i could fix the copy/paste behavior and hide the icon in MWB though.

cant win em all :P

Microsoft Garage Mouse without Borders

Copy from Access 2007 [Office 2007] to another MwoB-linked computer