This is an application program to update the creation and/or modification date time stamp on Macintosh files or folders. It is like Unix command “touch”. To run the program, it requires System 7.1 or later. Under System 7.5, touchMe is also AppleScriptable and allows the drag and drop operations. The program is written under the Metrowerks’ C++ application framework of PowerPlant.
Why is touchMe needed?
I have been using this program for these years in private to update the right date time stamps on the archive files that I have downloaded. The reason I want to change the date time stamp is that the archive files can have the correct date time corresponding to their original files. There may be a way to do this with ResEdit, but using touchMe is more practical.
CASE 1. If both archive file and original file are residing in the same folder. To update the date time stamp on the archive file by the original one, select both files, but the original file be first, then drag and drop them onto the touchMe application icon (or window area).
CASE 2. If these files are located in the different folders or volumes. touchMe will also provide you with a nice tip to update the date time stamp. First, open the touchMe application to fill in its date time columns by the date time stamp on the original file. Next, select the other archive file and drop it onto the touchMe application icon (or window area).
How do you use it?
First of all, you should setup the optional switches of the touchMe program, which are listed below;
[x] Update the creation / modification date
• by the current date time
• to [exact date time]
• by the first item you selected
• by the first, and fill in columns
These settings are automatically stored to the touchMe preferences file when you quit by the “OK” button.
Second, select and drop the files or folders onto the touchMe application icon. Under System 7.5 running, you can also drag and drop them onto the touchMe window area (which will indicate it by hiliting the border of the window). Then all the files you selected will have the same date time stamp, which you can confirm by Finder’s “Get Info” command.
TIPS: With the shift-key pressed during the operation, it will open Get Info for the selected items.
How do the switches work?
• by the current date time
All the date time stamp on the files or folders that you selected are set to the same value, which takes the current date time.
• to [exact date time]
Enter the date time, like as “8/1/96” or “August 1, 1996” for date and “12:34:56” for time. There are four ways to fill in the date time columns as follows.
1) Hold down the control-key (or option-key) when you select the “Open...” menu command. This mode will be indicated by showing a tiny mark at the top-left corner of the window. Then the date time stamp is fetched from the selected file or folder, and it will be put in the columns.
2) Type in the date time strings. Please be careful to write them in a right date time format. If your system is 7.5 or later, you are allowed to drag and drop the date time string to fill in the columns. As a general rule, it will be cut if you drop the text string onto the Finder’s trash icon.
3) Press the small button at the top-right corner on each column to setup the present time. With the option-key pressed, the time part of the column will be cleared to zero, that means a midnight.
4) Under System 7.5, hold down the command-key (or option-key) while you drag the file (or folder) and drop it on the touchMe window area. When the dragged item has entered in the window area, all the columns are hilited to indicate that they are accepting the file to fetch its date time stamp. In particular, you can fill in each column separately by dragging it on a particular column.
• by the first item you selected
touchMe can fetch the date time stamp from the ‘first’ item among the files (or folders) you selected. Well, what does it mean the ‘first’? It may vary on the conditions by which view you open the Finder’s folder.
1) View by Small Icon or Icon: The first item is the one you have selected first. You may choose additional files or folders as the followers by clicking them with the shift-key.
2) View by Name, Size, Kind or Date: The first item is the one which is listed at the topmost position in the listings. The order may not be changed even if you choose the items at random by selecting with the shift-key.
• by the first, and fill in columns
It works like above, but additionally fills in the date time columns by the first item you selected.
AppleScript commands
Required Suite:
open alias -- touch the items
print alias -- (do nothing)
run -- Sent to an application when it is double-clicked
quit -- Quit application
touchMe Suite:
get prefs creation/modification -- get the current settings
Result: prefs -- list of current settings
set prefs creation/modification to prefs -- set the new settings
load prefs -- load the settings from the preferences file
save prefs -- save the settings to the preferences file
touch alias -- touch the items
fetch alias -- fetch the item, and set the date time settings
Result: time stamp -- list of creation and modification date time
Class prefs: Settings information
Properties:
enabled true/false
flag current/exact/firstone/firstset
value date value
Class time stamp: creation and modification date time
Properties:
creation date date value
modification date date value
Example: A droplet to change the creation date to the current date, and the modification date according to the first file
on open (docList)
tell application "touchMe"
set theDate to current date
set xDate to date "8/1/96 12:34:56"
set prefs creation to {enabled:true, flag:exact, value:theDate}
set prefs modification to {enabled:true, flag:firstone}
touch docList
quit
end tell
end open
Revision history
• v.1.2, published on April 25, 1997
- New. The modifier-key operation was changed. To touch the files, just put them onto the application icon or the touchMe window. To fill in the date time columns, please drag and drop the file or folder over the columns with the command-key pressed.
- Bug. It sometimes failed to hilite the border of touchMe window when you drag the files with command-key pressed. Fixed for sure!
- New. The text strings can be put shortly in the date time columns even if you do not hold down the command-key or option-key.
- Bug. The indicator (*) for holding modifier keys was flickering unsteadily on the top-left corner of the window. Fixed.
- New. Corrected the right captions of check boxes and radio buttons for the readability.
- New. The design of the Apple Guide file was improved. It now starts to open the topics list window, instead of browing every panel in sequence from the first. The previous version of the styled help board was discontinued.
- New. The software is now constructed from a bunch of reusable codes, which forms a class library common to my “puriTEXT” program.
• v.1.1.2, published on February 10, 1997
- New. You can now use a drag operation on the text string to fill in the date time columns.
- New. For AppleScript commands “touch” and “fetch”, they are now accepting both a single file or a list of files equally.
- New. With the option-key pressed, the Set-Present-Time button will clear the time part of the columns, so that a midnight time will be entered.
- Bug. It sometimes failed to hilite the border of touchMe window when you drag the files with the option-key pressed. Fixed it, I hope.
- New. The C++ compiler was changed to CW11 from CW9 of CodeWarrior PowerPlant. Due to the changes on LApplication class, I have to update my CHelpMenu class to enable the “Help touchMe” item of the help menu.
- New. Added an Apple Guide file. I hope this guide file will be of much help to you.
• v.1.1.1, published on August 8, 1996
- New. During a drag and drop operation with the option-key pressed, the command “touch” and “fetch” are exchanged temporarily with each other.
- New. All the date time columns are now sensitive to accept the dragging files separately.
- New. It remembers the last position of the window on quit by the “Cancel” button as well as “OK”.
- Bug. A well-known (but, I didn’t know:-) MacOS bug on using the colored alert boxes is fixed. Thanks to Rokkaku Fumio who pointed out this problem with a nice solution.
- New. Enabled the “Close Box” in the window title that works as the “Cancel” button, and also enabled the help menu item which will appear in the desktop menu bar.
- New. Added many practical samples for AppleScript scripting works.
- Bug. Corrected a typo, a wrong file name for “touchMe Prefs”.;-)
- Special thanks to Jim van Zee who has always encouraged me in this project and made many cool suggestions to work around the problems.
• v.1.1, published on August 1, 1996
All the programs were rewritten for the Metrowerks’ C++ application framework PowerPlant of CodeWarrior CW9. This is the first release of the renewal version.
• v.1.0, first released on March 9, 1994
The first version of the program, originally written in Symantec’s THINK-C.
The package includes...
1. touchMe -- application programs for 68K and PowerPC
2. touchMe Guide -- an Apple Guide file
3. touchMe readme -- just this file you are reading
4. touchMe scripts -- sample AppleScript code using with touchMe
5. touchMe source -- source code in CodeWarrior 11 PowerPlant
6. touchMe Guide source -- source code of Apple Guide file
7. Apple Guide SharedLibs -- for PowerMacs without Apple Guide
This is a freeware program. You can distribute it without any limitations nor permissions.
About the Author
If you have any questions, remarks or problems, please feel free to contact me via e-mail;
<mailto:mizutori@po.iijnet.or.jp>
<mailto:mizutori@ai.rcast.u-tokyo.ac.jp>
The latest versions of my software are available at my following WWW page;
