QUICK TIP: Get OS X file or folder link to paste into Evernote

Sometimes a file is too large to attach to an Evernote note. Or you want to reference a folder on your hard drive in Evernote. I recently had this issue, so I made a quick Automator workflow that grabs the path to a selected file/folder, appends file:/// (necessary for Evernote to recognize it as a link,) and exports the full path to the clipboard.

You can create this yourself in Automator, or download the workflow at the end of this post. If you create it yourself, be sure to create a Service.

Set the options at the top to Files and Folders in Finder.

Drag a Run Applescript action over to the right pane, then drag a Copy to Clipboard action over. It’s easiest to find these by performing a search in Automator.

Copy and paste the following code into the Applescript box:

on run {input, parameters}
    
    set myPrefix to "file:///"
    set myPath to (the POSIX path of input)
    set fullPath to myPrefix & myPath
    
    return fullPath
end run

Save the workflow.

Now right-click on any folder in Finder, go to the Services submenu, and select your Copy Path service. The path will be copied to the clipboard and can be pasted as text. If you want to create a link in Evernote, select the text that will serve as your link, then hit CMD + K to open the add link dialog. Paste the link in that box, hit OK, and you’re done.

If all of this sounds like a pain, just download my workflow.

Once downloaded, unzip, and double-click on the workflow file. You’ll be prompted to either install it as a service, or open in Automator. If you trust me, just install it. If not, open it in Automator to verify there’s nothing evil going on in it. Then save it.

DISCLAIMER: I’m running OS X Mavericks 10.9.4 and this workflow runs great for me. There’s nothing special about it, so it should run in other versions of OS X, but I don’t have any other versions with which to test, so I can’t guarantee it. That said, if it doesn’t work, let me know. Maybe we can figure it out.