The dictionaries inspector lists applications that Script Debugger has “met” in various ways — the dictionaries list. This list appears in several places in the interface — for example, in a dictionary window, and in shortened form (without the All category) in the File > Open Dictionary menu and the Edit > Paste Tell menu.

The dictionaries inspector is in the Inspectors tab of a script window. To see the dictionaries inspector:

• Choose View > Inspectors Tab.

• Or, click Inspectors in the script window toolbar.

To open an application’s dictionary:

• Select it and click the Dictionary button.

• Or, select it and choose File > Open XXX Dictionary.

• Or, Control-click it and choose Open XXX Dictionary from the contextual menu.

• Or, double-click the application’s name.

• Or, click an application’s triangle to open it, revealing commands for that application:

  • Select a command. The dictionary info for that command is shown directly, in the dictionaries inspector.

  • Select a command, and open the dictionary in any of the preceding ways. The dictionary window opens, with that command selected in the terminology list.

Hold Option to open the dictionary in a new dictionary window.

To insert a tell block targeting an application:

• Select it and click the Paste Tell button.

• Or, select it and choose Dictionary > Paste Tell XXX.

• Or, Control-click it and choose Paste Tell XXX from the contextual menu.

• Or, click an application’s triangle to open it, revealing commands for that application. Select a command, and Paste Tell in any of the above ways. A tell block containing a template for that command is pasted.

Hold Option to paste into in a new script window.

Alternatively, drag the name of an application from the dictionaries inspector into a script window.

To insert a using terms from block targeting an application:

• Select it and click the Paste Using button.

• Or, Control-click it and choose Paste Using Terms From XXX from the contextual menu.

Hold Option to paste into in a new script window.

To learn an application’s location:

• Hover the mouse over the application’s name, to see the tooltip.

To show an application in the Finder:

• Select it and choose File > Reveal XXX in Finder.

• Or, Control-click it and choose Reveal XXX in Finder from the contextual menu.

To bring an application to the front:

• Select it and choose Dictionary > Activate XXX.

• Or, Control-click it and choose Activate XXX from the contextual menu.

To quit a running application:

• Select it and choose Dictionary > Quit XXX.

• Or, Control-click it and choose Quit XXX from the contextual menu.

You can also search dictionaries from the dictionaries inspector.

You may be curious about how the All section of the dictionaries list is automatically populated. Basically, an application is added to the list automatically in the following circumstances:

• When Script Debugger is launched. Script Debugger searches your computer for scriptable applications, and adds them to the list if they have ever run. (A dictionary preference, “Only search Applications folder for dictionaries”, allows you to limit the scope of this search.)
• When an application’s dictionary is explicitly opened.
• When an object specifier is explored (so, for example, when you target an application in a script and it returns an object as the script’s result).
• When a tell block targeting that application is detected in your code.

Running a script targeting an application might not add that application automatically to the list. The reason is that AppleScript and Script Debugger are two different entities, so AppleScript can run a script without Script Debugger seeing and analyzing the contents of that script.