How can I create a spotlight importer for an OS X app that creates a spotlight tool like the calculator spotlight tool? It's the tool where you type in an equation and the calculator app displays the result. I want to do something like that, but I've never tried to use a spotlight importer so I don't know how I'd make that work. Is it possible to do this to begin with?
I don't need specific code, just a general idea of how I'd do that. I might even be thinking wrongly with taking an importer approach, but I'm not sure.
I'm pretty sure this isn't possible to do with a Spotlight importer, which is the only official interface for Spotlight integration that Apple provides.
A Spotlight importer runs only when Spotlight indexes your files (e.g. when a file of your type changes), not when Spotlight actually runs your search queries, so you have no way to directly "react" on the user's input like the built-in calculator does.
It might be possible to hack into the Spotlight UI with code injection, using something like SIMBL but that would be quite difficult and fragile (could break with system updates, etc.).
Alfred is worth a look. Its advanced calculator feature in the free version uses GCMathParser. The user pops up the interface with a hotkey, types the equation, and it displays the result immediately. Pressing enter copies the result to the clipboard and dismisses the box. Pretty slick, in my opinion.
With the Power Pack you can build your own extensions with shell scripts or AppleScripts, though most of them seem to use Growl to display the result. Here's one that sounds similar to what you're trying to accomplish: http://thefeverdog.tumblr.com/post/10308253571/currency-converter
I'm guessing you won't use Alfred because you'd like to build this yourself, but you may find the user interface inspiring nonetheless.
Related
is it possible to map Vim key bindings for windows? just like vimium for chrome. I don't like the mouse sometimes.
using vimium, I can press 'f' to generate 'names' for the link, and just press the name to open the link, it's awesome!
This is an AutoHotKey script that implements some of the vim functions in all applications.
Also LabelControl provides some label support, like vimium, but it's not always that useful.
you can use hunt-n-peck .
you should download binaries from continous integration artifacts.
this is the hunt-n-peck binaries zip link HuntAndPeck taken from repository's continuous integration artifacts.
I don't know about any existing tool, but macro tools like AutoHotkey allow to implement that. For a purely modal solution like in Vim, you'd need to save the mode state (and probably also indicate it somehow), which is difficult. Creating vim like functionality with autohotkey ahk outlines a solution (for navigation) that relies on another simultaneously pressed key instead.
To answer the stated question: Yes, and there exists several, but they have limitations. The best way that I know of is using AutoHotkey, which can be used to add several of Vim's features.
Due to how Vim commands work, it is only partially possible, as implemented in several forms. For several examples you can search for e.g. "autohotkey vim".
I'm doing an automation script for installation wizards using AutoIt. I'm trying to handle window changes in some way.
Can some one explain how these GUI's work?
When I click on the Next button it looks just like the components in the GUI is beeing changed. Is this tha case? Or is a new window created and the old destroyed?
I've noticed that the process ID is the same for all windows.
I'm sure there is some way to know which "state" the GUI is in, or which step?
By the way. All the windows has the same title.
Thanks
/Anders
This will be dependant on the program you are automating.
The easiest approach would be to look at what changes in the GUI between stages, likely candidates are if there is a label that is giving instructions for that step, or a button that has text changing (e.g. if the button says "Finish" then you know your at the end).
Most installer programs have child windows for grouping the controls of each stage. These are typically implemented as dialog resources (as can be seen when using something like reshacker on them). So although the window remains the same, the panels are being created/destroyed as appropriate. This is a very neat method of doing it, for the obvious reason that you don't need to have to code to create/destroy a lot of controls. Resource created dialogs don't have nice class names like windows sometimes do though, so this may not be a reliable way to check the state.
Specifically I'm attempting to map my MacBook's fn key to left mouse click.
Back in the old days when I was using Windows, I came across a wonderful little utility that let me map anything to anything: http://www.autohotkey.com/
You create a little text file, e.g.
^!s:: ; CTRL + ALT + s
Send Sincerely,{enter}John Smith ; sends keystrokes to active window
return
Creating a simple text file was infinitely better than any GUI based remapper.
I can look through it and see everything that is going on at a glance
I can customise every last detail
I can save / retrieve / post / share my scripts
Really, it's the one thing I really miss about Windows.
So my question is: How do I go about doing this in OS X? Every Google search leads to https://pqrs.org/macosx/keyremap4macbook/ and I dislike this package: it has an insanely cluttered GUI.
I would be very happy if I could do it in a shell script, or even compile code.
HotKeys on OS X
Even though AHK is seemingly absent on Mac, the functionality that AHK provides on Windows can likely be achieved in OS X. It could be a matter of coding your own solution, modifying something that's open-source, or using a combination of applications that will work together. I haven't tried all of the following, but might as well mention them as they might be worth checking out:
Open Source
IronAHK - .NET rewrite of AHK ported to OS X
AHK Forum Thread
Github Project
*the original project might be dead
CliClick - command-line application that will emulate mouse clicks
Github Project
Commercial
TextExpander - scriptable text completion / hotkey / macro app (supports AppleScript, Shell scripts)
Typinator - similar to TextExpander, although some features vary.
KeyMo - mostly for mapping keys exclusively to your mouse.
FastScripts - maps hotkeys/user-definable keyboard shortcuts to AppleScripts
*I use Text Expander and FastScripts together and can't live without them.
Rolling Your Own
It's fairly easy to create something with an AppleScript, or a shell script for just about anything imaginable in OS X. For example, I've seen CliClick used along with a custom AppleScript to achieve a certain functionality that it might not provide otherwise. To find an AHK replacement on Mac it'll probably be through trial and error, patience, and ultimately what ends up working best for you.
It is possible with a program called ControllerMate, instructions here. It is, however, a commercial software. I'm also interested in finding a free alternative.
Sikuli project looks promising. Not sure about your particular problem (e.g. Fn key remapping), but it's definitely a crossplatform alternative to AHK.
Another Open Source solution to this problem not mentioned in l'L'l's answer is Karabiner; I have been looking for a way to remap the key to the left of 1 to Esc for a while, and this worked perfectly. It even resolved an issue I was having where swapping Cmd and Alt using the built in OSX key remapping was breaking terminal Alt shortcuts! Highly recommend it.
I am looking for a solution to a specific use case:
When I read something on my browser or pdf reader, I want to take notes without switching windows. I want to type right on my browser or pdf reader, but the typed text should go to the background text editor like notepad.
Is this possible?
Do you know any existing automation script that handles this use case?
You should create an application that uses some keylogger-like techniques (e.g. global hooks) to monitor the keypresses and, depending on some condition (a setting you may have set, the currenctly active window, ...), it may pass them normally to the application or suppress them to store them in a buffer. Such buffer, then, would be shown to the user as needed.
Still, in my opinion a much more convenient way to perform a similar task would be to create an application consisting of a semitransparent edit box, that could be shown and hide simply with a hotkey. This would avoid all the hooks stuff and the potential problems that may arise from them.
you might try using autohotkey scripting language... I can write a little script that would do exactly what you need and afaik in this particular case it wouldnt need keyboard hooks.
--EDIT--
Autohotkey is VERY simple to use/learn so even if you want to do the script yourself you can do it in a very short time even if you dont have any knowledge of ahk. Then again, I can help you with it.
I wanted to have a GUI front-end for a script that accepts numerous command-line options, most of them are UNIX paths. So I thought rather than typing them in (even with auto-completion) every time, I'd create a GUI front end which contains text boxes with buttons beside them, which when clicked will invoke the file browser dialogue. Later, I thought I'd extend this to other scripts which would sure require a different set of GUI elements. This made me think if there's any existing app that would let me create a GUI dialog, after parsing some kind of description of the items that I want that window should contain.
I know of programs like Zenity, but I think it's doesn't give me what I want. For example, if I were to use it for the first script, it'll end up flashing sequence of windows in succession rather than getting everything done from a single window.
So, basically I'm looking at some corss-platform program that lets me create a window from a text description, probably XML or the like. Please suggest.
Thanks
Jeenu
Mozilla's XUL is a cross platform application framework - . You could write an app as a Firefox plugin or a standalone XUL application.
mono and monodevelop could work for this. Or even something super simple like shoes.