How To Use Automation?

I was drawn to Garabeband '08 due to the automation feature. However, I can't figure out how to use it. I would like to add effects at certain points of the tracks. When I choose automation, I'll pick Vis EQ (for example) and then press o.k., but then nothing happens... or at least I'm not figuring it out. I was thinking you could "throw in" effects by creating and shifting/dragging the nodes (like in "volume" and "pan"). Please help.

Go to the automation control, where you used to be able to pick "Volume" or "Pan", and click the new option "Add Effect". You'll be able to select every effect that your track has. Make sure you get to the point where you acutally get a checkbox for that effect!

Similar Messages

How to use Automator to batch convert xls/xlsx files into tab OR pipe delimited text file.

If you have answer, please provide specific and detailed steps.
Situation 1:
Start:
150+ files in .xls OR .xlsx format
data contains many characters EXCEPT "Tab"
Process:
Use Automator to:
Select Files from Finder window
Convert selected files from xls/xlsx to TAB-DELIMITED file format
End:
150+ files in .txt format
files have identical names to those from "Start:"
data is TAB-DELIMITED
Situation 2:
Start:
150+ files in .xls OR .xlsx format
data contains many characters EXCEPT | (pipe, vertical bar)
Process:
Use Automator to:
Select Files from Finder window
Convert selected files from xls/xlsx to |-delimited file format
End:
150+ files in .txt format
files have identical names to those from "Start:"
data is "|"-delimited

If your post is addressed to my response then the answer is you have to write your own or search on-line to see if something exists to do what you want.
As you note there is no pre-built script for this.
regards
Message was edited by: Frank Caggiano - Are you certain there isn;t something in Excel to export as a tab delimited file?
This link Convert An Excel Spreadsheet To A Tab Delimited Text File seems to indicate that the function is in Excel already.

How to use automator to duplicate files into separate folder?

i am running the latest version of Yosemite just to clarify.
My question is, is it possible to use automator to automatically copy a file thats added to a folder to a separate folder?
to clarify, i have a drive account that has all my university work stored in a folder called university, i also have a folder on my HD called university.
When i work on something i open it from the university folder on my HD, and when im done working i have to copy the file manually into the drive folder.
Is there any way that i can use automator to detect when a file gets saved in a folder on my hard drive and automatically copy it to my drive folder?

Hello,
I really don't have much of an idea, but since no one has replied yet, I'll offer this...
I wonder if it's a matter of having to clear browser caches & reloading the page?

How to use automator to convert text to audio file

I have a MS Word file which I would like to convert to an audio file using the text to audio file script available in automator. Forgive my ignorance but I am having difficulty in finding how to do this.
Can anyone give me a step by step approach.
Thanks
Alain

One way:
1. Get Selected Finder Items
2. Open Finder Items
--Open with: TextEdit
3. Get Contents of TextEdit Document
4. Text to Audio File

How to use Automator to do retention?

I've used Mac OS X for more than 6 years and am starting to try out Automator (cue the awkward responses!)
I'm using an OS X server to store and host photos to share with my friends and family at home such as using an iPad a Mac or another system through my local network.
I use a Nikon DSLR and use the RAW format because no matter how "it gets easier to learn" DSLR cameras, I still need to have much flexibility to nampliate photos in case the perfect shot didn't come out right.
Most of the .NEF format averages about 16megs a pop. Last calendar years worth of photos totalled 80GB+ - an average HD size like 5 years ago!
I have limited storage across any computer or server, and the OS X server only has about 200GB of combined storage internally, and it runs Time Machine and backs up on a single Lacie 1TB hard drive.
I want to set up the Automator to do the following
I input my photos from another computer to the OS X server.
I ether edit, delete, etc. from a file share.
I make folders on by Year, Month or a special occasion gets its own folder.
3 months later, I want all images into an "archive" folder on an external USB hard drive
3 months after that, if any image didn't get converted as a JPEG, it will go to another retention folder I want to call the 1 Month Warning. If any image hasn't been opened or converted since then, I want it sent to the Trash.
If any image has been modified, then it can be moved back to the "archive" folder
would this be possible in Automator, how else can I do this?
Thanks!

If we're talking Apple mail, define a rule to route mails from that particular sender right to trash. You'll never see them. Click preferences, rules, and set it up.

How to use automator to extract specific text from json txt file

I'm trying to set up an Automator folder action to extract certain data from json files. I'm pulling metadata from YouTube videos, and I want to extract the Title of the video, the URL for the video, and the date uploaded.
Sample json data excerpts:
"upload_date": "20130319"
"title": "[title of varying length]"
"webpage_url": "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=[video id]"
Based on this thread, seems I should be able to have Automator (or any means of using a shell script) find data and extract it into a .txt file, which I can then open as a space delimited file in Excel or Numbers. That answer assumes a static number of digits for the text to be extracted, though. Is there a way Automator can search through the json file and extract the text - however long - after "title" and "webpage_url"?
json files are all in the same folder, and all end in .info.json.
Any help greatly appreciated!

Hello
You might try the following perl script, which will process every *.json file in current directory and yield out.csv.
* CSV currently uses space for field separator as you requested. Note that Numbers.app cannot import such CSV file correctly.
#!/bin/bash
/usr/bin/perl -CSDA -w <<'EOF' - *.json > out.csv
use strict;
use JSON::Syck;
$JSON::Syck::ImplicitUnicode = 1;
# json node paths to extract
my @paths = ('/upload_date', '/title', '/webpage_url');
for (@ARGV) {
    my $json;
    open(IN, "<", $_) or die "$!";
        local $/;
        $json = <IN>;
    close IN;
    my $data = JSON::Syck::Load($json) or next;
    my @values = map { &json_node_at_path($data, $_) } @paths;
        #   output CSV spec
        #   - field separator = SPACE
        #   - record separator = LF
        #   - every field is quoted
        local $, = qq( );
        local $\ = qq(\n);
        print map { s/"/""/og; q(").$_.q("); } @values;
sub json_node_at_path ($$) {
    #   $ : (reference) json object
    #   $ : (string) node path
    #   E.g. Given node path = '/abc/0/def', it returns either
    #       $obj->{'abc'}->[0]->{'def'}   if $obj->{'abc'} is ARRAY; or
    #       $obj->{'abc'}->{'0'}->{'def'} if $obj->{'abc'} is HASH.
    my ($obj, $path) = @_;
    my $r = $obj;
    for ( map { /(^.+$)/ } split /\//, $path ) {
        if ( /^[0-9]+$/ && ref($r) eq 'ARRAY' ) {
            $r = $r->[$_];
        else {
            $r = $r->{$_};
    return $r;
EOF
For Automator workflow, you may use Run Shell Script action as follows, which will receive json files and yield out_YYYY-MM-DD_HHMMSS.csv on desktop.
Run Shell Script action
    - Shell = /bin/bash
    - Pass input = as arguments
    - Code = as follows
#!/bin/bash
/usr/bin/perl -CSDA -w <<'EOF' - "$@" > ~/Desktop/out_"$(date '+%F_%H%M%S')".csv
use strict;
use JSON::Syck;
$JSON::Syck::ImplicitUnicode = 1;
# json node paths to extract
my @paths = ('/upload_date', '/title', '/webpage_url');
for (@ARGV) {
    my $json;
    open(IN, "<", $_) or die "$!";
        local $/;
        $json = <IN>;
    close IN;
    my $data = JSON::Syck::Load($json) or next;
    my @values = map { &json_node_at_path($data, $_) } @paths;
        #   output CSV spec
        #   - field separator = SPACE
        #   - record separator = LF
        #   - every field is quoted
        local $, = qq( );
        local $\ = qq(\n);
        print map { s/"/""/og; q(").$_.q("); } @values;
sub json_node_at_path ($$) {
    #   $ : (reference) json object
    #   $ : (string) node path
    #   E.g. Given node path = '/abc/0/def', it returns either
    #       $obj->{'abc'}->[0]->{'def'}   if $obj->{'abc'} is ARRAY; or
    #       $obj->{'abc'}->{'0'}->{'def'} if $obj->{'abc'} is HASH.
    my ($obj, $path) = @_;
    my $r = $obj;
    for ( map { /(^.+$)/ } split /\//, $path ) {
        if ( /^[0-9]+$/ && ref($r) eq 'ARRAY' ) {
            $r = $r->[$_];
        else {
            $r = $r->{$_};
    return $r;
EOF
Tested under OS X 10.6.8.
Hope this may help,
H

.action files found on HD. How to use?

Just found on my HD all these Automator scripts (system/library/automator) but I do not know how to use them (never used Automator. Can anybody tell me where to find out how to use these?
thanks.

The Automator actions you see there are simply the built-in actions you can use. Just open /Applications/Automator.app and you will see all the available actions there. To find out how to use Automator I’d recommend reading its help and/or visiting http://www.macosxautomation.com/ where you can find lots of automation info.
Björn

How to resize and change the resolution of a batch of photos using Automator

I searched for a long time tonight looking for the answer to this (seemingly) simple question:
How do I use Automator to scale and change the resolution of a batch of images?
It was not so simple.
Links to this question:
https://discussions.apple.com/message/12341246#12341246
https://discussions.apple.com/message/12342026#12342026
https://discussions.apple.com/message/5785047#5785047
https://discussions.apple.com/message/1173358#1173358
https://discussions.apple.com/message/5641853#5641853
https://discussions.apple.com/message/3207516#3207516
These are just the links on this site - I found them all over the place at MacRumors, Apple Tips, Mac Help, etc.
You can actually manage this in Automator.
Here are the steps that worked for me:
Create an Automator APPLICATION - not a workflow (this is due to the way that I'm batch converting images - workflows might be ok for some cases)
Step 1 is Copy Finder Items
My flow inserts an SD card, opens the DCIM folder that my Nikon creates, selecting the images that I click (command + click to multi-select) and once I have the photos highlighted, I drag them onto this Automator App we're creating.
<== You'll have this guy soon!
As a result - I want to copy the originals to my computer as step 1. I don't touch the originals on the SD card (and cards are cheap so I tend to leave them on the cards as well)
Step 2 is the Scale Images action - you can search the library for this and find it quickly. For my part, I found that scaling images to about 38.8 percent of their size on the SD card is good for uploading to a blog. Change this value to whatever you wish.
Step 3 is Run Shell Script - and here is where we marry the brilliance found at this link with our script.If you have a hard time reading the text in the image, it is as follows:
#bin/bash
for f in "$@"
do
/usr/bin/sips -s dpiHeight 72.0 -s dpiWidth 72.0 $f
done
Save this application (I named mine "Format Photos")
Place the application inside the target folder where you want the images to end up. I do this because when I have the SD card window open, I can also open my "Photos" window and see my App sitting there. I select my images as I mentioned and drag them on top of this app. The app copies the originals and the conversions into the folder.
NOTES: When you open a converted pic in Preview, you will see Resolution = 300 dpi if you go to Tools --> Adjust Size... This reading is explained by another brilliant discussion as sips only touches the JFIF properties inside the file's MetaData. However, if you look at the bottom of the Adjust Size... window, you'll see the image size is probably around 500 kb (give or take depending on the original). My goal was to get the images down from the 3.0 MB I shoot at to around 500 kb. Therefore even though the MetaData still thinks that it is 300 DPI according to Preview, it has been changed to 72 (open it in some other applications mentioned at the links and you'll find different readings - it all depends on what the application reads from the Meta).
This does not rename the files, so you'll get DSC_1000.jpg and DSC_1000 copy.jpg in all likelihood. If that annoys you, add a step into the Automator Application that renames the file after the "Run Shell Script" action has run, and you can have each file renamed according to some convention that you like.
This took a heck of a lot longer than I expected - so I decided to put in the effort to share this with the community and save others the hassle.

PPI is pixels per inch of the image. It is difficult to increase resolution as you are trying to add data that is not there.
But for printing purposes what you want is dpi or dots per inch.
The image processor either accessed from Bridge (tools/photoshp) or PS is a good way to change a batch of images.

How do I use Automator to duplicate a folder with graphics on my desktop and erase their Resource forks?

How do I use Automator to duplicate a folder with graphics on my desktop and erase their Resource forks?
I do not use command line and tried to use ZapResourceForksAMAub_1.2 which I downloadedand instaled the Zap Resource Forks.action. Next I tried to use their sample copy-zap-rsrc.workflow in Snow Leopardon my Mac Pro. The 3 different steps are displayed in Automator but there is no place to put in which folder (on my deskto) to copy, and remove the resource forks from the graphic files.
Can sombody please step me through this please please.
W.W.

Unfortunately, Back to My Mac only works across computers using the same iCloud account.

How can I use automator to open terminal change directory run a python script?

Hi all,
I dont really ever use automator - which may be my big problem - and I am trying to make an apllication that seems fairly simple in theroy. I want something that will lunch terminal, cd to the place where my python script lives and then run it. I have tried a number of suggested ways and can get the terminal to open and the directory to change but cant figure out how to run the script. This is my workflow if i did it manually each time
- open terminal
- type cd "the place where my file lives"
- type python uploadr.py -d
I can get terminal to open then cd to the right place but cant get the "python uploadr.py -d" to run without an error.
any help would be very appricated
thanks!!!
J

this is the script I got closest with - I know its something to do with breaking those two commands up but i just dont know how to do it
on run {input, parameters}
          tell application "Terminal"
activate
                    if (the (count of the window) = 0) or ¬
                              (the busy of window 1 = true) then
                              tell application "System Events"
keystroke "n" using command down
                              end tell
                    end if
                    do script "cd /Users/behole/Desktop/FlickrUpload/" & "python uploadr.py -d" in window 1
          end tell
          return input
end run
this is the error I get in terminal after I run it
Last login: Mon Jul 23 15:37:17 on ttys000
be-holes-MacBook-Pro:~ behole$ cd /Users/behole/Desktop/FlickrUpload/python uploadr.py -d
-bash: cd: /Users/behole/Desktop/FlickrUpload/python: No such file or directory
be-holes-MacBook-Pro:~ behole$

How can I use Automator to extract information from the body of an email sent from a web form.. and the import it into Highrise?

I'm assuming that Automator is the way to go. I've never used it before but from research it seems to be the way to go. Also, I'm not good at programming at all.
Here's a typical email...
From:      [email protected]
     Subject:      Enquiry for Property ID: 408777039, 2 Grey Avenue, Manningham, SA 5086, Listing Agent
     Date:      18 September 2013 8:33:51 PM ACST
     To:      Joe Jope
     Reply-To: [email protected]
You have received a new lead from realestate.com.au for
Property id: 408587036
Property address: 2 Grey Avenue, Manningham, SA 5086
Property URL: www.realestate.com.au/404387039
User Details:
Name: John Bon Jovi
Email: [email protected]
Phone: 0422645633
I would like to: buy this house
Comments: Please give me a call.
I have several hundred of these emails and I want to extract the information and then save it into my CRM which is Highrise (https://highrisehq.com). If it's too difficult to get it directly into Highrise then I'm aslo happy to extract the info into excel and the import into Highrise. However I do not want to have to run through that proceedure for every single email.
I'd really like some help on how to get Automator to do this for me. Or if not Automator.. any other suggestions?
Thanks.
John

Hello
You may try the following AppleScript script. It will ask you to choose a root folder where to start searching for *.map files and then create a CSV file named "out.csv" on desktop which you may import to Excel.
set f to (choose folder with prompt "Choose the root folder to start searching")'s POSIX path
if f ends with "/" then set f to f's text 1 thru -2
do shell script "/usr/bin/perl -CSDA -w <<'EOF' - " & f's quoted form & " > ~/Desktop/out.csv
use strict;
use open IN => ':crlf';
chdir $ARGV[0] or die qq($!);
local $/ = qq(\\0);
my @ff = map {chomp; $_} qx(find . -type f -iname '*.map' -print0);
local $/ = qq(\\n);
#     CSV spec
#     - record separator is CRLF
#     - field separator is comma
#     - every field is quoted
#     - text encoding is UTF-8
local $\\ = qq(\\015\\012);    # CRLF
local $, = qq(,);            # COMMA
# print column header row
my @dd = ('column 1', 'column 2', 'column 3', 'column 4', 'column 5', 'column 6');
print map { s/\"/\"\"/og; qq(\").$_.qq(\"); } @dd;
# print data row per each file
while (@ff) {
    my $f = shift @ff;    # file path
    if ( ! open(IN, '<', $f) ) {
        warn qq(Failed to open $f: $!);
        next;
    $f =~ s%^.*/%%og;    # file name
    @dd = ('', $f, '', '', '', '');
    while (<IN>) {
        chomp;
        $dd[0] = \"$2/$1/$3\" if m%Link Time\\s+=\\s+([0-9]{2})/([0-9]{2})/([0-9]{4})%o;
        ($dd[2] = $1) =~ s/ //g if m/([0-9 ]+)\\s+bytes of CODE\\s/o;
        ($dd[3] = $1) =~ s/ //g if m/([0-9 ]+)\\s+bytes of DATA\\s/o;
        ($dd[4] = $1) =~ s/ //g if m/([0-9 ]+)\\s+bytes of XDATA\\s/o;
        ($dd[5] = $1) =~ s/ //g if m/([0-9 ]+)\\s+bytes of FARCODE\\s/o;
        last unless grep { /^$/ } @dd;
    close IN;
    print map { s/\"/\"\"/og; qq(\").$_.qq(\"); } @dd;
EOF
Hope this may help,
H

How can I use Automator to extract specific Data from a text file?

I have several hundred text files that contain a bunch of information. I only need six values from each file and ideally I need them as columns in an excel file.
How can I use Automator to extract specific Data from the text files and either create a new text file or excel file with the info? I have looked all over but can't find a solution. If anyone could please help I would be eternally grateful!!! If there is another, better solution than automator, please let me know!
Example of File Contents:
Link Time =
DD/MMM/YYYY
Random
Text
161 179
bytes of CODE    memory (+                68 range fill )
16 789
bytes of DATA    memory (+    59 absolute )
1 875
bytes of XDATA   memory (+ 1 855 absolute )
90 783
bytes of FARCODE memory
What I would like to have as a final file:
EXCEL COLUMN1
Column 2
Column3
Column4
Column5
Column6
MM/DD/YYYY
filename1
161179
16789
1875
90783
MM/DD/YYYY
filename2
xxxxxx
xxxxx
xxxx
xxxxx
MM/DD/YYYY
filename3
xxxxxx
xxxxx
xxxx
xxxxx
Is this possible? I can't imagine having to go through each and every file one by one. Please help!!!

Hello
You may try the following AppleScript script. It will ask you to choose a root folder where to start searching for *.map files and then create a CSV file named "out.csv" on desktop which you may import to Excel.
set f to (choose folder with prompt "Choose the root folder to start searching")'s POSIX path
if f ends with "/" then set f to f's text 1 thru -2
do shell script "/usr/bin/perl -CSDA -w <<'EOF' - " & f's quoted form & " > ~/Desktop/out.csv
use strict;
use open IN => ':crlf';
chdir $ARGV[0] or die qq($!);
local $/ = qq(\\0);
my @ff = map {chomp; $_} qx(find . -type f -iname '*.map' -print0);
local $/ = qq(\\n);
#     CSV spec
#     - record separator is CRLF
#     - field separator is comma
#     - every field is quoted
#     - text encoding is UTF-8
local $\\ = qq(\\015\\012);    # CRLF
local $, = qq(,);            # COMMA
# print column header row
my @dd = ('column 1', 'column 2', 'column 3', 'column 4', 'column 5', 'column 6');
print map { s/\"/\"\"/og; qq(\").$_.qq(\"); } @dd;
# print data row per each file
while (@ff) {
    my $f = shift @ff;    # file path
    if ( ! open(IN, '<', $f) ) {
        warn qq(Failed to open $f: $!);
        next;
    $f =~ s%^.*/%%og;    # file name
    @dd = ('', $f, '', '', '', '');
    while (<IN>) {
        chomp;
        $dd[0] = \"$2/$1/$3\" if m%Link Time\\s+=\\s+([0-9]{2})/([0-9]{2})/([0-9]{4})%o;
        ($dd[2] = $1) =~ s/ //g if m/([0-9 ]+)\\s+bytes of CODE\\s/o;
        ($dd[3] = $1) =~ s/ //g if m/([0-9 ]+)\\s+bytes of DATA\\s/o;
        ($dd[4] = $1) =~ s/ //g if m/([0-9 ]+)\\s+bytes of XDATA\\s/o;
        ($dd[5] = $1) =~ s/ //g if m/([0-9 ]+)\\s+bytes of FARCODE\\s/o;
        last unless grep { /^$/ } @dd;
    close IN;
    print map { s/\"/\"\"/og; qq(\").$_.qq(\"); } @dd;
EOF
Hope this may help,
H

Does anyone know how to save multiple webpages in safari using automator?

Does anyone know how to save multiple webpages in safari using automator?

You will likely get better program help in a program forum
The Cloud forum is not about using individual programs
The Cloud forum is about the Cloud as a delivery & install process
If you will start at the Forums Index https://forums.adobe.com/welcome
You will be able to select a forum for the specific Adobe product(s) you use
Click the "down arrow" symbol on the right (where it says All communities) to open the drop down list and scroll

How to use variable in automator?

So I am trying to create this dictation command in automator where i can go like this "Launch Safari" or "Launch iTunes" so how to use the variable for text in the command?

Hi,
This is possible without a variable.
Remove the "Ask for Text" and "Set value of Variable psize" actions.
In the "Scale Images" action:
-- Click on the "Options" button.
-- click on "Show this action when the workflow runs" checkbox.
This is almost similar to that "Ask for Text" action, since the "Scale Images" action will be displayed as a dialog, You can adjust the percentage in this dialog.

How can I use automator to copy and paste excel content to a new empty document?

Hi,
I would like to copy and paste the content from an excel file to another empty new document using automator, which I created a workflow like below
get specific finder item
open excel workbook
select cell from excel workbook (all content)
obtain selected content from workbook
copy to pasteboard the content of excel workbook
close the excel workbook
create new excel workbook
paste copyboard content to excel workbook
can anyone kindly suggest what's wrong with this workflow?
Thank you so much
Eddy
(i know this is a number place but I couldn't find any excel seciton sorry guys...)

now it only does one file at a time, whereas I would like to do multiple files simultaneously.
If you try a search for "loop Automator" and also "folder actions" you may find some usable pointers on how to do that. The first example on this page looks promising.
SG

How To Use Automation?

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