1: Prompts and allows the user to select one or more Apple Mail email messages from within Mail (10.4, 10.5, 10.6).

2: Prompts and allows the user to select a save-to folder.

3: For each message, saves it as a PDF file in the save-to folder, using the following naming convention for the PDF file:

“YYYY-MM-DD HH.MM.SS Email From FIRSTNAME LASTNAME – SUBJECT”,

“YYYY-MM-DD HH.MM.SS Email To FIRSTNAME LASTNAME – SUBJECT”,

where in the email date-sent stamp (if I am the sender) or date-received stamp (if I am the recipient):

YYYY = the year
MM = the two-digit month
DD = the two-digit day
HH = the two-digit hour (in 24-hour time)
MM = the two-digit minute
SS = the two-digit second
FIRSTNAME is the email sender’s first name for email that I receive (or is the email recipient’s first name for email that I send)
LASTNAME is the email sender’s last name for email that I receive (or is the email recipient’s first name for email that I send)
SUBJECT = the email’s subject line

For example: 2010-04-10 16.32.48 Email From Kris Ryan – Status Of Payroll Updates.pdf
For example: 2010-04-10 16.33.55 Email To Sue Anderson – RE Status Of Payroll Updates.pdf (Colon omitted after “RE”.)

4: For each attachment to the message, saves it as a PDF file in the same directory using the naming convention:

“YYYY-MM-DD HH.MM.SS Email From FIRSTNAME LASTNAME Z Attachment – NUMBER – FILENAME”,

where:

YYYY-MM-DD HH.MM.SS Email From FIRSTNAME LASTNAME = as above
NUMBER = an integer representing the attachment number (1, 2, …) sorted according to filename alphabetical order
FILENAME = the name of the file attached to the email, including its extension (.docx, .xlsx, etc.)
The letter “Z” sorts the attachment PDFs after its respective parent email in the directory.

For example: 2010-04-10 16.32.48 Email From Kris Ryan Z Attachment – 1 – List Of Suggestions To Moore.doc.pdf
For example: 2010-04-10 16.32.48 Email From Kris Ryan Z Attachment – 2 – Proposed Salary Adjustments.xls.pdf
For example: 2010-04-10 16.32.48 Email From Kris Ryan Z Attachment – 3 – Salary History.pps.pdf

Note: Approximately two-thirds of all of the emails will have no attachments. The remainder will have one or more attachments consisting of a PDF or MS Office file (Word, Excel, Power Point); however, a smart implementation will be able to handle any attachment kind. If the attachment is a PDF file, then save it “as is” using the stipulated naming convention, without passing it through Distiller.

Thank you for any and all assistance.

Kurt Todoroff

Error number: -1713
Message: No user interaction allowed.

and I am also redirected to Apple’s website to a page about ordering printer supplies???

Do you know what’s happening here? I’m a complete novice with AppleScript.

For the record, I am in the process of trying to decide between Entourage and Mail. Mail with MailTags and MailActOn is quite nice, but I always get these HUGE delays when trying to add attachments. Gets to be quite annoying.

I am happy to take a look into it – might take me a couple of days tho

(No offense Mail lovers!)

I never got the hold of Quicksilver et al., since I have to use a Window$ box in the office and a Mac at home. Windows trained me so much that whenever I do something I reach for the mouse and realise only then that I also have Quicksilver installed. :-(

Cheers, Tim, and keep the good work running! I am very much enjoying what you are doing here!

arne

But for people who like a single keyboard shortcut (say, a Quicksilver trigger), this is a good solution.