Applpescript: Reading Text file for List of Files - automation

I have been trying to cobble together a script to take a list of files from a text document and have applescript go through the list line by line and then do something with the file. In this case it is changing the label on the file, but we would use it in other instances to move files, etc.
It works with a test file on my desktop the files get marked with the purple Label, but when trying to run it in the folder I actually need to it fails with this error message:
error "Finder got an error: Can’t set 1 to 5." number -10006 from 1
The text files are the same except for the length of their content.
Could this be a an issues with filenames, and if so how do I make the script more tolerant.
Here is the script:
set textFileContents to POSIX path of (choose file)
set dataList to paragraphs of (read textFileContents as «class utf8»)
tell application "System Events"
repeat with thisFileName in dataList
tell application "Finder" to set (label index of files whose name is thisFileName) to 5
end repeat
end tell
Any help would be appreciated, thanks.
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Here is the final code from the solution to this problem and some further work I did.
Thanks to #Mark Setchell & #jackjr300 for all of their patient help.
set justpath to POSIX path of (choose folder with prompt "Select the Folder with Files You Want to Use")
set textFileContents to (choose file with prompt "Select the list of files")
set dataList to paragraphs of (read textFileContents as «class utf8»)
tell application "Finder"
repeat with FileName in dataList
try -- need a try block to ignore error, in case that the file has been moved or deleted
set label index of (justpath & FileName as POSIX file as alias) to 5
end try
end repeat
end tell

You seem to have a spurious tell application "System Events" in there. It works like this:
set FileName to POSIX path of (choose file)
set FileRecords to paragraphs of (read FileName)
repeat with ThisFileName in FileRecords
say ThisFileName
tell application "Finder" to set (label index of files whose name is thisFileName) to 5
end repeat
Note that my test file isn't UTF8.
Update
By the way, if all you want do is set the label colour on some files, it may be easier to do that from the Terminal and not worry with Applescript. Say you start the Terminal, and go to your Desktop like this
cd Desktop
you can then change the labels of all files on your Desktop (and in any subdirectories) whose names contain "Freddy" followed by "Frog" (i.e "fileForFreddyFrog.txt", "file from Freddy the Frog.php")
find . -name "*Freddy*Frog*" -exec xattr -wx com.apple.FinderInfo "0000000000000000000700000000000000000000000000000000000000000000" {} \;

You need to specify the folder because the finder has no current folder, except the Desktop if you don't specify a folder.
set textFileContents to choose file
set dataList to paragraphs of (read textFileContents as «class utf8»)
set theFolder to "/Users/jack/Desktop/xxx/yyy" as POSIX file as alias -- change it to the path of your folder
tell application "Finder"
repeat with thisFileName in dataList
try -- need a try block to ignore error, in case that the file has been moved or deleted
set label index of file thisFileName of theFolder to 5
end try
end repeat
end tell
Change the path in the third line of this script
--
If the text file contains the full path of the file, you can use this script.
set textFileContents to choose file
set dataList to paragraphs of (read textFileContents as «class utf8»)
tell application "Finder"
repeat with thisPath in dataList
try -- need a try block to ignore error, in case that the file has been moved or deleted
set label index of (thisPath as POSIX file as alias) to 5
end try
end repeat
end tell

Related

Applescript: Recursive Folders of Selected Folder

Using applescript, I'm trying to create a .patch file in a set of parallel folders for every .recipe file in a target folder and its sub-folders. This also includes creating a parallel folder structure as the script does it's thing. I've got the steps right, but some part of the detailed grammar is wrong and I can't figure out what and how to fix it. Debugging information I've read so far has not helped me, though I'm sure this is a simple matter of incorrect applescript grammar. Here is the code:
use AppleScript version "2.4" -- Yosemite (10.10) or later
use scripting additions
on run
set patchFile to (choose file with prompt "Select patch file...")
set assetsFolder to (choose folder with prompt "Select recipe assets folder...")
set dumpFolder to (choose folder with prompt "Select dump folder...")
makePatches(patchFile, assetsFolder, dumpFolder)
end run
on makePatches(patchFile, targetFolder, dumpFolder)
tell application "Finder"
set recipeCount to count (files in folder (targetFolder) whose name ends with ".recipe")
if (recipeCount > 0) then
set recipeFiles to files in folder (targetFolder) whose name ends with ".recipe"
repeat with eachFile in recipeFiles
set recipePatch to duplicate patchFile to folder dumpFolder
set recipePatch's name to eachFile's name & ".patch"
end repeat
end if
set folderCount to (folders in folder (targetFolder) whose visible is true)
if (folderCount > 0) then
set subFolders to folders in folder (targetFolder)
repeat with eachFolder in subFolders
set newName to folder eachFolder's name
set newFolder to make new folder at folder dumpFolder
set newFolder's name to newName
my makePatches(patchFile, eachFolder, newFolder)
end repeat
end if
end tell
return
end makePatches
Note that if I remove the code for iterating through the folders and simply have it create patches for each .recipe file in a folder, then that code works. Or at least, it does as far as I can tell. So the problem should be somewhere at or after folderCount. The recursion is needed, as is the ability to use choose with prompt. Hopefully that isn't a problem. What is the correct grammar for the iteration section?
After semi-blindly adjusting the code and looking at just about every relevant example I could find, I came up with some code that does exactly what is needed. But I don't really understand what was going wrong with the original, so while I'll post the working code I made, I'd still like to hear what was wrong with the original code explained.
on run
set patchFile to (choose file with prompt "Select patch file...")
set assetsFolder to (choose folder with prompt "Select recipe assets folder...")
set dumpFolder to (choose folder with prompt "Select dump folder...")
makePatches(patchFile, assetsFolder, dumpFolder)
end run
on makePatches(patchFile, targetFolder, dumpFolder)
tell application "Finder"
set recipeFiles to files of targetFolder whose name ends with ".recipe"
repeat with eachFile in recipeFiles
set recipePatch to duplicate patchFile to dumpFolder
set recipePatch's name to eachFile's name & ".patch"
end repeat
end tell
tell application "Finder" to set theseSubFolders to folders of targetFolder
repeat with tSubF in theseSubFolders
set newName to tSubF's name
tell application "Finder" to set newFolder to (make new folder at dumpFolder with properties {name:newName})
my makePatches(patchFile, tSubF, newFolder)
end repeat
end makePatches

applescript to move files in numeric order

i started a project for a friend, that involved moving large quantities of files into specific folders. i was using automator as I'm handling the project on my mac, however automator does not have a feature to move section of files that are numbered numerically. for instance i will have files that are say "this file 100" and ill have 100 files like that. and then files that say "That file 50" and ill have 200 files like that. the project is splitting these files into there own folder but in section. so ill need "This file" 1-25 in one folder 26-80 in anther and so on. same is true for the "THAT FILES" but there isn't a pattern just the requirement my friend has asked for.
is there a easy way to write a script that could grab 1-25 or any sequel ordering with the same file name? because moving each file one at a time with automator has been taking to long.
thank you so much in advanced
I am not sure tu fully understand your naming convention, but overall , yes, with Applescript, you can move files into folders based on names, eventually adding sequence numbers.
Because I am not sure about your requirements, at least, here are some sample of syntax for main operations :
Get list of files with names containing xxx in folder myFolder :
Tell Application "Finder" to set myList to every file of myFolder whose name contains "xxx"
Then you have to do a repeat / end repeat loop :
Repeat with aFile in myList
-- do something here with aFile : example with name of aFile
end repeat
In that loop you can extract name, parse it, add a counter,...
To move file to new folder, you must use "move" instruction in a tell "Finder" bloc. Instruction "make" can also be used to create new destination folder based on name or root names of files. You must remember that Applescript commands will give error if same file name already exists in destination folder : Finder is able to add "copy" in the name, but you must do it yourself in Applescript.
Last advice if about the number of files to handle. If that number is not so high (less than few hundreds) Applescript is still OK for speed. If your number of files is much higher, then you must use either shell command or, better, a mix of AS and shell commands. The shell commands can be called from AS with a "do shell script". For instance, getting the list of 1000 files from a folder is time consuming with AS, but much quicker with 'ls' command ! Same for a copy. here is an example of copy using shell 'cp' :
do shell script "cp " & quoted form of (POSIX path of (aFile as string)) & " " & quoted form of (POSIX path of DestFolder) & (quoted form of newFileName)
Note : "Posix path" converts the AS file path (Users:myName:Documents:File.txt) into shell path (Users/myName/Documents/File.txt)
I hope it helps.

Embed Applescript in Global Field to (Export Container and Trigger Printing with Acrobat)

I am trying to tie together a filemaker script that will export PDFs to a temporary space and use and apple script to print them.
I was able to cull together info from this and some other boards to create an applescript that will print the PDFs using Acrobat from a folder.
I have already created a script that finds the Related attachments and exports them to the desktop.
What I'm having trouble with is merging the two.
I need to export the PDF to a folder or temporary place and trigger the apple script to initiate the printing...
This great Suggestion was provided by Chuck of chivalrysoftware.com/…...
Calculate the location to export by appending the filename to Get( TemporaryPath ).
Export the container field contents to FileMaker to that path.
Save the path to a global field in FileMaker
Use an embedded AppleScript to access the global field path
Use AppleScript to open the file in Preview and print it
This is my apple script:
set myFolder to (path to desktop folder as text) & "Print:"
set myfiles to list folder myFolder without invisibles
repeat with myfile in myfiles
set mycurrentfile to ((myFolder as string) & (myfile as string)) as string
batchprint(mycurrentfile)
end repeat
on batchprint(mycurrentfile)
tell application "Adobe Acrobat Pro"
activate -- bring up acrobat
open alias mycurrentfile -- acrobat opens that new file
tell application "System Events"
tell process "Acrobat"
click menu item "Print..." of menu 1 of menu bar item "File"¬
of menu bar 1
click button "Print" of window "Print"
tell application "System Events"
tell process "Acrobat"
click menu item "Close" of menu 1 of menu bar item "File"¬
of menu bar 1
end tell
end tell
end tell
end tell
end tell
tell application "Finder" -- to move the printed file out
set x to ((path to desktop folder as text) & "Printed PDFs:")
if alias x exists then
beep
else
make new folder at the desktop with properties {name:"Printed PDFs"}
end if
move alias mycurrentfile to folder "Printed PDFs"
end tell
end batchprint
My Filemaker script is:
Go to Related Record[
Show only related records; From table: 'Attachments";
Using layout: "Attachements Report' (Attachments); New window
]
Enter Find Mode
Constrain Found Set [Restore]
Sort Records [Restore; No dialog]
# After finding the related attachments and constraining them to the specific type
# we rename and export them to the desktop
Go to Record/Request/Page [First]
Loop
Set Variable [$Path; Value:
Get ( DesktopPath ) & Attachments::Record number & "-"
& Attachment Type List 2::Prefix_z & Lien::Lien_ID_z1]
Export Field Contents [Attachments::file_c; $Path]
Go to Record/Request/Page [Next: Exit after last]
End Loop
Close Window [Current Window]
First of all, the FileMaker part. Create a global text field in one of your tables. It looks like the Attachments table would be the best place for it. I'll call it g_applescript_parameter for this.
Now we're going to use your $Path variable, which given the calc you've provided should be something like /Aslan/Users/chuck/Desktop/1234-ABC4321. I'd recommend appending a .pdf to the end of it since you'll be exporting PDF files. This may help later.
Also, I would recommend that you use Get( TemporaryPath ) instead of Get( DesktopPath ). Anything you place in the temporary folder will be automatically deleted when you quit FileMaker, which means you don't have to write anything to clean up the desktop folder later and you don't have to manually trash them either. Let FileMaker do that work for you. :)
Regardless, FileMaker uses a path of the form filemac:/volumeName/directoryName/fileName (see the notes in the Specify output file dialog box for the Export Field Contents script step). So you should also prepend filemac: to the beginning of your path variable.
All told, your $Path should be set to something like this:
"filemac:" & Get( DesktopPath ) & Attachments::Record number & "-" &
Attachment Type List 2::Prefix_z & Lien::Lien_ID_z1 & ".pdf"
So your export path for FileMaker should work better now. But AppleScript requires a different format for the path to the same file. Given the above, AppleScript's version should be something like /Users/chuck/Desktop/1234-ABC4321.pdf. In other words, everything after the drive name. Fortunately FileMaker can get the drive name with the Get( SystemDrive ) function. For me that function returns /Aslan/. So if we take the $Path variable as defined above and remove filemac: and the name of the drive as defined by Get( SystemDrive ) and add an extra slash at the beginning, that would convert our FileMaker path into an AppleScript path:
"/" & Substitute( $Path; "filemac:" & Get( SystemDrive ); "" )
Use Set Variable to create an $ASPath variable and set it to the above.
Now within your loop store the contents of the $ASPath variable within that global text field:
Loop
Set Variable[ $Path; …]
Set Variable[ $ASPath; …]
Set Field[Attachments::g_applescript_parameter; $ASPath)
Export Field Contents[Attachments::file_c; $Path]
Go to Record/Request/Page[Next; Exit after last]
End Loop
Now AppleScript can extract that information. I'm assuming that given an accurate file being passed to the batchprint function, batchprint will work, so keep that, but remove everything before it and use something like this:
set _pdf_path to contents of cell "g_applescript_parameter" of current layout
batchprint(_pdf_path)
on batchprint(mycurrentfile)
...
end batchprint
Add a Perform AppleScript step after the Export Field Contents step and place the above code in it.
Note that the first line of the above AppleScript will only work as written from within FileMaker. If you're testing this outside of FileMaker in, for example, Script Editor, then you'll need to make that first line read
tell applicaiton "FileMaker" to set _pdf_path ...
You don't need to do this within the Perform AppleScript script step because by default commands are sent to the enclosing FileMaker application.

How can I create a display dialog that presents specific file path options for a given PDF file?

I am very new to using Automator and Applescript.
I would like to use Automator and AppleScript to detect PDF files that are downloaded to the "Downloads" folder and opens a display dialog that allows me to select the file path and move the file. So far, what I have (which isn't right) is something like:
set question to display dialog "Save fileName in..." buttons {"Figuring Relation", "Iconoclasm", "Elsewhere"} default button 3
set answer to button returned of question
if answer is equal to "Figuring Relation" then
tell application "Finder" to move fileName to POSIX file "/Users/mac/Documents/College/Junior/Fall/Art 347 - Figuring Relation"
I want the "Figuring Relation" and "Iconoclasm" buttons to change the file path to a designated file path (I don't want to browse for it), and the "Elsewhere" button to open a Finder window where I can select/browse the path.
If possible, I'm also looking to add the date to the beginning of the file name as "mm-dd_filename".
I am not sure of how to translate the Automator Input to Applescript, or how to include the filename in the display dialog text. Thank you so much for any help.
Here is an example using just applescript. In my example, it assumes you're selecting the file you're wanting to move, but you could easily add something for the script to "Find" all files ending with ".pdf" if you wanted to and then loop through the results.
on run
try
set thisFile to choose file
tell application "Finder" to set currentName to thisFile's name
-- Setting variables for the destinations to be used later
set FiguringRelationPath to (path to documents folder) & "College:Junior:Fall:Art 347 - Figuring Relation:" as string
set IconoclasmPath to (path to documents folder) & "Iconoclasm:" as string
-- Ask the user
set answer to button returned of (display dialog "Save \"" & currentName & "\" in..." buttons {"Figuring Relation", "Iconoclasm", "Elsewhere"} default button 3)
-- Set the destination variable based on the users response to the dialog
if answer is equal to "Figuring Relation" then
set destination to FiguringRelationPath
else if answer is equal to "Iconoclasm" then
set destination to IconoclasmPath
else
set destination to choose folder with prompt "Please select the destination folder" as string
end if
-- Test that the destination directory exists, if not post the error
try
set destination to destination as alias
on error
error ("Destination path " & destination as string) & " doesn't appear to exist"
end try
-- Rename the file with the date prefix
set tDatePrefix to (do shell script "date '+%m-%d'") & "_" as string
tell application "Finder" to set x's name to tDatePrefix & x's name as string
-- Move the file
tell application "Finder" to move thisFile to destination
on error err
activate
display dialog "Error: " & err buttons {"OK"} default button 1
end try
end run

Delete PDF files only from folder using Applescript on MAC

I need to delete the PDF files only from a folder on a network drive. There are other file types in the folder I can not touch. I am assuming I have to choose or identify the PF files first and then move them to the trash or delete them.
What I have so far:
tell application "Finder"
set theFolder to "Macintosh HD:Users:Kathlene:Desktop:ABC123_JOB"
set destFolder to "Server/JOBS/TRANSFER_TRASH/"
set thePDFs to every file of theFolder whose name extension is "pdf"
move thePDFs to destFolder
end tell
What I get for an error:
error "Can’t get every file of \"Macintosh
HD:Users:Kathlene:Desktop:ABC123_JOB:\"." number -1728 from every file
of "Macintosh HD:Users:Kathlene:Desktop:ABC123_JOB"
Try:
tell application "Finder" to delete (files of folder "Macintosh HD:Users:Kathlene:Desktop:ABC123_JOB" whose name extension is "pdf")