Send Keynote presenter notes to Evernote with AppleScript
We've all been there before. You've prepared a Keynote presentation on the Internet phenomenon of cat videos for your local Mac user group. You've finished editing your slides. You've added presenter notes. Next, you want to extract the notes from your slides and bring them into Evernote so you can look them over and maybe use them as the basis for your forthcoming newsletter article.
You open your presentation in Keynote and select File > Export. Then, it happens. You remember that Keynote doesn't have a feature for exporting presenter notes. Sure, you could copy them one by one into Evernote, but that will take a while. Fortunately, you know this can be done quickly and easily with AppleScript. Here's how you'll do it...
Creating the Script
First, you need to write a script.
NOTE: If you have any trouble following along, you can download the complete script here.
1. Launch AppleScript Editor (in /Applications/Utilities).
2. Create a new script document, and enter the following code:
3. Save the AppleScript Editor document in Script format to your Desktop as Send Keynote Presenter Notes to Evernote.scpt.
AppleScript Editor documents can be saved as Scripts or Applications. Save your document as a Script.
Enabling the Script Menu
Next, you need a quick and easy way to trigger the script. You can use the handy system-wide script menu. If it's not enabled on your Mac already, here's how you can turn it on.
1. Choose AppleScript Editor > Preferences...
2. Ensure that the Show Script menu in the menu bar checkbox is selected. Once enabled, you should see a script icon appear in your menu bar.
The script menu is turned on in AppleScript Editor's preferences window.
Installing the Script
Next, you're ready to add your newly created script into the script menu. This way, you can quickly trigger it whenever you're in Keynote with an opened presentation.
1. Go into Keynote.
2. From the script icon in your menu bar, select Open Scripts Folder > Open Keynote Scripts Folder.
The script menu provides quick and easy navigation to your scripts folder.
3. Copy the Send Keynote Presenter Notes to Evernote.scpt file from your Desktop into the ~/Library/Scripts/Applications/Keynote folder that opens.
The Keynote Scripts folder is created automatically if it doesn't already exist.
Running the Script
Now that your script is installed, it's ready to run whenever you need it.
1. Open a Keynote presentation containing presenter notes.
The presenter notes area is located beneath your slides. If this area isn't visible, choose View > Show Presenter Notes.
2. From the script menu, choose Send Keynote Presenter Notes to Evernote.
Application scripts are contextual and automatically appear in the script menu when the target app is frontmost.
3. When prompted, specify whether you would like to extract slide content, in addition to the presenter notes.
The AppleScript can extract presenter notes and/or slide content. The choice is yours.
The script extracts the slide titles, presenter notes, and, if necessary, the slide content from your opened Keynote presentation. Next, the script reformats the extracted content as HTML, brings Evernote to the front, and creates a new note.
An Evernote note containing extracted Keynote notes.
Your notes are now ready for review in Evernote on your Mac. Assuming you've got Evernote's iOS app too, your notes are also synced to your iPhone and/or iPad. As you ride the train to work and excitedly begin working on your newsletter article, feel free to share your knowledge of cat videos with the person next to you. Happy scripting!
