I started to play with scheduling scripts with iCal. It’s very easy, and it’s cool that iCal doesn’t have to be running for it to trigger the scripts. I’d like to read about people’s experience with this, like how reliable is it, etc. Also, how does using iCal compare to other 3rd party apps, like the ones mentioned here: http://macscripter.net/faq/general.php?id=P46. What do these other apps offer that’s worth paying for?
My managers usually like me better when I use the words “free” and “automate” in the same sentence. 8)
When it was introduced, I was happy to see support for running scripts on a schedule via iCal. Unfortunately, in iCal version 1.5.1, the alerts/reminders were very unreliable, to the point of being useless. The recently released iCal 1.5.2 is supposed to address the issue (it’s only been available for a day or so). So far, it appears that the bugs have been fixed. I plan to give iCal another chance to reliably launch scripts and provide reminders.
One of the disadvantages of using iCal to schedule scripts is that they won’t run if the computer is asleep. This is easily overcome by using iBeeZz, which can wake a sleeping computer and then run a script. iBeeZz is what I use to trigger my backup scripts in the wee hours of the morning.