Language Guide

13
CHAPTER 2
Overview of AppleScript 2
Figure 2-0
Listing 2-0
Table 2-0
AppleScript is a dynamic, object-oriented script language. At its heart is the
ability to send commands to objects in many different applications. These
objects, which are familiar items such as words or paragraphs in a text-editing
application or shapes in a drawing application, respond to commands by
performing actions. AppleScript determines dynamically—that is, whenever
necessary—which objects and commands an application recognizes based on
information it obtains from each scriptable application.
In addition to manipulating objects in other applications, AppleScript can store
and manipulate its own data, called values. Values are simple data structures,
such as character strings and real numbers, that can be represented in scripts
and manipulated with operators. Values can be obtained from applications or
created in scripts.
The building blocks of scripts are statements. When you write a script, you
compose statements that describe the actions you want to perform. AppleScript
includes several kinds of statements that allow you to control when and how
statements are executed. These include If statements for conditional execution,
Repeat statements for statements that are repeated, and handler definitions for
creating user-defined commands.
This chapter provides an overview of AppleScript. It includes a summary of
how AppleScript works and brief descriptions of the AppleScript language
elements. Part 2 of this book, “AppleScript Language Reference,” describes the
elements of the AppleScript language in more detail.