How you can support Otto's Garage. I'm not going to beg for money. When monkeys in cute suits with tin cups in 3rd world countries do it, it's okay. But when guys in suits on public TV do it, you see just how beneath human dignity it is. So instead I've set up links to books on Amazon. When you buy a book through one of these links, Otto's Garage gets a small kickback. It's what keeps us in lug nuts. Thanks.
If you're going to buy 'em anyway,
buy 'em here.

Automator
The Automator bookshelf is thin right now, but promises to grow quickly. These three offerings, written by some of the best AppleScript experts out there, are excellent places to start.

Mac OS X Technology Guide to Automator by Ben Waldie Ben knowns his Automator like he knows his AppleScript. Very thorough coverage from the simple to building your own actions with XCode. Shows you ways to Automate tasks with the basics apps, like Mail, iCal, and Addressbook. Good coverage of iLife apps too, especially iPhoto and iTunes. Published: 2005. User rating from Amazon: 4 out of 5. We don't get a kickback on this one yet. As it's the only Automator title currently available, I thought it best to list it anyway.








Automator: The Visual QuickStart Guide by Ethan Wilde The visual QuickStart Series lays things out very graphically. Excellent book for visual learners. And face it, Automator is a visual programming system. Ethan categorizes the projects by use: Mail, Find, Alerts, People, iPod etc. This has the latest upgrades to Automator through OS X 10.4.3. Ethan has authored 3 books on AppleScript. Book out soon. You can pre-order and be the first to get it. Amazon is currently offering this book at a nice discount if you order now.







Discovering Automator by Hanaan Rosenthal Hanaan is a very active in Automator and heads MacScripter.net's Automator area. Little is available on the book yet, but it's from O'Reilly, so you know the work will be top notch. Book out soon. You can pre-order and be the first to get it. Amazon is currently offering this book at a nice discount if you order now.











AppleScript
The Run AppleScript action can extend the capabilities to do some serious custom programnming. There are a lot of books on Applescript. These are the easy reads that immerse you quickly.

AppleScript: The Missing Manual by Adam Goldstein As with all titles in the Missing Manual Series, this book is an easy, friendly read. It's a good beginner-to-intermediate guide to AppleScript. The current edition doesn't offer a section for Automator specifically, but it's does a good job of getting your feet wet. Adam is still a teenager, but a very accomplished writer on on the topic of Applescript. Published: 2005. Amazon Reader Rating: 4 out of 5. Amazon is currently offering this book at a nice discount if you order now.








Applescript 123 by Sal Soghoian Sal is known as the Guru of AppleScript. He's Apple's AppleScript Product Manager and had a big part in creating Automator. This book is excellent for those who want the both the theory and practicality of AppleScript in one easy-to-get book. Published:2005. Amazon is currently offering this book at a nice discount if you order now.












Shell Scripts
Unlike AppleScript, UNIX is a not even close to English. But if you've played around with the shell scripts at all here at Otto's garage, you know they're powerful. And since they work at the core of the OS, they're also fast. UNIX is as much a tool for Automator as AppleScript is.

UNIX The Visual QuickStart Guide by Matisse Enzer UNIX differs from AppleScript in that a few lines of code can run the powerful, fast UNIX utilities that lie at the heart of your Mac. This book was written specifically for Tiger, so you really can't get more current. It's makes UNIX seem easy. Well, as easy as UNIX can seem. A good starter point for those wanting to learn how powerful a few lines of UNIX code can be. Mattise assumes you think UNIX is how they get male opera singers to hit the high notes, not that it's a programming language. Once done with the book, you'll be using your Run Shell Script action in every app to do things that extend Automator's capabilities beyond every expectation. Matisse is well-versed in UNIX for OS X, having written the book in Quick Pro series previously. Published: 2005. Amazon Reader Rating: 5 out of 5. Amazon is currently offering this book at a nice discount if you order now.



My iPhoto eBook
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My one computer title has nothing to do with Automator...yet. But will in the next edition. It's called Serious Editing in iPhoto 5. Lifetime upgrades are free, so if you buy now (before the price goes up) you'll get the update with Automator workflows free when released. The book contains over 2 dozen common fixes you may not know that iPhoto can do and over 2 dozen special effects I'm sure you didn't know you can do with iPhoto. This is the only iPhoto book to completely cover the powerful editing tools added in iPhoto 5.