The Shortcuts app, formerly known as Workflow, is a powerful workflow application. Does that sound like Chinese? Suppose it is an app that lets us show you step by step what we want you to do. The use is great, because we can do many things in a row without pressing a single button. As always, the example is better than most definitions.
Back home, for example
Let's start with something simple, in our daily routine when we leave work and send a message to a relative showing us that we're on our way, working on opening mode Don't interrupt To avoid the final distractions of work, we put on our new AirPods and listen to our favorite podcast traveling home. Well, all we have done is what we call a workflow, series of actions the chains appear in sequence to form a work
Within the workflow we find actions, for each movement to create a flow, for example the following are the following:
- Send a message
- Activate mode Don't interrupt.
- Play a podcast.
By doing all the steps we completed our workflow. And it's about completing this flow where the application is Shortcuts You can give us a hand.
Our first shortcut
Application Shortcuts It allows us to add, to the available catalog, the various actions we want to perform when executing the shortcut in question, following the example that will build together the return function shortcut. The steps are as follows:
- We open the app Shortcuts on our iPhone or iPad.
- Press the "+" button on the top right.
- Press Add action.
- At the top we use a search engine to find the action we like, now we will write it "Message" and we will press Search.
- In the section Actions we will choose Send a message. We've added our first action, now we will reveal your details.
- Click "Message" that appears on the screen is a blue and gray background.
- We write something like this "Hi, I've already left and I'm coming home :)"
- Click Recipients which also appears after blue and gray.
- We write the name of the contact we want to text and select it from the list that appears.
- Press All right.
- Click Show more.
- Disabling it Show up for execution for a message to be sent without us you need to confirm it.
- Press the big blue "+" button to add the next action.
- Look at us "Do not disturb".
- We select * Define "Do Not Disturb".
- Click Disable (blue and gray background) until we see Carry outYes, that's what we want to do.
- Press the blue "+" button to add the last action.
- Look at us "Podcast".
- We choose Play a podcast.
- Click Podcast (blue and gray background).
- We pick one of our podcast listings.
- Click Next.
- We give shortcuts the name, for example, "Go home."
- Press All right.
MEETINGS! We built our first shortcut. Before examining how it is going let's take a look at the visual summary of the steps we have taken.
Run the shortcut
The shortcuts we create are stored in the same application Shortcuts, on the tab My shortcuts. To drive them we can go to the app or ask Siri. The steps are as follows.
- We open the app Shortcuts.
- We add a tab My shortcuts.
- We click our shortcut Go home.
And we can tell Siri: "Hey Siri, go home".
In addition to doing anything else the message will be sent, interrupt mode will be used and our optional podcast will start playing.
And this is, at least for now, the Shortcuts app. By the number of actions available in the app i the possibilities are almost endless. If you're interested in telling more about the app, let me know in the comments.