AppleScript to Shutdown

Using any 'normal' AppleScript (such as telling System Events to shut down) would have the same apparent effect as choosing Shut Down from the Apple menu - that is, it will iterate through each open applications giving the app a chance to clean up.

This may include giving the user the option to save their work in progress, which obviates your 'no interface whatsoever' request.

The only way to ensure that doesn't happen is to either a) only use applications that you can script directly and that have an option to quit silently (few do), or b) force a shutdown of the system (which runs the risk of corrupting files that are open/in use (a really, really bad idea for applications with active files). The latter approach can be achieved via something like:

do shell script "shutdown -h now" with administrator privileges username "<youradminusername>" password "<youradminpassword>"

Although there are caveats of posting a script that includes your username and password in it.

--You didn't specify your operating system. If it's Snow Leopard, then copy the script below and paste it into a fresh AppleScript Editor window. If it's an earlier operating system, paste it into a fresh Script Editor window.

--In either case, save the script to the desktop as an application named "Quit Apps & Shut Down." If you double click on that, it should do what you requested -- but note that it will ask you (for each app) whether you want to save unsaved changes (if there are any). (There may be some instances where an open app will prevent shutdown.)

tell application "System Events"
 set ProcNm_ to name of every application process whose visible is true
 repeat with i_ from 1 to count items of ProcNm_
 set TarProc_ to item i_ of ProcNm_
 try
 tell application TarProc_ to quit
 end try
 end repeat
 shut down
end tell

+tell application "Finder" to shut down+