Apple Launches Beta Version of New Siri Shortcuts App for iOS 12

[ipedro]

They need to focus on making Siri work properly before trying to extend it.

Shortcuts is both a fix and an extension of Siri.

The architecture being rolled out for Shortcuts will also be used for Apple's own native Siri actions, replacing an outdated Siri architecture that wasn't scalable.

The introduction of Shortcuts has been widely underrated. For all of you criticizing Siri for years, this is the fix and it's finally here. This is absolutely huge.

 

[Websnapx2]

I'm guessing that there will still be a gallery of sorts where people can add "recipes" created by other users. That would take a lot of leg work out of the shortcut creation and help out the average user.

It's what Workflow has, I see no reason to think it wouldn't be included in the final version.

 

[and 1989 others]

Well as workflow isn't fit for purpose anyway it sure as hell won't work with Siri. I wanted a two step work flow. On entering a specified GPS location make a telephone call (which opens my drive way gate). It couldn't.

 

[Websnapx2]

I'm really curious to see how complex it is to create useful workflows. Not everyone out there would want to spend the time to learn how to use a Workflow-esque interface so I hope Apple has done some work on making this extremely easy to use so that it is useful to a larger group of people.

Get Workflow and try it out — it's exactly how it will be, which is actually pretty easy.

 

[antmarobel]

Windows 8? Is it you?...

 

[Abazigal]

Well as workflow isn't fit for purpose anyway it sure as hell won't work with Siri. I wanted a two step work flow. On entering a specified GPS location make a telephone call (which opens my drive way gate). It couldn't.

Workflow doesn’t work that way. I think you are confusing it with tasker for Android. It’s easier to think of workflow / shortcuts as the ability to chain multiple actions together at the press of a button. Instead of launching apps, you launch processes.

 

[Marconelly]

Soooo....does this mean the Nest thermostat could work with Siri pretty soon?!

I don’t think this app alone would let you control Nest devices - not unless Nest adds support for Siri shortcuts anyways. I don’t see why they wouldn’t do it, but they’ve been reluctant and slow to add support for many Apple-related things so far, so it could be quite a wait.

I can tell you however that I’m adding support for Siri shortcuts into my Nest app (Thermo Watch, sorry for self-advertising) right now, and it already works great. You just record voice shortcut like “Start Cooling” and say that to Siri - and your Nest starts cooling. I expect to release this day and date the ios12 becomes publicly available. Siri shortcuts as a feature is truly great for this kind of apps, even though it doesn’t allow some of the finesse, like numerical input using voice.

 

[Macaholic868]

This coupled with custom SiriKit intents has potential to be huge.

Being able to say “Hey Siri, I’m going to bed” and have Siri automatically start a Sleep Cycle session and enable Do Not Disturb until morning would be fantastic. (I don’t have any HomeKit accessories, but if I did, it’d be amazing if they’d fold into that command, too.)

I’m sure there will be home kit integration. My wife and I bought the Philips Hue Color starter kit and loved it. Now we’ve got at least two bulbs in every room. It’s fun. Expensive but fun. There’s an app that times the lights and their colors to go with music. We love it. We fire up the HomePod and make the lights go with the music. Home kit lets us turn on the lights automatically at sunset and shuts them off when the sun is rising. We’ve decided we’ll do the blinds next and then our thermostat.

 

[Aston441]

Hmm. 35 years later Apple reintroduces macros.

That's some real innovation there I tell ya!

Edit: I've been doing all of the above for months with Alexa. It works, perfectly, right now.

 

[penajmz]

Anybody been approved?

 

[Rogifan]

Federico Viticci is like a kid at Christmas on Twitter. But I just can’t see the average iOS user creating something like this. Seems very much like a power user feature. It better not be a replacement for making Siri better. Users shouldn’t have to learn scripting to make Siri more useful. I hope Apple has a lot of pre built workflows that can be easily customized or they eventually have something similar to Alexa’s skills store. This better be an app/feature that Apple is constantly updating, not something that’s only updated once a year or with a point release.

 

[OldSchoolMacGuy]

Federico Viticci is like a kid at Christmas on Twitter. But I just can’t see the average iOS user creating something like this. Seems very much like a power user feature. It better not be a replacement for making Siri better. Users shouldn’t have to learn scripting to make Siri more useful. I hope Apple has a lot of pre built workflows that can be easily customized or they eventually have something similar to Alexa’s skills store. This better be an app/feature that Apple is constantly updating, not something that’s only updated once a year or with a point release.

That's why Apple is creating a marketplace that users can download pre-built workflows that others have created. App developers will also be able to offer ones that integrate with their apps.

I think giving these tools will really help people take advantage of workflows. And many will take them and adjust them for their own uses by making small modifications.

 

[Goner259er]

Like what?

Everything. And I’m an iPhone user. It dictates better, understands better, can actually explain things instead of “here look at this website I found”.

Etc etc

 

[penajmz]

I thought the app was suppose to have a bunch of commonly used shortcuts?

It’s the first beta....

 

[Keirasplace]

Everything. And I’m an iPhone user. It dictates better, understands better, can actually explain things instead of “here look at this website I found”.

Etc etc

All I hear is the same meme level trope "I got an Iphone" (tm)... and elsewhere its better level wide ranging false claim.
You can take your lame duck spiel on the road and make it better before trotting it out again.

 

[HerrlichkeitReinhardt]

https://developer.apple.com/download/

Then at "Shortcuts beta" click "Request".
[doublepost=1530813758][/doublepost]

As if Google Assistant is good for anything...

*Australian Accent*

Right here is what we call a triggered fanboy, who doesn't understand that everyone has preferences. these guys are everywhere in the tech world and will tell you that you're wrong for having a preference.

 

[cycomiko]

Can Google Assistant do this?

Can Cortana/Alexa/etc. do this?

One more reason Apple is ahead of them all.

No matter how many times YouTubers sponsored by competitors say how much that Siri sucks, because.... they said it...


PS: And Bixby

https://www.engadget.com/2018/02/23/google-assistant-routines-deeper-phone-integration/

https://www.engadget.com/2017/10/27/amazon-echo-review-2017-good-price-bad-sound/

Articles cover off both the google version and the amazon version of the electronic assistant macros

 

[ipedro]

Federico Viticci is like a kid at Christmas on Twitter. But I just can’t see the average iOS user creating something like this. Seems very much like a power user feature. It better not be a replacement for making Siri better. Users shouldn’t have to learn scripting to make Siri more useful. I hope Apple has a lot of pre built workflows that can be easily customized or they eventually have something similar to Alexa’s skills store. This better be an app/feature that Apple is constantly updating, not something that’s only updated once a year or with a point release.

Siri Shortcuts is actually 3 different things, all with the same name. Two of them are for the every day user and are brain dead simple: Siri's machine learning will monitor your activity and suggest shortcuts on the widgets screen and apps themselves will allow you to turn certain actions into a Siri shortcut with a single tap. Then there's this Shortcuts app which is clearly aimed at power users. Everybody gets something here.

It may not seem like it yet because app developers have yet to release updates to their apps, but Apple has gone from the back of the pack to beating Alexa to first place. Alexa needs to release specific "skills" while Siri now has the world's biggest App Store as infinite "skills". Anything you can do with an app, Siri could potentially do with each app's developer easily flipping a switch while Siri itself can enable these actions that it sees you regularly performing. It'll become more apparent as apps get updated and as you use iOS 12.

Finally, Siri Shortcuts is the front end of a much more far reaching change. The architecture of how Siri works has been rebuilt for Shortcuts and that architecture will serve as the foundation for Siri itself, replacing the old architecture which was limited because it wasn't scalable with this new architecture which is infinitely scalable.

If you've been asking for Siri to be fixed, this is it. It's here.

 

[DNichter]

I’m sure Alexa and Google can both do this, but Apple’s version will do this without invading your privacy and mining all your personal data. That’s a win for Apple users.

 

[gwhizkids]

Siri Shortcuts is actually 3 different things, all with the same name. Two of them are for the every day user and are brain dead simple: Siri's machine learning will monitor your activity and suggest shortcuts on the widgets screen and apps themselves will allow you to turn certain actions into a Siri shortcut with a single tap. Then there's this Shortcuts app which is clearly aimed at power users. Everybody gets something here.

It may not seem like it yet because app developers have yet to release updates to their apps, but Apple has gone from the back of the pack to beating Alexa to first place. Alexa needs to release specific "skills" while Siri now has the world's biggest App Store as infinite "skills". Anything you can do with an app, Siri could potentially do with each app's developer easily flipping a switch while Siri itself can enable these actions that it sees you regularly performing. It'll become more apparent as apps get updated and as you use iOS 12.

Finally, Siri Shortcuts is the front end of a much more far reaching change. The architecture of how Siri works has been rebuilt for Shortcuts and that architecture will serve as the foundation for Siri itself, replacing the old architecture which was limited because it wasn't scalable with this new architecture which is infinitely scalable.

If you've been asking for Siri to be fixed, this is it. It's here.

I, too, am enthusiastic about this. But I also will remain a bit skeptical until I see if developers (and app “owners”) are willing to cede the eyeballs they get from requiring users to use an app. Take McDonalds for example: I could see them opting out, so they can cross-sell via their own in-app advertising. It’ll be an internal battle for many app owners: the benefits of the advertising value of their apps vs the frictionless purchase process afforded by Siri Shortcut suggestions. How that battle is resolved by major retailers will determine the success of this initiative,I think.

 

[ekwipt]

Hoping for public beta as I don’t want to pay $120 for the privilege

 

[ipponrg]

Siri Shortcuts is actually 3 different things, all with the same name. Two of them are for the every day user and are brain dead simple: Siri's machine learning will monitor your activity and suggest shortcuts on the widgets screen and apps themselves will allow you to turn certain actions into a Siri shortcut with a single tap. Then there's this Shortcuts app which is clearly aimed at power users. Everybody gets something here.

It may not seem like it yet because app developers have yet to release updates to their apps, but Apple has gone from the back of the pack to beating Alexa to first place. Alexa needs to release specific "skills" while Siri now has the world's biggest App Store as infinite "skills". Anything you can do with an app, Siri could potentially do with each app's developer easily flipping a switch while Siri itself can enable these actions that it sees you regularly performing. It'll become more apparent as apps get updated and as you use iOS 12.

Finally, Siri Shortcuts is the front end of a much more far reaching change. The architecture of how Siri works has been rebuilt for Shortcuts and that architecture will serve as the foundation for Siri itself, replacing the old architecture which was limited because it wasn't scalable with this new architecture which is infinitely scalable.

If you've been asking for Siri to be fixed, this is it. It's here.

If this is what you think is an acceptable fix for Siri, then I think we've really found the sweet spot of settling for mediocrity. Siri Shortcuts to me, optimistically, sounds like a spin of an A/B test for Apple to figure out what types of things their users want Siri to do because they value their users' privacy. However, it feels they probably don't know how to build a true autonomous learning model with their current Siri architecture. Most former Siri engineers have mentioned how Apple has done a poor job managing it since they purchased the tech.

Chaining scripts together has been around for decades, let alone in Workflow. People had been using Automator/Alfred for years to accomplish similar tasks. I suppose this is different in that instead of pressing a button to start the script, you can verbally say it out loud.

 

[ersan191]

Hold on, so you can allow Siri to communicate with Nest now? If so this is a game changer for Smart Homes!

https://github.com/nfarina/homebridge
https://www.npmjs.com/package/homebridge-nest

 

[gwhizkids]

This Twitter thread from Federico Viticci is interesting:

https://twitter.com/viticci/status/1014966866094313472?s=21

 

[3rdiguy]

They are gonna have to simplify it more. Workflow was a bit too complicated for me and this doesn’t have appeal unless they can SIMPLIFY SIMPLIFY SIMPLIFY