Create a Compound Shape and intersect shape area

[Trevor:]

How can one by script "Create a Compound Shape and intersect shape area" ?

I couldn't find the menu command?

[pixxxelschubser]

The only thing that I know:

app.executeMenuCommand ("compoundPath"); // opposite: app.executeMenuCommand ("noCompoundPath");

It's the same as

menu: Object --> Compound Path --> Make

[Silly-V · Accepted solution]

We've got to use actions or menu commands.

The pathfinder operations are recordable, but you can also use the menu commands on paths which you have to first ensure are in a group. Then apply a pathfinder EFFECT from the menu commands and follow up with "Expand Style" menu command to destructively fix the changes in place.

Thanks to Ten A​ and his new intuitively-compiled catalogue of execute menu command strings, this block is our dictionary for pathfinder commands to be used with the app.executeMenuCommand() function.

Beware though, as I have discovered some inconsistencies with expectation/reality when it comes to using the menu commands as alternatives to comparable scripting methods or actions. They are not easy to describe, but once you come across a few examples you can generally get the idea.

For example, having a placed item selected and going "Edit Original" can open the file but waits to do so after the script has been ran - while the app.open command does it in sync.

In the context of your usage though, I believe it has been proven to work just fine on these forums for years now.

This is [ANN] Adding AiMenu class.​ from Ten A​

"pathfinder" : {
	"add" : "Live Pathfinder Add",
	"intersect" : "Live Pathfinder Intersect",
	"exclude" : "Live Pathfinder Exclude",
	"subtract" : "Live Pathfinder Subtract",
	"minusBack" : "Live Pathfinder Minus Back",
	"divide" : "Live Pathfinder Divide",
	"trim" : "Live Pathfinder Trim",
	"merge" : "Live Pathfinder Merge",
	"crop" : "Live Pathfinder Crop",
	"outline" : "Live Pathfinder Outline",
	"hardMix" : "Live Pathfinder Hard Mix",
	"softMix" : "Live Pathfinder Soft Mix",
	"trap" : "Live Pathfinder Trap"
	},

[Trevor:]

Thanks guys

I couldn't find the menu item. I had looked both through Ten's aiMenu and the SDKs executeMenuCommands string list and couldn't find the command for "Create a Compound Shape and intersect shape area" I look particularly at the the pathfinder items and couldn't find compound shape ones other than the make and release which didn't help.

The action recording works well and I can't think why I didn't think of it.

The app.executeMenuCommand() problems  link is very interesting. I am finding that it fails in the color convert about 1 in 20 times.

[Trevor:]

I'm just putting this link hear as a reminder to myself where to find the AIMenuCommandString.h file in the SDK, It's under File list > AIMenuCommandString.h

Here's a link to an online version (2015) updated one is in the SDK

Bloks/AIMenuCommandString.h at master · WestonThayer/Bloks · GitHub