I'm not familiar with those tools but I can say Workflow is surprisingly powerful when you dig deeper into the application. iOS is still limited with a lot of restrictions that will impact most apps.
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Apple Acquires Popular Automation App Workflow
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I'm not familiar with those tools but I can say Workflow is surprisingly powerful when you dig deeper into the application. iOS is still limited with a lot of restrictions that will impact most apps.
One of my most used workflow is the allocation of documents I scan into a specific folder I have on my desktop into the appropriate folder on my Mac (Via iCloud). That takes a large task off of my hands since I scan everything and shred paper as I have gone paperless.
Works fast and flawlessly.
Also made a workflow where I can take a photo and set up an email to those who are in it (based on photo metadata) and draft the email text and use my contacts to populate the addressee fields.
I agree it could be more powerful - but the potential is there and making this an integrated part of iOS would be great.
Yeah, the APIs aren't there to do stuff like that on iOS. There probably never will be.
So there's this: https://twitter.com/marcoarment/status/844918589803184129
from Marco Arment (of Instapaper):
"Don’t blame Workflow or Apple for removing Google, etc. actions in last night’s Workflow update. It was lawyers, not strategy.
A few weeks ago, Workflow asked all supported apps to sign a simple 1-page contract confirming permission to call our URL schemes. People sue Apple over ANYTHING, ALL THE TIME, so it makes sense for their lawyers to be overly cautious like this in an acquisition.
I was a bit put off by the need to review and enter into a legal contract for continued Overcast support in Workflow, but I signed it. Google’s lawyers probably ignored such a “small” request or decided it wasn’t worth the hassle or legal risks, so they didn’t sign.
And that’s why you can’t have nice things: not Apple being a jerk, but two sets of lawyers being overly cautious, which is their job."
Hopefully, if true, this gets worked out. And sorry for the salt I threw your way, Apple.
Edit: for readability
from Marco Arment (of Instapaper):
"Don’t blame Workflow or Apple for removing Google, etc. actions in last night’s Workflow update. It was lawyers, not strategy.
A few weeks ago, Workflow asked all supported apps to sign a simple 1-page contract confirming permission to call our URL schemes. People sue Apple over ANYTHING, ALL THE TIME, so it makes sense for their lawyers to be overly cautious like this in an acquisition.
I was a bit put off by the need to review and enter into a legal contract for continued Overcast support in Workflow, but I signed it. Google’s lawyers probably ignored such a “small” request or decided it wasn’t worth the hassle or legal risks, so they didn’t sign.
And that’s why you can’t have nice things: not Apple being a jerk, but two sets of lawyers being overly cautious, which is their job."
Hopefully, if true, this gets worked out. And sorry for the salt I threw your way, Apple.
Edit: for readability
I thought that might be my problem but within 15 minutes I had created a couple of workflows to do things that I do on ocassion that took too many manual steps. I am a quick fan of its potential.
Having something like this baked into iOS would be extremely powerful.
I'm not sure what to think of this takeover from Workflow by Apple. I did use it once every while to move a selection of photos from my phone to Dropbox instead of 1 by 1 or sync all as Dropbox app can do.
At the same time Apple did ask Cromulent Labs from the Launcher widget to again cripple their widget to remove the Settings URL schemes to the quick Settings features which is one of the best features to have. See also the discussion in that topic.
At the same time Apple did ask Cromulent Labs from the Launcher widget to again cripple their widget to remove the Settings URL schemes to the quick Settings features which is one of the best features to have. See also the discussion in that topic.
I wonder how Apple is going to make workflows more accessible to its users.
I bought this app when it was first released, but haven't gotten further beyond some very basic workflows and what I can download online. I am aware of the amazing things power users such as Federico of Macstories can do, but those are seriously beyond my ken.
With hundreds of millions of iOS users, this is clearly not going to be some complex productivity tool for a niche group of power users. Apple is going to give it the "Siri treatment"; i.e.: dumb it down but bake it into iOS and make it available to every user.
I bought this app when it was first released, but haven't gotten further beyond some very basic workflows and what I can download online. I am aware of the amazing things power users such as Federico of Macstories can do, but those are seriously beyond my ken.
With hundreds of millions of iOS users, this is clearly not going to be some complex productivity tool for a niche group of power users. Apple is going to give it the "Siri treatment"; i.e.: dumb it down but bake it into iOS and make it available to every user.
Blocking an app from the App Store without a valid reason wouldn't go over very well with anyone though. It would just make Apple look like a bully. In this case I doubt they will shut it down, but had they wanted it gone, buying it would be the easiest solution.
Video and audio encoding, photo editing (mainly attaching two photos together), saving videos from Youtube, Facebook and others, uploading files to cloud services, making GIF images, scanning and generating QR codes, and more.
I'd love to hear the examples that make more sense on a mobile device compared to a desktop/laptop.
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I mean, #3 especially is laughable. Since the acquisition there has been a release that has excluded apps from workflow. Now you're suggesting that Apple makes it a requirement that the app supports workflow? lol.
Anything that takes longer in the confines of a mobile screen. I can easily copy and paste a watermark onto a couple of images on the desktop but that is a much longer tasks on the iPhone. I have set this up as a Workflow using this app and it is a breeze when it comes to preparing photos for ebay and the like.
I also use it for some canned messages that I send on a regular basis. Copy and paste on mobile is not as fluid or quick on mobile as it is on the desktop but Workflow again automates this for me.
I could automate these tasks on the desktop as well but they are less of an issue on the bigger platform so I don't feel the need.
If you're only applying a watermark to one or two photo's, then sure it makes it easier on a phone to use workflow. But it is just as handy to tap a button on a Mac and have it done to a hundred photos.
Of course you could use the built in keyboard shortcuts to enter common phrases. Seems like you're making it longer than necessary.
Regarding the watermarks, I use the iPad to take pictures of items I'm selling on eBay for example, then use Workflow to resize them, add a watermark and save ready for adding in the eBay app. You can do tons on the Mac at a time but I can do the whole process on the iPad which saves me taking images and then transferring these to the Mac to process and post.
I know you can save shortcuts with the iOS keyboard, I already do that for common short phrases such as email addresses etc. I could also easily save the repeated messages in Notes and copy and paste when required. I would also need to open up the Messages app though, add all the recipients, add the message and send. A single tap in Workflow gives me a message that is already addressed and populated and I just tap send.
Those are just two usage cases where Workflow has proved the most efficient way of doing it on iOS for myself. There are a few others.
I have a workflow which searches the App Store for an app and copies the link to my clipboard. This then allows me to paste the link in a forum like here. It can even be modified to add an affiliate link should you so desire.
I am not sure if this process can be automated on a Mac, but again, I do most of my forum browsing on my iOS devices.
I'm also really curious if Apple will make iOS a lot smarter now with this takeover.
Federico did wrote quite a few good articles about it and also talked about it a few Canvas podcasts (1,2) as well.
So, uh, are there any good workflow alternatives? Asking for a friend
Other Workflow like apps you mean? There is IFTT and Launch Center Pro and there are also more simple ones such as Launcher widget, Magic Launcher widget and AirLaunch Pro.
Looks to me like there is a lot going on regarding automation at Apple. First Sal Soghoian's position as Manager for Automated Technologies at Apple is eliminated, then a couple months later Apple announces it purchased Workflow and it's developers. It was sad to hear about Sal, but I'm guessing there is some restructuring going on, as part of a larger consolidation (i.e., Apple getting out of the display business, out of the router business, etc.). My guess is that automation will remain, and will likely become cross-platform for macOS and iOS.
Ironic, as this reminds me of when Apple bought out the company behind Siri (as that was originally slated for iOS, Android, and Blackberry OSes). I figured that would give Apple the leg up on the voice assistant contest, but I was shocked to learn years later, Apple was falling behind despite such an acquisition!
I'm thinking here, it's #2. However, in practice, and if history repeats itself, the result may end up being #1
Yup, that definitely allays some fears of the app being deprecated. Hopefully bodes well for the future.
That's great but still odd that some features it had haven't been introduced with this version. Let's hope they will add it in the near future again. I still wonder why they removed existing functionalities/support for third party apps. See also this post on MacStories about the update.
Nothing to wonder about, has been stated several times that it was because of vendors not signing contracts allowing Workflow to utilise their APIs/URLs.
Thanks for sharing. So is it that existing contracts ended at the same time Apple took over or did @workflow never had any contract with those parties. I hope that Google Street View will be added soon again since Google Chrome is implented in the latest update so they obviously have a contract with Google.
Lets hope that Telegram and Uber are added soon again as well when they get the contracts. I think it's only off interest for those parties to be part of Workflow so all users keep using their apps/services and be available in all kind of ways.
According to Marco Arment, about a week or so before the takeover Workflow sent out the 1-page contract that gave them permission to call back to their app. I forget the technical details.
The leading theory was that as part of the acquisition, Apple forced Workflow to get these legal protections in place. it is assumed that companies that did not sign this one-pager were removed from Workflow.