How to get caret position in a PDF for so I can highlight text using AutoHotKey?

Question

I want to be able to highlight pdf text in Acrobat using only the keyboard (no mouse at all). There is no highlight text hotkey available in Acrobat. So I am trying to do this: use keyboard to select pdf text, then use AutoHotKey to move the mouse near the caret location/position (which will put the mouse cursor on the highlighted text), then I can script [right-click, down, down, down, Enter] to highlight the text.

The problem is that the normal method of getting the caret position in AutoHotKey (A_CaretX, A_CaretY) doesn't work in Acrobat. I don't know how to use the Acrobat SDK and am a novice AHK user.

Can anyone help me solve this problem, either by helping me figure out how to move the mouse cursor near the pdf caret, or through a different method? Many thanks.

Answer 1

If you already have the text highlighted, you can Send::AppsKey, which will bring up the right-click context menu. Highlight should be one of the options, which you can select by sending the appropriate number of Down inputs followed by an Enter. Or if the H in Highlight is underlined for you like it is for me in Acrobat Reader, Send::h will also work.

See also: Where is the Apps key on a standard Microsoft keyboard?

The AHK docs mention that A_CaretX/Y plain don't work in certain applications; looks like Acrobat is one of them, though I would be glad to be proven wrong.