Creating layers named after slices - fireworks

Question

I have an issue that may well not be possible to solve 'out of the box'. I'm running fireworks 8 and would like to to be able to run the:
Commands->Document->Split to layers
and have the resulting layers created using the name of the slice that it created the layer for. So for example, if I have 3 slices in my png, called 'Head', Shoulder' and 'Arm', I'd like that command to create the layer name that corresponds to the slice name. As it currently stands, when running this command, the default layer names created are sequentially named 'Layer 1', 'Layer 2', 'Layer 3' etc etc.
The reason for this requirement is due to the fact that I then wish to use the Export command to save the individual Layers out to named png files that use the 'Slice names ('Head.png' etc), rather than the default Layer names. Now I know I can manually rename the layers to match the Slices, and Export to a folder as required. However, in my real life scenario, I have over 50 Slices per document that require this treatment and I have 100's of documents at a time to 'batch' process. So my idea was that I would be able to run a command (or create some sort of macro) that would allow me to create the layers with the same name as the slice that they contained.
This would make my life SOO much simpler as I could then totally automate the process based on a set of source images located within a folder structure, rather than opening each file, running the above command, renaming each layer manually (error prone of course) and then running the Export function.
Can anyone offer advice on finding a solution to this?? I hope I'm not the only one to have come across this requirement.

Answer 1

I've added a line to the Split to Layers command here. If you save that as Distribute to Named Layers.jsf in the same folder as the original command (in CS5.5 I found it in Configuration/Commands/Document), I think that should do what you need.
That said, jsf is fairly unpredictable in my experience (for example, that command seems to miss the default name of things like Rectangles until they've been renamed), so I'm not certain if it will work 100% of the time. Also, the script skips over the Web Layer which contains slices in 5.5 - I can't remember if the set up is different in 8. Hopefully that gets you some of the way there though.

Answer 2

FYI - here's what the final programatic fix amounted to (with thanks to david mear)
// This command will take multiple objects and move them to indivdual layers
// and then prompt for a folder location to save the layers as named-layer.png
// files. This is ultra useful if you want to save slices out to individual
// files and wish to have total control over the resulting file names
var curDoc = fw.getDocumentDOM();
// Save the current frame in the document
var curFrameNum = curDoc.currentFrameNum;
// get the total layers minus the web layer
var numLayers = curDoc.layers.length - 1; // skip the web layer.
var curLayerNum;
// default to d:\ for now
var locFolder = fw.browseForFolderURL("select a folder", "file:///d|/");
// 23/3/2013 add dialog box for file
if (locFolder !== null) {
// loop through the current number of layers
for (curLayerNum = numLayers - 1; curLayerNum >= 0; curLayerNum--) {
// get the current layer
var curLayer = curDoc.layers[curLayerNum];
// get the elements on the current layer
var elements = curLayer.frames[curFrameNum].elements;
//if layer is locked cannot distribute so continue to next layer.
if (curLayer.frames[curFrameNum].locked == true)
continue;
// get the number of elements
var numElements = elements.length - 1;
var i;
// loop through the number of elements
for (i = 0; i < numElements; i++) {
// get the current layer number
if (i == 0) curDoc.currentLayerNum = curLayerNum;
// add layers for the number of elements
curDoc.addNewLayer(null, false);
}
// again loop through the number of elements
for (i = 0; i < numElements; i++) {
// set the current layer
curLayer = curDoc.layers[curLayerNum];
// get the elements on the current layer
elements = curLayer.frames[curFrameNum].elements;
// select none
curDoc.selectNone();
// create a new array that will hold the selection
var sel = new Array();
// populate the array
sel[0] = elements[elements.length - 2];
// EDIT - 25/3/2013 rename target layer if element has a name
curDoc.setLayerName(curLayerNum + i + 1, sel[0].name || "");
// select all of the elements of the array in Fireworks
fw.selection = sel;
// move the selection to its new layer
curDoc.moveSelectionToLayer(curLayerNum + i + 1, false, "none", -1);
}
}
// EDIT - 25/3/2013 set to png32 export option
set_export_as_png_32(curDoc);
fw.exportLayers(curDoc, locFolder);
}
function set_export_as_png_32(targetDoc) {
targetDoc.setExportOptions(
{
animAutoCrop: true,
animAutoDifference: true,
applyScale: false,
colorMode: "32 bit",
crop: false,
cropBottom: 0,
cropLeft: 0,
cropRight: 0,
cropTop: 0,
ditherMode: "none",
ditherPercent: 100,
exportFormat: "PNG",
frameInfo: [],
interlacedGIF: false,
jpegQuality: 80,
jpegSelPreserveButtons: false,
jpegSelPreserveText: true,
jpegSelQuality: 90,
jpegSelQualityEnabled: false,
jpegSmoothness: 0,
jpegSubsampling: 0,
localAdaptive: true,
lossyGifAmount: 0,
macCreator: "",
macFileType: "",
name: "PNG32",
numCustomEntries: 0,
numEntriesRequested: 0,
numGridEntries: 6,
optimized: true,
paletteEntries: null,
paletteInfo: null,
paletteMode: "adaptive",
paletteTransparency: "none",
percentScale: 100,
progressiveJPEG: false,
savedAnimationRepeat: 0,
sorting: "none",
useScale: true,
webSnapAdaptive: false,
webSnapTolerance: 14,
xSize: 0,
ySize: 0
}
);
}