Language Guide

CHAPTER 3
Values
Value Class Definitions 39
Reference Forms 3
A reference is a compound name for an object or a value. You can use
references to specify values within composite values or properties of simple
values. You cannot use references to refer to simple values.
The “Reference Forms” section is included in composite value class definitions
only. It lists the reference forms you can use to specify elements of a composite
value. For complete descriptions of the AppleScript reference forms, see
Chapter 5, “Objects and References.”
Coercions Supported 3
AppleScript can change a value of one class into a value of another class. This
is called coercion. The “Coercions Supported” section of a value class
definition describes the classes to which values of that class can be coerced.
Because a list consists of one or more values, any value can be added to a list or
coerced to a single-value list. The definition in Figure 3-1 also lists the value
classes to which individual items in a list can be coerced.
For more information about coercions, see “Coercing Values,” which begins
on page 68. For a summary of the coercions provided by AppleScript, see
Figure 3-2 on page 70.
Value Class Definitions 3
This section describes the AppleScript value classes. Table 3-1 summarizes the
class identifiers recognized by AppleScript.
Three identifiers in Table 3-1 act only as synonyms for other value classes:
Number is a synonym for either Integer or Real, Text is a synonym for String,
and Styled Text is a synonym for a string that contains style and font
information. You can coerce values using these synonyms, but the class of the
resulting value is always the true value class.