This shell script will look up the definition of a Mac OS Error Code. The code is based on This MacOSXHints Hint, with some modifications.

#!/bin/sh

GREP="/usr/bin/grep"

SYSLIBFRAME="/System/Library/Frameworks"
CORESERVFRAME="$SYSLIBFRAME/CoreServices.framework"
CURRENTFRAME="$CORESERVFRAME/Versions/Current/Frameworks"
CARBONHEADERS="$CURRENTFRAME/CarbonCore.framework/Headers"

$GREP -- "$1," $CARBONHEADERS/MacErrors.h 

Requires the developer tools installed.

Save it in a file somewhere (named, for example 'errorCodeShellScript') and off you go

To Use:

errorCodeShellScript -60

BBEdit Unix Filter Version

I also created a version that runs as a BBEdit filter. This version requires some extra work, because BBEdit passes filters a file that contains the selection, instead of the selected values directly. This makes sense of course, it just adds some code.

#!/bin/sh

GREP="/usr/bin/grep"

SYSLIBFRAME="/System/Library/Frameworks"
CORESERVFRAME="$SYSLIBFRAME/CoreServices.framework"
CURRENTFRAME="$CORESERVFRAME/Versions/Current/Frameworks"
CARBONHEADERS="$CURRENTFRAME/CarbonCore.framework/Headers"

{ 
        read lookfor
} < "$1"
$GREP -- "$lookfor," $CARBONHEADERS/MacErrors.h 

The major difference is the read block, where I put the contents of the passed file into a variable, then pass that variable to grep.

Save it in the Unix Filters folder in the Unix Support folder of the BBEdit Support folder.

To Use the BBEdit Filter version:

Enter the error code in a BBEdit window (for example, enter "-43" then select it), then choose the filter.

The filter will return the error code definition if one can be found, and nothing if there is no such error code.