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Using DTerm across different applications

DTerm uses the same Accessibility API used to provide information to screen readers and VoiceOver to obtain information about the frontmost window when you activate DTerm. If the window represents a document, well-behaved applications will provide the location of the document file to the Accessibility system, allowing DTerm to provide a context-sensitive interface for documents in nearly any application. (If a window does not represent a document, or does not provide the document's location to the Accessibility system, DTerm will open a window set to your home directory, attached to the top of the screen.)

By default, the Accessibility APIs are disabled on a fresh install of Mac OS X. Furthermore, to prevent a malicious application from obtaining potentially sensitive information without the user's permission, applications must be explicitly authorized by an administrator to use the Accessibility APIs. Thus, a quick authorization process is needed as part of getting DTerm set up. DTerm will automatically prompt you when it is launched if this authorization needs to be performed.

To enable DTerm to work with documents in different applications:

Step 1

Choose DTerm > Preferences to open the preferences window.

Step 2

Choose the “Accessibility” preferences tab.

Step 3

If the window shows the Accessibility API as being “disabled,” click on the “Show Universal Access...” button. Check the “Enable access for assistive devices” option near the bottom of the Universal Access window.

Step 4

If DTerm's preferences window shows DTerm as being “not trusted,” click on the “Make DTerm trusted...” button. Enter an administrator's username and password when prompted. If successful, DTerm will ask to relaunch so the trust changes can take effect.

Related Topics

How does DTerm determine the working directory when activated?

Why do I get a generic DTerm window?