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https://github.com/CleanCocoa/OpenAny
macOS app and file launching springboard
https://github.com/CleanCocoa/OpenAny
Last synced: about 2 months ago
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macOS app and file launching springboard
- Host: GitHub
- URL: https://github.com/CleanCocoa/OpenAny
- Owner: CleanCocoa
- License: gpl-3.0
- Created: 2023-12-11T15:48:09.000Z (10 months ago)
- Default Branch: main
- Last Pushed: 2023-12-13T09:32:59.000Z (9 months ago)
- Last Synced: 2024-07-17T15:01:37.741Z (2 months ago)
- Language: Swift
- Size: 1.27 MB
- Stars: 76
- Watchers: 1
- Forks: 0
- Open Issues: 2
-
Metadata Files:
- Readme: README.md
- License: LICENSE
Awesome Lists containing this project
README
# OpenAny
_Open File X with App Y_ From Anywhere
macOS app and file launcher for simple scripting.
Launches, performs its job, then quits. No long-running processes. No clutter in your menu bar!
## Installation
1. Download binary [from latest release](https://github.com/CleanCocoa/OpenAny/releases/latest)
2. Move to `/Applications` (before launching, so that macOS clears the app's quarantine flags)
3. (To make sure everything works, open the app once, then quit, to register its URL scheme.)
Done!
Now use `openany://` as explained below 🫶
## Why?
Any app that renders URLs as clickable links can now become your external app or file launchpad.
- 🎉 Create **open-file-with-app links** anywhere!
- 🌎 Assemble **dashboards** to your projects in your favorite note-taking app!
For example, you can use this in almost any Markdown editor with syntax highlighting to get a clickable link that will open TextEdit:
```md
## My favorite stock macOS apps
TextEdit:
```
That's a very silly example. Why would you want to launch TextEdit in such a complicated way?
Here's a more complicated example: open a file _with a specific app_, with a link.
The default `file://` URLs you get from dragging from Finder are also clickable, but they only _reveal_ the file. Opening the file is an extra step. Boo extra steps!!11
How about embedding a shortcut to edit a file with [TableFlip](https://tableflipapp.com/) and preview with [Marked](https://marked2app.com)?
```md
Preview:
Edit Tables:
... document goes here ...
```
Open any app, or any file, or any file in any app!
## Usage
Powered by the `openany://` URL scheme, you can launch apps and open files.
Open app:
- `openany://app/com.apple.textedit`
launches TextEdit via its bundle identifier. It's a bit cumbersome, so:
- `openany://app/TextEdit`
launches TextEdit via its app name (not case-sensitive, actuall). That may not always be unique, though. Pick your poison 🙂
Open file:
- `openany://file/open?path=/path/to/file.txt`
opens `/path/to/file.txt` in your default editor of text files.
- `openany://file/open?url=file:///path/to/file.txt`
opens `/path/to/file.txt` in your default editor of text files, but using a `file://` URL instead of a path.
Open files with app:
- `openany://app/TextEdit/view?path=/path/to/file.txt`
opens `/path/to/file.txt` in TextEdit.
- `openany://app/TextEdit/view?url=file:///path/to/file.txt`
opens `/path/to/file.txt` in TextEdit, but using a `file://` URL instead of a path.
- `openany://file/openwith/TextEdit?path=/path/to/file.txt`
opens `/path/to/file.txt` in TextEdit.
- `openany://file/openwith/TextEdit?url=file:///path/to/file.txt`
opens `/path/to/file.txt` in TextEdit, but using a `file://` URL instead of a path.
Reveal file:
- `openany://file/reveal?path=/path/to/file.txt`
reveals `/path/to/file.txt` in Finder.
- `openany://file/reveal?url=file:///path/to/file.txt`
reveals `/path/to/file.txt` in Finder, but using a `file://` URL instead of a path.
## Bonus: How to get an app's bundle ID
You can drag and drop any app onto the OpenAny application icon to extract its bundle ID.
1. Launch OpenAny directly;
2. Drag apps from Finder to the OpenAny application icon in your dock;
3. Copy the bundle ID out of the dialog,
4. then close it (and quit the app).
## Why `file://`?!
### Easy parsing reason
the `path=` query parameter works best for files without spaces or any other URL-escaped characters.
For all others, you're better off with a file URL.
### Drag and drop reason
If you drag files from Finder into some apps, they will insert the `file://` into text field. Could be a text editor, a comment field on a calendar event, a note-taking app, a chat window -- you name it. That's how dropping files on macOS can behave.
You can delete the `file://` part to get to the path, of course, but then you have all the URL-escpaed special characters (like `%20` instead of spaces).
It's less annoying to just use the URL by that point. So we do.
## Taxonomy
The URL scheme is comprised of components like this:
openany://HOST/SUBJECT[/VERB[/OBJECT[?key1=value1[&key2=value2[...]]]]]
When the `HOST` acts as the subject, the pattern becomes:
openany://HOST/VERB[/OBJECT[?key1=value1[&key2=value2[...]]]]
The query parameters are called the URL's _payload._
### List of possible `HOST`s
- `app`: Launch an app, identified by `SUBJECT`. That's the bundle identifier.
- `file`: Open a file specified by the payload
### List of possible `SUBJECT` patterns
- For the `app` host:
- The `SUBJECT` is the app's bundle ID. (Followed by a verb.)
- For the `file` host:
- `reveal` (acting as `VERB` here), see below.
- `open` (acting as `VERB` here), see below.
- `openwith` (acting as `VERB` here), see below.
- `show` (acting as `VERB` here), see below.
### List of possible `VERB`s
- For the `app` host
- with `APP_ID` (a bundle identifier or app name) being the `SUBJECT`:
- (none): Launches the app. Alias ans shorthand to `launch`.
- `launch`: `/app/APP_ID/launch`
- `view`: `/app/APP_ID/view` opens a file, specified by the payload, in the app. Alias for `/file/openwith/APP_ID`.
- For the `file` host:
- `reveal`: Reveal a file, specified by the payload, in Finder.
- `open`: Open a file, specified by the payload, in the default app.
- `openwith`: Open a file, specified by the payload, with the app being the `OBJECT`. Alias for `/app/APP_ID/view`. Example: `openany://file/openwith/com.apple.textedit?path=/path/to/file.txt` opens `/path/to/file.txt` in TextEdit.
- `show`: Alias for `reveal`.
### List of possible Payloads
Only used by file-related actions, the payload keys are:
- `path`: As in `?path=/path/to/file.txt`, using an absolute POSIX path. Expands `~` in the path. Most useful for simple paths without e.g. spaces.
- `url`: As in `?url=file:///path/to%20a%file/with%20spaces.txt`, using an absolute `file://` URL, e.g. to easil encode special characters.
If the path or URL point to a directory, Finder will show the directory in a new window. So `/file/open?path=~/Downloads/` is equivalent to /file/reveal?path=~/Downloads/`.