cant find a good batch renamer.

[lucface]

i need a simple and smart batch renamer that will recognize more than a few file extentions. can some one whos had the experience shoping around and using a few different programs give some advice?

 

[fwhh]

Renamer

I have made some good results using renamer4mac

http://www.versiontracker.com/dyn/moreinfo/macosx/17205

maybe this tool is helpful for you too...

 

[The Truth]

You (and most other people) need to learn the full potential of Automator.

 

[Applespider]

Since you have Tiger, Automator is the answer.

Open it up, click on Finder in the far left column and see the list of actions that come up for Finder.

Drag the one that's called 'Get Specified Finder Items' (or some such - I'm on a PC at the moment) into the workspace on the right. If you want a non-destructive method (so you keep the original files), say yes to the dialogue box that comes up and asks if you want to copy the originals and work on the copy.

Then drag the Action that's called Rename Finder Items and make your selection as to what you want to do. Make things sequential, Add something to the current name, rename it entirely etc etc - it's fairly obvious if you have a look through them. If your sequencing based on time created/current name, you may want to add an Action in before this one that sorts them according to that criteria.

If you click on the 'Option' arrow and check the box that lets you view as it runs then you'll be able to specify the exact text

Do a 'Save As' Finder Plug in and give it a name.

Now go to the folder where you want to change names, select the files that you want to rename and right click on them. Go to Automator -> Name of Your Plug-in and wait. You'll get your dialogue box asking which text you want (if you clicked the Option arrow) and Automator will update all the file names for you. File types will remain the same regardless.

 

[michaelrjohnson]

You (and most other people) need to learn the full potential of Automator.

I agree. I'm one of those people.

I've been using OS X as my main OS since Public Beta. I consider myself a semi-power user, but still, yesterday I was browsing Apple's page on Tiger's over 200 new features Just becuase there are so many I have yet to explore!

 

[Mitthrawnuruodo]

If Automator still feels a little intimidating, try FileWrangler (which showed up in todays Mac OS X downloads). It's freeware and, at least, claims to do what the OP wants:

About FileWrangler
Maintenance release to the the five-star rated OS X application for the batch renaming of files returns FileWrangler’s speed back to the gold old days. 2.5 GB of data, composed of 11,000 files nested 8 subfolders deep can be renamed in under 30 seconds on a PowerBook.

Select a folder, filter its contents, recurse its folder structure, choose your naming scheme and click the “Rename Files” button. Dozens, or hundreds or thousands of files are quickly renamed to meet your criteria. Many thanks to the thousands of people who have downloaded and used FileWrangler. It’s your interest and feedback that have kept the project going.

The important new feature of version 1.2 is user-definable configuration sets. You can customize the interface as you see fit and save those interface settings as a set, to be called upon again and again. You can also choose one of your custom sets to be the default set upon program launch

Additionally, FileWrangler now features full preferences, allowing you to tweak things like how the numbering handles subfolders, what constitutes a character violation, and even the color of violation highlighting. FileWrangler 1.2 is all about customization and making the program your own. Download includes robust PDF manual.

Disclaimer: I have not tested this software, and have no idea if it works fine or will eat all the files on your HD, but it comes from Apples own download pages and I usually trust software coming from there...