How To Create Shortcuts On An iOS Device.
We are all looking for ways to save our free time. This is why you really need to use the concept of automation in your daily life.
Automation is one of the best things about technology. This allows you to take what would normally take, say, three clicks, and instead shrinks it down to one click. Who will argue about this?
On an iOS device, this automation is called Shortcuts, and developers have already found fantastic ways to make common tasks easier. What’s also great is that these shortcuts can be synced via iCloud with your other iOS devices.
Where are the shortcuts?
The shortcuts app should already be installed on your device if you’re using the latest iOS. But if for some reason it is not installed – perhaps you just uninstalled it – you can find it by going to the App Store and searching for “ Shortcuts “. It’s completely free.
When you open it, it will most likely be empty, but here I have three that I use.
First, click the Create Shortcut button.
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Make Shortcut
There are two ways to create a shortcut for iOS. Either make it yourself or install a third party developer. We’ll cover both methods.
Do it yourself
Make it Yourself
Let’s make a simple shortcut. When you click the Create Shortcut button, you see this.
If you drag the bottom menu up, you will see that in order to create a shortcut, you need to specify a task, which will then trigger the action.
Let’s say you click on Contacts. It is added as a task.
Now specify which of your contacts to apply this shortcut to.
Now you need to decide what should happen when you select this shortcut. What happens to this contact? So, a new menu will appear and you need to decide what comes next.
Will you call the person? Facetime them? Send them an SMS? Share contact details ANOTHER contact? There are literally dozens and dozens of possibilities.
Once you’ve selected an action, you can click the blue arrow at the top to test the workflow, although you don’t need to.
Now click on that little icon in the right corner and a few more options will appear.
This includes giving the shortcut a name (obviously necessary), assigning an icon to it (not that important), adding a shortcut to Siri, adding it to your phone’s home screen, and displaying it in a screen widget.
When you’re happy with the shortcut, you can tap Done and the shortcut will appear on the shortcut screen (and in the widget).
It should be noted that this is a very simple shortcut. You can add as many actions to the label as you like. For example, I can not only call Ryan, but also send him a pre-written SMS.
Install from developer
Install one from developer
As I said, with the introduction of shortcuts, the creativity flowed from developers. If you use Google shortcuts for iOS, you’ll find many of them that developers have given away to people for free.
Here are five of my favorites. These links can only be opened on an iOS device. You won’t be able to open them on any other device or computer.
- Turn off Bluetooth and Wi-Fi at the same time
- Make a “link to a song” to send someone a specific song to Apple Music or Spotify.
- Flight Time prepares you to fly by placing your phone in airplane mode, low power mode, and do not disturb mode.
- Show people only certain photos – this allows you to select a series of photos from your Camera Roll to show people and prevents them from seeing others.
- Share your Wi-Fi password: This generates a QR code that people can scan to enter your Wi-Fi.
What shortcuts do you like the most?
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