I have two scripts which provide the same function: Toggle Show/Hide of the Emoji & Symbols window.
One uses the try/catch approach to determine if the window exists.
The other uses the exists command.
Which is better? Is there a best practice here? Your thoughts, please.
After the 1st run, they both are quick, and take about the same about of time (~0.03 sec in Script Geek).
But the exists method sometimes takes several seconds on the first run IF the window does NOT exists. I’m not sure why? Any thoughts on this?
Script Using try/catch method
(*
AUTHOR: @Tom with minor mod by JMIchaelTX
DATE: 2017-09-05
*)
tell application "System Events"
try -- below process and/or window may not exist #@JMichaelTX
tell process "CharacterPalette"
tell window "Characters"
click button 2 -- Faster in this case
--click (first button whose description is "close button")
end tell
end tell
on error
my launchCharacters()
end try
end tell
on launchCharacters()
tell application "System Events"
tell (first process whose frontmost is true)
tell menu "Edit" of menu bar 1
click menu item "Emoji & Symbols"
end tell
end tell
end tell
end launchCharacters
Script Using exists method
tell application "System Events"
if ((exists process "CharacterPalette") and ¬
(exists (window "Characters" of process "CharacterPalette"))) then
log "close window"
click button 2 of window "Characters" of process "CharacterPalette"
else
log "open window"
tell (first process whose frontmost is true)
tell menu "Edit" of menu bar 1
click menu item "Emoji & Symbols"
end tell
end tell
end if
end tell
Note: Before you guys jump on me for using a log command, I added them for testing in Script Editor.