Siri Shortcuts, Screen Time, and iMessage Screen Effects Coming to macOS This Year

[gwhizkids]

Well, I'm one of those "trolls". I own 5 apple device (all aged at this point), and I'm scratching my head trying to figure out what I'm going to replace them with in the future because staying in the product ecosystem is simply no longer a good option. Believe it or not, some (if not most) of the people you call "trolls" are dissatisfied former fans.

Believe it or not, that’s fine. My target is really those who come in and pronounce everything “useless” or “stupid”, as if they speak for everyone. People would do well to temper their grand pronouncements with a little humility: “for me, it doesn’t fit any needs” or “I haven’t been able to learn how that works”. Nope. What we get here are absolute statements.

 

[EdT]

I realize this is about allowing the Shortcut feature to be used on macs, but I haven't found Shortcuts to be very versatile on my iPhone so I don't know that I would even look at the feature on Mac OS. I will preface this by saying that:

1. I tried to write shortcuts soon after they were first introduced, and there weren't a lot of viable examples OR the examples didn't work when I tried to automate some other function in a similar fashion. Many time the hooks were not available in the software to link to other software or functions.
2. Most of the things that I want to Shortcut are pretty damn basic functions. I'm not stacking program on top of feature on top of website access or anything. It's quicker on my iMac to just use the mouse and the 4 or 5 clicks at worst than spend time getting the shortcut to work.
3. I don't use my iMac for work. And with the rise of subscription software I'm not doing much beyond simple document editing or filing. For the amount of time I spend editing photos I don't need photoshop or a PS clone. I wanted to do video editing but with the connectivity of modern macs getting less and also more proprietary my ability to import video not taken on my iPhone has become harder and harder. Even the Apple store tells me that Windows is now a better platform, or just send it to a shop that converts super 8 or other sources to digital.

As I said, I haven't looked at it in quite some time, there may be many many more pre made or user made shortcuts than there were before, and much more software tie-ins than were available then. But honestly, I don't really want to develop code, I want to use my computer. If a feature or process is so helpful that making a Shortcut turns a tedious problem into a simple or no problem then don't expect me to write code to do that function(s), unless what I am trying to do is so unusual or specific that there wouldn't be a benefit to a lot of people. If it's that useful the software manufacturer can release a Shortcut. I don't use my home computer to write code anymore, as I do that all day and I'm past the point where I want to do it all evening as well.

 

[cmaier]

I realize this is about allowing the Shortcut feature to be used on macs, but I haven't found Shortcuts to be very versatile on my iPhone so I don't know that I would even look at the feature on Mac OS. I will preface this by saying that:

1. I tried to write shortcuts soon after they were first introduced, and there weren't a lot of viable examples OR the examples didn't work when I tried to automate some other function in a similar fashion. Many time the hooks were not available in the software to link to other software or functions.
2. Most of the things that I want to Shortcut are pretty damn basic functions. I'm not stacking program on top of feature on top of website access or anything. It's quicker on my iMac to just use the mouse and the 4 or 5 clicks at worst than spend time getting the shortcut to work.
3. I don't use my iMac for work. And with the rise of subscription software I'm not doing much beyond simple document editing or filing. For the amount of time I spend editing photos I don't need photoshop or a PS clone. I wanted to do video editing but with the connectivity of modern macs getting less and also more proprietary my ability to import video not taken on my iPhone has become harder and harder. Even the Apple store tells me that Windows is now a better platform, or just send it to a shop that converts super 8 or other sources to digital.

As I said, I haven't looked at it in quite some time, there may be many many more pre made or user made shortcuts than there were before, and much more software tie-ins than were available then. But honestly, I don't really want to develop code, I want to use my computer. If a feature or process is so helpful that making a Shortcut turns a tedious problem into a simple or no problem then don't expect me to write code to do that function(s), unless what I am trying to do is so unusual or specific that there wouldn't be a benefit to a lot of people. If it's that useful the software manufacturer can release a Shortcut. I don't use my home computer to write code anymore, as I do that all day and I'm past the point where I want to do it all evening as well.

That’s fine, too.

The target audience for shortcuts right now fall into two categories. First is single-step shortcuts to just repeat things you do a lot. Siri floats these up as suggestions in various places, apps may have “add Siri shortcuts” buttons for that purpose, etc. These are intended to be used by a wider audience.

The second category is chaining together steps. This is intended for the same audience that things like AppleScript and Automator were aimed at. Not necessarily “programmers,” but people who like to fiddle, search for scripts on the internet, etc.

The goal, eventually, is for the OS to say “hey, I see that when you come home you typically unlock your front door, turn on the lights in the living room, lock your front door after 5 minutes, and turn the TV to the news. Would you like me to create a shortcut for that? Would you like me to just do that whenever you come home?”

 

[EdT]

That’s fine, too.

The target audience for shortcuts right now fall into two categories. First is single-step shortcuts to just repeat things you do a lot. Siri floats these up as suggestions in various places, apps may have “add Siri shortcuts” buttons for that purpose, etc. These are intended to be used by a wider audience.

The second category is chaining together steps. This is intended for the same audience that things like AppleScript and Automator were aimed at. Not necessarily “programmers,” but people who like to fiddle, search for scripts on the internet, etc.

The goal, eventually, is for the OS to say “hey, I see that when you come home you typically unlock your front door, turn on the lights in the living room, lock your front door after 5 minutes, and turn the TV to the news. Would you like me to create a shortcut for that? Would you like me to just do that whenever you come home?”

Your coming home example sounds easy, but I bet in real life it isn't. The reason is not all Apples fault, its that HomeKit adoption by third party suppliers has been slow and originally Shortcut adoption was also slow-especially on Homekit items. So how you would Shortcut company 'A's light pattern and TV control may be different with company 'B' and impossible on company 'C'. I really haven't seen a lot on Shortcuts via Apple and I haven't seen anything via 3rd party suppliers.

Once again, I haven't spent a lot of time looking. I did look at automating things around my house and decided that Homekit wasn't viable then and everyone else was a security risk, so I didn't do it. There are more Homekit compatible devices now I may look again.

 

[chucker23n1]

I remember people like you making similar comments back then too.

Back then it was people whining about the Dock being useless and if only Apple had modernized OS 9.

 

[cmaier]

Your coming home example sounds easy, but I bet in real life it isn't. The reason is not all Apples fault, its that HomeKit adoption by third party suppliers has been slow and originally Shortcut adoption was also slow-especially on Homekit items. So how you would Shortcut company 'A's light pattern and TV control may be different with company 'B' and impossible on company 'C'. I really haven't seen a lot on Shortcuts via Apple and I haven't seen anything via 3rd party suppliers.

Once again, I haven't spent a lot of time looking. I did look at automating things around my house and decided that Homekit wasn't viable then and everyone else was a security risk, so I didn't do it. There are more Homekit compatible devices now I may look again.

There are a ton of shortcuts you can do with anything that supports homekit or airplay 2. And now with airplay 2 being built into most modern TV sets, it will become even easier. Homekit adoption is also gradually picking up steam. But you’re looking at the trees instead of the forest. I was just giving an example of the kinds of things that an idealized shortcut system would detect and offer to automate. It could be something completely different, like “I see that it’s 9:30AM on a workday, and you are at the office, and now is the time you usually order a burrito from chipotle. Would you like to setup a shortcut for that or have me just offer to do it for you each day?” Or “i see that you’re in your car at 5:00 and probably going home, should i take the ecobee’s out of standby mode and turn on the outlet connected to the instapot?” Or “i see you got an email from Mike at work, which seems to be referring to the Penske file, and it has attachments. Would you like me to save those into the Penske folder for you and make a shortcut to do that in the future?”

 

[DeepIn2U]

More useless features on macOS - remember when there were reasons to look forward to a new version of OS X?

Thank you! At least someone gets this! Man I really wish Forstall and B. Serlet were at Apple making OSX into something revered and powerful and efficient!

https://www.wired.com/2011/03/bertrand-serlet-leaves-apple/

Since Emoji, TouchBar and macOS rebranding (because that’s the last time Mr Hair worked at apple) it seems we’re getting face lifts while the real under core of MACH is during and getting old.

My last work place some but used to say Macs are an over glorified web browser and at this rate he’s going to be right in 10yrs. Sad!

Why on earth do Macs need “Shortcuts” in their limited design when AppleScript can do so much more?! Oh wait sorry because so many employees or users in the user base have no clue what it is or how it works or what you can do with it.

iOS and macOS will combine soon and Mac will no longer have OS X or Mach based kernel left under federighi.

 

[iop]

“Fusion drives” are not ancient.

Technically they are just 6-7 years old, but during that time ssd drives became so cheap that it just doesn't make sense to have a fusion drive anymore. Of course fusion drives made sense back then, and obviously they offered a superior performance relative to hard drives; but even back then it was clear that an ssd + hard drive combo was a better (although more expensive) option. At this point installing fusion drive into imacs is analogous to selling iphones with NiMH batteries. There is nothing wrong with NiMH — it's a great battery chemistry... it's just that Li-ion is a better choice at this point.

 

[DeepIn2U]

The truth is, with sub 10% marketshare on the desktop/laptop market, they can't put money into MacOS development.

If Apple had the creativity, they would do something so great on MacOS, that it would essentially force consumers to have a mac. For me, there's a huge draw compared to Windows, but it's not enough for the commoner to switch over. A good start would be improving graphics performance for gaming. Mac has for years been outrageously behind in GPU performance. Anyone who does any gaming at all must own a PC.

Federighi did have some creativity for the Mac, he renamed OS X to macOS!
[doublepost=1555781171][/doublepost]

I hope this is a completely new version of iMessage on macOS, the actual version always has issue and sync bad while it is perfect on iPad and iPhone

Well iMessage in iCloud was supposed to resolve sync issues yet still an issue on Watch to iPhone and Watch to iPad and Mac.
[doublepost=1555781339][/doublepost]

There are a ton of shortcuts you can do with anything that supports homekit or airplay 2. And now with airplay 2 being built into most modern TV sets, it will become even easier. Homekit adoption is also gradually picking up steam. But you’re looking at the trees instead of the forest. I was just giving an example of the kinds of things that an idealized shortcut system would detect and offer to automate. It could be something completely different, like “I see that it’s 9:30AM on a workday, and you are at the office, and now is the time you usually order a burrito from chipotle. Would you like to setup a shortcut for that or have me just offer to do it for you each day?” Or “i see that you’re in your car at 5:00 and probably going home, should i take the ecobee’s out of standby mode and turn on the outlet connected to the instapot?” Or “i see you got an email from Mike at work, which seems to be referring to the Penske file, and it has attachments. Would you like me to save those into the Penske folder for you and make a shortcut to do that in the future?”

Screw offering a burrito I want Siri to KNOW my toppings burrito size and place the damn order using ApplePay at that time and remind me that it’s waiting and ready for pickup and quickest route there!

That’s where Siri Shortcuts is lacking!

PS: when it comes to my burritos I don’t play around!

 

[cmaier]

Federighi did have some creativity for the Mac, he renamed OS X to macOS!
[doublepost=1555781171][/doublepost]

Well iMessage in iCloud was supposed to resolve sync issues yet still an issue on Watch to iPhone and Watch to iPad and Mac.
[doublepost=1555781339][/doublepost]

Screw offering a burrito I want Siri to KNOW my toppings burrito size and place the damn order using ApplePay at that time and remind me that it’s waiting and ready for pickup and quickest route there!

That’s where Siri Shortcuts is lacking!

PS: when it comes to my burritos I don’t play around!

I don’t want it ordering because I may prefer a sandwich that day and I might not decide until the last minute. Before spending money I want my device to ask me. That’s why I don’t use the amazon auto-refill stuff either.

 

[henryhbk]

Hopefully they will throw in more emojis that I don't use. /s I mean most of the iOS stuff in mac OS seems like a forced fit. I mean that using siri on a desktop (I did use OS9's voice control actually but it worked to actually do mac-things), where somethings on the computer honestly take longer via siri compared to mouse/keyboard.

 

[DeepIn2U]

I don’t want it ordering because I may prefer a sandwich that day and I might not decide until the last minute. Before spending money I want my device to ask me. That’s why I don’t use the amazon auto-refill stuff either.

Ah! I’m with you there but when using Burrito as your example my mind would change hehehe. But I’ve yet to see Siri Shortcuts work other than suggest a name to invoke something in an app supporting it. Far to vague and useless for me; yet I have not fully explored it yet. Gave up when nobody could figure out a way to use to block robo calls from unknown numbers or detect last suffix of a business and block them too.

 

[cmaier]

Ah! I’m with you there but when using Burrito as your example my mind would change hehehe. But I’ve yet to see Siri Shortcuts work other than suggest a name to invoke something in an app supporting it. Far to vague and useless for me; yet I have not fully explored it yet. Gave up when nobody could figure out a way to use to block robo calls from unknown numbers or detect last suffix of a business and block them too.

The advantage I have is I write my own apps. So. I have a bunch of Siri shortcuts just for me. I can pull up specific case law or federal rules by asking Siri, or find out what my daughter’s target swim times for an even are, or what her next heat and lane assignment are, etc. There’s a lot you can do as long as developers support hooks, and more and more they do. What’s missing is parameterizing. There isn’t an easy way for a developer to say “show me Rule ____” means open my app, and tell me how the blank was filled in.

 

[neliason]

The Messages screen effects make sense to bring to macOS. The other changes make sense too, even if I personally care less about them. But what I really want is for Apple to fix several bugs that keep my setup from just working, and update some of their nix programs that make Mac such a great development machine. As much as I hate Windows they've at least added a Linux subsystem making development better on their machines. Mac needs to figure out if they are really still a desktop computer company.

 

[aevan]

More useless features on macOS - remember when there were reasons to look forward to a new version of OS X?

I’m looking forward to shortcuts very much. I made some really good ones for my Bear/Things/Fantastical workflows that help me work, and can’t wait to be able to use them on a Mac. And no, I can’t make them work the same in Automator.

So, before you say something is useless, perhaps consider that it just may not be for you.
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Well, I'm one of those "trolls". I own 5 apple device (all aged at this point), and I'm scratching my head trying to figure out what I'm going to replace them with in the future because staying in the product ecosystem is simply no longer a good option. Believe it or not, some (if not most) of the people you call "trolls" are dissatisfied former fans.

Dissatisfied former fans who come here to nag about things?
[doublepost=1555797341][/doublepost]

Thank you! At least someone gets this!

No, it’s just someone who doesn’t understand how great Shortcuts can be.
[doublepost=1555797567][/doublepost]

Why on earth do Macs need “Shortcuts” in their limited design when AppleScript can do so much more?!

Because of 3rd party apps, ease of use and Continuity. I want to be able to use the same developer designed actions for 3rd party apps and I want to use the same automation I have set up on my iPad on my Mac, too.

 

[street.cory]

Can’t even get custom ring and text tones mirroring what’s on iPhone. Billion dollar piece of crap company.

Trillion.

 

[Abazigal]

You know, I don't get the shortcuts thing either. It might save time to string stuff together, but honestly, there's nothing I do on the phone that requires more than a few clicks, and so it all seems like so much effort for little return. Maybe I'm not the target audience, I guess. The ONE time I had a shortcut that I thought was worth it, it stopped working in a month and that was that. Gave up after that. I don't see why I'd use it on the mac. Besides, haven't we had automator forever?

I used to think the same way too, and I toyed around with the workflow app (before it was acquired by Apple and renamed Shortcuts) for more than 2 years without much to show for it. It was only recently that something clicked and I began to tinker with the shortcuts app with renewed focus.

The trick I learned with automation is that you need to always be on the lookout for repeated actions you carry out on a regular basis. These are ripe to be streamlined.

For instance, I was charged with planning relief for teachers who were away from school last term (Jan to March). Based on my experience last year, I came up with 4 shortcuts.

1) Relief - I have a google calendar to record the staff who will be away from school for that day. This shortcut lets me quickly enter the necessary details into a new entry in google calendar.

2) Who needs relief - grabs the number of calendar events in the relief calendar and shows it to me. Basically shows me who will not be around for that day.

3) Open google doc - a ton of the google documents I use for planning relief is there, such as teacher timetables. I use this for quickly accessing them.

4) Email relief lesson plan - sends an email to the entire school, containing the link to the relief planning document. I had a variable to insert the date for that day, so it saves me having to type a different date every day.

The improvement here isn’t just time, but also the removal of friction, especially when these shortcuts are activated with Siri. The draw is that I only have to code them once. I am done with my relief stint for the year, I used those shortcuts every day (some multiple times), and they will still be around for when my turn comes again next year.

The funny thing here is that I have never touched the Automator app. It’s probably a very powerful and versatile tool for whatever the hardcore users here use it for. I just never got the hang of it, and maybe that’s the issue. Apple is not going to waste resources supporting a niche feature that only a small, albeit vocal group of users use. Better to just bring shortcuts to macOS, where the Apple team can better focus on just maintaining one feature set rather than 2.

I think what Apple wants to do is automation more accessible to the masses. I am not sure if I will use shortcuts as much on the Mac, but I am willing to give it a go.

 

[calstanford]

To run Mac OS you need a Mac. Does Apple still make Macs?

They do. But they REALLY don’t want to!

 

[DNichter]

Screen time will be useful on the Mac, not really bothered with shortcuts much yet, I'll probably have a play with that.

The OS is largely fine, I'm more interested in them keeping the hardware on a respectable update cadence and putting a serviceable keyboard on the laptops. Those are the biggest issues with the Mac in my opinion.
[doublepost=1555760719][/doublepost]

Wont happen anytime soon. There is much more between iOS and macOS than a menu bar and floating windows.

We’ll see. More and more macOS apps are being replaced with Marzipan apps from iOS. New features have primarily come from iOS. We can see where the future is and Apple likely wants to push that to their traditional PC form factors as well. It only makes business sense in the long run.

 

[gwhizkids]

There are a ton of shortcuts you can do with anything that supports homekit or airplay 2. And now with airplay 2 being built into most modern TV sets, it will become even easier. Homekit adoption is also gradually picking up steam. But you’re looking at the trees instead of the forest. I was just giving an example of the kinds of things that an idealized shortcut system would detect and offer to automate. It could be something completely different, like “I see that it’s 9:30AM on a workday, and you are at the office, and now is the time you usually order a burrito from chipotle. Would you like to setup a shortcut for that or have me just offer to do it for you each day?” Or “i see that you’re in your car at 5:00 and probably going home, should i take the ecobee’s out of standby mode and turn on the outlet connected to the instapot?” Or “i see you got an email from Mike at work, which seems to be referring to the Penske file, and it has attachments. Would you like me to save those into the Penske folder for you and make a shortcut to do that in the future?”

Shortcuts (or as they’re called in the context you suggest, Siri Suggestions) already exist. They just don’t seem to have been widely adopted by app developers. At WWDC, the presentation on Shortcuts actually included a demo with exactly the functionality you describe, with a suggestion to order a particular coffee drink from Philz Coffee.

Implementation requires developers to insert some code in their apps that allows Siri to pick up on user patterns and suggest actions from apps.

Unfortunately, I have yet to see a third party app (in my cache of apps) actually implement this and I’ve never received this kind of interactive Siri Suggestion. My suspicion is that app developers -particularly retailers- are averse to having their apps subsumed by Siri. They actually want you in their apps for cross-sell opportunities.

 

[cmaier]

Shortcuts (or as they’re called in the context you suggest, Siri Suggestions) already exist. They just don’t seem to have been widely adopted by app developers. At WWDC, the presentation on Shortcuts actually included a demo with exactly the functionality you describe, with a suggestion to order a particular coffee drink from Philz Coffee.

Implementation requires developers to insert some code in their apps that allows Siri to pick up on user patterns and suggest actions from apps.

Unfortunately, I have yet to see a third party app (in my cache of apps) actually implement this and I’ve never received this kind of interactive Siri Suggestion. My suspicion is that app developers -particularly retailers- are averse to having their apps subsumed by Siri. They actually want you in their apps for cross-sell opportunities.

Many apps support it. My own own apps support it. On my device, aside from apps I wrote, mlb.tv, carrot, NYT crossword, fandango, Amazon prime video, and twitter all provide Siri suggestions, for example.

 

[nicho]

For instance, I was charged with planning relief for teachers who were away from school last term (Jan to March). Based on my experience last year, I came up with 4 shortcuts.

1) Relief - I have a google calendar to record the staff who will be away from school for that day. This shortcut lets me quickly enter the necessary details into a new entry in google calendar.

2) Who needs relief - grabs the number of calendar events in the relief calendar and shows it to me. Basically shows me who will not be around for that day.

3) Open google doc - a ton of the google documents I use for planning relief is there, such as teacher timetables. I use this for quickly accessing them.

4) Email relief lesson plan - sends an email to the entire school, containing the link to the relief planning document. I had a variable to insert the date for that day, so it saves me having to type a different date every day.

The improvement here isn’t just time, but also the removal of friction, especially when these shortcuts are activated with Siri. The draw is that I only have to code them once. I am done with my relief stint for the year, I used those shortcuts every day (some multiple times), and they will still be around for when my turn comes again next year.

I had a similar experience, maybe even more useful, as a relief teacher.

I set up a shortcut that would clear my day's calendar (in my work calendar) and then ask for input as to which classroom I'd be in then add a full set of calendar entries for the day to match each of the lessons for that particular stage of the school's timetable. Makes being on top of things so much easier - and deleting calendar entries for a couple of non-teaching periods is so much quicker on an ipad/iphone than adding four or 5 manually in ios.

 

[AndiG]

Wow - that is what I call innovation. iMessage effects - w o w!!!!
But serious - I want a Docker build container, DevOps in the cloud, awesome support of OpenGL and Vulkan, a MBP with dual M2 slot and replaceable RAM, a new cheese grater, support of Nvidia cards and hw accelerated machine learning (again Nvidia).

But I was so tired from Apple, and now there is a brand new Linux workstation near my desk and it is hot like hell. Ubuntu 19.04 + vanilla gnome is not macOS but it is quite nice. Applications open as fast as switching a window, it has OpenGL, Vulkan, Nvidia cards, ports, slots, endless RAM and yesterday I bought another 1TB NVMe PCIe SSD for 200$.

I‘m free again.

 

[afir93]

Why on earth do Macs need “Shortcuts” in their limited design when AppleScript can do so much more?! Oh wait sorry because so many employees or users in the user base have no clue what it is or how it works or what you can do with it.

I really don't get hate like this for a Shortcuts-app on the Mac. I could understand it if Apple were to remove Automator in its' favor, but I'm 99% sure that won't happen – Automator will probably continue to be available and usable for many years to come, just like all the apps in the Utility folder that are there since the early days of OS X and stick around since for legacy reasons, even if many of them haven't received any noticeable updates in 10+ years. Even QuickTime 7 stuck around for 11 years after it was "replaced" by QuickTime X, and is only dropped this year because it's still 32bit.

Point being: if you're an avid Automator user whose workflows depend on it, then you aren't hurt by a brand-new Shortcuts app in the slightest; everything you do on it will continue working for a long time to come. The Shortcuts app likely won't even occupy space on your drive unless you want it to, considering it is an optional App Store download on the iOS-side of things, so I really don't get why some people are so hateful towards a new app that neither benefits nor inconveniences them in any way but is a big plus for a lot of other people.

If anything, I would think that particularly Automator users are happy that Apple is finally putting effort into automation software again, regardless of what it is branded as. How many years has it been since we have seen the last significant update or feature additions to Automator? Meanwhile the Shortcuts app is actively being developed, thus far each 12.x release of iOS also had some minor feature additions to Shortcuts, and chances are we'll see some much bigger additions this summer and over the next few years. Sure, there's a lot of stuff that Shortcuts can't do right now that Automator can, but it may easily catch up in a majority of areas that matter to the average user within the next few years, and even far exceed its' functionality in other areas.

As someone who has tried out a lot of shortcuts myself over the last few months, I can tell you first-hand that there's still a lot of room for improvements with the Shortcuts app, sure. But its' interface and functionality is much more accessible to the average user than Automator, it has some fairly extensive HomeKit and third-party app support (that numerous developers have already adapted to in just the last 7 months alone!) and integrates well with Siri, and with iOS in general. And in addition to that, it is (or will be) cross-platform, with a fresh and universal codebase. To me, that sounds like a great foundation for an automation software.

Finally, I also think that Shortcuts and Automator have a somewhat different target audience – I believe Automator is more intended for certain parts of the professional/power-user part of the user base such as programmers, while Shortcuts is more directed at the average user who wants to automate the (digital) chores of his everyday life, and its' IO and featureset is much more suitable for these kind of tasks. And neither of these two is necessarily a bad thing. It's true that Automator can already do a tremendous amount of things, but it's also true that the average Mac or iOS user has no idea how to write an AppleScript file or what on earth he would even want to do that for. Which brings me back to my original point: I believe Automator and Shortcuts can co-exist without an issue. The mere existence of one doesn't hurt those who only use the other, and they are simply directed at different kinds of people.

 

[cmaier]

I really don't get hate like this for a Shortcuts-app on the Mac. I could understand it if Apple were to remove Automator in its' favor, but I'm 99% sure that won't happen – Automator will probably continue to be available and usable for many years to come, just like all the apps in the Utility folder that are there since the early days of OS X and stick around since for legacy reasons, even if many of them haven't received any noticeable updates in 10+ years. Even QuickTime 7 stuck around for 11 years after it was "replaced" by QuickTime X, and is only dropped this year because it's still 32bit.

Point being: if you're an avid Automator user whose workflows depend on it, then you aren't hurt by a brand-new Shortcuts app in the slightest; everything you do on it will continue working for a long time to come. The Shortcuts app likely won't even occupy space on your drive unless you want it to, considering it is an optional App Store download on the iOS-side of things, so I really don't get why some people are so hateful towards a new app that neither benefits nor inconveniences them in any way but is a big plus for a lot of other people.

If anything, I would think that particularly Automator users are happy that Apple is finally putting effort into automation software again, regardless of what it is branded as. How many years has it been since we have seen the last significant update or feature additions to Automator? Meanwhile the Shortcuts app is actively being developed, thus far each 12.x release of iOS also had some minor feature additions to Shortcuts, and chances are we'll see some much bigger additions this summer and over the next few years. Sure, there's a lot of stuff that Shortcuts can't do right now that Automator can, but it may easily catch up in a majority of areas that matter to the average user within the next few years, and even far exceed its' functionality in other areas.

As someone who has tried out a lot of shortcuts myself over the last few months, I can tell you first-hand that there's still a lot of room for improvements with the Shortcuts app, sure. But its' interface and functionality is much more accessible to the average user than Automator, it has some fairly extensive HomeKit and third-party app support (that numerous developers have already adapted to in just the last 7 months alone!) and integrates well with Siri, and with iOS in general. And in addition to that, it is (or will be) cross-platform, with a fresh and universal codebase. To me, that sounds like a great foundation for an automation software.

Finally, I also think that Shortcuts and Automator have a somewhat different target audience – I believe Automator is more intended for certain parts of the professional/power-user part of the user base such as programmers, while Shortcuts is more directed at the average user who wants to automate the (digital) chores of his everyday life, and its' IO and featureset is much more suitable for these kind of tasks. And neither of these two is necessarily a bad thing. It's true that Automator can already do a tremendous amount of things, but it's also true that the average Mac or iOS user has no idea how to write an AppleScript file or what on earth he would even want to do that for. Which brings me back to my original point: I believe Automator and Shortcuts can co-exist without an issue. The mere existence of one doesn't hurt those who only use the other, and they are simply directed at different kinds of people.

Bravo.

I also don’t understand the sudden influx of macrumor newbies with less than 10 posts all complaining about lack of headphone ports or too many emoji or whatnot.