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Title: AppleScript : The Definitive Guide by Matt Neuburg ISBN: 0-596-00557-1 Publisher: O'Reilly & Associates Pub. Date: 20 November, 2003 Format: Paperback Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $39.95 |
Average Customer Rating: 3.69 (16 reviews)
Rating: 4
Summary: A new definitive guide
Comment: "Applescript: The Definitive Guide" is aptly named as it is a complete and comprehensive explanatory manual and reference for Applescript. It is a worthy successor to Danny Goodman's classic of 1993 (updated in 1998), and is a current update, one which encompasses Mac OS 10.3 and Applescript 1.9.2.
The author is Matt Neuberg, an expert in Applescript and programming. He believes that Applescript is entering into a "Golden Age" after a period of gradual decline. The Script Editor is now a Cocoa application, there is a system-wide script menu in OS 10.3, more Mac applications than ever are scriptable, there is an integration with Unix, and the free Applescript Studio application is capable of creating custom applications with a full Aqua interface.
Applescript is designed for "low-end" programming but regardless, is not an easy language to learn and use. It may be relatively easy compared to other scripting languages but there is a need for a volume like this to explain how it works and how it allows one to program applications to communicate with each other.
Neuberg writes with a high degree of technical depth and completeness. He covers the Applescript syntax, variables, handlers, objects, properties, and the like in a thorough manner. Neuberg maintains a focus on Applescript itself and not on how to use it. There are examples of use, of course, and guides to its use, but the book is designed to teach and document the language itself. The most informative material is combined in the chapter on "Dictionaries". There are indexed catalogs contained in all scriptable applications which provide syntax guides, vocabulary, and other important data for use by Applescript. Dictionaries can help guide one through programming that application.
Sometimes the presentation is much like a script itself, dense, logically rigid, and inelegant. Of course, the subject matter is not meant for beach reading. Programmers and hard-core Mac users will benefit from the content of the book and likely use it as a regular reference.
Rating: 2
Summary: Big disappointment
Comment: Sorry, but I'm majorly disappointed. A little background. I've taken a few unsuccessful runs at writing workable AppleScripts in the past but never pushed it. Now I foresee the need to jump back into the pond and really learn to swim this time. I'm the author of a successful FileMaker Pro solution which makes me quite skilled within that limited environment. I write no Java, no Perl, no Ruby, no Scheme. Going in I assumed I should be able to pick up AppleScript fairly quickly.
Having read all the way through to and well into Chapter 7 I'm giving up. For the most part you're way over my head. You spend a long time, especially in Chapter 6, in highlighting the gotchas of AppleScript well before the basic concepts have been introduced. The assumption of deep familiarity with other programming languages continues on from there.
Your text would have been the "Definitive Guide" if it had explained the fundamentals more clearly. No question you know what you're talking about, but for me you've made AppleScript obscure.
I'll keep the book on my shelf as reference, but I need another text to guide me into the language.
Rating: 4
Summary: A useful resource, but not always the easiest teaching tool
Comment: In writing this book, the author expressed a desire to create a "complete explanatory manual" for beginners and veterans alike. He clearly appreciates the immense power of the language, while also obviously enjoying AppleScript's challenges and quirks. The book is billed as requiring no prior AppleScript or programming experience, but having some of each is a definite asset; there are many occasions where some knowledge of programming concepts or other languages appears to be assumed.
The structure of the book is somewhat confusing. It starts off well with some practical examples, but then moves into very complex terrain, having the potential to quickly leave the AppleScript newbie behind. Throughout the book, Neuburg discusses many of the quirks and nuances of dealing with AppleScript. It could be argued that he deals with too many of these quirks, which gives the book a somewhat choppy feel at times. The value, however, is that this treatment does lend a sense of reassurance - when you're banging your head against the keyboard because a script doesn't work as expected, it's good to know that the language is not without unique "personality" and that you're not alone. This may not always help you get your script running any faster, but what a sense of camaraderie!
Far and away the best feature of the book is the third chapter, where the author walks through the "AppleScript Experience." In this chapter, the reader is led through the step-by-step process of how the author develops a real script to take care of an otherwise long and tedious repetitive task - exactly the sort of thing that AppleScript is designed for. Neuburg explains the thought process of building the script, and provides each iteration of code along the way, warts and all, until all of the kinks are worked out. This was both educational and entertaining, and we could easily put ourselves into the same place, having been there before. It should be noted that the thought process of creating a script is really one of the most challenging, and poorly explained, aspects of coding in general. If you're new to programming, you likely expect that learning the technical syntax and structure is the hard part, but in reality that's easy in comparison to wrapping your head around what to do with this technical knowledge. Neuburg's tour of his headspace during the scripting process is invaluable and you'll gain some worthwhile vicarious experience in Chapter 3.
Bottom line: it's a great book if you can follow it, and a hard read if it loses you. It makes for an excellent reference source, and is certainly a comprehensive look at the language, covering all of the significant aspects of coding with AppleScript. We would expect veterans to find this book to be a well written in-depth discussion, while most beginners (to programming) would likely be more than a bit intimidated. It is perhaps most ideally suited to programmers of other languages that are new to AppleScript, but can rely on their background knowledge and interest to relate to the finer points presented.
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