Is using AutoIT/AutoHotKey cheating?

People don't stop there. They abuse these programs in order to perform in game actions that isn't humanly possible to obtain without it. A great example was the clutch passive for tanks.

We need to put hotkeys in for skill purchasing and until it's in the game using an external program to do things quicker against an opponent is in poor taste because it's not an even playing field.

I haven't tooled much with multi-command setups in UE3 games, but in UE2.5 you could easily rig up keys like this:
Key=ToggleSkillPurchase | UIBuyMenuItem4 | OnRelease ToggleSkillPurchase (looking at the MNC ini's, I believe it's still doable)
This isn't much different than a macro and you can make them just as huge, sometimes larger and more complex
If anyone here played UT2004 there was a setup where a player could automate everything of a hammerjump minus positioning your view

Now I have poor taste... *cry*
Haven't died once in skill picking menu in the first 200 hours of gameplay when I wasn't using it. Well, I don't play Tank so it's probably not much of an issue anyway, might save me 0.5 seconds - which is easily countered by all the teammates selecting their skills while standing in the EXIT!!! :evil:

What I do use a lot are quick chat messages. I think it's nice to say 'Thank you' when your Support heals you. A Support who overheals his Assassin totally deserves a thank you!

If kindness is a unfair advantage, then it's required to give yourself an unfair advantage to play this game.

Teamwork ftw. Need to get me some quick-chat.

As others have said before, if AHK is cheating, are hardware/driver macros cheating? A lot of gaming keyboards and mice let you program macros to special keys or mouse buttons.

I say the line that should not be crossed is if the script/macro starts making decisions or interpreting input other than the button/key press that initiated it. Just keep it purely mechanical.

I agree with this. It shouldn't be making any decisions...things that do that are called bots. I think in this case specifically, I don't feel it's cheating because it's addressing a shortcoming of the interface, not a gameplay issue.

It's just something that needs to be kept in mind when balancing for the PC imo. The Xbox gets aim assist because you could hardly play a shooter without it. On the PC you have to adjust balance for a superior set of controllers. Scathis nerfed the Gunner and Tank jumpjets for this very reason.

The only cases I can think of where key macros would give you a real advantage is quickscoping and clutching.

Honestly this is what is holding a lot of us back. Early console games never really had aim assist and if they did we were able to turn it off. Aim Assist is lame. :|

Oh, well, it still strengthens my point:
If you could load a little tool and adjust the controls the way you like, wouldn't you do it?

It's basically the Razer Onza discussion: Is it cheating to use a better controller? I don't think so. If Microsoft is too lazy to fix their's it shouldn't be a problem for everybody else.

*looks at the naga for MMO's* is having that many buttons on your mouse really unfair? cause you know its only 12 buttons...

The Naga is a really bad example and an overall bad mouse (my opinion). Something like the Roccat Kone[+] would be better. The thumb is just way to slow to actually use the buttons to their full capabilities. You're better of playing normally.

Unless you come out and say that it's cheating, then it's not an unlevel playing field. Saying its "poor taste" doesn't cut it. If you said it was cheating, then it would be an unfair advantage, because some people wouldn't use it because you said it was cheating. However, you didn't. Thus, the only people who wouldn't use it are doing so, out of sheer laziness, or lack of information.

I have a mic. I use it. Does that mean there's an unlevel playing field against those who don't? No. Because they can get a 5$ mic. If you said using a mic was cheating, and I continued to use it, then YES it would be, because I'd be using something that others wont, because they want to play fair. Same deal.

To take it further... I have a 25 mbs down, 15 up connection. Does that mean I have an unlevel playing field against those who don't? No. Not unless you said that was cheating. And there lies the key point.

It's THEIR choice to put themselves at a disadvantage. Just like it's THEIR choice when they put gold juice, silver accuracy, and bronze reload on an Assassin, or THEIR choice to play the game on a modem made out of wood and tacky glue. Unless it's against the rules (say, like aimbot), then ALL is fair game, and "taste" has nothing to do with it.

Knowledge is power, and those who put in the time to learn the game, and what you can do with it, are going to be much more powerful. Plus, it's just silly that you think adding in a feature that you yourself admits should already be in, is 'poor taste' and unbalanced. It isn't. It just requires more effort on those who wish to implement it themselves, effort which others won't put in, and will just have to face the fact that they'll be at a disadvantage. Just like the guy who puts juice, reload, and accuracy on their assassin our of not knowing how to play the class, and not bothering to learn or look it up.

It's called metagaming, and there's nothing wrong with it. There will be people who do it, and others who don't care enough to put in the effort. The former will have an advantage over the latter, and that's how it should be.

Unless you come out and say "ITS CHEATING GUYS, DONT DO IT, WE'LL BE IMPLEMENTING IT ANYWAY" people SHOULD be doing this to improve their game. But, if you do, then people shouldn't! It's really that simple. But it has to be clear that it's cheating. If it's a grey area, then it should automatically be "go and do it", because in a game... It's either cheating, or its not. There's no inbetween.

Are you implying then that Aimbotting is not cheating but rather a form of metagaming and it is other player's fault due to laziness or lack of information that they themselves don't use an aimbot?

People shouldn't have to tell you what is and isn't a bad thing for every instance of it. Its not technically cheating to slash the tires of the opposing team's bus right before it is set to leave to pickup the baseball team for an upcoming game. But its in "poor taste"

Only that slashing someone's tires is criminal damage while using AutoHotKey isn't.

Using aimbots is against the user agreement and therefore illegal - using autohotkey isn't banned by Steam yet therefore it isn't cheating.

hay guyz, is exploits cheating?
:twisted:

AutoHotKey enables people who lack the hardware to emulate similar features - it levels the playing field between people who have hardware to create macros and people who don't.

If AutoHotKey was indeed considered cheating by Steam it would have been VAC detected long time ago.

There is plenty VAC cannot detect. Its unable to detect A LOT of wall hax for instance. And many aimbots still exist.

Also I will reiterate this:

AutoHotKey can potentially fall under that. as can hardware that does the same thing. It specifically says more than JUST software.

Difference being that AutoHotKey doesn't actively try to disguise itself and it's not blacklisted by Steam, comparing it to software which is meant to not be readily detectable isn't exactly mannerly.

Feel free to e-mail them to ask them about their stance on this specific piece of software at hand.