Show text using Large Type without relying on third-party applications Apple has this amazing feature called 'Large Type', chiefly implemented into Address Book. When you look up a contact, you can right-click the phone number and click 'Large Type', and it will display it very largely across your screen.



This function is relatively popular for many uses. Users who watched Leo Laporte on TWiT.tv on weekends will see Large Type being used to display wrap reminders to him during his radio show when his iMac is on camera.

As far as I'm aware, the only ways to invoke this are (1) the Address Book function as demonstrated above, or (2) directly via Quicksilver's Large Type plugin, or (3) Applescript invoking a function of Quicksilver or some other application that supports Large Type.

Since I've stopped using Quicksilver, and don't use LaunchBar, I'm left high and dry for putting arbitrary text into a Large Type banner.

Since it's obviously a core feature of OS X, how do we invoke it with arbitrary text under Lion?
A slight variation  on @iolsmit answer.

Do the same first action.
But when you select 'where' to save in the Banner action.
Choose other.
The Choose folder dialogue will pop up.

Now press down the keys: command + Shift +G

This will slide down will show up. 



In its text field; Type or copy &amp; paste: 

 ~/Library/Caches/TemporaryItems


Then click GO. This will take you to the Users temporary folder.

Choose it as your selected folder. It will show as 'TemporaryItems'

Now add the action: 'Run Shell Script' in place of 'Open Images in Preview'

The the 'Run Shell Script'; Use its drop down menu for Pass input: as Argument

clear out in text that is already in the large text field. (i.e cat)

And type or paste this in.

/usr/bin/qlmanage -p "$@"


Save you new service.  And test

What happens is a new file is saved in your temp folder and the quick looked to display it on the screen. 
Hit space to dismiss it as normal.