MacStories Shares Useful Collection of 150 Custom iOS Shortcuts

[MacRumors]

Apple in iOS 12 introduced a new Shortcuts app, built on the Workflow app that it acquired in 2017. Shortcuts lets you automate tasks, simplifying everything from calculating a tip to sharing an Apple Music song.

Shortcuts can do an endless number of things, but it can be tough to find useful new Shortcuts if you're not well versed in building them yourself. MacStories' Federico Viticci, known for creating useful Shortcuts, this morning announced a collection of Shortcuts that he's created over the years.

The MacStories Shortcuts archive includes 150 shortcuts at launch, but Viticci plans to add more over time. The archive is neatly organized into various categories, and everything is available for free. MacStories says that anyone is free to download, modify, and redistribute shortcuts from the archive to meet their needs.

Viticci updated and adapted all of the shortcuts that he's been using in the Workflow app for years, so this is a robust collection filled with automations for developers, writers, and the average iPhone user.

There are shortcuts for copying App Store release notes, saving screenshots, getting affiliate links, and more, and that's just in the App Store section.

Other useful shortcuts include a file downloader for iCloud Drive, a PDF creation tool, an option for zipping a collection of files, logging weight in the Health app, calculating average heart rate for the last two weeks, adding frames to screenshots from Apple products, getting images from a webpage, and many more.

If you want additional shortcuts, the Shortcuts subreddit on Reddit is also an excellent resource for finding new content in addition to the MacStories archive.

Article Link: MacStories Shares Useful Collection of 150 Custom iOS Shortcuts

 

[Classie]

Brilliant! Thanks for the tip

 

[Tom359]

Can someone enlighten me as to why you need some of these shortcuts? It seems to me the functionality is already built in for a lot of these. I've seen some very complicated shortcuts for very specific use cases, but many of these seem too simple to need. For example, one of the shortcuts listed gives the weather forecast for the day. "Hey Siri, what's the weather for today" does the same thing. Why do I need a shortcut?

 

[AngerDanger]

Seems like there are a lot of ways this one could go wrong…

@keysofanxiety, this might be up your alley.

 

[err404]

Can someone enlighten me as to why you need some of these shortcuts? It seems to me the functionality is already built in for a lot of these. I've seen some very complicated shortcuts for very specific use cases, but many of these seem too simple to need. For example, one of the shortcuts listed gives the weather forecast for the day. "Hey Siri, what's the weather for today" does the same thing. Why do I need a shortcut?

You can keep a familiar command but customize to the output you want. For example I could override “navigate Home” to use Google Maps and send my ETA to my wife.

 

[JohnApples]

The most useful one I’ve found so far is sending a mass text without forming a group chat.

 

[itsmilo]

How do people remember any of these?

So far I am sticking to Alexa turning on lights and setting up timers or asking for the weather.

 

[keysofanxiety]

Seems like there are a lot of ways this one could go wrong…

View attachment 825034

@keysofanxiety, this might be up your alley.

Oh boy. There’s a strong possibility you’ll be receiving a few more of my mirror pictures in weird and wonderful poses. Ever seen an oiled man flexing next to a television remote?

Sorry in advance AD.

 

[GGJstudios]

I'm looking for a shortcut to go to the App Store and automatically install all available app updates. Having to do this manually every day is a pain. Any ideas?

 

[justperry]

Can someone enlighten me as to why you need some of these shortcuts? It seems to me the functionality is already built in for a lot of these. I've seen some very complicated shortcuts for very specific use cases, but many of these seem too simple to need. For example, one of the shortcuts listed gives the weather forecast for the day. "Hey Siri, what's the weather for today" does the same thing. Why do I need a shortcut?

Yup, same here, I see no reason to use this, I can see a use for complicated steps in Automator on a Mac, not so much on iOS.

I'm looking for a shortcut to go to the App Store and automatically install all available app updates. Having to do this manually every day is a pain. Any ideas?

Isn't there a toggle for automatic updates.

Edit: Mmm, I thought there was, it's only for Software Updates, and the other toggle is for purchased Apps and content.

 

[Capeto]

I'm looking for a shortcut to go to the App Store and automatically install all available app updates. Having to do this manually every day is a pain. Any ideas?

This literally takes 3 presses: Open App Store, Press Updates tab, Press “Update All”

Alternatively: Settings > iTunes & App Stores > Toggle “Updates” under “Automatic Downloads” to on

 

[travoose]

Anyone know if you can, how you can go about sending the most recent photo taken via text/iMessage, but instead of having it ask you to type the contact name or number, have Siri fill it in...For example, I say, “Siri, send my most recent photo to Jim Doe”...Siri will create a message but not take the name I used but rather force me to type in the contact name. Been trying to figure this out for a few days, might not even be possible.

 

[Bin Cook]

Created one to check 1Password passwords against HaveIBeenPwned and got a take down notice (not from Troy).

Funny that Watchtower doesn’t highlight known pwned passwords with a subscription... (I know as I’ve set up pwned password deliberately to test it).

Moral of the story: don’t waste your time building a shortcut if you are extending an app you didn’t write yourself.

 

[GGJstudios]

This literally takes 3 presses: Open App Store, Press Updates tab, Press “Update All”

Alternatively: Settings > iTunes & App Stores > Toggle “Updates” under “Automatic Downloads” to on

Thanks, but I know about that setting and it's already on. It doesn't work. Even with it on, I go to the App Store, tap Updates, drag the screen down and it will find many more apps that need to be updated. Then I tap to update all. It's not a big deal, but it would be nice if the process was truly automatic, rather than having to go through that process every day.

 

[Howard2k]

Very cool, thanks.

 

[star-affinity]

Thanks, but I know about that setting and it's already on. It doesn't work. Even with it on, I go to the App Store, tap Updates, drag the screen down and it will find many more apps that need to be updated. Then I tap to update all. It's not a big deal, but it would be nice if the process was truly automatic, rather than having to go through that process every day.

But that's probably because the updates were just posted and the auto update didn't kick in yet – not sure how often it does that, but I'm quite certain they aren't ”pushed”, i.e. the updates on people's devices start as soon as they are posted.

 

[GGJstudios]

But that's probably because the updates were just posted and the auto update didn't kick in yet – not sure how often it does that, but I'm quite certain they aren't ”pushed”, i.e. the updates on people's devices start as soon as they are posted.

That's a good theory, but it isn't the case. If I manually update one device, then wait a day to update another, the same updates that were available the previous day are still waiting to be installed. The auto-update simply doesn't work.

 

[Bryan Bowler]

I need a shortcut for tapping my phone. It's too hard of a task for me to do.