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AppleScript offers a NL style where you code using an english language description of an imperative syntax. At first it seemed cool, but I quickly found it to
by _wire_ 3y ago
AppleScript offers a NL style where you code using an english language description of an imperative syntax.
At first it seemed cool, but I quickly found it to be perverse and incomprehensible.
These samples are from Apple's Guide:
set numClowns to 5
--result: 5
set myList to { 1, 2, "four" }
--result: {1, 2, "four"}
tell application "TextEdit"
set word1 to word 1 of front document
end tell
--result: some word
"DUMPtruck" is equal to "dumptruck"
--result: true
considering case
"DUMPtruck" is equal to "dumptruck"
end considering
--result: false
I DID NOT MAKE THIS UP
on raiseToTheNth(x, power)
set returnVal to x
repeat power - 1 times
set returnVal to returnVal \* x
end repeat
return returnVal
end raiseToTheNth
The good news is that you can control an app as if you are interacting with its GUI and all the features are in there somewhere, somehow.
tell application "Finder"
ignoring application responses
empty the trash
-- other statements that ignore application responses
considering application responses
set itemName to name of first item of startup disk
end considering
-- other statements that ignore application responses
end ignoring
end tell
The bad news is a syntax from hell and how do you discover the available idioms?
The facility can be turned into an abomination when you interface from a shell using the osascript shim.
It's so bad that if I have to use it I can't help but fall in with it love because a working script seems like a minor miracle to be recorded in a religious tome of divine encounters.
- IshKebab 3y agoI agree, the "natural" syntax is awful. Worst of both worlds. Terrible for experienced programmers because the syntax is so bad; terrible for beginners because it pretends to be natural but isn't. Fortunately they offer a (barely documented) JavaScript alternative these days.