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Adobe 0046100128056 Scripting Guide - Page 131

Running a Menu Action from a Script, Adding Menus and Menu Items

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CHAPTER 9: Menus Running a Menu Action from a Script 131 var myString = ""; var myMenuAction = app.menuActions.item("Convert to Note"); var myKeyStrings = app.findKeyStrings(myMenuAction.name); if(myKeyStrings.constructor.name == "Array"){ for(var myCounter = 0; myCounter < myKeyStrings.length; myCounter ++){ myString += myKeyStrings[myCounter] + "\r"; } } else{ myString = myKeyStrings; } alert(myString); NOTE: It is much better to get the locale-independent name of a menuAction than of a menu, menuItem, or submenu, because the title of a menuAction is more likely to be a single string. Many of the other menu objects return multiple strings when you use the findKeyStrings method. Once you have the locale-independent string you want to use, you can include it in your scripts. Scripts that use these strings will function properly in locales other than that of your version of InDesign. To translate a locale-independent string into the current locale, use the following script fragment (from the TranslateKeyString tutorial script): var myString = app.translateKeyString("$ID/NotesMenu.ConvertToNote"); alert(myString); Running a Menu Action from a Script Any of InDesign's built-in menuActions can be run from a script. The menuAction does not need to be attached to a menuItem; however, in every other way, running a menuItem from a script is exactly the same as choosing a menu option in the user interface. For example, If selecting the menu option displays a dialog box, running the corresponding menuAction from a script also displays a dialog box. The following script shows how to run a menuAction from a script (for the complete script, see InvokeMenuAction): //Get a reference to a menu action. var myMenuAction = app.menuActions.item("$ID/NotesMenu.ConvertToNote"); //Run the menu action. This example action will fail if you do not //have text selected. myMenuAction.invoke(); NOTE: In general, you should not try to automate InDesign processes by scripting menu actions and user-interface selections; InDesign's scripting object model provides a much more robust and powerful way to work. Menu actions depend on a variety of user-interface conditions, like the selection and the state of the window. Scripts using the object model work with the objects in an InDesign document directly, which means they do not depend on the user interface; this, in turn, makes them faster and more consistent. Adding Menus and Menu Items Scripts also can create new menus and menu items or remove menus and menu items, just as you can in the InDesign user interface. The following sample script shows how to duplicate the contents of a submenu to a new menu in another menu location (for the complete script, see CustomizeMenu):

Section	Page
Adobe® InDesign® CS5 Scripting Guide: JavaScript	2
Introduction	9
How to Use the Scripts in this Document	9
About the Structure of the Scripts	9
For More Information	10
Other JavaScript development options	10
Scripting Features	11
Script Preferences	11
Getting the Current Script	12
Script Versioning	12
Targeting	13
Compilation	13
Interpretation	13
Using the doScript Method	13
Sending parameters to doScript	14
Returning values from doScript	14
Controlling Undo with doScript	16
Working with Script Labels	16
Running Scripts at Startup	18
Session and Main Script Execution	18
Documents	19
Basic Document Operations	20
Creating a new document	20
Opening a document	20
Saving a document	21
Closing a document	21
Basic Page Layout	22
Defining page size and document length	22
Defining bleed and slug areas	23
Setting page margins and columns	24
Changing the appearance of the pasteboard	25
Guides and grids	26
Changing measurement units and ruler	28
Defining and applying document presets	29
Setting up master spreads	31
Adding XMP metadata	32
Creating a document template	33
Creating watermarks	37
Adjusting Page Sizes and Layout	38
Selecting pages	38
Resizing and reframing pages	39
Transforming pages	39
Master page overlay	40
Printing a Document	41
Printing using page ranges	41
Setting print preferences	41
Printing with printer presets	44
Exporting a Document as PDF	44
Exporting to PDF	45
Setting PDF export options	45
Exporting a range of pages to PDF	46
Exporting individual pages to PDF	47
Exporting PDF with Interactive Features	48
Exporting Pages as EPS	48
Exporting all pages to EPS	48
Exporting a range of pages to EPS	48
Exporting as EPS with file naming	49
Working with Layers	50
Understanding the Layer Object Model	50
Scripting Layers	51
Creating layers	51
Referring to layers	51
Deleting layers	53
Moving layers	53
Duplicating layers	53
Merging layers	53
Assigning page items to layers	54
Setting layer properties	54
Working with Page Items	56
Creating Page Items	56
Page-item geometry	57
Grouping Page Items	59
Duplicating and Moving Page Items	59
Creating compound paths	60
Using Pathfinder operations	60
Converting page-item shapes	61
Arranging page items	62
Transforming Page Items	62
Using the transform method	62
Working with transformation matrices	63
Coordinate spaces	65
Transformation origin	66
Resolving locations	67
Transforming points	68
Transforming again	69
Resize and Reframe	69
Text and Type	71
Entering and Importing Text	71
Creating a text frame	71
Adding text	72
Stories and text frames	72
Replacing text	73
Inserting special characters	73
Placing Text and Setting Text-Import Preferences	74
Exporting Text and Setting Text-Export Preferences	77
Understanding Text Objects	81
Working with text selections	83
Moving and copying text	83
Text objects and iteration	85
Working with Text Frames	86
Linking text frames	86
Unlinking text frames	87
Removing a frame from a story	87
Splitting all frames in a story	89
Creating an anchored frame	89
Formatting Text	90
Setting text defaults	90
Working with fonts	93
Applying a font	94
Changing text properties	94
Changing text color	97
Creating and applying styles	97
Deleting a style	99
Importing paragraph and character styles	99
Finding and Changing Text	100
About find/change preferences	100
Finding and changing text	101
Finding and changing text formatting	101
Using grep	102
Using glyph search	104
Working with Tables	104
Path Text	108
Autocorrect	108
Footnotes	108
Span Columns	109
Setting Text Preferences	109
User Interfaces	111
Dialog Overview	111
Your First InDesign Dialog	112
Adding a User Interface to “Hello World”	113
Creating a More Complex User Interface	113
Working with ScriptUI	116
Creating a progress bar with ScriptUI	116
Events	118
Understanding the Event Scripting Model	118
About event properties and event propagation	118
Working with Event Listeners	119
Sample afterNew Event Listener	121
Sample beforePrint Event Listener	122
Sample Selection Event Listeners	123
Sample onIdle Event Listener	124
Menus	128
Understanding the Menu Model	128
Localization and menu names	130
Running a Menu Action from a Script	131
Adding Menus and Menu Items	131
Menus and Events	132
Working with scriptMenuActions	133
A More Complex Menu-scripting Example	134
Working with Preflight	140
Exploring Preflight Profiles	140
Listing preflight profiles	140
Listing preflight rules	141
Listing preflight data objects	141
Importing a Preflight Profile	142
Creating a Preflight Profile	143
Adding Rules	144
Processing a Profile	145
Custom Rules	146
Available Rules	146
ADBE_BlankPages	148
ADBE_BleedSlug	148
ADBE_BleedTrimHazard	149
ADBE_Colorspace	149
ADBE_CrossReferences	149
ADBE_FontUsage	150
ADBE_ImageColorManagement	150
ADBE_ImageResolution	150
ADBE_PageCount	151
ADBE_PageSizeOrientation	151
ADBE_ScaledGraphics	151
ADBE_ScaledType	151
ADBE_SmallText	152
ADBE_SpotColorSetup	152
ADBE_StrokeRequirements	152
ADBE_TextOverrides	152
ADBE_TransparencyBlending	152
Creating Dynamic Documents	153
Importing Movies and Sounds	153
Creating Buttons	154
Creating Multistate Objects	156
Working with Animation	158
Basic animation	158
TimingSettings	158
Animating transformations	161
Motion presets	162
Design options	162
Key frames	163
Adding Page Transitions	164
XML	165
Overview	165
The Best Approach to Scripting XML in InDesign	165
Scripting XML Elements	166
Setting XML preferences	166
Setting XML import preferences	166
Importing XML	167
Creating an XML tag	167
Loading XML tags	168
Saving XML tags	168
Creating an XML element	168
Moving an XML element	168
Deleting an XML element	168
Duplicating an XML element	168
Removing items from the XML structure	169
Creating an XML comment	169
Creating an XML processing instruction	169
Working with XML attributes	169
Working with XML stories	170
Exporting XML	170
Adding XML Elements to a Layout	171
Associating XML elements with page items and text	171
Marking up existing layouts	172
Applying styles to XML elements	174
Working with XML tables	175
XML Rules	178
Overview	178
Why use XML rules?	179
XML-rules programming model	179
XML Rules Examples	185
Setting up a sample document	185
Getting started with XML rules	186
Changing the XML structure using XML rules	190
Duplicating XML elements with XML rules	191
XML rules and XML attributes	192
Applying multiple matching rules	194
Finding XML elements	195
Extracting XML elements with XML rules	198
Applying formatting with XML rules	199
Creating page items with XML rules	202
Creating Tables using XML Rules	203
Scripting the XML-rules Processor Object	204
Track Changes	206
Tracking Changes	206
Navigating tracked changes	206
Accepting and reject tracked changes	207
Information about tracked changes	207

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HAPTER

9: Menus

Running a Menu Action from a Script

131

var myString = "";

var myMenuAction = app.menuActions.item("Convert to Note");

var myKeyStrings = app.findKeyStrings(myMenuAction.name);

if(myKeyStrings.constructor.name == "Array"){

for(var myCounter = 0; myCounter < myKeyStrings.length; myCounter ++){

myString += myKeyStrings[myCounter] + "\r";

}

else{

myString = myKeyStrings;

}

alert(myString);

OTE

It is much better to get the locale-independent name of a

menuAction

than of a

menuItem

, or

submenu

, because the title of a

menuAction

is more likely to be a single string. Many of the other menu

objects return multiple strings when you use the

findKeyStrings

method.

Once you have the locale-independent string you want to use, you can include it in your scripts. Scripts

that use these strings will function properly in locales other than that of your version of InDesign.

To translate a locale-independent string into the current locale, use the following script fragment (from the

TranslateKeyString tutorial script):

var myString = app.translateKeyString("$ID/NotesMenu.ConvertToNote");

alert(myString);

Running a Menu Action from a Script

Any of InDesign’s built-in

menuActions

can be run from a script. The

menuAction

does not need to be

attached to a

menuItem

; however, in every other way, running a

menuItem

from a script is exactly the same

as choosing a menu option in the user interface. For example, If selecting the menu option displays a

dialog box, running the corresponding

menuAction

from a script also displays a dialog box.

The following script shows how to run a

menuAction

from a script (for the complete script, see

InvokeMenuAction):

//Get a reference to a menu action.

var myMenuAction = app.menuActions.item("$ID/NotesMenu.ConvertToNote");

//Run the menu action. This example action will fail if you do not

//have text selected.

myMenuAction.invoke();

OTE

In general, you should not try to automate InDesign processes by scripting menu actions and

user-interface selections; InDesign’s scripting object model provides a much more robust and powerful

way to work. Menu actions depend on a variety of user-interface conditions, like the selection and the

state of the window. Scripts using the object model work with the objects in an InDesign document

directly, which means they do not depend on the user interface; this, in turn, makes them faster and more

consistent.

Adding Menus and Menu Items

Scripts also can create new menus and menu items or remove menus and menu items, just as you can in

the InDesign user interface. The following sample script shows how to duplicate the contents of a

submenu to a new menu in another menu location (for the complete script, see CustomizeMenu):