Hello,

Hope you are well.

There are some repetitive tasks I would like to automate. Every day I generate files that all have a common character (%) in the name, for example: "ATML bo 01 12 10 2.4%". I should stress that the letters and numbers in the filenames change from file to file, but the "%" is common to all the files I want to move. These files are saved to the desktop. I would like to automatically have them saved to a file named "breakouts". How do I do this?

Thanks

You can do this very simply by creating a Folder Action in Automator. If you're using Snow Leopard, open Automator and select Folder Action from the template sheet. Start by choosing the Desktop as the source folder at the top. Then choose Files & Folders from the Library and add the Find Finder Items and Move Finder Items actions to the workflow. In the former, search the Desktop for items whose name contains %. In the latter, choose the folder called breakouts. Save the Folder Action with whatever name you desire and it will work immediately.

earthsaver,

Thanks, I am completely new to Automator. I tried following your instructions. The results were that the "%", "desktop" and "breakouts" folders were selected, then nothing happened after that. No "%" files were moved to "breakout" folder.

What do you mean the folders were selected? A folder action pays attention to files added to a folder. You said the % files were being saved to the Desktop. With the folder action I provided, new % files moved or saved to the Desktop would be added to breakouts.