Applescript – Merlin’s script folder

When using Merlin to manage and plan your projects on Mac OS X you can enhance its functions by AppleScript. We have posted various AppleScript samples in this blog. Feel free to download, use but also modify any way you think appropriate.

Some notes on this:

  • To place a new AppleScript in Merlin’s script folder just drag your Applescript in the folder Merlin opens over File > Send To > Open Scripts Folder
  • For new scripts to be listed under File > Send To, you need to re-start Merlin.
  • If editing a script located in the scripts folder, you need to re-start Merlin, before your newly saved version of the script is available over the Send To  sub menu.
  • If looking for the path of Merlin’s script folder, by a cmd+click on its title row……you will see it placed under: Your Mac > Your hard disk > Users > Your User Name > Library > Application Support > Merlin > SendToMenu
  • If looking for it over the Finder and checking the contents of your home directory, don’t be surprised not seeing the “Library” folder. This is a feature of Lion, according to which the “Library” folder is an invisible folder.

Merlin 2.8.3 update

Today we published another maintenance update for Merlin. It contains just one fix for Mac OS X 10.7:

The very first start of the previous Merlin 2.8.2 version could fail under some circumstances.

Merlin 2.8.3 solves this issue  and is therefore recommended for Merlin users working on Lion.

To manually check for updates, just call Merlin > Check for Updates…

We recommend enabling the Merlin preference “check for updates at startup” (Merlin > Preferences…>Update). Continue reading

Mac OS X Lion specialities… affecting Merlin

One of the features of OS X Lion is, whenever you quit an application which currently has open documents, those documents will be restored next time you start the application.

This effect is very practical if you are working with a specific document and need it automatically open the next time you start the application without needing to find it first on your hard disk to navigate it on your hard disk or for the File > Open dialogue.

Some Merlin users though are missing the Merlin Welcome Screen, which won’t come up of course, if Merlin starts and shows directly your last opened documents.

If you want to disable this effect for your Merlin for Mac OS X application you may simply quit Merlin by command + option + Q (or press the option key  after calling the Merlin menu…). This short cut quits Merlin and discards open document windows. Continue reading

Merlin in full screen mode

One of the new features of OS X Lion is the ability of working with applications in full screen mode. Working in full screen mode is very practical when you want to concentrate on one application and make full use of your screen. This option has been implemented in Merlin as well, so when using a Merlin version 2.8 or newer which is running on OS X Lion, just click on the appropriate button and see Merlin hiding the menu bar and switching  the current view of your projects in full screen mode. If you need a menu item, just move the mouse towards the top of the window and Merlin blends the menu bar along with the toolbar for you. But what would you want Merlin to do when running in full screen mode?

What should happen with the toolbar when Merlin runs in full screen mode?

You need the toolbar to switch from view to view, to call the library or the elements area, toggle the inspector’s display, check the project settings,  or start publishing. You don’t need the toolbar when scheduling, updating your project’s tasks or maybe presenting the project’s schedule to stakeholders.

So what do you think? Should Merlin’s full screen mode in Lion show up, with or without the toolbar? We are very curious to read your thoughts…

Mac OS X Lion specialities… may affect Merlin reports or iCal sync

Lion has some new specialities:
– A mounted disk image (dmg) will be mounted again on Mac re-start
– Per default “Show indicator lights for open applications” are disabled in the “Dock” system preference

So it is possible that…

You may start Merlin in Lion out of your /Applications folder
and a second time out of the mounted disk image, you had downloaded from our website in order to install Merlin on your Mac.
In the dock you don’t see the indicator lights so you don’t realize that it is running twice.

However it will be shown twice in the dock and will be twice listed, should you call Command + Option + Escape

Results for Reports… Continue reading