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MarksLib

Published March 9, 2017

My MarksLib AppleScript library, which is featured in some of my Script Debugger tutorial videos, is now part of my AppleScript Libraries repository on GitHub.

MarksLib is a collection of handlers for everyday operations that I find myself using in almost every script I write. There are tools for reading and writing text files, string substitution, converting between strings and arrays and more.

Installation

Enter the following command in the Terminal application to install the latest version of MarksLib on your machine:

curl https://raw.githubusercontent.com/alldritt/AppleScriptLibraries/master/MarksLib.applescript | osacompile -o ~/Library/Script\ Libraries/MarksLib.scpt

Usage

MarksLib provides the following handlers:

readFromFile

The readFromFile(theFile) handler reads the contents of a text file. The theFile parameter can take many forms:

  • full HFS path (e.g. readFromFile("Macintosh HD:Users:Mark:Desktop:file.txt"))
  • full POSIX path (e.g. readFromFile("/Users/Mark/Desktop/file.txt"))
  • relative POSIX path (e.g.) (readFromFile("~/Desktop/file.txt"))
  • alias (e.g. readFromFile(alias "Macintosh HD:Users:Mark:Desktop:file.txt"))
  • file reference (e.g. readFromFile(file "Macintosh HD:Users:Mark:Desktop:file.txt"))

writeToFile

The writeToFile(theFile, theData) handler writes the contents of a variable to a text file. The theFile parameter can take many forms:

  • full HFS path (e.g. readFromFile("Macintosh HD:Users:Mark:Desktop:file.txt"))
  • full POSIX path (e.g. readFromFile("/Users/Mark/Desktop/file.txt"))
  • relative POSIX path (e.g.) (readFromFile("~/Desktop/file.txt"))
  • alias (e.g. readFromFile(alias "Macintosh HD:Users:Mark:Desktop:file.txt"))
  • file reference (e.g. readFromFile(file "Macintosh HD:Users:Mark:Desktop:file.txt"))

The theData parameter should be a string.

replaceText

The replaceText(theString, fString, rString) handler replaces all occurrences of fString in theString with rString.

use AppleScript version "2.4" -- Yosemite (10.10) or later
use MarksLib : script "MarksLib" version "1.0"

MarksLib's replaceText("the quick brown fox jumped over the lazy dog", "the", "xxx")
-->"xxx quick brown fox jumped over xxx lazy dog"

trim

The trim(theString) handler trims leading and trailing whitespace from a string. The functional also works on arrays of strings, returning an array of trimmed strings.

use AppleScript version "2.4" -- Yosemite (10.10) or later
use MarksLib : script "MarksLib" version "1.0"

MarksLib's trim("  hello world  " & return)
-->"hello world"
MarksLib's trim({" abc ", "1234   ", "   "})
-->{"abc", "1234", ""}

split

The split(theString, theSeparator) handler splits a string into an array of strings. 

use AppleScript version "2.4" -- Yosemite (10.10) or later
use MarksLib : script "MarksLib" version "1.0"

MarksLib's split("1, 2, 3, 4", ",")
-->{"1", " 2", " 3", " 4"}
MarksLib's trim(MarksLib's split("1, 2, 3, 4", ","))
-->{"1", "2", "3", "4"}

join

The |join|(theString, theSeparator) handler joins an array of strings together into a single string.

use AppleScript version "2.4" -- Yosemite (10.10) or later
use MarksLib : script "MarksLib" version "1.0"

MarksLib's join({"hello", "world"}, " ")
-->{"hello world"}
MarksLib's join(MarksLib's trim(MarksLib's split("1, 2, 3, 4", ",")), "-")
-->{"1-2-3-4"}

formatForJSON

The formatForJSON(theValue) handler formats a string so that it is suitable for use as a value in a JSON structure.

use AppleScript version "2.4" -- Yosemite (10.10) or later
use MarksLib : script "MarksLib" version "1.0"

MarksLib's formatForJSON("My name is \"Mark\"")
-->"My name is \"Mark\""

formatForCSV

The formatCSVString(theValue) handler formats a string so that is suitable for use as a value in a CSV file.

use AppleScript version "2.4" -- Yosemite (10.10) or later
use MarksLib : script "MarksLib" version "1.0"

MarksLib's formatCSVString("Nothing special")
-->"Nothing special"
MarksLib's formatCSVString("My name is \"Mark\"")
-->"My name is ""Mark"""

Categories:AppleScript