Quicksilver — LoveQuicksilver Blog

Triggering Web Apps

Sat, 15 Jun 2013 13:57:00 +0900

How to activate a web app in its open tab (and quickly set up the trigger)

Triggers are great for summoning apps – if an app is not running, it launches, and if it is running, it activates. However, services such as Feedly provide their… services in web apps. A trigger to open a service’s URL can result in multiple duplicate tabs cluttering up the default browser.

Help, indeed

To reduce tab-closing chores, the following script activates or, if necessary, opens a Feedly tab in the frontmost Chrome window:

tell application "Google Chrome"
	
	activate
	
try
	tell window 1
		set _tabs to tabs
		set _tabNumber to 0
		
		repeat with _tab in _tabs
			set _tabNumber to _tabNumber + 1
			if URL of _tab contains "http://www.feedly.com/" then
				set URL of _tab to¬
				 "http://www.feedly.com/home#my"
				set active tab index to _tabNumber
				return
			end if
		end repeat
	end tell
end try

	-- If no tabs contain the parent URL:
	open location "http://www.feedly.com/home#my"
	
	activate
	
end tell

No need to save the script – just grab it into Quicksilver, set ‘Run as AppleScript’ in pane 2, and hit ⌃⏎ to find the ‘Add Trigger…’ action.

Control-enter displays the command based actions such as ‘Add Trigger…’

The script can be modified to accommodate almost any URL.

@LoveQuicksilver

AirPlay and Quicksilver

Sat, 25 May 2013 14:05:00 +0900

Toggle AirPlay with Quicksilver triggers

AirPlay is one of the best features of Mountain Lion. YouTube becomes a proper TV channel, and iTunes music can be streamed away from tinny MacBook speakers.

However, first-world problems arise when a video is already fullscreen and the AirPlay button can’t be clicked, and hitting play on the keyboard doesn’t really save time because iTunes’ AirPlay icon needs to be clicked to stream audio.

Thanks to Doug Adams, I’ve been able to write a script that toggles AirPlay in iTunes 11.0.3 and upwards. I’m assuming one Apple TV that hasn’t been renamed. Check out Doug Adam’s posts if you have a more complex setup.

Subsequently, I was unreasonably annoyed to discover that iTunes’ AirPlay feature is separate from the rest of Mountain Lion, So I wrote another script that does the hard work of clicking the menubar’s AirPlay icon – even when a video is (and this can’t be done manually) fullscreen.

QuickTime Player slows down the menu’s appearance – it’s a lot faster in practice!

Save the scripts anywhere you like, and create triggers for them in the form ‘[script]⇥Run’. If anyone’s got a cleaner way of toggling Mountain Lion’s AirPlay feature, let’s hear it!

@LoveQuicksilver

Grab the Current iTunes Track

Sat, 25 May 2013 09:11:00 +0900

rowofl0 asks:

Is there a way to grab the iTunes track that is playing? Something like how command-g grabs the current Finder selection.

Sure! With the iTunes plugin installed, check ‘Currently Playing Track’ is selected in Preferences>Catalog>Quicksilver>Proxy Objects.

Make a triggger for ‘Currently Playing Track→Select in Command Window’, and you’re done.

‘Currently Playing Track’ points to a file as well as an iTunes object

@LoveQuicksilver

Print to Quicksilver with Printopia

Wed, 22 May 2013 07:40:00 +0900

Get images and PDFs out of iOS and into Quicksilver with a couple of taps

Printopia is an excellent way to print from an iOS device. It costs some bucks, but it’s a lot cheaper than buying an AirPlay printer. Files needn’t go straight to a printer though. As files are routed through a Mac, Printopia also provides an option to open them in any app of the user’s choosing – including Quicksilver.

Go to Printopia’s System Preferences pane, click the ‘+’ icon, and then ‘Send to Application’ to add Quicksilver.

Select a document or image on an iOS device and find the Print button. Select ‘Send to Quicksilver’ from the list of printers, and tap ‘Print’.

An Image in iOS…

The file will appear in Quicksilver shortly. Do with it as you will.

… and now in Quicksilver

@LoveQuicksilver

Developing Plugins for Quicksilver

Fri, 12 Apr 2013 17:38:00 +0900

We don’t normally talk about the development changes we make under the hood for Quicksilver, but without our developers making awesome plugins, Quicksilver wouldn’t be what it is today.

Recently we’ve been working hard to make it as easy as possible for new developers to create plugins for Quicksilver. As a testament to this, you’ll see that the list of ‘developer changes’ in the changelog is almost as long as the ‘features’ and ‘fixes’ list for recent versions of Quicksilver.

For now, let’s skip past those changes (if you want to know more abou them, either check out their corresponding pull request on Github, or ask in the Quicksilver Developer Groups (see link below), and look at some of the bigger things we’ve done over the past years to give anyone and everyone as much help as possible in creating plugins.

Plugin Documentation

Who ever said documentation wasn’t important?
Over the years, Rob McBroom (a Quicksilver lead dev) has meticulously compiled a comprehensive Plugin Reference on getting started with plugins, and an overview of what you need to define in a plugin’s Info.plist so that you (the developer of a brand new Quicksilver plugin) can get the most out of your plugin. The Info.plist has always been the tricky bit in creating plugins (here’s an example .plist file from the iTunes plugin to show how complicated things can really get), but Rob’s overview makes life so much easier.

If you ever get the smallest urge to create a plugin, this is where you want to start.

XCode Plugin Template

Discussed in the Plugin Development Reference is the XCode Plugin project template. This is a handy template (.xctemplate file) that you can drop into Xcode to make setting up a new plugin project much, much easier.

From the plugin reference, here’s the steps you need to take:

Get the Xcode Project template from the GitHub repository
Copy Quicksilver Plug-in.xctemplate to ~/Library/Developer/Xcode/Templates/Application Plug-in
Create a new project in Xcode. You should see “Quicksilver Plug-in” in the “Application Plug-in” category.
There are three types to choose from. Standard, Scripting Bridge (which is like Standard but adds the Scripting Bridge framework), and Interface which is mainly useless for now.

Make sure you take a look at the plugin reference though, as there are a few more steps and niggles that you’ll need to complete before you’re ready to go.

Existing Plugins

When the current development team jumped on board to save Quicksilver, documentation on existing plugins was few and far between. Comments in code were non existent, and things were just a right pickle, to be perfectly honest.
Things are much better now, with it much easier to dive straight into the code of one of the existing plugins to find out how something or other was done.

Programming at ease

We’ve tried to make writing plugins as simple and bash-my-head-against-the-wall-free in recent months. Now, when writing plugins, you can define new QSObjects and Actions based on UTIs of objects. We hope to expand this further in the future by converting all Quicksilver ‘types’ to conform to the UTI API.

One of the most convenient feature of Quicksilver is the comma trick. Previously, developers would have to write two bits of code for each and every action (QSAction) depending on whether one or more than one object was selected (using the comma trick). Now you can use the same code and just iterate over an array of QSObjects (be it an array that contains 1 QSObjects or 10, it doesn’t matter). Here’s some code to show how easy it is to implement the comma trick in one of your plugins:

// 'dObject' is the 'direct object' sent to the action method from Quicksilver's 1st pane when the user executes your plugin's action
for (QSobject *eachObject in [dObject splitObject]) {
	// do something with data from eachObject in the 'comma trick' list. e.g. email it, trash it, display it large type...
}

And there we have it, a quick look at developing plugins for Quicksilver. If there’s positive feedback about the post, and people want to know more, we’ll make sure to get a series of blog posts out from start to finish on creating plugins for Quicksilver.
Also: stay tuned… we’ll be arranging a Quicksilver code meet up in the not too distant future!

References:

Quicksilver: An Interview with the Developers

Tue, 26 Mar 2013 04:07:00 +0900

With the release of Quicksilver v1.0, I sat with Quicksilver’s lead developers (at our respective far-flung computers) to gather their thoughts on this historic occasion, and to find out a bit more about Quicksilver behind the scenes.

Patrick Robertson and Rob McBroom

Rob and Patrick have been at the forefront of the machine that’s driven this 1.0 release, so let’s hear what they have to say:

LoveQuicksilver: What makes Quicksilver worthy of a 1.0 status?

Patrick: Now that users can upload their crash reports to us, we’ve fixed tons of lingering bugs that we would never have known about otherwise. Stability is what v1.0 boasts, but accessibility should not be forgotten. We’ve worked to simplify Quicksilver and add great documentation (a new manual is coming out!), meaning Quicksilver can be picked up by anyone much more easily than before.

Rob: All the major known bugs are OS X bugs, not Quicksilver bugs. :-)

LoveQuicksilver: What’s next for Quicksilver?

Rob: When Quicksilver asks a plugin for objects to add to the catalog, there’s an assumption the plugin can create those objects instantly. Sometimes that isn’t the case. We need to be able to ask the plugin for objects, but let it send the results back whenever it wants. Sort-of related, plugins need a way to recreate objects on-the-fly when they’re not in the catalog. Anything not in the catalog is currently lost after a restart, so they can’t be used with triggers, synonyms, etc.

Interfaces are too hard to customise, and the way the results are displayed in a separate panel creates a dated appearance in my opinion. But, you know, hard to customise.

“The true power of Quicksilver comes from our plugin developers”

Patrick: We need to make it as easy as possible for developers and users to create plugins and AppleScript extensions for Quicksilver. The true power of Quicksilver comes from our plugin developers, so I’ll be happy once we have a strong dev community back on our side creating great plugins, and over the coming months I’m going to be working hard to try and achieve this – we can always make things simpler for new developers!

Rob: Proxy objects can’t be used in the third pane. They should be there. Pretty self-explanatory, I think. The reason they aren’t is because the simple act of including them in the results causes them to be “resolved” (the process that figures out what they refer to at any given moment). For some, this is fairly slow. Doing several at once compounds the problem and introduces delays we find unacceptable.

LoveQuicksilver: It’d be great to use folder synonyms in the third pane as well as the first. Any other practical examples of functionality that improvements to proxy objects could bring?

Rob:

File ⇥ Move To… ⇥ Finder Selection

Text ⇥ Find With… ⇥ Current Website (Safari)

Not yet

LoveQuicksilver: Now for a question close to your hearts – why did you start developing QS?

Rob: I learned Objective-C because I didn’t want Quicksilver to stop working – it’s as simple as that. I continue to spend time on Quicksilver because I want it to work well for me on my machine.

Patrick: I started to help save the project, but now it’s also fun to work with our inspiring community around the globe. A community that really appreciates what we do and shows their support in so many ways – translations for Quicksilver, donations or just kind words of thanks.

“I didn’t want Quicksilver to stop working – it’s as simple as that”

LoveQuicksilver: It’s great to hear how passionate you are about the project! Something I’m sure many users are keen to know is: What is the state of Quicksilver Development?

Rob: I don’t know what it was like at the height of the Blacktree days, but, as far as I know, it’s better now than ever. Enormous changes and improvements are being made every couple of months. It could always be better. We could use more people, or better yet, the same people with more time. :-)

LoveQuicksilver: Historically, I believe, Quicksilver was difficult to code for due to its unstructured nature, out-of-date code and lack of documentation. What changes have you made to make it easier for potential contributors to get involved?

Patrick: When I joined the project five years ago, it was almost impossible to start developing. One of my own personal ambitions has been to make it really easy for new developers to dive straight into the code. This meant moving over to GitHub (arguably the best version control site around), and much better documentation. Developing for Quicksilver has never been easier.

Rob: Yeah! There’s now detailed a reference for creating plugins, which is great for new developers. The core application is still mostly undocumented, but the code is much cleaner now. If it’s difficult finding your way around the code, there are always a few of us who know our way around and can answer questions for new developers. Not many people are asking, though!

“Developing for Quicksilver has never been easier”

LoveQuicksilver: What would you like to see developed in Quicksilver?

Rob: The ultimate interface for me would be one based on WebKit. Every part of the interface would be an HTML <div> or whatever, and any user would be able to customise the appearance using CSS (including animations and 3D transformations). I don’t know how realistic that would be, but I would be much happier tweaking CSS than spending an hour and a half in Xcode just trying to figure out where a box even comes from! And of course this would open up interface customisation to a ton more people.

Easier to make interfaces

LoveQuicksilver: Lots of people in the Quicksilver userbase are asking questions like “Why isn’t there a Sparrow/Twitter/Textmate 2/Duke Nukem/[insert app name] plugin?” What do you have to say to them?

Rob: Some people (probably a vocal minority) seem confused about why we aren’t working on a plugin for Sparrow, or Google Chrome before that, because surely so many user requests have gotten our attention, right? Unfortunately it doesn’t work like that. I don’t use those apps, so I have no need for those plugins. End of decision tree.

I’ve said something like this before, but for almost any open source project, you need someone that knows how to do it and someone who wants it done before something will happen – and of course they need to be the same person! It’s pretty common for the people who want it done to appeal to the people that know what to do. I think it’s only fair to make the opposite appeal. If you want something done, don’t tell me it’s important to you. Show me. I will spend hours and hours answering your programming questions on the mailing list, or looking over your code, but I’m not going to spend 20 minutes on a feature or plugin if I don’t need it. I’m not losing any sleep if that hurts some feelings. After all, I’m not asking anyone to do anything I didn’t do myself, and the barriers to entry are considerably lower now. :-)

“I will spend hours and hours answering your programming questions”

LoveQuicksilver: Wow! I expect you’ll be seeing more plugin developers jumping on board now right?! What have you learned while working on QS?

Patrick: Put simply – how to code. It may seem crazy, but I was driven to help keep Quicksilver functioning, and to do so I had to learn how to code. Another important thing has to be working internationally. The current development team spans 12 timezones (from Japan to the US East Coast) which makes discussion and collaboration difficult, but we make it work with the great tools we have – git, GitHub, IRC and good old mailing lists.

Rob: A little Cocoa and a lot of Git. Or at least that’s how it feels sometimes. I wouldn’t have guessed how much time goes into the work surrounding the work. That is, you probably spend 10% of the time programming and the other 90% reviewing issues reported by users, discussing changes with other devs, reviewing code from others, branching/merging/rebasing/committing stuff with Git, etc. Then there’s a web site and an update system to think about, documentation, and accounts to maintain. You get the idea.

I’ve also learned that when someone forks the project on GitHub, it doesn’t mean they’re interested in helping out. And I have no idea what it does mean. There are 112 forks and only a handful of people actually doing something with them.

LoveQuicksilver: It all sounds intriguing! Let’s cap things off with one more personal question for you: What’s your favourite thing about Quicksilver?

Rob: This will probably seem like such a stupid little thing to be excited about, but it’s what I immediately thought of when you asked the question, so it’s probably true. It has to be the way searching works; the fact that I can find “peanut butter” by typing “pb”, or “nbtr”, or whatever makes sense at the time. It doesn’t force me to start at the beginning of the term, nor does it force me to enter all letters in sequence, like “peanu”. That’s a huge part of the general theme in Quicksilver of not having to think. You just call it up and start smacking keys, and the right thing happens. Someone should write a Chinese proverb about that.

Maybe that general “wei wu wei” theme should be my answer, but I think there are two reasons the search behavior specifically stands out.

It was one of the first things that got me interested in using Quicksilver (if not the first thing).
After all these years of the idea being “out there” for anyone to copy, I can still count on one hand the applications that employ this type of searching.

As a result, Quicksilver remains special.

Patrick: The simple things are always the best, right? So for me it has to be the speed and huge scope of what Quicksilver can find. There’s nothing else out there that will find your Dad’s phone number, Bob Marley’s “Three Little Birds”, my Safari bookmarks… all these different things as quickly as Quicksilver. It’s partly to do with what Quicksilver concentrates on, and, as Rob says, Quicksilver’s awesome searching algorithm. This doesn’t mean I’m happy with the speed though – I’m still looking for ways to make it faster!

LoveQuicksilver: Great, thanks for your time Patrick and Rob!

And finally, I got in touch with Quicksilver’s creator Nicholas Jitkoff (né Alcor) to see what he had to say about this historic v1.0 release of Quicksilver:

“I’m amazed at what the Quicksilver team has accomplished since they took over the project a few years ago. They’ve created something truly worthy of a 1.0, taking Quicksilver from a flight of fancy to a fast, reliable productivity app. It has been a pleasure to use thanks to their frequent updates, countless refinements, and tireless effort.”

“They’ve created something truly worthy of a 1.0”

For those of you who remember, LifeHacker interviewed Nicholas all of 5 years ago on the state of Quicksilver. It’s amazing to see the turnaround in Quicksilver’s stability and development state since then.

There’s nothing more to say except that I hope you’re as happy with Quicksilver v1.0 as the development team and I are. Don’t forget to spread the word and share the love!

@LoveQuicksilver

Quicksilver Comes of Age

Tue, 26 Mar 2013 04:06:00 +0900

Bye Bye ßeta

Quicksilver 1.0

After almost 10 years of testing, Quicksilver lays the beta tag to rest. (If the lack of an eszett brings a tear to your eye, you can always reminisce by hitting ⌥S on your keyboard). What does this release mean? It means more than just a change in the version numbering system - it signifies a maturity of Quicksilver and a sign of what’s to come.

For more info on this historic release day, you can read an interview with the lead developers where they discuss their thoughts on Quicksilver, but now it’s time to dive right in and see what Quicksilver’s getting on its release birthday.

Add files and folders to the catalog using the Add To Catalog action
A core feature of QS is direct access to only the things you care about. Now it’s easier then ever to add your latest fancy to the top-level catalog.

Visit the new entry’s catalog info panel to include its contents

Assign an alternate name to something by creating a synonym
Abbreviations are limited to letters contained within the target object’s name. Synonyms make it possible to use any name you like! Die-hard Address Book devotees rejoice.

Fixed the Add Trigger action, and the trigger type can be specified in the third pane
Get a new trigger straight into preferences. Make a command, press ⌃⏎ and search for ‘Add Trigger…’.

Assign the same trigger to different actions in different applications
Add apps in the ‘Scope’ field of the triggers’ information panels to use the same shortcut multiple times.

AppleScript Action enhancements
Custom actions now have the ability to handle files in both the first and third panes. Also, the type of objects that the action will appear for, and will subsequently display in pane 3 can be specified – making it a lot easier to mimic plugin functionality without lower-level coding skills.

An explanation of object types can be found here

The AppleScript action at the end of this post uses Sparrow to send an attachment to a specified email address. It will only appear for text objects in pane 1, and provides only files in pane 3.

Store email addresses on the Shelf for easy access
Recent Commands and the Last Command proxy are working
One excellent use for the Last Command proxy is doing repetitive tasks within an app that are normally done from the menubar. Assign ‘Last Command>Run’ to a trigger. Use the User Interface plugin to press a menu item. The Last Command is now that menu item. Your shortcut will work for as long as you can resist using QS for something else. But even then, you can just → in ‘Recent Commands (Catalog)’ to perform the task again.

Also shows how to add a trigger from the bezel

Release Notes have some style
Which is a good thing, as I can’t possibly reveal all the other goodies here. Have a look at QSApp.com.

Bug Fixes
And finally, there are over 40 different bugs and stability improvements in this release, more than in any other release. Quicksilver has well and truly left its old days behind!

So there’s a rundown of the latest and greatest things you can find in this version of Quicksilver, to finish off, here’s a quick word from lead developer Patrick:

Quicksilver 1.0 doesn’t just mean stability, it means the whole package: localisations for all our users; easy to use APIs for plugin and AppleScript extension developers; and a reliable, responsive support system.

It’s easier than ever for newcomers to contribute localizations, create plugins, add to the code base, or simply ask for help. Why not join the party or donate to the cause?

What next? Find out more in the interview with the developers. In the meantime, let us know your thoughts on this release, spread the word and above all - enjoy using Quicksilver!

@LoveQuicksilver

Example AppleScript using the new AppleScript features:

using terms from application "Quicksilver"
	on get direct types
		return {"NSStringPboardType"}
	end get direct types
	
	on get indirect types
		return {"NSFilenamesPboardType"}
	end get indirect types
	
	on process text _emailAddress with _attachment
		try
			-- Put your email address between the following quotes:
			set _myAddress to "johndoe@emailprovider.com"
			tell me to set _body to (current date) as text
			
			set _attachmentText to _attachment as text
			set _path to POSIX path of _attachmentText
			
			tell application "Sparrow"
				set _outgoingMessage to make new outgoing message with properties ¬
				{subject:_attachmentText, content:_body, sender:_myAddress}
				
				tell _outgoingMessage to make new to recipient with properties ¬
				{address:_emailAddress}
				tell _outgoingMessage to make new mail attachment with properties ¬
				{filename:_path}
				
				sendmessage _outgoingMessage with to recipient and mail attachment
			end tell
			
		on error a number b
			activate
			display dialog a with title "Sparrow Attachment"
		end try
	end process text
	
	on get argument count
		return 2
	end get argument count
end using terms from

EverTips: Evernote + Quicksilver = Quick shortcuts to common notes

Thu, 21 Mar 2013 19:12:13 +0900

EverTips: Evernote + Quicksilver = Quick shortcuts to common notes:

evertips:

Do you have notes that you are use every single day? Sure, you can add them to the sidebar of the Mac Evernote client but there some notes should be in closer reach. Many times a day I make calls to coworkers throughout our office. I never seem to be able to remember people’s extensions so…

Alternate Actions

Sat, 19 Jan 2013 01:34:00 +0900

Over the years, Quicksilver’s arsenal of available actions has grown as more and more plugins have been created. At last count, Quicksilver has over 400 different actions from various sources for you to play with. That’s a lot!

So what if you don’t want to have all of these actions enabled? They may make searching for your most useful actions more laborious or difficult, or just clutter up your really neat and tidy results list:

Enter ‘Alternate Actions’

Alternate actions have been around for a while, but have been one of the many features that’s been hidden from prying eyes.

With the release of ß71, we’ve made this feature much more accessible and intuitive.

Alternate actions are a set of paired actions; a primary and an alternate action. We all know that with an action selected in Quicksilver’s 2nd pane, you can run this (the primary action) by hitting the enter key (↩).

Now if a primary action has an alternate action, you can run this alternate action by hitting command enter (⌘↩). With ß71, you’ll see if an action has a paired action by holding the command key (⌘). For example, the alternate action for ‘Open’ is ‘Reveal’. Hold ⌘ with the ‘Open’ action in the 2nd pane to see it, then ⌘↩ to use it!

What does this mean?

So now you know about alternate actions, where can you use them, and what are the benefits? With alternate actions, it means many more actions are available at the tips of your fingers. If ‘Open’ is the default action for files, you can now run the ‘Reveal’ action directly - without having to search for it. ‘Move To…’ and ‘Copy To…’ actions are alternates, so if you’re set up to move a file from A to B, but decide you only want to copy it, just press ⌘↩.

The great thing about alternate actions is that they work regardless of whether or not the alternate action is enabled in the Actions Preferences. You can disable all your alternates (Reveal, Copy To… etc.) and access them through the primary action with ⌘↩.

Tell me more about these alternate actions!

You can see which actions have alternates in the Actions Preferences in Quicksilver. We’ll be looking to add more as time goes on, but if you have any suggestions, then just let us know via @LoveQuicksilver or on the dedicated GitHub Issue

Happy Quicksilvering!

Quicksilver Delivers

Sun, 18 Nov 2012 14:09:00 +0900

A new look, iCloud documents, new alternate actions, and much, much (much) more*

Quicksilver ß71 lands with a thud like a Sunday newspaper’s anniversary edition. Where to begin? As well as the headliners, new features include Mountain Lion notifications, more translations, the Large Type action for text files, multiple objects for triggers, and all apps being available for the ‘Open With…’ action.

Read the full changelog here. Now, let’s peruse the big features.

New bezel and icons

First, the cover. Big thanks go out to Dan Deming-Henes for his work on the Quicksilver and action icons, among others. We’ve had a lot of favourable feedback about the new look. However, it has attracted some criticism. So, in an effort to avoid an inter-appearance schism, the old bezel has been granted clemency. Simply go to Plugins, in Preferences, and install the Bezel Classic Interface.

Classic

iCloud documents

Your iCloud documents might exist only at the end of the rainbow, for all the information the system provides about their location. They do also reside on your computer, but the files are awkward to access manually. A typical iCloud file path:

~/Library/Mobile Documents/com~apple~Numbers/Documents/Blank.numbers-tef

Quicksilver does away with this problem by providing a catalog entry for all iCloud documents. Start typing a name in the first pane, select an iCloud doc from the list, and pretty soon it’ll be the top hit for your preferred abbreviation. Also, → into an app to show all its iCloud docs, not just the recents. Or even → into the catalog entry to see every single iCloud document, ready to be opened in any application you wish!

Your iCloud documents, back under your control.

Makes a good trigger…

…for this

New and discoverable alternate actions

There has always been the option to hold ⌘ to use an alternative action in the second pane. Now, the action will appear while ⌘ is pressed. New alternate actions have been added, and Preferences>Actions now shows which actions have alternates. Here’s the full core list: (Plugins are able to add additional alternates.)

Large Type action works on text files

Handy for quickly viewing lists.

More translations (localizations)

Volunteer translators welcome!

Text entry mode allows undo and substitutions

And this works even when tabbing out of text mode.

Mountain Lion notifications

With all the trimmings.

Triggers can be created for multiple files/folders/applications

Got a workflow that includes several apps and documents? Open them all in a stroke.

The ‘Open With…’ action lists all applications

Of particular annoyance to me was QS’s failure to show certain apps in pane 3 when using this action. No more. The only downside is a lot of unnecessary apps now appear in the list. Perfect, though, if you know what you’re looking for.

The interface remains visible when the Shelf or Clipboard are activated

This is great, as it’s now possible to use snippets in Quicksilver as well.

Users can control which file types get preview icons

Tired of that folder full of movies dragging QS down? For the tinkerer in you, a way for Quicksilver to preview only the file types of your choice. Details here.

Miscellany

Links in browsed URLs are ordered correctly, all core actions have descriptions, count badges are fixed, the interface will appear above full-screen applications, updates no longer require an admin password, pane 1 can be cleared with ⌃U – and many more.

New mail icon and mailto: action

New URL icon

The interest shown in Quicksilver’s appearance has been great (metaphor switch warning), but that’s one cog in the large number of real improvements made to Quicksilver’s works. So (warning end), for the sake of balance, which new features do you think are newsworthy?

@LoveQuicksilver

* 80 changes in total!

Quicksilver's New Look

Sat, 17 Nov 2012 11:38:00 +0900

Looks great, looks wrong, looks like a storm in a teacup?

The new bezel and action icon in the pre-release version of ß71 have attracted some criticism:

Here’s a comparison of old and new:

In my opinion, the old bezel looked like a cathode ray tube, while the new version is sharper and more compact. As for the shiny new action icon, I agree that it’s better than the plasticky original. How about a compromise? Alternatively:

Either or both design elements could be changed, rescinded or added as options by the final release.

So what do you think?

@LoveQuicksilver

Quicksilver Understands

Tue, 18 Sep 2012 09:11:00 +0900

And it’s talking your language

There’s a lot of communication improvements in ß70. Quicksilver is ready to be adressed in your preferred language. It’s more likely to find what you want, as it allows searching across an object’s display name or localised name. List results and certain file paths are presented in a more logical way. Search is now case insensitive, so typing ‘r’ or ‘⇧r’ returns the same results. Consequently, internal ⌘⇧letter shortcuts are more likely to execute the desired command. All this, plus a number of plugin system fixes, and speed and stability enhancements.

Here’s the full transcript:

New

Option to switch the keyboard layout when Quicksilver is active #987

Select the preferred input in Preferences.

The options reflect the input sources selected in Language & Text in System Preferences

Allow searching on both filsystem and localized names for files and folders #730 #952 #1017

Search for the filesystem name or the display name.

Both ‘Security & Privacy’ and ‘Security.prefPane’ can be searched for

Show the location for iCloud documents as “iCloud” instead of the actual path #1018

QS won’t show paths like this:
/Users/home/Library/Mobile Documents/com~apple~TextEdit/Documents/list.txt

Required bundles are taken into consideration when loading plugins #1002 #1079

After going through the Setup Assistant, new users no longer need to manually refresh to download the list of plugins #1052 #1079

The latest version of a plugin for the current operating system will be downloaded instead of the latest overall version #1063 #1079

Plugins that satisfy dependencies will be downloaded immediately, instead of on the next relaunch #1079

When obsolete plugins are replaced, only one relaunch is required to fully get rid of it #1079

Fixed

Jump to the third pane when ⇧[Letter] shortcuts trigger an action that requires it #982 #966

Internal Quicksilver shortcuts just got a lot more useful. Previously, Running the ‘Move To…’ command from pane 1 using (for example) ⌘⇧M would immediately use the default folder in pane 3 – the file’s original parent folder.

Jump to the third pane in one step instead of three, without running the command

Prevent the same object from being added more than once via the comma trick #1029

You won’t be able to do this any more:

Actually, nothing bad happens in this case

The “Start at login” preference and “Open at Login”/”Do Not Open at Login” actions work under 10.8 #831 #1055

Preserve existing web sources when no network connection is available #960

Crash prevention #986 #1015 #1045 #828 #912 #1013 #1094

Changed

Don’t automatically switch to text mode unless searching the main catalog #981

When browsing within a folder, QS assumes a file is being sought and won’t switch to text mode, even if specified in Preferences>Command.

Files with leading numbers in their name are sorted like Finder #1029

Folder contents’ file names will be displayed as in Finder – numerically, not alphabetically.

Don’t distinguish upper and lower case letters. Ensures that holding ⇧ to select an action gives the same results as typing in the second pane normally #961 #853

Alter the appearance of text entry mode to more closely match the chosen interface #1029

Only search items matched by previous keystrokes (should speed matching) #1029

Don’t read whole files into memory when checking for executables #1025

A major cause of beachballing consigned to history.

The “Quicksilver Catalog Entries” preset is disabled by default for new users #1041

Browsing through folders should be faster #1029

Development

Removed unused `.xcconfig` files #956

Streamlined documentation process for plugins #988

New `indirectTypes` key for actions to filter what’s acceptable in the third pane #620 #1057 #1094

Quicksilver 1.0 gets that little bit closer.

@LoveQuicksilver

Remiel: How to Use Quicksilver to Post Tweets to Twitter in 2012

Thu, 23 Aug 2012 09:47:14 +0900

Remiel: How to Use Quicksilver to Post Tweets to Twitter in 2012:

remiel:

Quicksilver is, of course, sexy as hell. But after searching around a lot, I had to conclude there is no longer any good, published way to post tweets via Quicksilver. The original method stopped working when Twitter implemented OAuth.

On top of which, Quicksilver has always lacked a…

Launch QS with Dictation Active

Fri, 10 Aug 2012 06:35:13 +0900

It’s hacky, but it works:

Make a trigger for the ‘QS Command Window with Text>Run’ command, and set the key combo to ‘shift-command space’.

Set Dictation to its default double function key shortcut.

Unzip this: http://dl.dropbox.com/u/157506/Launch%20QS%20with%20Dictation.zip

Put it wherever you like, and make a trigger to run it (I use ⌘⌥⌃space).

Optional: open the script in AppleScript Editor to alter the key combos or, for slower Macs, delay times.

@LoveQuicksilver

Dictation and Quicksilver

Sun, 05 Aug 2012 10:03:00 +0900

Siri, anyone?

Now, the Reminders script is hackier than hacked-up hacker with a hacking cough, but imagine the possibilities… Dictation is only supposed to work in text entry fields, but, once, I was able to search Quicksilver’s catalog when using it.

If you’ve any great uses for Dictation and QS, please leave a message after the tone.

@LoveQuicksilver

Toggle that application - improving your Quicksilver workflow

Thu, 02 Aug 2012 18:17:00 +0900

Today I’ll talk about a very small change we made in Quicksilver ß69, but one we believe will improve your workflow and just how ‘clever’ Quicksilver is.

The idea was suggested by Howard, the author of the brilliant and comprehensive Quicksilver manual. Like all good ideas, we jumped on it as quick as we could!

Quicksilver toggle application action

If you’re not aware of the “Toggle Application” action, it can be used to show or hide an application, depending on its state. It is often recommended by some (Howard himself) to use it in triggers over the “Open” action, as it adds the benefit of being able to hide applications if they’re already open.
The idea from Howard was to alter the action so that running the action on an application would bring it to the front always, unless the application is already frontmost. At which point, it would be hidden.

Perhaps one of the lesser well-known actions, this is great when combined with triggers for Quickly launching apps, hiding apps, and activating apps.

Toggle action triggers in Quicksilver

If you, like Howard, have a really good idea for Quicksilver, then just let us know by creating a new issue on our Bug tracker. We’ll keep track of your feature request and try to get it implemented into Quicksilver!

Coming soon to Quicksilver: the ability to select any keyboard...

Thu, 02 Aug 2012 18:02:00 +0900

Coming soon to Quicksilver: the ability to select any keyboard layout for when Quicksilver is activated. Thanks to ybian for the hard work!

To add more keyboard layouts to the list in Quicksilver’s preferences, all you need to do is add them to your ‘Input Sources’ list in the Language & Text System Preferences pane. Easy peasy!

Mountain Lion is upon us - update you Quicksilver now!

Wed, 25 Jul 2012 15:46:00 +0900

So Apple have gone ahead and quietly announced the release of their newest OS Mountain Lion for today, 25th July. Probably the most important question you want answering before you jump aboard this new cat’s wagon is “does Quicksilver work, or will I be left feeling like a lost child with nothing to guide me?”

The answer is of course: Yes. As of Quicksilver ß69, released late last week, Quicksilver should run on Mountain Lion as smoothly as your brand new Jaguar. We suggest that everyone upgrading to Mountain Lion makes sure they are running Quicksilver ß69 or higher before they do so. Click the ‘Update Now’ button inside Quicksilver’s preferences, or download the latest Quicksilver version directly.

Enjoy the ride, and let us know how you get on! Before updating, we suggest you check to make sure all your other favourite apps are Mountain Lion-ready. Not all apps are ready on launch day!

Internal shortcuts - unlock those hidden Quicksilver features

Sat, 21 Jul 2012 18:59:00 +0900

With the release of Quicksilver ß69, we added support for Quicksilver to process keyboard shortcuts from all keyboard layouts. Triggers have worked in this way ever since they were introduced into Quicksilver, but the same can’t be said for the long list of (often hidden) internal shortcuts

In this blog post, I’ll take you through some of the most useful, and less well known shortcuts Quicksilver has to offer.

Paste Action

Whilst this technically isn’t a shortcut, Quicksilver’s “Paste” and “Paste as Plain Text” actions (which allow you to paste whatever item is in Quicksilver’s 1st pane) have only ever worked for QWERTY keyboard users until now. The action simulates the ⌘V keystroke, so never quite worked for all our international users. Now, however, this action is available for everyone to use. Here are some examples of where you might use it:

Use Current Web Page ⇥ Paste when wanting to paste your current website URL (for example, into an email or tweet). Requires a browser plugin (e.g. Safari Plugin, Chrome Plugin)
To remove formatting from copied text, try Clipboard Contents → Paste as Plain Text. Useful to set up as a trigger.
Paste items from your shelf (requires the ‘Shelf Plugin’) by bringing up the shelf item in Quicksilver’s 1st pane and using the ‘Paste’ action.
Easily paste a file or folder’s path by simply using File or Folder → Paste

There are many, many more uses for this action, perhaps one of the most useful in Quicksilver’s arsenal!
Tip: turn on “Allow capitalised keys to select the action” in the Extras preferences, and you can then run the action with ⌘⇧P without having to tab to the 2nd pane. See this blog post on ‘shifting’ for more information.

Browsing Quicksilver’s History

Believe it or not, Quicksilver has an object history just like your browser. If you want to bring up that file, folder, or snippet of text you were using in Quicksilver a few days ago, just use the ⌘[ (back) and ⌘] (forward) shortcuts to browse your history. Just like your browser, except inside Quicksilver. For more information, read about it in a recent Quicksilver release article or view the video below.

Browsing object History in Quicksilver

Showing an item’s contents and browsing in Quicksilver

You should all be familiar with using the → (right arrow) key to show an item’s contents (for example, a folder), and then using ← (left arrow) to move back ‘up’.
For some years now, the / (forward slash) key has also worked for showing an item’s contents. To move ‘up’, a corresponding ⌥/ (option forward slash) keyboard shortcut has existed. Only now, with the release of Quicksilver ß69 will this work correctly for all users, no matter what their keyboard shortcut.

A useful shortcut if you don’t want to stretch all the way to those arrow keys!

A few more hidden gems

The ~ (tilde) key represents your ‘Home’ folder on your Mac. You can type this in Quicksilver’s 1st pane to instantly bring up the home folder - now available for all our users.

Typing ~ to show your Home folder

Entering into Text Mode in Quicksilver is typically done by pressing the . (period) key. Now, with Quicksilver ß69 you can also use the ' (apostrophe) key.

If you’re using the Calculator plugin, an easy way to put Quicksilver into “Calculate” mode is by typing =. This puts Quicksilver into text mode (allowing you to type your mathematical expression) and makes ‘Calculate’ the default action.

Calculating expressions in Quicksilver

Wrapping it all up

This post should have given you a (not so) brief look into some of the internal shortcuts available to Quicksilver. For the full list, be sure to checkout our Keyboard Shortcuts page on the wiki.

Let us know if you have any more that you’re particularly fond of!

ß69 Release: Quicksilver 1.0 draws nearer

Sat, 21 Jul 2012 04:44:01 +0900

It’s here, something you’ve all been waiting for!

After much hard and painstaking work, we’ve finally brought Quicksilver kicking and screaming into the world of Mountains and Lions. This release of Quicksilver is perhaps one of the biggest in its history. It’s certainly the biggest release for everyone on the current development team.

Over the course of the next few weeks, we’ll be making blog posts and tweets on everything that’s gone on under the hood with this version of Quicksilver… but, in order to whet your appetite, here’s a quick rundown of the major changes:

Official support for Mountain Lion - Quicksilver is now code-signed to work with Mountain Lion’s Gatekeeper, and has been extensively tested with Apple’s latest operating system.
64 bit code - Quicksilver is now a 64 bit application, meaning it should run faster, and with fewer hiccups.
Localisations, localizations, localización - There’s now full localisation support built into Quicksilver. We are working hard on paving the way for volunteers from across the globe to translate all parts of Quicksilver into their own language. On top of this, Quicksilver now supports many more keyboard layouts, and all internal shortcuts are keyboard independent.
Fixes galore - In terms of fixes, there’s no doubt that ß69 has the most out of any release we’ve ever seen. This line (from the changelog) is only half the story…
- FIX: Further crash fixes and clean up (#910, #923, #928, #929, #943, #944, #949, #950)

Stay tuned for some more in-depth posts on what’s been going on behind the scenes, and what more you can expect. Now that a 64 bit Quicksilver has been released to the world, expect Quicksilver v1.0 to be just around the corner…

If you want to learn more now, check out the changelog.