Bits of .NET

🔧 PowerToys = Clipboard Supercharger

Clipboard history is great. PowerToys adds advanced features like text extraction, OCR, and keyboard remapping to supercharge your clipboard.

📝 PowerToys Clipboard Features

# Install PowerToys
winget install Microsoft.PowerToys

# Enable Clipboard Actions
1. Open PowerToys Settings
2. Select Clipboard Actions
3. Enable Enable Clipboard Actions
4. Configure shortcuts:

# Keyboard Shortcuts
Win + Shift + C  → Open Clipboard Actions
Win + V          → Standard Clipboard History

# Clipboard Actions Features
1. Text Extraction (OCR)
   - Copy text from images
   - Copy text from screenshots
   - Copy text from PDFs

2. Text Transformation
   - Convert to uppercase/lowercase
   - Remove formatting
   - Replace text
   - Add quotes or brackets

3. Quick Actions
   - Search selected text
   - Translate selected text
   - Create QR code
   - Open URL

4. Custom Actions
   - Create your own clipboard actions
   - Use regular expressions
   - Run PowerShell scripts
   - Integrate with other apps

🎯 PowerToys Automation Examples

// Custom Clipboard Action: Format JSON
{
    name: Format JSON,
    trigger: Format JSON,
    icon: code,
    description: Format selected JSON text,
    actions: [
        {
            type: Run PowerShell,
            script: $json = Get-Clipboard; try { $formatted = $json | ConvertFrom-Json | ConvertTo-Json -Depth 10; Set-Clipboard $formatted; Write-Host JSON formatted successfully } catch { Write-Host Invalid JSON }
        }
    ]
}

// Custom Clipboard Action: Generate SQL Insert
{
    name: Generate SQL Insert,
    trigger: SQL Insert,
    icon: database,
    description: Convert CSV to SQL insert statements,
    actions: [
        {
            type: Run PowerShell,
            script: $csv = Get-Clipboard; $rows = $csv | ConvertFrom-Csv; $tableName = my_table; $columns = $rows[0].PSObject.Properties.Name -join ,; $inserts = @(); foreach ($row in $rows) { $values = $row.PSObject.Properties.Value -join ','; $inserts += INSERT INTO $tableName ($columns) VALUES ('$values') }; Set-Clipboard ($inserts -join "`r`n"); Write-Host SQL statements generated
        }
    ]
}

// Custom Action: Convert to Markdown Table
{
    name: To Markdown Table,
    trigger: Markdown Table,
    description: Convert clipboard content to markdown table,
    actions: [
        {
            type: Run PowerShell,
            script: $data = Get-Clipboard; $lines = $data -split "`r`n"; $table = $lines | ForEach-Object { $row = $_ -split '\t'; |  + ($row -join  | ) +  | }; Set-Clipboard ($table -join "`r`n"); Write-Host Markdown table created
        }
    ]
}

💡 PowerToys Productivity Tips

• OCR text from any image or screenshot
• Create custom actions for repetitive tasks
• Use keyboard shortcuts for faster access
• Combine with clipboard history for advanced workflows
• Share custom actions with your team