AppleScript is a scripting language built into Mac OS, allowing users to automate tasks and extend the operating system’s functionality. It originated from HyperScript, a language used in the HyperCard application builder. AppleScript can communicate between programs, making complex workflows possible. It became even easier to use with the release of AppleScript Studio. Its ability to automate tasks across programs makes it a powerful tool for users.
AppleScript is a scripting language built into the Macintosh operating system, developed by Apple. AppleScript also refers to the interface for writing these scripts and works in parallel with OSX’s more familiar graphical user interface. It has its roots way back in Apple’s history, but it has developed quite a bit since its early days and has become a robust scripting language, capable of many things. AppleScript is one of the reasons many so-called power users like the Mac operating system, as it allows for a relatively simple way of writing quick-and-dirty scripts to automate basic tasks or extend the functionality of the operating system without writing full-blown programs.
HyperCard was one of the first application builders created for Mac in 1987. It offered an easy way to design simple programs, based on the concept of HyperStack, a number of pages that could be linked to interact with each other via buttons or other behaviors. The program used a simple but robust scripting language, called HyperScript, which was meant to be as close to regular language as possible, allowing non-programmers to create functional programs. Eventually Apple realized that the basic concepts that made HyperScript so accessible could be applied to any application, not just HyperCard, and thus AppleScript was born.
The first version of AppleScript came out in 1993 and was bundled with the Mac System 7 Pro. For AppleScript to really take off, it needed applications that could use it. QuarkXPress was one of the first programs to take advantage of the versatile scripting language, allowing it to extend its software’s desktop publishing applications. As a result, one of the first industries where AppleScript saw widespread use was publishing, where it proved ideal for automating complex workflows to create more efficient layouts.
When Mac OSX was released, it included a robust framework, called Cocoa. AppleScript took full advantage of the Cocoa framework and as a result, it became even easier for novice users to use. With AppleScript and Cocoa, users can actually create quite complex programs without knowing any advanced programming. The release of AppleScript Studio saw this become even easier, with the ability to build entire applications using a programming suite that could bypass actually writing any code.
One of the things that makes AppleScript so powerful is the fact that it can communicate between programs, which is made possible because most programs on the Mac use roughly the same Apple events. As a result, complex workflows can be automated by having each step run in the program in which it is to be performed, with variables that can be set. This means that the user has to run only one script to perform quite elaborate operations.
For example, a person could write a script to create a web page of mp3s of his latest album, stored on his computer as uncompressed audio files. The script will run an audio editing program to equalize the levels and convert the files to mp3. Then it would rename the song in Finder to a standardized name. He would then open a text editor and write a simple HTML page to display the song. Then it would open an FTP program and load the page. Then it could move to the next file in the directory and that way quickly build an entire website.
Protect your devices with Threat Protection by NordVPN
