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Because I'm preparing files for a companies system and they require certain text boxes to editable and some locked as they are changed in their database. The attached image shows all the boxes that are currently on one layers and I want each separate box on a separate layer. I have a script that will move all items to their own layer. But It randomly color codes and names the layers. And there is art and other text that I don't want their layers changed by that script.
Hi Peter,
hm.
You say:
"the order isn't important".
And then close with:
"Ideally they would at least be stacked … in the order they fall on the page."
Then I'd say writing and testing a script that has something like an awareness what belongs to a group or what is the geometrical order of page items would take more than your projected 8 hours. And one would need your files for developing and testing.
FWIW: What can be done is writing a script that would create new layers and move items by the order of items the user is selecting.
The order of the layers
would be the order you do by select the items with:
Shift + click
The name of a new layer would be the name of the page plus the id-number of the selected item.
( Just to mention one naming scheme out of many )
For ease of simplicity: The color of all new layers would be the same.
Such a script could be written and tested in a timeframe that would be reasonable.
Now that time has passed and you finished your task that would be purely academic.
Just to show you how this would work, below some screenshots.
The first one is showing page 1 before running the script on a page with "static contents" plus selected contents, that should be moved to individual layers. All items selected are separate text frames as you were showing in your screenshot.
Note: The two layers "OnTop" and "Background" are locked. The script would not require this.
Just to make it easier to select the items on "Layer 1".
Let's do it with only 8 items so that the result can be easily inspected in the Layers panel:
Note: The selection order is the order you shift-clicked the selection!
And would be the order the items how they appear in the layers panel.
After running the script the Layers panel is populated with new layers and their corresponding items.
Opening the layers' triangle widget is not part of the script. I don't think, that can be done by scripting at all.
Then you go on to page 2 and do your selection there.
After running the script again:
That would be a script—written and tested in reasonable time—that could be money-saving if you bill by the project and not by the hour. Including paying the scripter… And it would make a tedious task a bit more bearable.
Regards,
Uwe
Hi,
Maybe you don't see the question as me! …
… and, as Einstein, I think Time is relative! 
Note: I've defined the layers numbering appearance!
The "Cut" script is based on a very simple grep code: [^\t\r]+
So, the numbering acts as if you play the regex and count, one per one, the items found! 
(^/)
"all the formatting and position of the text is gone and moved."
(^/) 
What I find funny is that you're totally wrong!
If you see (better) my screenshots, the first one is my layout before the script, the third, after! Exactly the same appearance!
The difference is that, now, we have a 320-pieces-puzzle ! one piece per layer without personalized name in the right order!
So, Yeap! it's funny you didn't see it!
(^/)
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