Creating/editing notes in Mail.app

[Thomas]

Does anyone know how/if it's possible to create/edit notes in
Mail.app? Either Javascript, QS, or some combo of both. I take a lot
of notes at work, and would love to be able to have them all on my
computer, rather than on pads of paper. Thanks!

[Chris Cairns]

In applescript it is not possible to create a new note without GUI
scripting. And forget about editing them. Better use text files, since
Quicksilver allows to append text, prepend text, change a particular
line in text file etc

tell application "Mail"
activate
tell application "System Events"
tell process "Mail"
keystroke "n" using command down & control down
end tell
end tell
end tell

[Thomas]

In applescript it is not possible to create a new note without GUI
> scripting. And forget about editing them. Better use text files, since
> Quicksilver allows to append text, prepend text, change a particular
> line in text file etc
>
> tell application "Mail"
>     activate
>     tell application "System Events"
>         tell process "Mail"
>             keystroke "n" using command down & control down
>         end tell
>     end tell
> end tell

Using this script saved as an app and a trigger is close enough.
Thanks!

[Chris Cairns]

don't create an app. That way you have to quit it.
Just save this script as it is and assign it a shortcut by creatin a
trigger like "Sript">>"Run" or run it from Quicksilver's first pane.

[awr]

i'm 95% done with my 'convert any mail message to note' script.

i'm not aware of any way to create a note directly 'behind the scenes'
and the hacks described here are not really acceptable for a 'rule'
that would affect incoming mail.

it's actually not the most difficult thing in the world. the 'trick'
was realizing you have to use a file on the hard drive.

if you create a file with the right headers.. it *IS* a 'note'.
creating said file in a 'tmp' directory than opening in mail ('tell
application "finder"). once open, tell application "Mail" to 'move to
folder' (any folder you desire).

my version is going to be a bit more complicated than a 'generate from
scratch' one because i have to parse through 'any random email' and
strip off 'all the wrong' headers leaving just the right ones.

for a simple 'from the clipboard' concept ,that will be MUCH easier.

1) concatenate 'just the right' header info && clipboard -> note.eml
2) open note.eml into mail
3) move note.eml into 'notes' folder
4) delete note.eml from tmp

i have it working for 'text only' emails but want to include html, a
lot more complicated since the a.s. library for mail doesn't seem to
includ 'html content' and 'content' only includes the 'text only'
version so i have to 'make my own' parsing through the raw source.

anyhow it'll likely be working by tonight. once i have the 'tough' one
working (convert any email to note) it will be ludicrously simple to
make a 'convert any selected text anywhere' into a note

oh and by the way; yes of course fully-editable notes just like if you
made a new one yourself; with an interesting caveat:

my way allows ANY subject and ANY 'sender', so i set the sender to
'note 2 self' so they really stand out; the subject will be whatever i
make it not just 'the first line of the note'.

however; if you edit the note, mail.app will re-write the subj/sender
so beware of that.

-awr

[awr]

update: 98% done.

the AS will take any email (incoming/outgoing/draft or even another
note), and convert it to a note, stripping off all unneeded headers,
keeping only the useful ones.

it creates a new 'from' header: 'Note 2 Self' so it stands out and the
subject is carried over rather than generated from the first line of
the body.

if the subject is blank or just a reply to a blank (or multiples, i.e.
re: re: re:), then it will set the subject to up to the first 5 words
of the body! (going to convert that block of code to a standalone that
will automatically fix any incoming messages with no subject!)

i've gotten as far as having the note created and open staring me in
the face; Mail is not sending the new message id back to AS for me to
figure out how to file it, that's the last 2% then i'm done.

it got a lot more complicated than i thought it would be so i probably
won't release it as 'code' but will likely release it compiled as an
app.