Don’t Forget Your Chores: Empty the Trash!

If you find your self forgetting to empty the trash on a regular basis, why not automate it? The following applescript can be used to do just that.

tell application "Finder"

    empty the trash

end tell

Alternatively, if you wanted to execute the cleanup from a shell script, or a one liner in your crontab, the following one liner could be utilized:

osascript -e ‘tell application “Finder” to empty the trash’

NOTE: In contrast to the command driven instructions represented in the Wikipedia article above, a nice GUI alternative is CronniX.

Sunday Shortcut: Finder

If you are working in the Finder, and know the exact location you wish to browse to, the following shortcut will pop open dialog that will allow you to type in your destination address. This is especially useful if you want to browse many levels deep in the directory hierarchy, or if you want to browse to a directory that is traditionally hidden in the Finder, such as /usr.

shift + apple + g

As an added bonus, while typing in your destination, if you hit “tab”, the Finder will attempt to auto complete the location for you. This functionality can be hit or miss. If the Finder doesn’t know where you are trying to go, or if the destination location is ambiguous, hitting “tab” will simply move input focus over to the “go” button. With a little training though, this functionality can really save time.