Indesign extendscript for making selected paragraph styles unique

disconnectStyles.jsx

// disconnectStyles.jsx
//
// Generated with Gemini 2.5 Pro
//
// DESCRIPTION:
// This script finds all paragraphs in the user's selection.
// For each unique paragraph style applied to those paragraphs, it creates a new,
// duplicated style with a "_new" suffix. It then applies these new styles
// to the corresponding paragraphs, effectively "disconnecting" them from their
// original styles.
//
// USAGE:
// 1. Open an InDesign document.
// 2. Select a text frame, multiple text frames, or a range of text.
// 3. Run this script from the Scripts panel (Window > Utilities > Scripts).
//
// The entire operation can be undone with a single Ctrl+Z (Cmd+Z).

#target indesign

// Main function wrapped for safety and clarity
function main() {
    // 1. --- VALIDATION ---
    // Check if a document is open
    if (app.documents.length === 0) {
        alert("Error: No document is open.\nPlease open a document and try again.");
        return;
    }
    var doc = app.activeDocument;

    // Check if there is a selection
    if (app.selection.length === 0) {
        alert("Error: Nothing is selected.\nPlease select a text frame or some text and try again.");
        return;
    }


    // 2. --- GATHER DATA ---
    var allParagraphs = [];
    var uniqueOriginalStyles = {}; // Use an object as a Set to store unique styles

    // Loop through all selected items to gather paragraphs
    for (var i = 0; i < app.selection.length; i++) {
        var selItem = app.selection[i];
        
        // Check if the item has paragraphs (e.g., TextFrame, Text, Story)
        if (selItem.hasOwnProperty("paragraphs") && selItem.paragraphs.length > 0) {
            for (var j = 0; j < selItem.paragraphs.length; j++) {
                var para = selItem.paragraphs[j];
                allParagraphs.push(para);
                
                // Store the style object, keyed by its unique ID, to avoid duplicates
                uniqueOriginalStyles[para.appliedParagraphStyle.id] = para.appliedParagraphStyle;
            }
        }
    }
    
    if (allParagraphs.length === 0) {
        alert("The selection does not contain any text paragraphs.");
        return;
    }


    // 3. --- PROCESS STYLES ---
    var styleMap = {}; // This will map original style IDs to the new style objects
    var newStylesCreatedCount = 0;

    // Iterate over the unique original styles we found
    for (var styleId in uniqueOriginalStyles) {
        if (uniqueOriginalStyles.hasOwnProperty(styleId)) {
            var originalStyle = uniqueOriginalStyles[styleId];
            var baseNewName = originalStyle.name + "_new";
            var finalNewName = baseNewName;
            var counter = 1;

            // Ensure the new style name is unique to avoid conflicts
            while (doc.paragraphStyles.itemByName(finalNewName).isValid) {
                finalNewName = baseNewName + "_" + counter;
                counter++;
            }

            // Duplicate the original style. This copies all its settings.
            var newStyle = originalStyle.duplicate();
            newStyle.name = finalNewName;
            
            // Store the mapping from the old style ID to the new style object
            styleMap[originalStyle.id] = newStyle;
            newStylesCreatedCount++;
        }
    }


    // 4. --- APPLY NEW STYLES ---
    // Now, loop through the paragraphs again and apply the new styles
    for (var k = 0; k < allParagraphs.length; k++) {
        var para = allParagraphs[k];
        var originalParaStyleId = para.appliedParagraphStyle.id;
        
        // Check if this paragraph's style is one that we duplicated
        if (styleMap[originalParaStyleId]) {
            // Apply the new style
            para.appliedParagraphStyle = styleMap[originalParaStyleId];
        }
    }

    // 5. --- FINAL FEEDBACK ---
    alert("Script finished!\n\n" + newStylesCreatedCount + " new paragraph styles were created and applied to " + allParagraphs.length + " paragraphs in your selection.");
}


// This `app.doScript` block makes the entire script operation a single undo step.
app.doScript(
    main,
    ScriptLanguage.JAVASCRIPT,
    undefined,
    UndoModes.ENTIRE_SCRIPT,
    "Disconnect Paragraph Styles"
);