SafariScript – Extend Safari’s Power

script-editor-icon.pngSafari is has replaced Firefox as my browser of choice. It’s fast, pretty and renders pages beautifully. But most importantly – and I don’t mean to sound redundant – Safari just feels so well integrated with the operating system as a whole that’s it’s aesthetically painful to switch to another browser.

safari-icon.pngBut choosing Safari as your primary browser does come with some sacrifices, and the most prominent among which is Safari’s relative non-extensibility. With Firefox you can install any number of plugins or skins and really tailor the application to your own needs, but Safari, although it does have some configuration options, just doesn’t offer the add-ons that Firefox does. Talk with people who use a Mac and you’ll often hear, “I love Safari! But I need –x feature–, so I’m stuck with Firefox…”

Safari may not have a massive plugin listing or even purport to allow them, but there are a few great ones out there. Inquisitor jumps immediately to mind, with SafariStand coming a close second. But my favorite is SafariScript from Nadamac. SafariScript does two things. First, it gives you access to your Safari AppleScripts by installisng a menu bar item that is visible only when Safari is in front. And secondly, it allows you to assign hot keys to any of your scripts for access via the keyboard.

Now that Leopard has changed the way that OS X handles input managers, SafariScript takes a few steps to set up.

    First, download SafariScript and mount the disk image. Now copy the SafariScript folder to /library/imputManagers at the top level of your computer (i.e., not the library of your user account, as in Tiger). Enter your password. Lastly, you’ll need to enter these two Terminal commands in order for Leopard to recognize the plugin:

sudo chown -R root:admin /Library/InputManagers

and

sudo chmod -R go-w /Library/InputManagers

Now, your SafariScript menu should appear the next time you launch Safari.

Now for the fun part! Check Nandamac’s sample script page for AppleScript downloads to add to SafariScript. Also search the excellent MacScripter for Safari AppleScripts to install and modify to your needs. I’ll also be posting some of my own favorites here on Mac Membrane in the future, so stay tuned.

With AppleScript and SafariScript you can overcome many of the limitations that come with choosing Safari for your main browser. Download SafariScript and try it out for yourself. If you have any excellent Safari AppleScripts, point them out in the comments!