Who's Doug?
Hello! My name is Doug Adams and I manage this site, which began in February 2001 as a site for SoundJam AppleScripts. I've been a devotee of AppleScript since it was first introduced by Apple in 1993 on System 7 and, like a lot of Mac users at the time, honed my 'scripting chops on early versions of apps like BBEdit, TexEdit Plus, Fetch, QuickTime Player, Eudora, SoundJam, and many others. As I mention below, SoundJam's AppleScript support was quite robust. However, when I couldn't find any info on writing AppleScripts for SoundJam (the SoundJam AS pages at Casady & Green's site provided nominal if not dubious help) I decided to write up what I'd learned and post a few useful AppleScripts. When SoundJam was reincarnated as iTunes, its splendid AppleScript architecture came with it, and I instantly had an iTunes site.
I'm a freelance media/voice-over producer and I do a lot of audio and video stuff in addition to app and AppleScript development. Currently, I'm the co-host (along with Kirk McElhearn) and producer of The Next Track podcast. I have a small home studio and do all my work on Macs. In fact, you can swing a cat in each hand at my house and be pretty much assured of hitting at least one of many various iMacs, Macbooks, Apple TVs, iPads, HomePods, iPhones, or iPods touch. I often do.
Visitors like you help me keep the site going, and I appreciate your visits and feedback. I work on the site in my free time and pay for it out of my own pocket. If you've been to the site two, three, or more times and have gotten something good from it all I ask is that you please consider making a donation toward its upkeep. Think of it as treating me to a cup of coffee and a piece of pie, or taking me out to lunch!
Thanks for visiting!
What's AppleScript?
AppleScript is a programming language used to control Apple Events—the actions that happen on your computer—and lets you control the actions of applications, the Finder, and other so-called "scriptable" programs. An AppleScript "script" is a list of instructions and when you activate a script, the instructions are carried out. In addition, a script can perform computations and use the results in the instructions. This makes it equally powerful and flexible. Yet AppleScript commands and syntax are—arguably—very much like ordinary English which makes it relatively easy for anyone to learn and use.
You don't have to know how to write AppleScripts in order to use them, however. If you are new to AppleScripts you can rest easy. Most AppleScripts from this site come with instructions on how to install and use them.
AppleScript is particularly useful for handling large repetitive tasks on lots of information (such as many many tracks in an iTunes Playlist), or a single lengthy operation requiring several keystrokes and intricate settings (such as prefixing every iTunes Artist tag with the track's Year; you wouldn't want to type all that for every track, would you? I'd wager you could write a script that did that, have run the script, and changed all the Artist tags in less time than it would have taken to do it by hand)
For more information on AppleScript, visit macosxautomation.com.
Drop me a line
Your comments, queries, and suggestions help make this a better site. Please e-mail me, Doug Adams, at support at dougscripts dot com. I usually answer within a day or two.
