Is this feasible with Automator?

I am tasked with the project of making it possible for Mac users in an office to create several folders and documents automatically, at the click of a mouse, if you will. Can this be done with Automator? If not, any recommendations on how to make this happen?
Example:
Law office has a new client. By simple act of automation, it would be great if a folder was created with the clients' name, followed by a subfolders, with boiler plate documents inside them that are used in every case, such as contracts, introductory letters, motions, etc. Even more ideal, it would be great to have a checklist of all the steps that is generated, and even more ideal, would be great if the user could choose the type of case, and have folders and letters generated based on the choice of which kind of case.
Is this possible?

It is possible - a service can be used to run a workflow with folders selected in a Finder window. There are a few ways to create the folder structures, one would be to use a previously created template and copy that to the new client folder - I have written an Automator action that does just that:
The Copy Folder Structure action can be downloaded here.

Similar Messages

Anyone else had this problem with automation?

Its quite basic... and there is nothing on this in the manual that i can find in the automation section at all... I have an FM8 track recorded via midi on an instrument track... I put the automation in touch... I press play and record automation in this case on the talk wah "size" and it functions properly (when i let go it resumes the position it was in, and it records the automation data=I can make it visible) The automation will play until i try to record another pass of automation using a different parameter on FM8 which was "mouth" rather than "size" this time... when i try to record the second pass of automation it appears to be playing the other parameter's automation i had just recorded until i actually start automating the new parameter... then it stops playing any previously recorded automation and wont play back ANY automation from there on out... is this a bug anyone has encountered? I just made the switch from pro-tools to logic cuz i hate digi design... but should i upgrade to logic 8 since i bought 7 after august 1st before 8 came out? any suggestions in the meantime would greatly help... i have a deadline for this song by this sunday and this effect really adds alot, it would be greatly appreciated if anyone has encountered this.. and if you cant answer my first question then maybe you know how to record an instrument track to an audio track to where i could perform the effects manually as its recording to an audio track... So far any bussing techniques i know have failed despite the level showing up as if there were signal.. any help would be greatly appreciated
Desperate Composer

I rarely record automation, and when I do I never do a second pass (usually hand draw automation in) but I have had problems with Logic 7 no longer playing back automation. I've been told its fixed in Logic 8, but in the mean time here is a work around.
Select the region where the automation is (if there is no region, create one using the pencil tool and expand it to cover all automation) and go OPTIONS menu -> TRACK AUTOMATION -> "Move current track data to region data." Now everything should play back as expected. If you want to edit the data, simply select "move current region data to track data" and edit away.
For some reason, Logic 7 will sometimes stop reading track automation data, but I have yet to have it stop reading region automation. This is a bug, and according to other users, has been fixed in Logic 8. Hope this helps until we eventually upgrade

Is this feasible with Applescript?

I'm trying to figure out how to make the following happen for a law firm. I describe it in a short version, and then detail it in a long version.
I'm told that Hazel nor Automator isn't really the solution.
And if applescript is the best solution, then the next question is, where is a recommended place for me to do some "dummies" courses in learning Applescript?
Short version:
A Law firm would like to basically input a small set of data, such as a new Client's name and relevant contact details, and have a folder generated that includes subfolders. Inside the subfolders would be sets of documents that are automatically used with every new client, such as letter of introduction, contract, probate, will, etc. Ideally there would also be a step-by-step checklist generated with each client.
Long version (my initial design document):
ESTATE PLANNING
FOLDERSNew Client Folders
Client Documents
Correspondence
Estate Planning DocumentsSignatures
Attorney Notes
Funding
Grant Deed(s)
Preliminary Change of Ownership Form
Letters to Financial Institutions
COMMON LETTERSConcept: Type in certain data which would generate following:
Engagement Letter – Hires Law Firm
Funding Letter – What is missing or needed
Closing Letter
Trust Administration Letter
Email Introducing Firm & Attachment (Indiv/Partnered/Married)
Email – Closing Letter
PROBATE
FOLDERSNew Client Folders
Client Documents
Correspondence
Pleadings
Attorney Notes
Discovery
COMMON LETTERSConcept: Type in certain data which would generate following:
Engagement Letter – Hires Law Firm
Closing Letter
(Other letters?)
LITIGATION
FOLDERS
New Client Folders
Client Documents
Correspondence
Pleadings
Attorney Notes
Discovery
COMMON LETTERS
Concept: Type in certain data which would generate following:
Engagement Letter – Hires Law Firm
Closing Letter
(Other letters?)
GENERAL CONSIDERATIONS
1. Process should include detailed checklist for each major area – EP, PRO, LIT;

So you're looking for some help writing (part of) a software package that caters to the practice of law?
These packages have been written before. If you don't use one or customize one of the existing packages, then spend the time to look and see what the packages provide and (where that's available) how.
LawStream and Desk Space Attorney are two that showed up in a quick search, and Firm Manager is cloud-based with OS X connectivity, and it is quite certain that there are other local and hosted packages for legal practices available.
Or yes, you can roll your own customized legal practice package. I probably wouldn't touch AppleScript here for much, if you're going to get paid to create a custom solution. I'd probably using some combination of Python and bash for scripting, and Objective-C and Cocoa for applications, and probably some bridging, depending on what you're doing. Ways to send mail and log calendar events from Python and Objective-C code do exist, too.
For a full-on practice-management package, you're heading toward the creation of a state table (to control the sequencing that's typical here, do this task, then log that, fill those document fields from that document, then do whatever else, suggest some considerations to the attorney or the clerk based on the context, then generate an entry for the bill; that sort of thing), a document revision management system (for the masters and for the copies sent to the clients), the usual connections to mail and calendar, a mail-merge package to insert the changes from the customer database into the master copies of the documents, an audit trail both for accountability and billing, and a document store. Using a directory tree would be an obvious approach for a simple implementation, but that doesn't tend to scale all that well; using a database or potentially a source code control package such as Mercurial (Hg) or git would be more typical.
In general, AppleScript would not be my choice of implementation language here; not for something a practice was going to depend on. There might well be cases where AppleScript would be useful and would be part of the solution, but GUI scripting isn't the most robust long-term approach for an application. And there are other tools that can sequence stuff. Could you generate a set of directories pre-populated with master copies of documents with an AppleScript script? Sure... A bash shell script or a Python script, ObjC, or most other languages could manage this, too.

Help with Automator - create workflow to move files to dated folders

If anyone could help me, I'd greatly appreciate it.
I have no idea how to use Automator, but I think it'd be perfect for this job.
I want to take a folder of files (images) and move them to separate folders which are named for the dates that the files were created on. So, for instance, I have a folder of ten images. Five were created on November 1st and the other five were created on November 2nd. I want to create two folders on the desktop with the dates in the name (like 20071101 & 20071102) and take the five images from 11/1 and move them to the 20071101 folder and the five images from 11/2 and move them to the 20071102 folder (sorry for the run-on sentence).
Is this possible with Automator? Is this an easy thing to do?
Thanks,
Antonio

I'm trying to do something very similar. I need to open an image sequence in QuickTime and export them to a mov file. Easy enough, but I would also like to create a new Finder folder and name it with today's date and save the mov file to that new folder.
What frustrates me is that it doesn't appear you can name Finder folders in any way other than using the Rename Folder action. I was hoping to use today's date that I had copied to the clipboard. Also, I have no experience using AppleScript, so hoping to avoid anything advanced there.

How can I do this with automator, shouldent be to hard right?

I am not new to the programming world but new to apple, however, i wanted to know if this was possible or not ;
Id like to run a script that will ultimatly do this
1)Run Safari
2) Open brokerage website
3) Log In (using key chain or by apple script inputing the user name and password or asking me for dialog box
4)click a certain link somewhere on the page that will pop up the streaming quotes section
5) minimize all safari windows expect the one that is streaming the quotes
6) keep clicking a link that refreshes every half hour the account page so it dosent log me out
should be doable right? Any tips for a first time user for apple script? I read some of what it can do and how its done, (iv programmed with C++ and visual basic) and apple script seems to be really simple, however I dont want to under or over estimate its abbilites.
Any input MUCH appricated.

m_oody,
Good, and I can see that we are thinking along the same lines with regards to other applications for it.
I am a little confused as to why you had to comment out the "on run". I set this script up so that you can already run it as an AppleScript or an Automator action. The "on run" and "end run" pairing are assumed in simple AppleScripts that only have a single routine but, in my opinion, should really be included for good programming style.
Run as AppleScript
Compile, save and run as it is without commenting out anything. You can add further calls to activities, like you mentioned, in the main "on run" routine, and the required GUI commands with other subroutines.
Within the main "on run" routine is where you could call subroutines that would open up other windows or tabs with other sites using Safari, other browsers, and other net applications such as RSS readers, Internet radio, etc.
Run as Automator action
You are right that there are currently a limited selection of actions available with which to build a workflow. However, Apple did leave enough flexibility through actions with calls to AppleScript ("Run AppleScript"), a Unix Shell script ("Run Shell Script"), run other Automator workflows ("Run Workflow")and, Web Services ("Run Web Service") to provide extensibility to the application. Of course there is also a tremendous flexibility within Unix itself with all the scripting and full programming languages that can be run through the Shell.
Long winded today!
Here is what needs to be done to run this as an Automator action.
1) Open Automator and look for an action called "Run AppleScript" which is within the "Automator" category of actions.
2) Drag it over to the workflow assembly line. You will notice it contains the core of an AppleScript main routine.
3) Normally when you are building these routines you build them within this environment and test them there and only replace the text labelled "(* Your script goes here *)". However, in our case it was build in the AppleScript Script Editor environment and because the Properties section must go at the top we need to modify its structure for it to run properly and fit into a workflow that consists of more than this one action. So here is what you need to do:
a) Go to Script Editor and either delete the line entirely or comment out the line by putting the "--" characters in front of the "on run {}" line. I usually just comment the line out so that if I need to work with it in AppleScript again it is easy to do.
b) Remove the comment characters from "on run {input,parameters}" and "return input". These lines are required to accept and pass on info within the workflow.
c) Select all of the text in the script and copy it to the clipboard.
d) Move over to Automator, select all of the text in the "Run AppleScript" action, and paste in the new script.
It should now compile if you press the hammer icon and run if you press either the green arrow icon on the action or the overall workflow run icon.
You now have the option of saving it as:
1) Basic Workflow, requiring Automator to be running
2) Application, free of Automator running
3) Various plug-ins including one for iCal alarms which you could use for your automated morning download. Search for plug-ins in the Help of Automator for more information.
Once it is saved as an alarm you just need to set up a schedule for running it in iCal, attach the alarm by using the "Open File" alarm, and watch the action.
The AppleScript can also be run with an alarm in iCal. In that case you attach the alarm using the "Run Script" alarm.
PowerBook 12" Mac OS X (10.4.6)

I've lost half of my icons such as calculator, fonts, chess, automator,ichat,ical it it saying that you can use this version with the OSX. You have version 4.04. And, there is no way to update them. What do you do?

I've lost half of my icons such as calculator, fonts, chess, automator,ichat,ical it it saying that you can use this version with the OSX. You have version 4.04. And, there is no way to update them. What do you do?

If I'm understanding you correctly, those apps have stopped working and you are getting a message saying that they won't work with this version of Mac OS X when you try to open them. Is that right? If so, have you moved those apps out of their original locations? That is a bad idea, as it prevents them from being properly updated. If this is what has happened, what version of the system were you running before they stopped working, and what version are you running now, after installing the update that has made them stop working?

How can I introduce text in a web page with automator?

I want to create a workflow with automator for httpS web pages in which I have to introduce the user and password. how can I do?

Try this:
set the clipboard to item 1 of (get name of (static text of group 104 of UI element 1 of scroll area 1 of group 4 of window "Account Summary" of application process "Safari"))
(10906)

HT2488 Find/Replace text in document with automator: any suggestions?

I'm looking to replace a number of unique html tags for a number of documents: is there any way to do this without going through the documents one-by-one, tag-by-tag? I would imagine I might be able to do something with automator, but I'm open to any other suggestions. I have some knowledge of html, but that's about it.

So I take it this is something you do regularly, not something that needs to get done once? if it were a oneshot operation it would be simpler to use TextWrangler.
For repeated use, the simplest approach is to run through the files and apply text item delimiters to each tag:
set indesignTags to {"idtag1", "idtag2", "idtag3"}
set htmlEquivs to {"htmltag1", "htmltag2", "htmltag3"}
set theFiles to choose file with prompt "Choose indesign files" with multiple selections allowed
repeat with aFile in theFiles
-- get file text
          set fileText to read aFile
-- swap tags
          repeat with i from 1 to count of indesignTags
-- swap lead tags
                    set fileTextBits to tid({input:fileText, delim:"<" & item i of indesignTags})
                    set fileText to tid({input:fileTextBits, delim:"<" & item i of htmlEquivs})
-- swap trailing tags
                    set fileTextBits to tid({input:fileText, delim:"</" & item i of indesignTags})
                    set fileText to tid({input:fileTextBits, delim:"</" & item i of htmlEquivs})
          end repeat
-- make new file path with html extension
          set oldFilePath to POSIX path of aFile
          set filePathBits to tid({input:oldFilePath, delim:"."})
          set last item of fileNameBits to "html"
          set newFilePath to tid({input:filePathBits, delim:"."})
-- save at new file path
          set fp to open for access newFilePath with write permission
write fileText to fp
close access fp
end repeat
on tid({input:input, delim:delim})
-- handler for text items
          set {oldTID, my text item delimiters} to {my text item delimiters, delim}
          if class of input is list then
                    set output to input as text
          else
                    set output to text items of input
          end if
          set my text item delimiters to oldTID
          return output
end tid
This will work if the indesign tags are unique and there is no complex syntax. It might fail if tags have overlapping names (e.g. "<bl>" and "<blue>") or if there's any irregular notation. If you need more sophisticated handling you'll have to use regular expressions. In that case, download and install the Satimage osax from this page, and use the following (similar) code:
set indesignTags to {"idtag1", "idtag2", "idtag3"}
set htmlEquivs to {"htmltag1", "htmltag2", "htmltag3"}
-- set up regular expressions change lists
set findList to {}
set changeList to {}
repeat with i from 1 to count of indesignTags
          set end of findList to "(</?)" & item i of indesignTags & "(?![[:alnum:]])"
          set end of changeList to "\\1" & item i of htmlEquivs
end repeat
set theFiles to choose file with prompt "Choose indesign files" with multiple selections allowed
repeat with aFile in theFiles
-- get file text
          set fileText to read aFile
-- swap tags - needs Satimage osax
          set fileText to change findList into changeList in fileText with regexp
-- make new file path with html extension - needs Satimage osax
          set oldFilePath to POSIX path of aFile
          set newFilePath to change "\\.[^.]+$" into ".html" in oldFilePath with regexp
-- save at new file path
          set fp to open for access newFilePath with write permission
write fileText to fp
close access fp
end repeat
Message was edited by: twtwtw - I made an error in the second regular expression. should be "\\.[^.]+$", not "\\..*$". fixed in text.

ECR/ECO problem with automated transactions

Hi Friends,
I have problem with automated close of ECR.
Description:
I have change number with one object - Inspection Plan.
In CC32 when "Incorrect Change" is set and I click "Erro Corrected" - nothink happen
(it should show popup with information that transaction cc06 was automated started)
After that when i choose "Release Change" - also nothing happen.
(it should shop popup and set status - "Close ECO")
Everything works ok on sandbox system but on Dev/Test/Prod it doesn't work.
Anybody now where could be a problem?
Thank you for any advice.

Hi
Pls check this Link
SAP-ECM and PPPI Integration-Solution
Thanks in advance

Rename Finder Items with Automator in Leopard

I used following automator actions to rename all files contained in selected folders in Mac OS finder:
1. Get Selected Finder Items
2. Get Folder Contents (repeat for each subfolder found option on)
3. Rename Finder Items (Add Text before name, Show action option on)
First two actions were executed flawlessly. Unfortunately after keying in text to be added in front of every file name in text field of popup window on execution of last action, no file name was changed. Then I realized that same actions performed in automator application instead of invoking through Finder's contextual menu worked as expected. So the problem seem to be related to initialization of text value in text field of the action.
I decided to try with new variable feature introduced in Leopard version of automator. Clicking on Variables button next to Actions button in menu bar of Automator, then select following item:
Library > Text & Data > New Storage
I managed to provide a text value for the New Storage variable through "Library > Text > Ask for Text" and "Library > Utilities > Set Value of Variable" actions, but text field in Rename Finder Items action seem to reject the New Storage variable completely. So the attempt to provide text value to the Rename Finder Items action through user initialized variable failed without reason.
May I know how can I make use of variables to set text fields in Rename Finder Items action ? Is the above mentioned failure a confirmed bug of Leopard waiting to be fixed by Apple (after one whole year of beta testing !!) ? Thanks in advance.

I figured out a way to use variables in the Rename Finder Items.
In my case I want to rename the files to a sequential name. I can't link the variable to the "New Name" box in the Automater GUI.
But it helps to know that that the Automator is just creating an XML file and you can edit this directly.
To do this, create the Automator workflow and save it. Give the variable some distinct name like "myVariable".
In Finder, right click the Automator file and select Show Package Contents. Within this folder go to Contents and find the document.wflow file. This is the XML file, so open it with TextEdit or something.
Search the file for your variable name. The first instance of it should be in a section that starts with <key>variables</key>. All the variables will be listed here. Each variable has several lines to define it. The first will be the UUID. The UUID will have a line that is something like: <string>BD464B7A-ACDE-4A63-B595-FAF1DA6DE26E</string>. The BD464B7A-ACDE-4A63-B595-FAF1DA6DE26E is how Automator refers to your variable. Search the file for this UUID string and you will see. Whenever Automator wants to insert the variable, it will enter $(BD464B7A-ACDE-4A63-B595-FAF1DA6DE26E).
Copy this string, with the $() surrounding it. Close the wflow file. Now you can go back to Automator itself and paste it wherever you want your variable to appear, even if you can't normally insert the variable into that field.

Right-Click Services with Automator

So I still have my Macbook Pro that I haven't upgraded but I did update my iMac to Mavericks, so far everything is working well except that I used to have a Batch Rename Service that I used quite often but now when I right click with my mouse the Batch Rename services I created with Automator doesn't show up. I tried recreating it but still nothing. I went back to my Mountain Lion laptop and it works just fine. Any ideas?

I too was having this problem. I did the following, and it seamed to get it going:
moved the service out of the services folder (~/Library/Services/) to an easy place to get to (Desktop).
In Automator, open an new document, and selcted iCould.
drag the service from the desktop to iCloud
opened it, from iCould
file -> convert to...
select service and give it a different name than the orignal.
save and exit.
service should now be available.
In my case, the service only runs on my mac hdd. I have not yet found how to get service to run on a connected drive as it did in Mountain Lion. I want to run the service on my netowrk drive from my Synology NAS box.
Hope this helps a little

E-Mail to Fax with Automator

I would like to create a script that will automatically take e-mails received on a certain account in Mail.app and fax them out to a known number, using the print-to-fax functionality that is built into Tiger.
Is this something that would be possible to do with Automator, or if not Automator is it something that could be done with AppleScript? Does such a script already exist?

We are talking about the Mail app, right? In the Mail menubar, click on Window and then Previous Recipients:
That eliminates the previous recipients. If you are talking about the suggestions because there are 10 people with the name 'Steve' in your Contacts, then I do not know how to eliminate those unless you change the name slightly or wait until you type the last name or some other differentiator.

GR with backflush not for reporting point logic with autom. GR option

Dear Experts,
While doing backflashing though MFBF we are getting following error
"GR with backflush not for reporting point logic with autom. GR option"
We have maintained 5 production version for this material while calling with first production version we are getting the error.
Rate routing & BOM maintanied for the FERT material
Thanks

Did you check the BackFlash option are actuvated in the following places ?
1. In the Rate routing, the backflush indicator is set in the component assignment.-CA22
2. In the material master record, the backflush indicator has the characteristic "Always backflush".-MRP3
3. In the material master record, the backflush indicator has the characteristic "Work center decides", the indicator being set in the work center.-CR21-Basic Data View .
4.Goto-MM02-MRP4 View -Select the PV-Goto Details -Check particularly this production version REM Allowed or not
5.You should use REM-Profile -0004/0003 where RP and Auto GR with RP at last Back Flashing Activated .
6.Check Rate Routing Operation Control Key -Auto GR with indicator Confirmation required
Regards
JH
Edited by: Jiaul Haque on Jun 22, 2010 11:19 AM

Issue with Automator and Circus Ponies Notebooks

I have not found an Automator specific discussion, so let me know if there is somewhere else I should post this.
I have created a limited backup program with Automator. It begins with "Get Specified Finder Items". The second step is "Copy Finder Items". I kept getting messages that it could not backup various Notebooks because it couldn't copy certain Notebook files. The issues were always with something in a Notebook .../Attachments/ that ended with the extension .moddates.
Using PathFinder 5, I would right click and select Show Package Contents. I found numerous "contents.old.plist" files in these Notebooks which I deleted. I would try again and it would be another issue, but always with a Notebook file. In some other cases I found things in the attachments folder which I deleted, one of which was a .jpg of a screenshot of a a 'page' in Things. Two others were .eml files.
I thought these actions would correct the issue, but now it seems that there is no end to this issue. Using PathFinder 5, show invisibles, and show package contents I see a .moddates file, but do not want to delete it.
My next attempt at resolving this was to used PathFinder to just copy the Notebook directory directly to my Flash Drive which is formatted as Mac OS Extended (Journaled) or HFS+. There was no problem copying the files this way, so I am wondering if the problem could be with Automator.

The way that you are getting the value of the variables will only work in an Automator workflow, since that terminology is from Automator's scripting dictionary. If the workflow is saved as an application or is otherwise run outside of the Automator environment (i.e. no workflow window), another method will need to be used to retrieve the variables, such as preceding *Get Value of Variable* actions, a temporary file, or user defaults.
If you aren't using any other input items, for example, you can use something like:
1) *Get Value of Variable* { Variable: ProjectName } (Ignore Input)
2) *Get Value of Variable* { Variable: ProjectManager }
3) *Get Value of Variable* { Variable: RegionManager }
4) *Get Value of Variable* { Variable: Partner }
5) *Get Value of Variable* { Variable: TodayDate }
6) *Run AppleScript*:
<pre style="
font-family: Monaco, 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;
font-size: 10px;
font-weight: normal;
margin: 0px;
padding: 5px;
border: 1px solid #000000;
width: 720px;
color: #000000;
background-color: #DAFFB6;
overflow: auto;"
title="this text can be pasted into an Automator 'Run AppleScript' action">
on run {input, parameters}
set ProjectName to (first item of the input) as text
set ProjectManager to second item of the input
set RegionManager to third item of the input
set Partner to fourth item of the input
set TodayDate to (fifth item of the input) as text
-- rest of script
end run
</pre>

I have purchased a mac mini only to find I am unable to run Logic pro 9 , is there any way this can be achieved? It has been suggested that I partition the drive and install a copy of an older operating system to run the Logic Pro, is this feasible?

I have purchased a mac mini only to find I am unable to run Logic pro 9 , is there any way this can be achieved? It has been suggested that I partition the drive and install a copy of an older operating system to run the Logic Pro, is this feasible?

BDAqua wrote:
....but some other new Macs will boot frome a clone of 10.6.8...
Only with a whole lot of effort and instability. As the new Minis have
hardware (HD4000, USB 3.0, etc.) that is totally unsupported in old OSes.
The only option would be to see if it would work by installing in a virtual machine
running 10.6.8. I'm sure there will be some performance hit but whether it would
be enough to be unusable is the question.

Is this feasible with Automator?

Similar Messages

Maybe you are looking for