Automator actions open in Disk Inventory

[wenyon]

Hi,

After installing Disk Inventory, if I double-click an Automator action in the finder it opens Disk Inventory (which analyzes the action's contents). Is this behavior normal? Is it to do with Disk Inventory or something else?

Michael

[Tjark Derlien]

Yes and no

Disk Inventory X, like most other applications, registers for various file types which can be opened by it (e.g., Text Edit registers among other for RTF and Plain Text files).

This registration is used by the Finder so it knows which files can be dropped on an app's icon (in a Finder window and in the dock) and which applications should appear in the Finder's "Open With..." menu.

Disk Inventory X registers for folders (there is no "Open With..." menu for folders, but you can drag them on DIX's icon), applications and for the generic type "Bundle".
Bundles are folders which should be shown as files in the Finder. Often Plugins are specified as Bundles. And so are Automator actions.

Not many applications register for Bundles as these are normally no documents which can be opened by applications, but code libraries which change or extend an application's capabilities (like plugins do).

So on most systems DIX is the only applications which registers for Bundles and so the Finder will open them with DIX when you double-click a Bundle (this is not the case if the Bundle is bound to a specific application, e.g. by it's Creator Code).

I hope this clears things up a little bit.

- Tjark