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Introduction to AppleScript Studio Terminology Reference

AppleScript Studio combines an application framework with a development environment, allowing you to provide sophisticated user interfaces for applications that execute AppleScript scripts. Working with features from AppleScript, Xcode, Interface Builder, and the Cocoa application framework, you can quickly create applications that support the Apple human interface guidelines.

This document describes the scripting terminology available through AppleScript Studio version 1.4, which first became available with Mac OS X version 10.4. and AppleScript version 1.10. It flags terminology differences between AppleScript Studio versions by providing Version Notes sections for terminology added or changed after version 1.0. If a class, command, event, or enumeration does not have a Version Notes section, then it has been available, unchanged, since AppleScript Studio version 1.0.

Most object classes you use in AppleScript Studio scripts (such as the application, view, button, and other classes) are built on corresponding Cocoa classes (NSApplication, NSDocument, NSButton, and so on), although they do not expose all possible functionality from each Cocoa class. This document provides links to the documentation for corresponding Cocoa classes as a source of additional information on the underlying technology.

Who Should Read This Document

AppleScript Studio Terminology Reference assumes that you have some familiarity with AppleScript and know how to write and execute scripts. If not, see the documents in “See Also.”

Although this document provides many tips on working with Xcode and Interface Builder to create AppleScript Studio applications, previous knowledge of those tools is helpful.

Organization of This Document

The chapter “Terminology Fundamentals” provides some key information about AppleScript Studio’s scripting terminology.

Enumerations, a form of constant, are available to all suites, and are described in “Enumerations” in the Application suite.

The individual AppleScript Studio script suites (or collections of related terminology) are described in these chapters:

• “Application Suite”

• “Container View Suite”

• “Control View Suite”

• “Data View Suite”

• “Document Suite”

• “Drag and Drop Suite”

• “Menu Suite”

• “Panel Suite”

• “Plugin Suite”

• “Text View Suite”

For a history of changes to this document, see “Document Revision History.”

See Also

The following documents may be useful in working with AppleScript Studio:

• Getting Started with AppleScript and AppleScript Overview provide good entry points for learning about AppleScript.

• AppleScript Studio Programming Guide introduces the key features of AppleScript Studio and includes detailed tutorials for creating AppleScript Studio applications.

• AppleScript Language Guide is the primary document for the AppleScript scripting language.

• Technical Note TN2065, do shell script in AppleScript, provides information about using shell script commands in your AppleScript scripts.

• Apple Human Interface Guidelines provides guidelines on when to use particular interface items and how to position them. For related information in this document, see “Panels Versus Dialogs and Windows.”

• Documentation for Xcode and Interface Builder is available in the Tools documentation.

• For information on Cocoa, see the Cocoa documentation.

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