2003 • January • 24

AppleScript and application services in the closet

Apple's Script Editor 2.0 for OS 10.2.3 has support for Application Services . Basically, you can hilight some valid AppleScript text in any supporting application (like Safari, for instance) and

execute the script [or]

get the result of the script [or]

put the text into Script Editor.

Source:Mac OS X Hints: Run AppleScripts via system services.

Neat! Now... can we do something about making access to those services a bit more prominent? System-wide functions buried in a menu obscurely labeled "Services" under an app-specific menu label doesn't seem very inviting or intuitive. AppleScript gets insanely better treatment than this. I'd like to see these services pushed just as far forward, and more easily discoverable. It's been awhile since I played in Cocoa, but for awhile I was wondering if rearrange things a bit, maybe pull the service items for the currently active app into a menu extra or something. Or, at least pull the menu up a level, maybe stick it next to the "Script" where appropriate. And, I'd love to be able to customize the keyboard shortcuts assigned to them - some have shortcuts and I'll rarely use them, while others have no shortcut and I wish I could use them all the time.

It's good stuff, Apple, show it off.

shortname=ooocig

Archived Comments

Michael McCracken

2003-01-23T23:53:14

Hey, if you want to do a cocoa project to make services more visible, you might want to take a look at one of my old projects - I called it Self Service. http://disco.ucsd.edu/blog/computers/apps/SelfService The idea was to make Services into floating windows that you could drag and drop to. It works fine, but I keep forgetting to use it. (And Safari doesn't have a service) If you want the code, just ask.