Re: Applescript, AOL, & Webpages
Re: Applescript, AOL, & Webpages
- Subject: Re: Applescript, AOL, & Webpages
- From: Bryan <email@hidden>
- Date: Sat, 16 Jun 2001 03:52:25 -0400
- Organization: Apex Radiology
What you want is WebMiner available on Version Tracker:
http://www.versiontracker.com/moreinfo.fcgi?id=736
Bryan Kaufman
List Guy wrote:
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"I need to write a script that will allow me to log on to a secure site. I
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have the oneclick utility which records button scripts. I have been able to
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log on to the secure site using this utility. However once I'm in the site
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I need to be able to click on various buttons to access other areas of the
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site. This is when I would like to call applescript back into action."
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"How does one script a web page?"
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Not with applescript. Applescript is an inter-application communication
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language. It may "script" applicaitions only in so far as those applications
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expose(er... permit) access to the "objects" recognized by that application.
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For most applications, including browsers, these are windows, documents,
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fields, cells, words.... This has nothing to do with the document object
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model, dynamic html, or objects in javascript or on web page. No browser
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exposes the html objects to applescript.
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That said, all modern browsers (and I think this includes recent versions of
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AOL's browser), support Javascript. Javascript is a language for -- among
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other things -- manipulating the objects created by an HTML document: forms,
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images, etc. It is possible with Internet Explorer (and *may* be possible
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with other browsers) to create an applescript that tells IE to execute a
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javascript. With javascript you can fill in fields, click buttons, etc. Be
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warned, however, that secure sites uses hidden fields and other tricks to
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prevent this (it improves security).
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"What are the values and objects of a web page?"
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If my understanding is correct, then you'll need a good book on javascript.
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Try Flanagan's _Javascript_ (though it is a bit out-of-date) or Goodman's
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_Javascript Bible_. Good luck.
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"In the AOL dictionary there is an object class called tables."
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I haven't attempted scripting AOL for a whiles, but this word "table" has
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nothing do to with Excel tables, HTML tables, relational database tables,
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coffee tables, or any other kind of table.
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It's my understanding AOL's browser is a version of Internet Explorer
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wrapped in AOL's custom software. I don't know how to tell (in the
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applescript sense) the browser anything. I don't own AOL, so I cant' test
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it, either.
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"I know that a web page is written in HTML.
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I know that the body of a web page is in a table."
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Only if it's badly done, IMHO. No flames, please. (If anyone's opinion
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differs, and anyone thinks tables are the beginning and end of web page
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design, just say so. ) See above answer.
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"I would be happy for any suggestions."
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You're welcome. You have set yourself a daunting but doable task -- I think.
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You'll need to learn a lot about AOL's applescript dictionary, applescript,
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and javascript.
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Now an example or two.
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Here's a script that sets a window size in IE:
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tell application "Internet Explorer" to set ie_windows_list to (ListWindows)
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as list
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set ie_size_window to "{window.resizeTo (300, 300);}"
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tell application "Internet Explorer"
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Activate
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do script ie_size_window window (item 1 of ie_windows_list)
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end tell
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EXAMPLE 2
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IF the following HTML is one page
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<form name="aform">
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<input type="text" name="test" size="9">
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</form>
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and that page is the frontmost page in IE THEN this applescript-javascript
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combination will fill in the box with the word "welcome"
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set js_script to "{document.aform.test.value='welcome';}"
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tell application "Internet Explorer"
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Activate
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set ie_windows_list to (ListWindows) as list
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do script js_script window (item 1 of ie_windows_list)
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end tell
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similar *javascript* can be written to "press" buttons, submit forms, etc.
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