Inspiring

Answered

Grouping selected objects in Indesign via AppleScript

Forum|Forum|1 year ago
January 28, 2025
4 replies
1114 views

As part of a larger script, I need to group a few preselected objects. Can't figure out what i'm doing wrong.

Here's a snippet:

-- Select the image and caption, group them

set selection to {myRectangle, captionFrame}

set myGroup to group {myRectangle, captionFrame}

They get selected fine, but the group doesn't work:

error "Adobe InDesign 2025 got an error: Can’t get group {rectangle id 6639 of spread id 218 of document id 1, text frame id 6665 of spread id 218 of document id 1}." number -1728 from group {rectangle id 6639 of spread id 218 of document id 1, text frame id 6665 of spread id 218 of document id 1}

Any ideas?

Scripting

Correct answer andymalhan

first of all, you're not running it inside 'tell document' block. InDesign (the app) wouldn't know what 'page 7' is.

By @leo.r

Pretty much at the same time 😉

Thanks Leo and Robert... It's working!

tell activeDoc

-- it didn't work until I commented out the next line though

-- set selection to {myRectangle, captionFrame}

make group at targetPage with data {group items:{myRectangle, captionFrame}}

end tell

leo.r

Community Expert

make group at page 1 with data {group items:selection}

source:

https://www.macscripter.net/t/group-every-item-indesign-cs2/45280/4

andymalhanAuthor

Inspiring

I got this message:

error "Adobe InDesign 2025 got an error: Can’t make class group." number -2710 from group to class

leo.r

Community Expert

I got this message:

error "Adobe InDesign 2025 got an error: Can’t make class group." number -2710 from group to class
By @andymalhan

Well. All I know is that it works here.

Are you running this inside 'tell document' block? Also, 'selection' is just an example. If you don't have anything selected, then use a list of your objects such as {myRectangle, captionFrame} instead.

Robert at ID-Tasker

Legend

@andymalhan

https://community.adobe.com/t5/indesign-discussions/group-two-items-in-indesign-cs4-applescript-sample-script-attached-not-working/m-p/2306644#M363996

Or just use Google.

andymalhanAuthor

Inspiring

It doesn't seem to work. I tried Google before posting it here!! 😉

error "Adobe InDesign 2025 got an error: Can’t make class group." number -2710 from group to class

Robert at ID-Tasker

Legend

It doesn't seem to work. I tried Google before posting it here!! 😉

error "Adobe InDesign 2025 got an error: Can’t make class group." number -2710 from group to class

By @andymalhan

Have you tried looking for the answer to error 2710?

https://community.adobe.com/t5/indesign-discussions/applescript-not-adding-new-pages-in-indesign-cc-2018/td-p/9771139

https://stackoverflow.com/questions/40940563/applescript-error-2710

leo.r

Community Expert

set myGroup to group {myRectangle, captionFrame}

By @andymalhan

I don't have an immediate answer, but for starters there's no group command; group is a class.

andymalhanAuthor

Inspiring

Yes I think so too.

error "Adobe InDesign 2025 got an error: Can’t make class group." number -2710 from group to class

Robert at ID-Tasker

Legend

I'm not Apple Script expert - but you need to CREATE a group - "set" in this case means "get a reference" - array of objects you're referring to is just bunch of objects - not a group.

In JS it would be something like:

var myGroup = app.activeDocument.groups.add(...);

Or something like that.

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