Creating a stamp to make an alias of a note AND move the alias to a container named /Active?

Agents, Actions and Automation
1

Is it possible to code a stamp to do two things:

  1. create an alias of a note and
  2. move the alias to a container called /Active?
  3. the original note will stay where it is.

If so…How would you code it?

Tom

1 Like
2

This isn’t possibly at present. The rest would be trivial

3

Thank you

4

Didn’t test it, but you could probably create an agent whose query matches the note (which results in an alias of the note) and then move this alias to the desired container. You’ll probably want to delete the agent afterwards, but I think this should all be doable with the current Action Code.

5

Thanks Pete for that suggestion.
Tom

6

I created a Macro in Keyboard Maestro to do this… why go to the trouble? Good question.
My Use Case: Since I am using HookMark, I don’t want to move the original out of my parent container so as not to break the HookMark link in tinderbox. I am now using alias’s a ton more.

For those interested: here it is

Requirement: Keyboard Maestro + Stamp “Move Inbox” (means move to Inbox)

image
image872×551 56.4 KB

Tom

1 Like
7

Filing in the gaps, I think the issue here is you want to automatically create an alias of a selected note , select the alias and move that.

The missing action code abilities routed around are:

  • There is no ‘select’ command (FWIw, it has already been requested as a future feature).
  • There is no ‘create alias’ command.
    • Note the KM script above leverages the fact that using the menu "Create alias’ (via a shortcut key command) results in the newly-created alias becoming the new selection (that the script then moves).

Were there a putative createAlias([source][,location]) and the default source was the current selection, then might be able to do—note this is pseudocode:

createAlias(this,"/Inbox");

As regards a putative selection, ISTM it would best work off a path but have options to:

  • choose an alias of original if co-located
    • you can’t assume, if siblings, that the first by outline order is the original and in different contexts you might differently want an original or an alias
  • separately, select the original is the specified item is actually an item
    • this allows for acting on an alias in an agent but shifting the locus of execution to the alias’ original.
2 Likes
8

I would LOVE to have createAlias(). :slight_smile:

1 Like
9

What sort of things would it do, and as importantly how easily might inexperience result is a runaway spawning of aliases?

10

I would create one-off alias to individuals or speakers, create tomorrow reference notes to support my research efforts.

It is a bit off topic, but one thing I would like to be able to do is copy an alias in one Tinderbox file and then when I past it into another Tinderobx file the original is copied to the new tinderbox file. I know this is fraught with complications, but this is the general gist of what I’d like to do. Run an agent, find a bunch of notes and then copy the specific set of found notes to another file. Now, I could move the the notes with the agent, copy them and put them back, that is the best solution for now, but this does take a bit of setup and extra steps.

11

Thanks. The first makes sense (and guess - but I thought I’d ask).

I’d agree that that stretches the notion of an alias which is currently current-document scope only. IOW, nothing wrong with the idea, but the use of the term alias becomes confusing.

1 Like
12

It seems that you would like to store your aliases within a single, named container, Active. You could do this by adding a boolean user attribute, e.g. Active, and then create an agent “Active” that looks for notes with that attribute set to true. A stamp can be added that you can use to toggle the attribute.
active items.tbx (108.5 KB)