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Using macOS's Script Editor I made an application containing the following script. It accepts a plain text URL as an input. It works when I send it one input, let it finish executing the script, then send it a new input. If I send it a second input while one is already running, the second input does nothing.

How can I change the script and/or application so I can send it a second (or third, fourth, etc.) input while it is already running?

#!/usr/bin/osascript
on open location input
    do shell script "/usr/local/bin/yt-dlp  " & quoted form of input
end open location

How it works

Instead of a web browser, I have Finicky set as my default web browser. Finicky can be programmed to do all sorts of stuff based on the URL (e.g. Open Google Meet links in Google Chrome, Open Zoom links in Firefox, etc.).

However, Finicky can use any application to open a link, not just web browsers. I have configured Finicky to send certain URLs to the above script.

Here is the part of my .finicky.js config file that matches certain URLs and opens them with the AppleScript app.

handlers: [
    {
        match: /^https?:\/\/www\.youtube\.com\/.*$/,
        browser: "com.apple.ScriptEditor.id.open-URL"
    }
]

Click a link in an app → Finicky sends it to the AppleScript app → the app runs a shell script → the script is run and outputs a file

How I use this

I keep my video subscriptions in NetNewsWire. As I scroll through the new articles in my RSS app I press enter to open them using my default browser. Finicky sends some URLs to Safari and others to my little app, which then runs the shell script and outputs a file. Now I have to wait for each to finish. I'd like to not have to worry about this and continue adding URLs as I scroll through feed items. Either adding them to a queue or running multiple versions of the script is a solution, but this is where I hit a wall and can't figure it out.

P.S. I call it an application because Script Editor allows me to save it as a .app file. I understand it's not really an application.

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Dillon
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    Have a look at [Technical Note TN2065 `do shell script` in AppleScript](https://developer.apple.com/library/archive/technotes/tn2065/_index.html), in particular [I want to start a background server process; how do I make do shell script not wait until the command completes?](https://developer.apple.com/library/archive/technotes/tn2065/_index.html#//apple_ref/doc/uid/DTS10003093-CH1-TNTAG5-I_WANT_TO_START_A_BACKGROUND_SERVER_PROCESS__HOW_DO_I_MAKE_DO_SHELL_SCRIPT_NOT_WAIT_UNTIL_THE_COMMAND_COMPLETES_) – user3439894 Nov 01 '21 at 16:19
  • You made application, but doesn't provided any example of how you use it. That is, how you provide text URL to it. When calling your application you can wrap it with **ignoring application responses** block to perform your task. Or, you made not application but one tool. – Robert Kniazidis Nov 01 '21 at 20:38
  • What is `yt-dlp` and what does it do? – user3439894 Nov 01 '21 at 22:58
  • BTW If you saved this as an **AppleScript** _application_, then `#!/usr/bin/osascript` in your _code_ does absolutely nothing, is treated as a comment, and is not passed to the `do shell script` _command_. -- So why is it there? – user3439894 Nov 01 '21 at 23:00
  • `#!/usr/bin/osascript` was included because this is all just hacked together. I don't know the first thing about AppleScript, let alone shell scripts and real programming languages. This is just me smashing stuff together until I get something functional. yt-dlp: https://github.com/yt-dlp/yt-dlp – Dillon Nov 01 '21 at 23:19
  • Okay, I though it was a YouTube downloader but wasn't sure, thanks. – user3439894 Nov 01 '21 at 23:23
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    Instead of an app, can your proxy browser run a shell script directly? – red_menace Nov 01 '21 at 23:24
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    You could maybe try running your script in the background so it appears to finish immediately. You would change it to `do shell script "/usr/local .... form of input & " &"` – Mark Setchell Nov 02 '21 at 00:36
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    It looks like `yt-dlp` can _download_ multiple fragments in parallel, but it doesn’t support multithreading, so you will be limited to running a single instance at a time with the specified URLs. A Cocoa AppleScript/Xcode application with an `application:openFile:` delegate method should work - it receives items as they are passed to the app. – red_menace Nov 02 '21 at 03:39
  • You provided lot of the info, you say "my little application", but I don't see it here to help with editing it. And, every script saved by Script Editor as .app is fully functional Cocoa application – Robert Kniazidis Nov 02 '21 at 05:01

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