Using Automator to "cat" files

Hi all-
I was wondering if someone could help me with an Automator workflow. I've never used Automator... but I'm pretty sure it can do what I'm looking for.
I need it to "cat" .MTS (AVCHD) files for me. I'd like it to order them alphabetically, then cat and output to a single file.
Is this possible?
Thanks!

Yea, I figured out that much. My end goal is to take two .MTS (video) files and drop them onto an automator app and have it cat the files. I just don't know how to get there.
I'm not good with scripting, and I've never written an Applescirpt, but I know I'm missing something here. Just having the "cat" command in the "Run Shell Script" action isn't working. I'm thinking I have to specify somehow for it to "use the two files I just gave you and run the cat command on them, then output".
Does that make sense?
Here is what I have so far in Automator:
1. App recieves files or folders as input
2. Sort Finder Items
     -by Name in Ascending order
3. Run Shell Script
     -cat
4. Move Finder Items
     -to Desktop.
Thanks!

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If you have a command-line syntax that works, why not just create an Automator workflow with a single 'Utilities -> Run Shell Script' action, where that action has your (working) shell commands?
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i am running the latest version of Yosemite just to clarify.
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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?

Using automator to delete files with out moving them to the trash

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Hi Northridge, and a warm welcome to the forums!
I'd use the Terminal...
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Using Automator for photography file needs

I've been looking on here but can't find a way to do what I need done exactly.
I shoot in both raw and jpeg and I want to be able to run one action on a folder to do the following.
Arrange the files in a folder by name and in ascending order.
Create 2 folders in the input folder. 1 called RAW and copy all the raw files (.nef) to that folder and the other called JPEG and copy all the jpeg files to that folder.
Rename the files fro _dsc4356.jpg to macshoot0001.jpg and in the raw folder rename all the files as well.
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Thanks.

Hi,
In Automator :
add action "*Run Shell Script*"
Select "/bin/bash" in Shell popup menu
Select "*as arguments*" in pass input: popup menu
Paste this text in the action.
baseName="macshoot"
padding=0000 ## 3 zero pad
for f in "$@"; do
if [ -d "$f" ]; then ## is a directory
i=0
cd "$f"; /bin/mkdir -p "$f"/{RAW,JPEG}
for aJPG in "$f/"*.jpg ; do
if [ -f "$aJPG" ]; then
((i++)); index=${padding:${#i}}$i;
/bin/mv "$aJPG" "JPEG/$baseName$index.jpg"
fi
done
i=0
for aNEF in "$f/"*.nef ; do
if [ -f "$aNEF" ]; then
((i++)); index=${padding:${#i}}$i;
/bin/mv "$aNEF" "RAW/$baseName$index.nef"
fi
done
fi
done
That's all.
This shell proceed folder(s) only, if the input is file(s), it do nothing
Message was edited by: Jacques Rioux

Use Automator to move files to trash

I've spent quite a bit of time trying to work out how to move files with automator to another folder - finally worked this out using a folder action.
I am now trying to do similar, but this time using a folder action to move files to the trash. Again, I don't seem to be getting this right. I have the following:
There are definitely files in the folder that meet the criteria - but the workflow is not working. Any suggestions, please?
Cheers,
Mike

sdiaz34 wrote:
The external hard drive was partitioned to have a back up drive for time machine and another drive for other (pics&vids) use.
If it is possible can the automator task then trash all files in original pictures subfolder when task is complete to avoid any memory use on macbook air?
You really don't want to do that.
You'll have only one copy of the files, on the external HD. When (not if) it fails, they'll be lost.
For best results, get another external HD for your photos. Then let Time Machine back up both your internal HD and the external. See Time Machine - Frequently Asked Question #32 for details.

I was wondering if it was possible to use Automator to move files based on the filename.

Hi,
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Hi,
Here's a solution that uses a script, because it is not possible, at least to make twenty or more Workflows
In Automator :
Create a new worflow.
Add the action "Run Shell Script", select "/bin/bash" in the popup menu
Cut the text in the action.
Copy/paste this script in the action :
targetsDir=('/Users/jack/Desktop/MyImagesFolder' '/Users/jack/Desktop/MyVideosFolder')
destDir=('/Users/jack/Desktop/yearImageFolder' '/Users/jack/Desktop/yearVideoFolder')
for i in 0 1;do
      subfolder="${destDir[$i]}"/20
      for each in "${targetsDir[$i]}"/*;do
            if [ ! -d "$each" ];then ## not a directory
                  name=${each##*/};
                  if [[ $name =~ ^([0-9]{2})|^..([0-9]{2}) ]]; then
                        [[ $name =~ ([0-9]{2}) ]] && year=${BASH_REMATCH[1]};
                        /bin/mv -n "$each" "$subfolder$year"
                  fi
            fi
      done
done
Replace the paths in the first line by the path of your Images Folder and Video Folder, use drag/drop between the simple quote ''
Replace the paths in the second line by the path of your destibation Folders, use drag/drop between the simple quote ''.
This script will not overwrite existing files, If you want to replace the existing file, use the /bin/mv -f instead of /bin/mv -n
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How can i use automator to rename files erasing first 3 digits of their name?

Actually in the files i am trying to rename the first 2 digits are numbers then space and then there is the file name i want to use. Hope this helps.

Open the AppleScript Editor in the /Applications/Utilities/ folder and paste in the following text:
tell application "Finder"
set the_items to items of window 1
repeat with this_item in the_items
set name of this_item to (items 4 thru -1 of (get name of this_item)) as string
end repeat
end tell
Navigate to the folder containing those files in the Finder and run the script.
(65537)

Using Automator to Rename Files

I can't figure out how to rename files so that the number in the name is in parentheses. For example Dog 1.jpg should be changed to Dog (1).jpg. How can I accomplish this in Automator?

ok. the following should work. paste it into AppleScript Editor. select the files you want to rename in finder and press "run" in script editor. you might want to test it on a small number of files first.
<pre style="
font-family: Monaco, 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;
font-size: 10px;
margin: 0px;
padding: 5px;
border: 1px solid #000000;
width: 720px;
color: #000000;
background-color: #ADD8E6;
overflow: auto;"
title="this text can be pasted into the Script Editor">
tell application "Finder"
set selected_items to selection
repeat with this_item in selected_items
set current_name to name of this_item as text
set current_extension to name extension of this_item
set length_extension to length of current_extension
set name_no_ext to text 1 thru (-length_extension - 2) of current_name
set AppleScript's text item delimiters to " "
if (number of text items of name_no_ext > 1) then
set z to last text item of name_no_ext --get the number at the end of the name before the extension
set name of this_item to do shell script "echo " & quoted form of current_name & "|sed 's/" & z & "." & current_extension & "/(" & z & ")." & current_extension & "/'"
end if
set AppleScript's text item delimiters to ""
end repeat
end tell</pre>

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This has been covered before, but the solution didn't work for me, so excuse the mainly copy-and-paste article:
I wrote an automator workflow to copy a chosen file located on a PC on the local network.
Here is the workflow:
Get Specified Servers
Mount Servers
Ask for Finder Items
Copy Finder Items
The workflow executes fine up until the workflow actually finishes copying all the files. The automator complains that the Copy Finder Items errors with the following message:
Can't read directory contents: /Volumes/Files
The other thread suggests choosing "Ignore Input" for the "Ask for Finder Items" action, which I did. But now I have a different error:
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Any ideas? Thanks!

This has been covered before, but the solution didn't work for me, so excuse the mainly copy-and-paste article:
I wrote an automator workflow to copy a chosen file located on a PC on the local network.
Here is the workflow:
Get Specified Servers
Mount Servers
Ask for Finder Items
Copy Finder Items
The workflow executes fine up until the workflow actually finishes copying all the files. The automator complains that the Copy Finder Items errors with the following message:
Can't read directory contents: /Volumes/Files
The other thread suggests choosing "Ignore Input" for the "Ask for Finder Items" action, which I did. But now I have a different error:
Couldn't create: /Users/{my name}/Desktop/filename.xlsx
Any ideas? Thanks!

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.

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thanks in advance.

Well, I was able to use automator, somewhat... where the hiccup occurs is when the file needs to be saved. If the render time takes more than a minute or so, then automator chokes. Fortunately, most of my files took less time to render, so the majority could be automated. When a hiccup occurred, the mac let out an alert sign and I manually rendered that file(s) and set automator up again until the next hiccup.
there is a "timeout" selection in Automator for each step, but try as I may to get the save step to delay 3 minutes, it wouldn't work. I tried everything.

How can I use automator to import a .csv file into a an excel file

I would still like all the import settings that I get if I am using excel to do the process, i.e. going in with the text format instead of the general format. That way my dates don't change

You'll need to use Applescript in Automator.
Note: File extension cannot be CSV (Excel will assume that the file is comma separated), so add an action to copy or rename with extension TXT.
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on run {input, parameters}
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               open text file filename (f as string) data type delimited field info {{1, text format}} other char "|" with use other
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end run
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If you need to format the second, then you need to:
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[field info list] : A list contain parse information for the individual columns of data.
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     proceed(fs)
end run
on open fs
     proceed(fs)
end open
on proceed(fs)
     repeat with f in fs
          tell application "Microsoft Excel"
               open text file filename (f as string) data type delimited field info {{1, text format}} other char "|" with use other
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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

Replace text on files using automator

Hi
On an older (recently replaced Mac 10.4 etc) I used to be able to use Applescript to change the name of files within a folder very easily.
Is there an easy way to do the same using Automator?
This is used a lot during a normal day and would be very helpful. I haven't used Automator much, work keeps getting in the way!!
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M

Your Applescript should still work, although it might need some modification.
I haven't tried these.
Automator Script to Rename Files
Automator Script to Rename Files (2)

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