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theramajor

macrumors member
Original poster
Jun 17, 2019
54
3
Wisconsin
Does anybody use both Alfred and Keyboard Maestro? I'm an Alfred fanboy but from what I understand the main difference between the two is that KM has macro features. Doesn't Automator do the same thing as KM or am I missing something?
 
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Automator, Alfred, and Keyboard Maestro are all tools which provide frameworks for building macOS automation.
Does anybody use both Alfred and Keyboard Maestro? I'm an Alfred fanboy but from what I understand the main difference between the two is that KM has macro features. Doesn't Automator do the same thing as KM or am I missing something?
Automator, Alfred and KM all do the same thing in that they have workflows/macros which consist of many actions initiated by triggers.

Compared with Automator, KM: 1) has many more built in actions, 2) has more triggers for macros, 3), gets deeper into its interaction with macOS, 4) is more complex to use (let alone master). KM's value comes when you realise that Automator can't do something you want.

All three give access to bash/zsh/python and AppleScript for going beyond what is in their builtin actions.

Alfred's workflows are its macros with triggers and actions.

I have never really become comfortable with Alfred workflows. KM seems more natural once over the initial culture shock with how it works and how amazingly powerful. That is just personal preference.

Add BetterTouchTool into the mix and you have four automation frameworks. Alfred, KM and BTT can all interact with each other which adds to the fun.
 
Same here. I want to use just one to keep things simple.
Simple to complex/hard/capable: Shortcuts > Automator > Alfred and KM. To add complexity, add some AppleScript or bash scripting to add to any of them.

Alfred and KM have different strengths and style. You need to try both with the automation tasks you have in mind. That will give you a sense of which may suit you best.
 
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