Player Lloyd Hanson would like to more easily move text between applications. He writes:
I have a number of e-mails that I wrote that I need to export, individually, in a word processor (Microsoft Word or pages). Short of using cut and paste, there is a method or script that will do this automatically?
There are some options to do so. One of the simplest is to open a new document, word processing, move in Mail, select the text you want to copy in an e-mail message and drag the text of the open document word processing.
OR ...
While hanging around our virtual water cooler cast this question to my colleague Dan Frakes, who suggested that another way might be a utility. That utility, you've had copy-copy-Copy-copy the messages you want from the clipboard with former immigrants move to your word processor and Paste-Paste-Paste-Paste from the Clipboard into a word-processing document.
OR ...
If you'd like to automate the process, you can do this with Automator in Snow Leopard. We will begin with a workflow of post-to-pages.
Launch Automator and, in the template sheet that appears, select the service and click choose. In the window that appears, add these actions: copy to Clipboard and application launcher. Configure the top of the window to read selected text service receives e-mail. Launch application action select pages from the pop-up menu. (If you don't see a list of pages choose other at the bottom of the menu and switch to the application pages, which is likely in iWork ' 09 in the applications folder).
Start page and open a new blank document. Return to Automator and click Register button. A window of Automator Records, complete with a stop recording button. Return to page and press the Enter key twice. Click the stop recording button. Watch Me Do action will appear in your Automator workflow. Delete everything in the action unless the type of command.
Click the record button in Automator yet again, navigate to the pages and press Command-V. Click the stop recording button and return to your Automator workflow. The new Watch Me Do action, delete everything except press Command-V. This action area enter 5 seconds Timeout. Save the workflow and enter a name for this when prompted.
What have we done? The first action called Automator to copy the selected text in an e-mail message. The second action passes to pages. (Even if the action is called application launch, switch to an application if the application is already open.) The third action allows you to insert two blank lines--needed when you want to ungroup a bit of text pasted from the next bit. And the last action you Paste text from the Clipboard into your document pages (does not include an Automator action to paste text right, why we had to use Watch Me Do).
If you like it, launch system preferences, select the keyboard preference, click keyboard shortcuts, click Services, locate the service that you just created (it will appear below the header text), click to the right of the service and assign a keyboard shortcut to it. This makes the service more simple recall later. You can also choose from the services menu, if you want to.
If you prefer a workflow of post-to-Word, you can ignore the Watch Me Do action. Start similarly--this workflow with the copy to Clipboard and application to initiate actions. In the second action make Microsoft Word application launcher. Now add the contents of the Clipboard to Paste into a Word document. By popup Location within this action you can decide how you want the contents of the Clipboard to be pasted--Top of the document, the document's bottom or bottom of the document in the new section, for example. I like this new section because it separates the text fragments, which makes them easier to find.
Once again, for the workflow to work you need to open a Word document. And once again, you will find this service easy to implement, if you assign a keyboard shortcut to it.
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