I mentioned in Chapter 7 of the book that if you find yourself performing the same Sherlock search over and over, you can create an Internet Location file for Sherlock that, when opened/launched, automatically initiates your search. I promised that I'd show you how to create these Location file on the website. Here you go! In addition, at the end of this tutorial I'll also talk a bit about adding new search channels to Sherlock.
Once you've got your URL, to create an Internet Location file for it you simply use the same procedure described in Chapter 11 (pp. 395-399) for making Internet Location files for connecting to remote shares. You can then double-click the Location file (or click it in the Dock, or choose it from a menu) to initiate your search.
Dictionary:
eBay:
Flights:
Internet:
Movies:
Pictures:
Stocks:
Translation:
Yellow Pages:
In addition to creating your own Sherlock shortcuts, it's also possible to use and/or add new channels to Sherlock. These channels are generally created by third-party developers to provide functionality not found in the stock Sherlock channels. You can use them temporarily, or you can install them so that they show up as "permanent" channels. Here are a few examples; to use a channel temporarily, click the "Use" link; to add a channel permanently, click the "Install" link.
By the way, if you want to remove a third-party channel, either control-/right-click on the channel icon in the toolbar, and select "Remove Item," or command-drag the icon out of the menu bar. You'll be asked if you want to remove the item permanently. If you never plan on using it again, click Yes; if you just want to move it out of the toolbar, but want to keep it installed, click No. You can always add it to the toolbar again by using the Customize Toolbar command.
Sherlock Shortcuts & Adding New Channels
Understanding Sherlock URLs
The first thing to understand in order to create Internet Location files for Sherlock is that OS X lets you use "sherlock" as the protocol in a URL (I explain URLs and their protocols in detail in Chapter 11). The format of Sherlock URLs is:
sherlock://sherlock channel?search terms (that's a question mark in the middle)
where sherlock channel is the channel ID for the Sherlock channel you wish to use for the query, and search terms is the actual query you want to perform. (More on channels and queries below.) For example, the URL sherlock://com.apple.applecare?query=iBook will open Sherlock's AppleCare channel and initiate a search for "iBook." (Go ahead, click on the link and try it out.) Note that a Sherlock URL doesn't need to include the query; if you just specify the channel, your URL will simply open Sherlock to the appropriate channel.Sherlock Channel IDs and Query Terms
Now that you know the general format for a Sherlock shortcut, you're probably wondering exactly how you need to format them for the different Sherlock channels. Here are the URL formats for each:
AppleCare:
sherlock://com.apple.applecare?query=string of text to search for
Example: sherlock://com.apple.applecare?query=iBook - search for the term "iBook" in the AppleCare Knowledge Base.
sherlock://com.apple.dictionary?query=word to look up
Example: sherlock://com.apple.dictionary?query=serendipity - look up the word "serendipity" in the dictionary.
sherlock://com.apple.ebay
(The eBay channel doesn't allow you to initiate searches using Sherlock URLs.)
sherlock://com.apple.flights
(The Flights channel doesn't allow you to initiate searches using Sherlock URLs.)
sherlock://com.apple.internet?query=string of text to search for
Example: sherlock://com.apple.internet?query=Macintosh - search for the phrase "Macintosh" on the Internet.
sherlock://com.apple.movies?zip=zip code in which to search for movies
Example: sherlock://com.apple.movies?zip=60506 - search for movies in the 60506 zip code.
sherlock://com.apple.pictures?query=string of text to search images titles/tags for
Example: sherlock://com.apple.pictures?query=puppy - search for pictures of puppies.
sherlock://com.apple.stockQuotes?query=stock symbol to look up
Example: sherlock://com.apple.stockQuotes?query=AAPL - Look up Apple stock information.
sherlock://com.apple.translation?source=text to be translated
Example: sherlock://com.apple.translation?source=How are you today? - translate the phrase "How are you today?"
(Note that this channel requires further user interaction -- you'll need to specify the type of translation once Sherlock opens.)
sherlock://com.apple.yellowPages?query=query&zip=zip code
or
sherlock://com.apple.yellowPages?query=query&city=city name&state=state name
(query is the business name to search for. You should specify either zip code or city/state.)
Example #1: sherlock://com.apple.yellowPages?query=safeway&zip=94133 - search for Safeway stores in zip code 94133.
Example #2: sherlock://com.apple.yellowPages?query=amoeba&city=san francisco&state=CA - search for Amoeba Music stores in San Francisco, CA.Using & Adding New Sherlock Channels
Theses are just a few examples; you can find many more third-party Sherlock channels at websites like sherlockers.com and http://sherlock.clan-mac.com/.Return to Online Content