Welcome to eStrainer!

To use eStrainer, simply drop the text files you want to filter onto it. You'll be warned about anything that isn't a text file and given the option to skip it or press on regardless. For best results, skip it then save it as a text only file and try again. Left to its own devices, eStrainer will skip these items anyway.

For each file it filters, eStrainer will tell you how many email addresses it found, pause for a few seconds, then carry on to process the next file. eStrainer does not modify your original files in any way.

How it Works/Limitations
eStrainer reads the files you drop onto it and, if it identifies any email or web addresses (as described below), it copies them to a couple of files, called eList and wList respectively. These are saved in a folder called eFolder on your hard drive. If the folder or files don't already exist, eStrainer creates them; if you leave them there, any new email or web addresses will be added to the relevant file next time you drop a text file onto eStrainer.

Before adding addresses to the lists, eStrainer checks whether the latest address it's found is already in the relevant file - if it is, it writes it to another file called dList instead.

eStrainer's filter is fairly coarse: any text string that includes the "@" symbol, a dot and is followed by a space is treated as an email address; similarly any text string that includes "www." and is followed by a space is treated as a web address.

The default filter length is 100 characters: any email addresses or URLs longer than this will be disregarded. This can be reset either on the fly or by double-clicking eStrainer before you start — just choose the "Prefs" button and follow it through from there.

Some garbage will still get through, however, and files won't always be filtered as effectively as you might like. Suppose, for example, a file contains a list of email addresses or URLs separated by line breaks without spaces: then the whole list will be read as one long email address or URL; duplicated addresses within such a list will not be removed. The simplest way to filter a file like this is to insert a space before or after each line break before you drop it onto eStrainer (a search and replace with your word processor or text editor should do the trick). Similar problems arise with HTML documents where an email address or URL is surrounded by HTML tags or quotes — and a similar solution applies. Maybe next time...

System Requirements
System 8.5 or higher; AppleScript 1.3.4
eStrainer was compiled under MacOS 8.5.1 running AppleScript 1.3.4
If it doesn't work on your system, open eStrainer in the Script Editor, change something (eg: type a space) then change it back and save it. This should recompile it to work on your Mac. If anyone expresses an interest I'll consider a rewrite for System 7.5.

Download Now (23k) All the info on this page is included with your download in a SimpleText Read-Only file.

Disclaimer
All the usual disclaimers apply: use of eStrainer is entirely at your own risk.
No warranty is offered and no liability is accepted. Your life and your files are in your own hands: handle with care.

Acknowledgements
Thanks to Ian B. Paul, of Grove Books, who needed an eStrainer.
If he hadn't asked, it's unlikely I'd have thought of it.

Linkware
Linkware from Seriously Lazy Software www.groomsville.co.uk/sls.htm
If you use it & like it, please add a link from your website to ours.
Distribute freely, but please ensure that this file accompanies it.
© Phil Groom, 2001
eStrainer@groomsville.co.uk