change folder icons if they are empty or full

Scripting Forums AppleScript | Mac OS X
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#1

This works. I just made it. I’m using it now. Just thought I’d share.

I had folders on my desktop. I wanted to change the icon if they were full the way the trashcan icon changes when it’s full. So, I made some icons and made this script. It would be easy enough to make badges that show the number of items in a folder by modifying this script. I just didn’t want to draw and save a million icons.

takes some configuring

  1. download osxutils http://sourceforge.net/projects/osxutils
  2. decompressing that file might be tricky. I had to use EZ 7z.app
  3. install that pkg
  4. make one icon for the folder when it’s empty, make one icon for the folder when it’s full (has 1 or more items in it)
    – eg: if the folder name is “Skydiving” you should name the icons “Skydiving_empty.icns” and “Skydiving_full.icns”
    – I’m using the icons I made to go with kinkless desktop http://jugglegood.com/outside/kinkless_desktop/
  5. save the below script in your folder actions folder
  6. change the first line to mesh with your actual directory where you’re keeping the icon files
  7. open Applescript Utility
  8. click folder actions
  9. select the folder that you want to change in the first column
  10. select the script that you just saved in the second column

I think that will work. let me know if you have any problems, or if you like it. I know I’m not very efficient in coding. feel free to streamline and repost.


property icons_folder : "/Users/scot/Pictures/kinkless_icons/"

on adding folder items to this_folder after receiving added_items
	try
		tell application "Finder"
			--get the name of the folder
			set the folder_name to the name of this_folder
		end tell
		set folder_list to list folder this_folder without invisibles
		set folder_count to number of items in folder_list
		set folder_status to "full"
		if folder_count is 0 then
			set folder_status to "empty"
		end if
		set icon_path to the quoted form of POSIX path of (icons_folder & folder_name & "_" & folder_status & ".icns")
		set folder_path to the quoted form of POSIX path of this_folder
		do shell script "/usr/local/bin/seticon " & icon_path & " " & folder_path
		tell application "Finder" to update (container of this_folder)
	end try
end adding folder items to
on removing folder items from this_folder
	try
		tell application "Finder"
			--get the name of the folder
			set the folder_name to the name of this_folder
		end tell
		set folder_list to list folder this_folder without invisibles
		set folder_count to number of items in folder_list
		set folder_status to "full"
		if folder_count is 0 then
			set folder_status to "empty"
		end if
		set icon_path to the quoted form of POSIX path of (icons_folder & folder_name & "_" & folder_status & ".icns")
		set folder_path to the quoted form of POSIX path of this_folder
		do shell script "/usr/local/bin/seticon " & icon_path & " " & folder_path
		tell application "Finder" to update (container of this_folder)
	end try
end removing folder items from