scripting quicktime

Scripting Forums AppleScript | Mac OS X
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#1

hello all,

i’m a first-time poster and new to applescript, so forgive me if this post seems a bit obvious…

i am working on a web-based application, and need to create a script that:

  1. Takes media files uploaded to a directory and converts them to hinted, self-contained .mov’s
  2. Saves these files in another directory where they will be available for streaming

I’ve created a script that doesn’t work, but have had trouble debugging it:

on adding folder items to this_folder after receiving these_items

tell application "Finder"      
    if not (exists folder "Done" of this_folder) then          
        make new folder at this_folder with properties {name:"Done"}          
    end if      
    set the destination_folder to folder "Done" of this_folder as alias         
end tell

repeat with i from 1 to number of items in these_items
    set this_item to item i of these_items     
    set the item_info to info for this_item
    set file_name to the name of the item_info
  
    if the name extension of item_info is in {"mp3", "wav"} then    
        tell application "QuickTime Player"
            launch     
     
            -- THIS IS WHAT DOESNT SEEM TO WORK:

            export item_info to (destination_folder & file_name) as "QuickTime hinted movie"              

        end tell          
    end if
          
end repeat

end adding folder items to

Please help if you can!

Thanks,

David

#2

Hi David,

the variable item_info contains a record of some information about the file, not the file itself.
And destination_folder is an alias, but should be a string path.
And hinted movie is a reserved constant, a literal string “QuickTime hinted movie” doesn’t work
try:


.
export this_item to ((destination_folder as text) & file_name) as hinted movie
.
#3

Thanks Stefan-

i’m sure that’s part of the problem. unfortunately, there may be more problems since it still is not exporting a file. How does one check for error messages in applescirpt? i’m not having much luck.

-David

#4

you must test folder actions this way, because you don’t get any error messages in a folder action


-- on adding folder items to this_folder after receiving these_items
set this_folder to choose folder
set these_items to choose file with multiple selections allowed
.	

.
-- end adding folder items to

There is another problem in your script: When the folder is created in the hot folder,
the folder action will be called again.

#5

I’ve made this into a non-folder actions script, and am still having problems.



set destination_folder to choose folder
set these_items to choose file with multiple selections allowed

repeat with this_item in these_items
   beep 1
  
    set item_info to info for this_item
   set file_name to name of item_info
   if name extension of item_info is in {"mp3", "wav"} then
       tell application "QuickTime Player"
           launch
           export file_name to ((destination_folder as text) & "new.mov") as "QuickTime hinted movie"
       end tell
   end if
end repeat

However this creates the error:

QuickTime Player got an error: Can’t get alias “Macintosh HD:Users:alt10hof:Desktop:qt_test:major_funk.mp3”.

…not a very helpful message.

#6

But this is not the main problem.
file_name is just the name of the file, but you
have to export the file, which is this_item.
To export the file it has first to be opened


set destination_folder to choose folder
set these_items to choose file with multiple selections allowed

repeat with this_item in these_items
	beep 1
	set {name:file_name, name extension:Ext} to info for this_item
	if Ext is in {"mp3", "wav"} then
		tell application "QuickTime Player"
			launch
			open this_item
			export document 1 to ((destination_folder as text) & "new.mov") as hinted movie
		end tell
	end if
end repeat
#7

Yeaa! It finally exported. Thanks Stefan!

…on a side note. Doesn’t it seems kind of obtuse to have to do things that way? Why should you have to open a file (and start it playing) in order to export it.

… and how does “this_item” become “document 1”

Well, looks like got some learning to do.

Best,

David

#8

Playing is not the question. But if you’re going to manipulate a file, you have to open it.
You have to do this since the very early days of computing
Immagine to change text in TextEdit without an open file. :wink:

if you open a file in QuickTime, it becomes always the frontmost document,
which can be referred easily without knowing the file name as document 1.

Note: for batch processing you should close the frontmost document after exporting it with

close document 1

inside the QuickTime tell block