Keyboard Maestro vs BetterTouch Tool

[bocciaman]

I’ve created keyboard shortcuts using BTT which I’m finding it much easier to use then Keyboard Maestro. I want to use KM more because I know that it has more capabilities.

I finally fixed my “Morning Routine” Macro I created in KM with a lot of help from this community. I needed KM in this situation because of the time trigger and wake computer action. All the automation below didn’t need anything but the built-in Apple Apps and a trigger.

Between yesterday and today using BTT I created:

1. Trigger for Applescript to turn Caffeine on/off (this script is also used in KM)
2. Trigger for Applescript to hide all windows.
3. Trigger for Applescript to unhide all windows.
4. Trigger for Automator workflow application to hide all files on the desktop
5. Trigger for Automator workflow application to unhide all files on the desktop

Therefore, I’m asking the community how can I put KM to more use? In a way where it isn’t just easier to use BTT?

[sylumer]

Well, you might want to take a look at:

• The responses where you posed a similar query previously.
• The same question asked to Mac Automator.
• Compare the list of BTT Actions to the list of KM Actions (note also the support for plugins).
• Compare the range of trigger mechanisms available between the two apps.

For me, BTT is for manual triggering of actions, and typically ones that are relatively simply or self contained; though sometimes they can be complex scripts that are called.

KM on the other hand deals with a wider range of triggers, and alongside Hazel, has me covered for my own unattended background trigger needs. It also allows me to make use natively of actions and functionality that BTT does not naively support - see the listings referenced above.

Hope that helps.

[dustinknopoff]

It’s also important to point out that if you already know/understand @sylumer’s points and still don’t feel keyboard maestro provides any benefits, then you may not need keyboard maestro. And that’s totally fine!