AppleScript: Unit Scale and Boolean Operations
 

This request has two parts.

I am trying to write a script which, given a few parameters, will create a series of shapes and perform boolean operations on them (intersect, subtract, etc.)

On top of this I'm trying to use the Unit Scale of the document so the end user can provide a value in feet, but I don't see how/if it's exposed via AppleScript. So for now I'm hard-coding it into the script, i.e.

[CODE]set unitscale_left to 1 -- the inches
set unitscale_right to 12 -- the feet -- i.e. 1" = 12' in this case
set scale_dpi to 72
set unit_scale to scale_dpi / unitscale_right * unitscale_left -- i.e. 6 in this case
[/CODE]

Using this unit_scale conversion factor, I create two shapes. (Let's say a square and a circle.) In my script, I've kept references to the two shapes as they're returned from OmniGraffle Pro.

So far, when I've created primitives, I have been able to use "Copy As Applescript" from the Edit menu in order to see how to reproduce them from a scripting standpoint. However, if I intersect the two shapes manually, I get an object with a crazy-long gibberish name:

[CODE]make new shape at end of graphics with properties {name: "1F527F65-F94B-4590-BEFC-0C41E495370B-14690-0000C3313DE014D4", ... [/CODE]

Is there a way to cleanly use AppleScript to ask OmniGraffle Pro to intersect two items?

If not, I'm guessing I would need to 'do it by hand', or:

- Tell the app / window / document / canvas (whatever) to set selected of each of those items to true (or whatever; I don't know the exact syntax here)

- Do something with... menu item "Intersect Shapes" of menu "Shapes" of menu item "Shapes" of menu "Edit" of menu bar item "Edit" of menu bar 1 of application process "OmniGraffle Professional" of application "System Events"?

Thanks!

Yes, you have to use your own conversion constants. The AS library uses points and doesn't expose the units choice directly, though you could probably fish it out of the plist file through System Events.

The AS library gives no access to the substructure of intersected shapes, just the UUID handle. (If you want to learn more about them you can unzip the underlying XML file inside a .graffle bundle).

And as you suggest, automated intersections thus entail using System Events to make menu choices.

Good luck !

Sample code fragments (not stand-alone, but perhaps indicative)

[CODE]property pblnUnion : true
property pblnSubtract : false

-- gather a list of shapes in lstShapes
-- ...
-- THEN

tell application id "OGfl"
set oWin to front window
set selection of oWin to lstShapes
activate
-- PERFORM ANY SHAPE UNIONS
if pblnUnion then
tell application id "sevs" to click (my GetMenuItem("OGfl", {"Edit", "Shapes", "Union Shapes"}))
-- PERFORM ANY SHAPE SUBTRACTIONS
else if pblnSubtract then
tell application id "sevs" to click (my GetMenuItem("OGfl", {"Edit", "Shapes", "Subtract Shapes"}))
else
assemble lstShapes
end if
end tell[/CODE]

[CODE]-- RETURNS A REFERENCE TO A CLICKABLE MENU ITEM
-- E.G. set mnuZoomFit to GetMenuItem("OGfl", {"View", "Zoom", "Zoom to Selection"})
on GetMenuItem(strAppCode, lstMenu)
set lngChain to length of lstMenu
if lngChain < 2 then return missing value

tell application id "sevs"
set lstApps to every application process where its creator type = strAppCode
if length of lstApps < 1 then return missing value
tell first item of lstApps
-- GET THE TOP LEVEL MENU
set strMenu to item 1 of lstMenu
set oMenu to menu strMenu of menu bar item strMenu of menu bar 1

-- TRAVEL DOWN THROUGH ANY SUB-MENUS
repeat with i from 2 to (lngChain - 1)
set strMenu to item i of lstMenu
set oMenu to menu strMenu of menu item strMenu of oMenu
end repeat

-- AND RETURN THE FINAL MENU ITEM
return menu item (item -1 of lstMenu) of oMenu
end tell
end tell
end GetMenuItem[/CODE]