Bespoke preferences

[Michael Hall]

1. I'm new to BBEdit (v14) and am trying to create an editing environment based on the file type I'm editing. For instance, when editing an html document I want to have line numbers and the gutter visible, amongst other things, but when editing a markdown or text document I want a much cleaner view, i.e. no line numbers or gutter.
   
   I think I'm asking for a particular set of preferences based on the type of file I want to edit. Currently I'm opening a file and making the preference changes before I start to edit. Surely BBEdit has a way of doing this that I have missed. 
   
   The user guide is a little overwhelming to a beginner and I don't think what I'm looking for is in there, but of course it might be.
   
   Hoping there is some advice out there. Thank you.

[Rob Schneider]

Perhaps not exactly what you were looking for, but have a read of this https://storiesandnovels.com/bbedit/ as it explains how to setup a writing environment.  Just translate into your needs?

[Michael Hall]

Thanks, but I've already read that article and found it useful for my writing needs but not for coding. Sounds from your reply that a ready solution might not exist. If that's the case I wonder if it is something the developers could look at. It's not a major issue as I can always continue writing in Byword but it would be nice to do everything in the same editor.

[Christopher Waterman]

I think this is what you are looking for.

- Open the menu, BBEdit: Preferences.

- There is a languages tab in the left column (the icon looks like hands on a typewriter).

- The last section on the panel is "Language-specific settings:”

- Add the language (file type) you want specific settings for and have at it.

It isn’t exhaustive, you can’t turn tab-stops on & off for instance. 😖
But I have different color schemes and display settings set up for Shell Worksheets, Unix man pages... a bunch of stuff.


I hope that is what you are looking for,
— Chris(topher)?

[Christopher Stone]

On Aug 29, 2021, at 05:48, 'Michael Hall' via BBEdit Talk <bbe...@googlegroups.com> wrote:I think I'm asking for a particular set of preferences based on the type of file I want to edit. Currently I'm opening a file and making the preference changes before I start to edit. Surely BBEdit has a way of doing this that I have missed.

---

Hey Michael,

You can customize BBEdit a great deal with AppleScript.

Run this from Apple's Script Editor.app to see how it works.

--------------------------------------------------------

# Auth: Christopher Stone <script...@thestoneforge.com>

# dCre: 2021/08/29 16:32

# dMod: 2021/08/29 16:32 

# Appl: BBEdit

# Task: Set Up Markdown Document Work Environment

# Libs: None

# Osax: None

# Tags: @Applescript, @Script, @ASObjC, @BBEdit, @SetUp, @Markdown, @Work, @Environment

--------------------------------------------------------

tell application "BBEdit"

    activate

    set newDoc to make new text document

    tell newDoc

        set its source language to "Markdown"

        tell its window

            set bounds to {0, 45, 1440, 900}

            if show line numbers ≠ false then

                set show line numbers to false

            end if

        end tell

    end tell

end tell

--------------------------------------------------------

Save it as a compiled script, and place it in BBEdit's Script menu.

~/Library/Application Support/BBEdit/Scripts/

Give it a keyboard shortcut in BBEdit's Menus & Shortcuts preferences.

Go to town.

There are more AppleScript properties available.

I recommend using Script Debugger instead of Apple's Script Editor.app, because SD eats SE's lunch.  

(Even if you don't buy SD and only use the freeware “Lite” version it becomes after a 30 day demo period you will still appreciate the vast difference in capability.)

You can create hotkey driven scripts for each document type you want to work with.

Or – you can create a pop-up dialog with a pick-list of document types.

The world is not your oyster, but there is quite a lot of flexibility available to you.

--

Best Regards,

Chris

[Michael Hall]

I'm getting a little confused with the replies here - too many Chrises perhaps😂.

Chris Waterman - that's pretty much what I was looking for. Thanks. I might have found it eventually just by exploring, 'eventually' being the operative word. I'm not sure though. I appreciate your help and will have some fun playing with the Language tab.

Chris Stone - thanks for the 'new document' AppleScript. A different approach and one I will definitely try out. I hadn't thought of scripting but it opens up some interesting possibilities. Thanks for that starter.

Mike