Bellhop is a system utility that lets you write Mac OS X services in different script languages. It is thus not an application for the average user. But those who want some extra freedom and have the creativity to create useful scripts can probably benefit from this application substantially. There are five coding languages supported: AppleScript, F-Script, Perl, Ruby and Python.
Basically, Bellhop can be used to create services that interact with text or any other type of content that can be manipulated on the pasteboard. This includes tab-delimited data, images, or even files.
The application interface is simple enough to let you focus on your coding. It consists of three panes. The one on the left lists all your services collections, which you can collapse or expand by clicking on the arrow next to the collection name. The middle pane shows the code for each selected service. Here is where the user will spend most of the time. Lastly, on the right, there are the settings and the comments. The settings include options like the accepted and returned pasteboard types and timeout lapse in seconds.
In short, Bellhop is a nice tool for anyone who wants to create a service quickly and without having to resort to complicated tools to do that. Coding skills are a requirement though, so most users will not be able to use this app.
v2.0 [Jul 10, 2010]
- Added compatibility for Snow Leopard.
