Sundance Manual
Version: 1.00 Beta 1
Introduction
Sundance is yet another launching application. It is intended to be light-weight and fast, and very easy to use and train.
Sundance requires OS X 10.4 or later.
Quick Start
By default Sundance will scan the bookmarks of popular browsers as well as the Applications directory. To activate Sundance press Command-Space (to change that shortcut see Preferences). Enter some abbreviation describing a link or application Search Field, use the Up- and Down arrow keys to select the desired application or link, then press the Return key to launch it.
Search Fields
The Search Fields are what gives Sundance it's power. While you are entering an abbreviation, they constantly search through the available data trying to find the best match. For example if you enter QTP, on most systems they will find QuickTime Player.app. Simply press Return to open that application.
It is very easy to assign abbreviation to items. The abbreviation doesn't even have to appear in the item. Example: Say you want to assign the abbreviation WB to open your WebBrowser, but you want that WebBrowser to be Safari. Now if you enter WB, Safari.app will not even be offered. But here a special feature of the Search Fields comes to your aid: When the search fields encounter a space, they take everything before the space to be the desired abbreviation, but use everything entered after the space for the search. So when you enter WB, then a space, and then SAFARI. Now Safari should be one of the first selections. If it is not the first selection, use the down and up arrow keys to move the selection down or up. You can also use the mouse to scroll the list, and double click the desired entry. Either way Sundance will now have learned the abbreviation WB to open Safari. The next time you activate Sundance, when you enter the abbrviation WB, Safari.app will be at the top of the list.
Sundance can associate multiple items with the same abbreviation. For example let's say you also have OmniWeb installed, and use that to as a web browser. You want it also to be known under the abbreviation WB. So enter WB, a Space and OMNIWEB, and OmniWeb.app should be near the top. If needed use the arrow keys to select it, and press Return.
Now if you activate Sundance and enter WB, OmniWeb will be listed first, and Safari second. Sundance will always list the last used choice for any abbreviation first, then any other items previously used for that abbreviation, and then any other matches Sundance's search algorithm comes up with.
There are a few more features in the search fields:
- Pressing the esc will hide Sundance, thus reactivating the last application you were working with.
- Using the activation sequence ( Command-Space by default) when Sundance already is active will select the entire input in the item search field.
- Pressing the tab key will switch focus between the item search field and the action search field.
Actions
Sundance can perform a number of different actions on the selected item. By default it will always Open the selected item. But say you want to show the location of an item in the Finder (assuming the selected item is a local item such as an Application and not a link). With the desired item selected press the Tab key. The focus will now shift to the Search Field in the Actions part of the main panel. This search field works similar to the other search field: You can use the arrow keys to select the desired action, or you can enter an abbreviation for it. Pressing the return key will then perform the selected action on the selected item.
Currently Sundance knows these actions:
Open
This action will Open the selected item. What exactly happens depends on the selected item:
- If the item is an Application, that application will be launched
- A link (bookmark) will be opened in the default browser
- A file will be opened in whatever application would open it when the file is double-clicked in the Finder.
In any case whichever application Sundance will launch will be listed in Parenthesis in the Open action entry in the actions list.
Open with...
This action woks similar to the Open with function in the Finder. When selected it will present a list of applications that registered with the Operating System as being able to open the selected item. That list has a search field that works the same as the other Search Fields.
Show in Finder
This action is only available for items existing on your disk such as files and applications. It will open a finder window showing the currently selected item.
The Repository
The repository panel is where Sundance is configured how and where to look for items. Sundance offers a number of Scanners to look for items.
The Scanner List shows the available scanners, and - if a scanner is enabled - the number of items it found. The checkbox for each scanner or scanner group allows you to disable scanners. To add a scanner use the Add Scanner drop down menu and select a Scanner Type. To delete a scanner or scanner group select it and click on the Delete Scanner button. To manually run a scanner click on the Manually run Scanner button.
The Scanner Inspector section consists of the three panes Settings, Schedule and Contents. The Settings pane is described for each Scanner Type in the Scanner Types section. The Schedule pane has it's own description below. The Contents pane allows you to inspect which items a scanner found.
Scanner Types
Scanner Group
This allows you to group a number of scanners. A group also allows you to set a Schedule for all included scanners.
Directory Scanner
The Directory Scanner is a very fast scanner that scans for files inside directories. Use the Set Path... button to define the directory to be searched. Drag the Directory Levels slider to the desired number of sub-directory levels the scanner should search through. Finally if you are only interested in files with specific extensions, list them in the Extensions field. You can enter multiple extensions by using the Return button between each extension.
File & Directory Scanner
The File & Directory Scanner works similar to the Directory Scanner described above. The difference is that it also allows you to include directories in the search results, and that it knows about so called bundles and treats them as individual files instead of directories. However these added features make it slower than the Directory Scanner. Besides the two check boxes in the Settings inspector that let you select if the scanner should include Files and/or Directories, it is configured just like the Directory Scanner above.
Bookmark Scanner
The Bookmark Scanner takes an individual file, and scans it for hyperlinks. You can use it for example to scan local html files for all links contained in them. Use the Set Path... button in the Settings pane of the Scanner Inspector to set the file to be scanned.
Safari Bookmark Scanner
This scanner will scan your Safari Bookmarks. It does not have any special settings.
Camino Bookmark Scanner
This scanner will scan your Camino Bookmarks. It does not have any special settings.
Firefox Bookmark Scanner
This scanner will scan your Firefox Bookmarks. It does not have any special settings.
Internet Explorer Bookmark Scanner
This scanner will scan your Internet Explorer Bookmarks. It does not have any special settings.
Spotlight Scanner
This scanner makes the power of Spotlight available for your Sundance searches. In the Settings inspector enter any search phrase. The rules are similar to the Spotlight field on your Desktop.
Scanner Inspector
The Scanner Inspector consists of three panes:
Settings
The Settings Pane configures settings specific to a scanner. These settings are described with each scanner in the Scanner Types section.
Schedule
The Schedule inspector pane allows you to set when an enabled scanner should run. If you select Manual, a scanner only runs when the Sundance application is launched or when you click the Manually run Scanner button. This setting is best suited for mostly static content, such as Developer documentation or Application directories.
When On Activation is selected, a scanner is run every time you activate Sundance using the Hot Key. You should use it sparingly, as the more Scanners Sundance need to run on activation the slower the Sundance main panel will come up when you use the Hot Key. The various Bookmark Scanners are possible candidates for this setting, as they are typically fairly fast and also intelligent enough to only scan a bookmark file if it has changed since the last scan. The setting may also be suitable for directories containing only a few files that change frequently.
The final choice allows you to have a scanner run at predefined intervals. This is a suitable setting for content that can't be scanned very fast, but changes regularly and you want Sundance to pick up on those changes eventually without having to do anything.
Contents
The Contents pane allows you to inspect which items a scanner found. Double-click an item to open it in it's default application.
Preferences
You can bring up the Preferences panel by selecting Preferences... From the Sundance menu. The preferences panel lets you define the Hot Key used to activate Sundance. To change it, click in the Hot Key field to select it as shown above. The next keyboard entry will then define the new Hot Key.
License
Sundance is shareware, trials are free. If however you continue using Sundance you are obliged to pay the shareware fee of US$9.95. Start by clicking on the button below. While payment is handled via PayPal, no PayPal account needed and no registration required!
Change Log
- Version 1.0: First Release
Why "Sundance"?
Silvermist's Sundance is our oldest Alaskan Malamute, he is pictured in the application icon. His favorite game is find it. So the name seemed appropriate.
