"File alias [path] wasn't found." eek!

Brutalbrutus · 01-24-2013, 04:35 PM

Hello, friends. I have an alias on my Desktop to my Pictures folder. Whenever I drag an image file to this alias, I get the message, in a dialog box, "File alias [intended path of the file inside the Pictures folder] wasn't found." I click OK, and then the same dialog box pops up again about four more times. Finally, I am left in peace. And the image file always ends up in the Pictures folder. Any information on what the heck the system is complaining about, and how to stop this? Many thanks in advance.

trevor · 01-24-2013, 04:39 PM

Does this happen when dragging a file to a different alias? If you recreate the Pictures folder alias, does the problem continue? Is it possible your alias is not to the Pictures folder, but to another folder inside Pictures that no longer exists? What version of OS X are you using?

Trevor

DeltaMac · 01-24-2013, 04:56 PM

Did you check for the same "fix" that you used the last time you reported this same message?
http://hintsforums.macworld.com/showthread.php?t=163345

Quote:


	...I fixed it on my own. The trouble was coming from an Applescript I accidentally turned on to keep the Pictures folder organized into subfolders.

bookshop · 02-06-2013, 05:16 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DeltaMac


	Did you check for the same "fix" that you used the last time you reported this same message? http://hintsforums.macworld.com/showthread.php?t=163345

Do you use Folder Actions? It sounds like one might be attached to your Pictures folder.

But I don't know why you don't just delete the shortcut and create a new one. Or select it and hit Cmd+I, then select Select New Original and direct it to the right folder.

ganbustein · 02-06-2013, 02:05 PM

It does indeed sound like you're using Folder Actions. The reference to "an Applescript I accidentally turned on" sounds like you enabled Folder Actions, and the message is coming from a bug in that script.

Recreating (or relinking) the alias to the Pictures folder won't help. That's not the alias whose target can't be found.

Why not show us the AppleScript? Maybe we can fix it. Select your Pictures folder (not the alias to it) and right-click or control-click on it to get its contextual menu. Select Services→Folder Actions Setup from that menu. Cancel any dialog asking you to select a Folder Action to attach. You'll get a dialog with, at the top, a checkbox that will let you turn Folder Actions on or off globally, and the left, a list of folders that have attached folder actions. (So actually, you could get here from the contextual menu of any folder, not just the Pictures folder.)

If you select your Pictures folder from the list on the left, then on the right you'll see a list of Folder Actions that have been attached to it. Select one, and you can click on the Edit Script button at the bottom to open the script in AppleScript Editor. Copy the script and paste it back here.

In the meantime, you can disable individual Folder Actions using the checkboxes on the right, or disable all folder actions for the chosen folder using its checkbox on the left, or disable all folder actions for all folders by unchecking the checkbox at the top. That'll disable the error messages you're getting, at the cost of also disabling whatever functionality your Folder Action is providing.

If you have multiple Folder Actions attached to your Pictures folder, you can discover which of them is producing the error messages by selectively enabling/disabling them until you have only one enabled and the messages are still forthcoming. That's the script we want to see.

01-24-2013, 04:35 PM	#1
Brutalbrutus Prospect Join Date: Jan 2012 Location: Boston, Mass. Posts: 15	"File alias [path] wasn't found." eek! Hello, friends. I have an alias on my Desktop to my Pictures folder. Whenever I drag an image file to this alias, I get the message, in a dialog box, "File alias [intended path of the file inside the Pictures folder] wasn't found." I click OK, and then the same dialog box pops up again about four more times. Finally, I am left in peace. And the image file always ends up in the Pictures folder. Any information on what the heck the system is complaining about, and how to stop this? Many thanks in advance.

01-24-2013, 04:39 PM	#2
trevor Moderator Join Date: Jun 2003 Location: Boulder, CO USA Posts: 19,549	Does this happen when dragging a file to a different alias? If you recreate the Pictures folder alias, does the problem continue? Is it possible your alias is not to the Pictures folder, but to another folder inside Pictures that no longer exists? What version of OS X are you using? Trevor __________________ How to ask questions the smart way

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02-06-2013, 02:05 PM	#5
ganbustein MVP Join Date: Apr 2008 Location: Berkeley CA USA Posts: 1,009	It does indeed sound like you're using Folder Actions. The reference to "an Applescript I accidentally turned on" sounds like you enabled Folder Actions, and the message is coming from a bug in that script. Recreating (or relinking) the alias to the Pictures folder won't help. That's not the alias whose target can't be found. Why not show us the AppleScript? Maybe we can fix it. Select your Pictures folder (not the alias to it) and right-click or control-click on it to get its contextual menu. Select Services→Folder Actions Setup from that menu. Cancel any dialog asking you to select a Folder Action to attach. You'll get a dialog with, at the top, a checkbox that will let you turn Folder Actions on or off globally, and the left, a list of folders that have attached folder actions. (So actually, you could get here from the contextual menu of any folder, not just the Pictures folder.) If you select your Pictures folder from the list on the left, then on the right you'll see a list of Folder Actions that have been attached to it. Select one, and you can click on the Edit Script button at the bottom to open the script in AppleScript Editor. Copy the script and paste it back here. In the meantime, you can disable individual Folder Actions using the checkboxes on the right, or disable all folder actions for the chosen folder using its checkbox on the left, or disable all folder actions for all folders by unchecking the checkbox at the top. That'll disable the error messages you're getting, at the cost of also disabling whatever functionality your Folder Action is providing. If you have multiple Folder Actions attached to your Pictures folder, you can discover which of them is producing the error messages by selectively enabling/disabling them until you have only one enabled and the messages are still forthcoming. That's the script we want to see.