{"id":9803,"date":"2013-01-15T11:14:03","date_gmt":"2013-01-15T19:14:03","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.intego.com\/mac-security-blog\/?p=9803"},"modified":"2017-03-14T13:37:51","modified_gmt":"2017-03-14T20:37:51","slug":"how-to-use-automator-for-system-tweaks","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.intego.com\/mac-security-blog\/how-to-use-automator-for-system-tweaks\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Use Automator for System Tweaks"},"content":{"rendered":"

Automator has been around for quite a few versions of OS X, and yet most people are entirely unaware that it\u2019s there. I saw it every time I went in the Applications folder and assumed it was a puzzle game about a friendly robot or something. As it turns out, it\u2019s not a game but a very useful way to automate repetitive tasks or tweak the OS without having to know how to program.<\/p>\n

In a way, it’s so simple it’s complicated: There are an overwhelming number of different options for things you can automate or tweak. It’s easy to stare at its huge list of actions with a mix of excitement and dread. What the heck do they all do?? How could I use them to make my life simpler and easier? I pondered going through and breaking down how it works in general, but that could easily be a book’s worth of content. It’s easy enough to Google around and see the myriad options that are out there, and poke around in the various possibilities within Automator and come to your own conclusions.<\/p>\n

What finally sent me to Automator was trying to find a way to send a file as an attachment to email by way of Outlook rather than Apple\u2019s Mail application. I\u2019ll walk you through the steps I took to make this work, and hopefully it will inspire you to explore Automator to make your own tweaks.<\/p>\n

Ready, Begin!<\/strong><\/p>\n

First of all, you\u2019ll obviously need to start up Automator. You can find this in the Applications folder in Finder, or find it using Spotlight<\/a>. It will ask you what type of document you\u2019d like to create, and in this case we want to create a Service. This will mean that your final product will show up in the Services context menu in Finder.<\/p>\n

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Once you begin creating your Service, you\u2019ll need an action. You will see these over on the left-hand side of the Automator window.<\/p>\n

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The action we\u2019ll need to select is Create New Outlook Mail Message. You may need to scroll a bit through the middle right-hand list of actions, but if you can also filter actions by application. By selecting Microsoft Outlook, you\u2019ll see only actions related to Outlook. Then it\u2019ll be right up near the top, no scrolling needed. When you double-click or drag this over to the blank pane on the right, you can do some additional configuring, though it\u2019s not necessary to add anything here.<\/p>\n

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Next, you\u2019ll need to select an input for the action to work with. Over on the far right, near the top, you\u2019ll see section that says, \u201cService receives selected.\u201d Choose \u201cfiles or folders\u201d in \u201cany application.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Once you\u2019ve finished that, you\u2019ll need to save your service. Automator will save your new Service to: ~\/Library\/Services. Remember this, as it may come in handy if you mess up your first attempt and want to remove it. To remove a failed experiment, you’ll need to go to that folder in Finder (Command+Shift+G and then enter in the folder name) and delete the document you’ve created.<\/p>\n

Now, if all has gone according to plan, you can go into Finder and right click on one or more files and they will show up a few seconds later, attached to a message in Outlook. Multiple selected files will show up in a ZIP file.<\/p>\n

There you go! You’re on your way to automating your way to happiness.<\/p>\n

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New to Mac? Let’s get you started on the right track!<\/strong>
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Want to get the most out of your new MacBook, iMac or other Apple computer? Whether this is your first laptop or you\u2019ve just switched from Windows, there are a few things you should know about your new Mac, like basic keyboard shortcuts or how to use the various features macOS has to offer. Learn more about what your Mac computer can do for you at the Intego New Mac User Center: Get started now!<\/strong><\/a><\/address>\n

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Automator has been around for quite a few versions of OS X, and yet most people are entirely unaware that it\u2019s there. I saw it every time I went in the Applications folder and assumed it was a puzzle game about a friendly robot or something. As it turns out, it\u2019s not a game but […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":9825,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"spay_email":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_is_tweetstorm":false},"categories":[10],"tags":[287,168],"yoast_head":"\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\t\n\t\n\n\n\t\n\t\n\t\n