Apple Events¶

Apple events can be used from programming languages such as C or from AppleScript. Because AppleScript is more straightforward, it is recommended for use with Distiller.

Distiller supports the application object and the following Apple events:

Distill
run
quit

Objects¶

application

application¶

The top-level scripting object.

Elements

Document
Window

Properties

Property	Class	Description
postScriptVersion	Unicode text [r/o]	PostScript interpreter version; for example, “3016.102”.
locale	Unicode text [r/o]	Three-character language code for the Distiller user interface (for example, “ENU” is English).
frontmost	Boolean [r/o]	True if Distiller is the active application.
name	Unicode text [r/o]	Name of the application.
version	Unicode text [r/o]	Version of the application.

Events¶

Distill¶

Distills a file.

Syntax

Distill
sourcePath UnicodeText [destinationPath UnicodeText]

    [adobePDFSettingsPath UnicodeText]

Parameters

sourcePath

POSIX path to the input file (the file to be distilled).

destinationPath

POSIX path to the output file. If not specified, the PDF file is generated in the same folder as the input file.

adobePDFSettingsPath

Either the POSIX path to the Adobe PDF Settings file, or the name of one of the settings files in Distiller.

If not specified, the settings file selected in the application is used.

Returns

A Boolean value indicating status. If true , the command succeeded.

Examples

These examples assume the presence of an appropriate tell – end construct, for example:

tell application "Acrobat Distiller 8.0"
         [Your code]
 end tell

Ensure each command is on one line without line breaks. Some of the following examples appear on two lines solely to fit the page.

Distill sourcePath "/hello.ps"
Distill sourcePath "/hello.ps" destinationPath "/Users/username/Desktop"
          adobePDFSettingsPath "Standard"
Distill sourcePath "/hello.ps" adobePDFSettingsPath "/Library/
          Application Support/Adobe PDF/Settings/"

The following example uses application properties to determine which settings file is used:

set distSetting to "Standard"
 if (postScriptVersion as string) is equal to "3015.102" then
         set distSetting to "High Quality"
 end if
 if locale is "CHT" then
         set distSetting to "Smallest File Size"
 end if
 Distill sourcePath "/hello.ps" adobePDFSettingsPath distSetting

quit¶

Terminates the Distiller program.

Syntax

quit

run¶

Launches the Distiller program and invokes its standard startup procedures.

Syntax

run