Fluid and Intent in the Browser – ACCELQ

Recording Fundamentals introduced the three recording modes. This article covers how they behave in the Web Recorder specifically: exactly which browser interactions Fluid captures for you, how Intent works against the live page, and the web-specific tools in the right-click menu.

Knowing Which Mode You Are In

The mode toggle sits in the recorder toolbar with three options: OFF, FLUID, and INTENT. The Web Recorder gives you two always-visible cues for the active mode:

A colored border around the browser viewport: red for Fluid, purple for Intent, no border when OFF.
An info message in the toolbar: "Interact freely, not recording" (OFF), "Interact directly to record (or, click elements)" (Fluid), "Right-click on element to record" (Intent).

Fluid in the Browser

In Fluid mode, you use your web application naturally and ACCELQ writes the statements. When you type into a field and move focus (Tab, Enter, or clicking elsewhere), the completed interaction is captured and a fully formed statement appears in the Logic Editor, with the element, command, and values already filled in.

What Is Recorded Automatically

Interaction	Notes
Click on an element	All elements except input and dropdown fields, which record their own interactions below
Enter text or encrypted text	Input and password fields
Clear text	Input fields
Select an item from a dropdown	All supported dropdown types
Search and select in a dropdown	Searchable dropdowns
Checkbox and radio selections	input(type "checkbox" and "radio")
Double-click	All elements
Click with a modifier key	Ctrl, Alt, Cmd, Option combinations
Keyboard keys	Enter and Esc only

What Is Not Recorded Automatically

Mouse hovers, right-clicks, verification and wait commands, and browser keyboard operations such as Tab, Backspace, Delete, arrow keys, function keys, Page Up, and Page Down. All of these are available on right-click: the full command menu is always one right-click away in Fluid mode, so you can drop a verification between auto-captured steps without switching modes.

Keep in mind: Fluid records everything you do in the application. When working inside existing logic, this can capture steps you did not intend. Switch to Intent or OFF for precision work, and prune extra statements afterward.

Intent in the Browser

In Intent mode, hover over any element to see how ACCELQ identifies it, then right-click and choose the command. The statement lands in the Logic Editor with the element and command filled in; you complete the argument values inline, and with Auto Playback on, the browser executes the step as soon as you do.

Intent is the mode for deliberate work: adding verifications and waits, invoking reusable Actions from the Actions tab, parameterizing inputs as you build each step, and modifying established flows with the recording position lock.

Web-Specific Tools in the Right-Click Menu

Beyond the standard Commands and Actions tabs covered in Recording Fundamentals, the Web Recorder's menu offers:

ELEMENT button. Opens a popover showing both identification approaches for the hovered element side by side: the Locator-Free label and the Smart Locator selector, with save options. Covered in detail in Locator-Free and Smart Locator.
[L/O] tag. Appears beside each command in the list, letting you switch the identification strategy for that specific step before recording it. Also covered in Locator-Free and Smart Locator.
SMART FORMS button. Records an entire form in one operation instead of field by field. Smart Forms detects the form's structure and generates statements for all fields at once, for populating, updating, or validating them. A major time-saver on data-heavy screens; see Simplifying logic building for forms: Smart Forms.

Choosing Your Mode, in Practice

Starting a new Action or Scenario? Fluid. Walk through the flow, get a complete working draft in minutes, then review.
Adding verifications or waits to that draft? Stay in Fluid and right-click, or switch to Intent for a stretch of deliberate steps.
Enhancing or fixing existing logic? Intent, usually with the recording position lock. Nothing lands that you did not choose.
Navigating, logging in, setting up data? OFF. Come back to Fluid or Intent when ready to capture.