Python help for a total novice

[SpencerJRoberts]

Hoping someone can help me get started here. I am a novice scripter, all I've ever used is Applescript (no formal programming background but I pick things up fairly quickly). I am trying to teach myself python, or at least as much python as I need to know to work with Indigo, but am having trouble just getting python to talk to Indigo. I have followed the steps outlined here http://www.perceptiveautomation.com/wik ... e_examples but am probably doing something wrong. When I go to type [indigo host -i] into the scripting shell I get the following

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Traceback (most recent call last):
  File "<console>", line 1, in <module>
NameError: name 'indigohost' is not defined
>>> 

If I can just get Python to talk to Indigo I'm confident I can hack my way through learning what I need to! Thanks in advance for any help!

[matt (support)]

From Terminal execute both these lines:

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echo "alias indigohost='/Library/Application\ Support/Perceptive\ Automation/Indigo\ 6/IndigoPluginHost.app/Contents/MacOS/IndigoPluginHost'" >> ~/.bashrc

echo "alias indigohost='/Library/Application\ Support/Perceptive\ Automation/Indigo\ 6/IndigoPluginHost.app/Contents/MacOS/IndigoPluginHost'" >> ~/.bash_profile

Then close the Terminal window and re-open it. Does it work?

Note there is an even easier way though -- select the Plugins→Open Scripting Shell menu item, then you can copy/paste in the lines from the tutorial.

[gtreece]

I can confirm on my Lion machine, that it is only loading .bash_profile when a new terminal window opens, so the second command Matt posted is what I had to use.

I think you could also include the .bashrc file in your .bash_profile, to achieve the same results, but I just created the alias directly in .bash_profile.

[SpencerJRoberts]

Thanks Matt, that did work but now I still can't get a .py to talk to indigo. I've created a test.py on the desktop and entered this:

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indigohost -e '
indigo.device.toggle("TV Room")
'

and Python returns this:

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Traceback (most recent call last):
  File "/Users/Roberts/Desktop/test.py", line 1, in <module>
    indigohost -e
NameError: name 'indigohost' is not defined
>>> 

Sorry for the stupid questions

[matt (support)]

The 'indigohost' alias is just a shortcut so you can execute Indigo python commands from the Terminal (or a shell script). You don't want to call that from a .py script itself.

If you are wanting to make Indigo python API or object model calls from a .py script (like "indigo.device.toggle"), then that .py script has to be executed by Indigo as an Indigo action OR you can execute it from the shell using something like:

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indigohost -x /SomeFolder/indigo_script.py

That tells the indigo host process to launch and then run the .py file. Point being, Indigo .py files are special and have to be executed from Indigo or using the indigohost to work.

[SpencerJRoberts]

Got it, that should be enough to get me started. Thanks so much!

[SpencerJRoberts]

Thanks again for the help, I'm loving learning Python! Quick question, is there still no way execute action groups or schedules from python? Thanks

[jay (support)]

http://www.perceptiveautomation.com/wik ... p_examples

[SpencerJRoberts]

Ah, I've been referencing this and must have missed that section, thanks!!