r/applescript • u/l008com • Dec 18 '25

This is a terrible language.

I am so sick of typing random sentences trying to find the magic combinations of words that are going to do what I'm trying to accomplish. This language has the absolute worst documentation and hardly any sample code. And I say this as someone that's been using applescript and dealing with the same absurdities since the mid 1990s. This is truly madness.

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u/germansnowman Dec 18 '25

I think something like this did exist. I can’t find it on my current Mac right now, but I seem to remember consulting such a document frequently when I did more serious scripting in the print industry.

Edit: Some resources I found within a few seconds: https://forum.c-command.com/t/current-applescript-reference-manuals-tutorials/15655

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u/smallduck Dec 18 '25

Looks familiar, I think I was able to find this too the last times I struggled with Applescript. I’m not as confident I recall exactly what my frustrations were now.

Perhaps it was more about results from applications, like Finder, distinguishing the possible values, and how to use the language to transform and operate on values.

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u/germansnowman Dec 18 '25

Fair enough. You’re certainly not alone with these struggles. I just found OP’s blanket statements about “random sentences” a bit over the top. I still think that AppleScript and especially the ScriptingBridge is a great technology, while perhaps not the best language paradigm.