Control your Mac by clapping

25 January 2016, 03:18

When I was a kid I loved those clapper controls you could get for light switches. Well, now there’s something similar for the Mac. I can clap to make my Mac go to sleep, or to pause iTunes – and much more. The trick is to use iClapper Pro, which right now is FREE after being reduced from $4.99 for a limited period.

Once the app’s installed you’ll need to calibrate it to the sound of your claps, something that can be influenced significantly by the shape of your room and the distance you sit from your Mac. To calibrate, click the iClapper menu bar icon, then select Preferences, and click the Calibration icon.

To configure what happens when you clap, click the Actions icon in the Preferences dialog box. You’ve a choice of making the app respond to one, two or three claps. To choose what actually happens when you clap, select from the dropdown list under the Action heading. There’s a good selection of readymade choices there but you can also click Add New Action to add your own AppleScript.

To open an app using AppleScript, you’d type something like the following:

 tell application "Microsoft Word" to activate

If the app’s already running then you’ll simply to be switched to it. If it’s not running then it’ll be started for you.

Type the name of the app as it appears in the Applications list within Finder. For example, to start Photoshop I’d have to type the following AppleScript:

 tell application "Adobe Photoshop CC 2015" to activate

There’s lots more you can do with AppleScript and it’s all pretty easy. Just hit Google.

Note that iClapper keeps your microphone active at all times in order to hear your claps. This might interfere with some apps like Skype if you make voice calls. Additionally, it might use-up your MacBook’s battery a little more quickly, although I haven’t undertaken any tests.

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