There's an app for that?
March 16, 2010 12:57 AM Subscribe
Where can I find a nifty Windows tool that gives you one convenient place to launch a bunch of standalone applications used to complete a task, such as transcoding and archiving a media file?
Throughout the day, I use a string of standalone applications to complete a task. For example, one of my common work tasks involves creating a text string in Notepad++, pasting the string into a Word doc, then working with the document using two other programs. I spend too much time in the Start menu looking for the next program I need.
Same deal with archiving media files: I use one program to rip the files, another to transcode the media, another to input extended metadata, etc. Problem is, I have multiple programs that might work better for transcoding one file type over another. And I must have a few dozen programs that perform a single specialized video conversion task. It's difficult to track when and why I would need to use one program over another.
I'm looking for a nifty program, preferably with a nice GUI, that lets you create a "playlist" of program executables and launch each program as you need it. A program like this would let me browse for the process I need to complete (i.e. "DVD > iPod", "committee newsletter"), open the list, and simply launch the programs in the order presented to compile my weekly team update or transcode a DVD to my iPod Touch. Bonus if the tool lets you add notes about /categorize/tag the program and/or process.
Does such a program exist?
Throughout the day, I use a string of standalone applications to complete a task. For example, one of my common work tasks involves creating a text string in Notepad++, pasting the string into a Word doc, then working with the document using two other programs. I spend too much time in the Start menu looking for the next program I need.
Same deal with archiving media files: I use one program to rip the files, another to transcode the media, another to input extended metadata, etc. Problem is, I have multiple programs that might work better for transcoding one file type over another. And I must have a few dozen programs that perform a single specialized video conversion task. It's difficult to track when and why I would need to use one program over another.
I'm looking for a nifty program, preferably with a nice GUI, that lets you create a "playlist" of program executables and launch each program as you need it. A program like this would let me browse for the process I need to complete (i.e. "DVD > iPod", "committee newsletter"), open the list, and simply launch the programs in the order presented to compile my weekly team update or transcode a DVD to my iPod Touch. Bonus if the tool lets you add notes about /categorize/tag the program and/or process.
Does such a program exist?
Sounds like a Workspace Macro Recorder is in your future.
And man, are they cool.
However, you have a toolchain that is absolutely crying out for shell scripting. I'll bet most of the video conversion task GUIs you are using are just doing that on the back end anyway.
I use a shell script to record, master, and publish-to-html all of my video tutorials. Works great.
But that is less GUI and more "spend a long time writing and improving something, but make it do everything I want when I double-click it"
posted by circular at 1:18 AM on March 16, 2010
And man, are they cool.
However, you have a toolchain that is absolutely crying out for shell scripting. I'll bet most of the video conversion task GUIs you are using are just doing that on the back end anyway.
I use a shell script to record, master, and publish-to-html all of my video tutorials. Works great.
But that is less GUI and more "spend a long time writing and improving something, but make it do everything I want when I double-click it"
posted by circular at 1:18 AM on March 16, 2010
Oh and somebody should be along any minute now to recommend AutoHotKey.
posted by circular at 1:19 AM on March 16, 2010
posted by circular at 1:19 AM on March 16, 2010
Low-rent solution: Create a number of batch files on your desktop. Done.
posted by Harald74 at 2:08 AM on March 16, 2010 [1 favorite]
posted by Harald74 at 2:08 AM on March 16, 2010 [1 favorite]
When point and click manifests it frustratingly repetitive side, it's definitely time to learn how to write scripts. Many, many tools have command parameters that let you do stuff, and although the Windows NT cmd scripting language is hideous by comparison with almost any other except its DOS predecessor, it's good enough for the kind of job you're talking about.
If you don't mind having to install extra stuff on every computer that will ever run one of your scripts, the AutoIt scripting language is rather less clunky than cmd, and allows you to interact moderately safely with GUI controls that you can't get to from cmd.
Windows and its apps also expose heaps of controls via COM objects, and the vbscript and jscript interpreters that come supplied with it can let you do lots of useful stuff with those.
Once nice thing about scripts is that once you have one, you can clone and modify it to do something related without much extra effort.
You can launch a script just by double-clicking on its icon, so it's pretty easy to make folders full of scripts that control related workflows and then just click the one you want. You can also pass filenames to a script as parameters by selecting all the files you want the script to act on, then dragging those and dropping them onto the script's launch icon.
posted by flabdablet at 4:20 AM on March 16, 2010
If you don't mind having to install extra stuff on every computer that will ever run one of your scripts, the AutoIt scripting language is rather less clunky than cmd, and allows you to interact moderately safely with GUI controls that you can't get to from cmd.
Windows and its apps also expose heaps of controls via COM objects, and the vbscript and jscript interpreters that come supplied with it can let you do lots of useful stuff with those.
Once nice thing about scripts is that once you have one, you can clone and modify it to do something related without much extra effort.
You can launch a script just by double-clicking on its icon, so it's pretty easy to make folders full of scripts that control related workflows and then just click the one you want. You can also pass filenames to a script as parameters by selecting all the files you want the script to act on, then dragging those and dropping them onto the script's launch icon.
posted by flabdablet at 4:20 AM on March 16, 2010
Slickrun
From their website....
SlickRun is a free floating command line utility for Windows. SlickRun gives you almost instant access to any program or website. SlickRun allows you to create command aliases (known as MagicWords), so C:\Program Files\Outlook Express\msimn.exe becomes MAIL.
Enter a web URL into SlickRun and it will launch your browser and navigate to the specified address. Run multiple programs in a few keystrokes, jot a note, look up a definition... SlickRun is the most natural way to interact with your computer.
Please note, SlickRun is not a "hotkey" program. If you want a program that lets you press some wacky keyboard shortcut (say, Shift + Win + 1) to run to something, you'll want to find a different utility. SlickRun is designed to be far more intuitive than "hotkey" programs-- You shouldn't have to keep an awkward mental list of hotkeys for launching your favorite programs. Instead, just type whatever's most natural for you to remember; with auto-completion, you'll rarely type more than 2 or 3 characters anyway. Studies have shown that user-defined imperative words are much easier to recall than arbitrary characters like keystrokes.
posted by Jandasmo at 4:36 AM on March 16, 2010
From their website....
SlickRun is a free floating command line utility for Windows. SlickRun gives you almost instant access to any program or website. SlickRun allows you to create command aliases (known as MagicWords), so C:\Program Files\Outlook Express\msimn.exe becomes MAIL.
Enter a web URL into SlickRun and it will launch your browser and navigate to the specified address. Run multiple programs in a few keystrokes, jot a note, look up a definition... SlickRun is the most natural way to interact with your computer.
Please note, SlickRun is not a "hotkey" program. If you want a program that lets you press some wacky keyboard shortcut (say, Shift + Win + 1) to run to something, you'll want to find a different utility. SlickRun is designed to be far more intuitive than "hotkey" programs-- You shouldn't have to keep an awkward mental list of hotkeys for launching your favorite programs. Instead, just type whatever's most natural for you to remember; with auto-completion, you'll rarely type more than 2 or 3 characters anyway. Studies have shown that user-defined imperative words are much easier to recall than arbitrary characters like keystrokes.
posted by Jandasmo at 4:36 AM on March 16, 2010
Couldn't you just put shortcuts for each of these programs on your desktop, maybe creating a folder for each activity containing the shortcuts used ?
posted by rfs at 7:20 AM on March 16, 2010
posted by rfs at 7:20 AM on March 16, 2010
Same deal with archiving media files: I use one program to rip the files, another to transcode the media, another to input extended metadata, etc. Problem is, I have multiple programs that might work better for transcoding one file type over another. And I must have a few dozen programs that perform a single specialized video conversion task. It's difficult to track when and why I would need to use one program over another.
If you're ripping and encoding DVDs using your typical Avisynth-based workflow, you can use BatchEnc as a front-end to most components of it. You do end up getting into some weird uses of CLI manipulation of text files and IsCombed() when you aren't certain whether a DVD is telecined or not, but for most cases it suffices to wrap DVD Decrypter, DGIndex, and XviD/x264/NeroAACEnc/LAME/MKVMerge/etc. Batchenc saves you meddling with the batch files by hand and instead lets you re-use the same commands for a variety of sources with two clicks and a drag.
posted by Inspector.Gadget at 7:22 AM on March 16, 2010
If you're ripping and encoding DVDs using your typical Avisynth-based workflow, you can use BatchEnc as a front-end to most components of it. You do end up getting into some weird uses of CLI manipulation of text files and IsCombed() when you aren't certain whether a DVD is telecined or not, but for most cases it suffices to wrap DVD Decrypter, DGIndex, and XviD/x264/NeroAACEnc/LAME/MKVMerge/etc. Batchenc saves you meddling with the batch files by hand and instead lets you re-use the same commands for a variety of sources with two clicks and a drag.
posted by Inspector.Gadget at 7:22 AM on March 16, 2010
The quick launch bar on the task bar?
posted by jeffamaphone at 10:12 AM on March 16, 2010
posted by jeffamaphone at 10:12 AM on March 16, 2010
From my phone i cant think of a playlist but Colibri works for me.
posted by lizarrd at 11:30 AM on March 16, 2010
posted by lizarrd at 11:30 AM on March 16, 2010
This thread is closed to new comments.
I also use Fences to group together shortcuts and related-use programs on my desktop. Bonus - it makes it trivial to hide all the icons on your desktop if you are a desktop neat-freak.
On the Mac I would suggest Automator and Quicksilver for this kind of thing, so looking for Windows equivalents to those programs might help - something like Automise?
posted by Jon Mitchell at 1:12 AM on March 16, 2010