What do you want Siri Shortcuts to be able to do?

[omihek]

I'm really looking forward to Siri Shortcuts, but I'm almost certain it won't be able to do the main thing I would like it to do, which is listen for keywords in my command and do certain actions based on the keyword(s) rather than based only on entire commands. I would use "I'm" or "I am" as one of my keywords to listen for in a command.

For example, I want to be able to tell Siri "I'm working on Project X" and then she makes a note (or adds to a note if one was already created for that day) about what I'm doing and the start time, then she starts a stopwatch that goes until I say another keyword, "Finished working on Project X" at which point she will stop the timer and update the note with the end time. Bonus would be if I forgot to tell her when I was finished, if I could say "Finished working on Project X at 3:30" then she would do all the same actions but make sure the end time was recorded correctly.

I want this to work with anything I say using the keyword. So I could say, "I'm brushing my teeth," or "I'm driving to work," or "I'm going for a run," and she would go through the same list of actions. I really like tracking my time and looking at the patterns and habits, but to track with any level of detail takes too much time. With this feature I would be able to just tell Siri any time I am starting or stopping a task, and she would take care of the rest.

This is just one of the many things I would like to be able to do with Siri Shortcuts. What about you? What do you want Siri Shortcuts to be able to do? Or if you already know of something awesome you can do with Workflow/Shortcuts, then post it here so all of us can use it!

 

[Phogro]

I think the tricky part of this is trying to get siri to tie the two instances together. I think there is a way within Workflow where you could create a note with a specific date/time based on a command. The question is will you be able to pull that start time from the created note and update it with a duration. Interesting use case though. (I don't have Shortcuts yet so my knowledge is based just off what workflow can do and I'm a novice with workflow so someone else might know better).

 

[rctneil]

Really interesting idea. I will be following this closely. The main problem I had with Workflow was fiding stuff to do with it. I know it's really capable but I just couldn't think of things to make it do!

 

[GreyOS]

I'm really looking forward to Siri Shortcuts, but I'm almost certain it won't be able to do the main thing I would like it to do, which is listen for keywords in my command and do certain actions based on the keyword(s) rather than based only on entire commands. I would use "I'm" or "I am" as one of my keywords to listen for in a command.

For example, I want to be able to tell Siri "I'm working on Project X" and then she makes a note (or adds to a note if one was already created for that day) about what I'm doing and the start time, then she starts a stopwatch that goes until I say another keyword, "Finished working on Project X" at which point she will stop the timer and update the note with the end time. Bonus would be if I forgot to tell her when I was finished, if I could say "Finished working on Project X at 3:30" then she would do all the same actions but make sure the end time was recorded correctly.

I want this to work with anything I say using the keyword. So I could say, "I'm brushing my teeth," or "I'm driving to work," or "I'm going for a run," and she would go through the same list of actions. I really like tracking my time and looking at the patterns and habits, but to track with any level of detail takes too much time. With this feature I would be able to just tell Siri any time I am starting or stopping a task, and she would take care of the rest.

This is just one of the many things I would like to be able to do with Siri Shortcuts. What about you? What do you want Siri Shortcuts to be able to do? Or if you already know of something awesome you can do with Workflow/Shortcuts, then post it here so all of us can use it!

It’s not quite what you wanted but the closest I think might be possible would be to have a command like ‘Start task’ which starts your workflow by asking for an input. You could type in ‘Project X’ or ‘Run’ etc. and then the note creation and stopwatch could follow automatically (if they’re available steps!). So there’d still be some time saved.

Then I think a generic ‘Finish task’ command could be done without any input, to stop the stopwatch and note that the last task has finished with the time taken.

Anyway, it might not suit you but I had fun thinking of a way around the limitations even if you didn’t invite anyone to

 

[omihek]

It’s not quite what you wanted but the closest I think might be possible would be to have a command like ‘Start task’ which starts your workflow by asking for an input. You could type in ‘Project X’ or ‘Run’ etc. and then the note creation and stopwatch could follow automatically (if they’re available steps!). So there’d still be some time saved.

Then I think a generic ‘Finish task’ command could be done without any input, to stop the stopwatch and note that the last task has finished with the time taken.

Anyway, it might not suit you but I had fun thinking of a way around the limitations even if you didn’t invite anyone to

Wow, that is actually a very good alternative. Thank you for that.

 

[flashflooder]

I want to be able to say "I'm leaving work" and have Siri:

-Text my wife that I'm on my way
-Turn the climate control on in my car
-Show me what's on my calendar for the afternoon / evening

 

[gwhizkids]

I want to be able to say "I'm leaving work" and have Siri:

-Text my wife that I'm on my way
-Turn the climate control on in my car
-Show me what's on my calendar for the afternoon / evening

Should be able to do 1 and 3. The climate control thing is probably outside its abilities unless you have an app that can do that now and the developer builds in the intent donations necessary to allow control via Shortcuts/Siri.

 

[cheekyjeremy]

I travel nonstop. Every day a new city. When I am setting up my production office in the new city, I want to be able to pull out the HomePod, tell Siri to "setup office", and have the following:

1. Set the 4 reminder alarms I have for the day (they are fixed and don’t really change)
2. Print Setlists
3. Send Guest Lists
4. Pull Up The Contract for the day
5. Read me any specific notes I have saved for that specific day
6. Play Some Music

 

[MadeByApple]

My work schedule changes weekly, so I always set my alarms (usually 3) the night before.

My Siri shortcut would be “wake me up for work tomorrow” >>> automatically sets my 3 alarms and puts on DND.

The power of simple tasks customized to each person.

 

[vtboyarc]

Should be able to do 1 and 3. The climate control thing is probably outside its abilities unless you have an app that can do that now and the developer builds in the intent donations necessary to allow control via Shortcuts/Siri.

If Nest updates their iOS app to allow for Shortcuts integration, and if of course, a user has Nest. Would be sweet!

 

[gwhizkids]

If Nest updates their iOS app to allow for Shortcuts integration, and if of course, a user has Nest. Would be sweet!

Thermowatch is already doing this as a beta for the Nest. It definitely works (don’t be fooled by the name; Thermowatch is my go to for controlling my Nests from my phone). I’m pretty sure Nest will follow suit.

 

[dsr2]

Should be able to do 1 and 3. The climate control thing is probably outside its abilities unless you have an app that can do that now and the developer builds in the intent donations necessary to allow control via Shortcuts/Siri.

How do you get Siri to actually send the text and not just if you’re ready to send it? I can set up the text, but she doesn’t send it, just pops it up and I have to manually send it. Any advice?

 

[GreyOS]

I haven’t got Shortcuts to play around with but based on my understanding of Workflow and a few things I’ve picked up about Shortcuts from other posters here, so far I have two features I’d like to see now that it’s more tightly integrated into iOS. If they’re already present then great!!

1. When a shortcut which asks for text input is invoked via Siri, Siri should ask for the input rather than being taken to the app to enter text.
2. Ability to add your shortcuts as discrete actions in the share sheet (as opposed to a generic Shortcuts one which then let’s you select the shortcut.)

[doublepost=1535213282][/doublepost]

Should be able to do 1 and 3. The climate control thing is probably outside its abilities unless you have an app that can do that now and the developer builds in the intent donations necessary to allow control via Shortcuts/Siri.

In Workflow there are already a number of 3rd party integrations, like evernote and IFTTT. Have these been removed by Apple (if so, presumably because they will have to integrate through a new set of Apple APIs). Or do you still get those options in Shortcuts at the moment?

 

[gwhizkids]

How do you get Siri to actually send the text and not just if you’re ready to send it? I can set up the text, but she doesn’t send it, just pops it up and I have to manually send it. Any advice?

You have to deselect the button I’ve pointed to below.

 

[gwhizkids]

I haven’t got Shortcuts to play around with but based on my understanding of Workflow and a few things I’ve picked up about Shortcuts from other posters here, so far I have two features I’d like to see now that it’s more tightly integrated into iOS. If they’re already present then great!!

1. When a shortcut which asks for text input is invoked via Siri, Siri should ask for the input rather than being taken to the app to enter text.
2. Ability to add your shortcuts as discrete actions in the share sheet (as opposed to a generic Shortcuts one which then let’s you select the shortcut.)

[doublepost=1535213282][/doublepost]
In Workflow there are already a number of 3rd party integrations, like evernote and IFTTT. Have these been removed by Apple (if so, presumably because they will have to integrate through a new set of Apple APIs). Or do you still get those options in Shortcuts at the moment?

Your #1 (which, oddly, is labeled “3” in my quote of your post): no can do. That one is somewhat of the ultimate I think

#2Agree I think that will come too.


Your second post: Yes. These are gone at the moment. I expect them to return though. Too powerful not to. But I suspect the magic behind the scenes is changing, as you allude. I think a lot of things that used to have to be cobbled together due to lack of API and system level support will work much better than before.

Overall, I am hoping for surprises when this goes live. What we have now is, I think, just a teaser for what’s ahead.

 

[GreyOS]

Wow, that is actually a very good alternative. Thank you for that.

Ok I couldn’t help it... I had a little play with the existing Workflow app and created something like what you want, only it uses Evernote because it has more powerful actions than Notes.

Here’s a quick example of how it looks.



It’s not thoroughly tested and may cause issues out of controlled scenarios!

Start Activity: https://workflow.is/workflows/84555d0c5a394a0fb6b6b95309012349

End Activity: https://workflow.is/workflows/cabc1823f69c4973902dfeb75f96abd2

 

[omihek]

Ok I couldn’t help it... I had a little play with the existing Workflow app and created something like what you want, only it uses Evernote because it has more powerful actions than Notes.

Here’s a quick example of how it looks.

View attachment 777821

It’s not thoroughly tested and may cause issues out of controlled scenarios!

Start Activity: https://workflow.is/workflows/84555d0c5a394a0fb6b6b95309012349

End Activity: https://workflow.is/workflows/cabc1823f69c4973902dfeb75f96abd2

Great! I got it working after a few errors with the time format. Mine is putting in the time like 6:10:33 PM instead of what you had, so I had to change the Match Text pattern slightly in the End Activity workflow, but it is now working. Thanks a lot for those awesome workflows!

 

[gwhizkids]

Ok I couldn’t help it... I had a little play with the existing Workflow app and created something like what you want, only it uses Evernote because it has more powerful actions than Notes.

Here’s a quick example of how it looks.

View attachment 777821

It’s not thoroughly tested and may cause issues out of controlled scenarios!

Start Activity: https://workflow.is/workflows/84555d0c5a394a0fb6b6b95309012349

End Activity: https://workflow.is/workflows/cabc1823f69c4973902dfeb75f96abd2

Very nice!

Shortcuts has the ability to run a shortcut inside a shortcut. I wonder if that would have any applicability here?

 

[Dormammu]

I’m a little unsure on how Siri shortcuts work. Do you still have to say “Hey Siri,” or will the phones mic always be listening for a designated catch phrase via shortcuts like “I’m leaving work”?

Also, recently I’ve been getting Siri short cuts for calendar on my home screen. What is the purpose of this if I already receive. Notifications 1hr and when time to leave for said events? Why add this as a shortcut?

 

[gwhizkids]

I’m a little unsure on how Siri shortcuts work. Do you still have to say “Hey Siri,” or will the phones mic always be listening for a designated catch phrase via shortcuts like “I’m leaving work”?

Also, recently I’ve been getting Siri short cuts for calendar on my home screen. What is the purpose of this if I already receive. Notifications 1hr and when time to leave for said events? Why add this as a shortcut?

You will still have to invoke Siri in the same way you do now. After that, for Shortcuts you create, you will get to choose how to invoke it. So let’s say you create a “going home” shortcut that texts someone that you’re doing so, sets the temperature at home to your desired temp and opens your favorite playlist in Apple Music. And let’s say you assign “I’m leaving work” as the Siri phrase. You would invoke it as follows “Hey Siri [Siri response] I’m leaving work.” That’s all there is to do.

As for the Siri Shortcuts you’re getting about calendar events: I’m not sure why those are happening. Just expect more, non-calendar ones once iOS 12 launches in a few weeks. Those should not be duplicative of events you’re already being notified about now.

 

[Dormammu]

You will still have to invoke Siri in the same way you do now. After that, for Shortcuts you create, you will get to choose how to invoke it. So let’s say you create a “going home” shortcut that texts someone that you’re doing so, sets the temperature at home to your desired temp and opens your favorite playlist in Apple Music. And let’s say you assign “I’m leaving work” as the Siri phrase. You would invoke it as follows “Hey Siri [Siri response] I’m leaving work.” That’s all there is to do.

As for the Siri Shortcuts you’re getting about calendar events: I’m not sure why those are happening. Just expect more, non-calendar ones once iOS 12 launches in a few weeks. Those should not be duplicative of events you’re already being notified about now.

Thank you. Excellent explanation. I am not a dev so I do not have access to the shortcuts app. Currently I am only able to set Siri shortcuts for basic things. I assume the shortcuts app will be needed to create longer strings of “IFTTT” commands?

 

[dsr2]

You have to deselect the button I’ve pointed to below.

[doublepost=1535307563][/doublepost]Awesome. Thanks so much.

 

[gwhizkids]

Thank you. Excellent explanation. I am not a dev so I do not have access to the shortcuts app. Currently I am only able to set Siri shortcuts for basic things. I assume the shortcuts app will be needed to create longer strings of “IFTTT” commands?

Yes, among other, more advanced, things. Right now, most, if not all, of the Siri Shortcuts being surfaced are things you can do already with Siri ("Hey Siri! Text Mom" and the like). I am really anxiously awaiting the commands that will be available after iOS 12 goes live and third-party apps "donate their intents" to Siri. That's when the fun will begin!

 

[chfilm]

Is shortcuts always gonna run in the foreground like the automator app, or will it be possible to have it work invisibly in the background? This is my biggest fear about shortcuts. I dont want to see the process, it should be magically in the background..

 

[gwhizkids]

Is shortcuts always gonna run in the foreground like the automator app, or will it be possible to have it work invisibly in the background? This is my biggest fear about shortcuts. I dont want to see the process, it should be magically in the background..

Nope. It runs almost entirely in the “background“ now. If you need to provide input, you will, of course, see those steps.