Update: Thanks to, I was able to remove the need to upload image assets to Dropbox. The shortcut is now much faster to run (takes about 5 seconds instead of 20) and doesn't need to save any file in your Dropbox account. You can get the at the end of this post.

I've always been intrigued by Workflow's implementation of 'Add to Home Screen' – a feature that Apple kept in the transition to the Shortcuts app, and which allows users to create home screen icons to launch their favorite shortcuts. So, I decided I wanted to learn how Shortcuts was handling the creation of home screen icons.

After a few weeks of experiments and refinements, I ended up reverse-engineering Shortcuts' 'Add to Home Screen' implementation, which turns out to be an evolution of Workflow's existing hack based on. The result is Home Screen Icon Creator, an advanced shortcut that lets you create custom home screen icons to launch apps, custom shortcuts from the Shortcuts app, or specific actions for any of your contacts; the shortcut can also generate icons with solid colors, which you can combine with matching wallpapers to create custom home screen layouts.

This shortcut is, by far, the most complex piece of I've ever put together for MacStories, and I'm happy with the final product. It fully replicates a native Shortcuts feature while giving you the freedom to create icons and launchers for anything you want.

There is no configuration necessary on the user's end: it'll take you 20 seconds to create your first custom icon, complete with onscreen instructions. Allow me, however, to offer more context on how this shortcut came to be, how it works behind the scenes, and what you can build with it. In a release that largely focuses on performance improvements and to curb notification overload and smartphone addiction, Apple's stands out as one of the most exciting developments in modern iOS history. Perhaps even more impressive than developers' adoption of Siri shortcuts though has been the response to Apple's Shortcuts app, which enables the creation of custom shortcuts that can integrate with apps, system features, and even Siri. In addition to a that continues to prove how combining users' imagination with automation can elevate iOS productivity, Apple itself has so far shown a remarkable commitment to the Shortcuts app by listening to the community and ensuring a smooth transition from Workflow. Traditionally, Apple's App Store apps receive major updates then linger for months before the next big set of changes; with Shortcuts, Apple has kept the TestFlight beta channel active, pushing for the same development pace that characterized Workflow before its acquisition.

The result is Shortcuts 2.1, with a variety of bug fixes, iCloud improvements, and, more importantly, new actions that integrate the app even more deeply with iOS 12. If you're not familiar with the Shortcuts app, I recommending reading the first; if you're an existing Shortcuts user and rely on the app for key aspects of your iOS workflow, let's dig in and take a look at what's new. Since it was, the lion’s share of conversation around shortcuts has been about getting things done quickly and efficiently. Apple’s marketing message focuses on how shortcuts in iOS 12 help “streamline the things you do often” using Siri and/or the Shortcuts app. The company also recently highlighting top App Store apps that have integrated shortcuts to extend their functionality, touting them for “making users' favorite apps even easier to use with a simple tap or by asking Siri.” While the convenience factor of shortcuts is appreciated, an important aspect to their utility is accessibility. It’s a crucial aspect of the story around shortcuts, because while everyone loves a time-saver or two, these workflows also have the potential to make iPhone and iPad more accessible. In an accessibility context, shortcuts can be lifesavers in terms of reducing cognitive load, excessive swiping and tapping, and other common points of friction often met by disabled users.

Shortcuts, Past and Present Before considering shortcuts as an accessibility tool, it’s important to understand their roots in order to properly frame them into perspective. The idea that shortcuts, or workflows, can prove valuable as an assistive technology isn’t a novel one. Workflow, on which the Shortcuts app is based, was. Two years earlier, however, Apple selected Workflow as an primarily for its integration of iOS accessibility features. Ari Weinstein, who joined Apple to post-acquisition, that he and his team received feedback from several blind and visually impaired users who were curious about Workflow and wanted to try it. As a result, the team felt adding VoiceOver support was “the right thing to do,” Weinstein said. To paraphrase Kendrick Lamar, Shortcuts got accessibility in its DNA.

Given the history lesson, it’s not at all far-fetched to think the Shortcuts app would have appeal to disabled users., Shortcuts is an app built for the mainstream, yet it has the care and design sensibility to carry relevance for a variety of use cases, like being fully accessible to a blind user via VoiceOver. This isn’t small potatoes; given, it’s certainly plausible Workflow’s ode to accessibility made the app all the more desirable.

More Than Just Productivity, Apple’s focus this year, software-wise, marked a departure from how they’ve traditionally approached accessibility enhancements. Unlike past years, there were no new discrete accessibility features for any platform.

(AirPods with Live Listen is close). Instead, Apple chose to hammer on the idea that the tentpole features (e.g.

Group FaceTime in iOS 12, Walkie-Talkie in watchOS 5) can be enabling technologies. The overarching theme of the conference was that the new features were so well designed that they brought inherent accessibility gains. Siri shortcuts is another of those features. In my briefings with Apple at WWDC and since, shortcuts has been one of the first items they wanted to discuss.

Like Group FaceTime and others, the company firmly believes in shortcuts' potential as an accessibility aid. Their enthusiasm is warranted: for many users with certain cognitive and/or physical motor delays, the consolidation of tasks can reduce friction associated with remembering how to perform a task and then doing it. In this way, shortcuts are the inverse of; rather than extrapolating tasks into their individual parts (e.g. Tapping a series of buttons in an app), the Shortcuts app's automation turns them into a single step. (You break down steps when creating your own workflows, but that’s beside the point being made here.) Lest we forget about Siri; being able to use your voice to activate shortcuts is a boon for people with motor delays, as the “hands free” experience can be empowering. For disabled people, shortcuts’ focus on speed and accessibility can open up new possibilities in terms of what they can do with their iOS devices and how they do things. Throw in system accessibility features like VoiceOver and Dynamic Type, and the Shortcuts app becomes far more compelling than simply being a sheer productivity tool.

”We see huge accessibility potential with Siri Shortcuts and the Shortcuts app. It’s already making a difference — helping people across a wide range of assistive needs simplify every-day tasks like getting to work, coming home, or staying in touch with friends and family,” Sarah Herrlinger, Apple’s Senior Director of Global Accessibility Policy & Initiatives, said in a statement. “We’re getting great feedback about how powerful the technology is in streamlining frequent tasks and integrating multiple app functions with just a single voice command or tap.” How I Use Shortcuts I am far less prolific in my adoption of shortcuts than some people.

Others, like and, are far more well-versed in the intricacies of what is possible and, more importantly, how you chain certain commands together. My needs for shortcuts are pretty spartan. The shortcuts I use most often are practical, everyday ones I found in the Gallery section of the app. I currently have thirteen shortcuts; of those, the ones that are the most heavily-used are the laundry timer, tip calculator, and one for texting my girlfriend. While I have enjoyed spelunking through Federico’s work for esoteric, power user shortcuts, the reality is my work doesn’t require much automation. I typically don’t need to do fancy things with images, text, and the like. That isn’t to say these tools aren’t cool or valuable; they’re just not necessarily for me.

For my needs, quick access to, say, the laundry timer is worth its weight in gold because I always forget to move my clothes. Consider another shortcut of mine, Play an Album. I’ve been listening to Eminem’s new album, virtually non-stop since it came out at the end of August. Rather than manually launch the Music app, find the album in my recently played queue, and hit play, I can utilize the Shortcuts widget to play it with a single tap. The manual method is three steps which, while not tedious for me in any way, is more work. Going back to the task analysis analogy I used earlier, not only is Play an Album faster, it particularly helps me conserve precious visual energy I otherwise would have expended finding the album. For fine-motor skills, the shortcut also saves on potential cramping in my fingers caused by my cerebral palsy.

Again, what can take multiple taps can be condensed into a single motion. For many, that’s a huge win. The same concept applies to sending iMessages to my girlfriend. Using the shortcut, what would normally be a multi-step process is reduced to a single step. The advantage for me is a matter of kinetics, but for others, the advantage very well could reduce cognitive load and increase. Not insignificant. The Bottom Line As is the case with stuff like and, technologies not built expressly for accessibility’s sake, the Shortcuts app is so well considered and approachable that anyone can use it, regardless of ability.

There are no complicated settings or special modes; as Apple designed it, it just works as they intended it. That’s what makes Shortcuts’ star shine brighter. Yes, Apple is pitching it for speed and convenience. Yes, shortcuts can be as pedestrian or as nerdy as you want them to be. Above all, however, the Shortcuts app is accessible. It's an app that's reachable to the widest possible audience, turning its utilitarianism into something far greater.

I've spent the past two weeks updating my iPhone's home screen setup for the XS Max and, as I shared, part of the process involved gaining easier access to some of the shortcuts I use on a regular basis. While I'm not a fan of the shortcuts-only home screen approach described by CGP Grey in (at some point, I believe you just end up swapping app folders for shortcuts), I do like the idea of adding a couple of frequently used custom shortcuts to the home screen. And as I detailed on AppStories, I also like to use 'shortcut launchers' – effectively, shortcuts to launch other shortcuts. When I published two weeks ago, I noted that my goal was to eventually support screenshots and device templates from other Apple devices, starting with the Apple Watch and MacBook Pro. After two weeks spent rebuilding the shortcut and asking to prepare several more templates, I'm happy to re-introduce my shortcut as the new and improved Apple Frames – a comprehensive custom shortcut to frame screenshots taken on every Apple device.

Well, at least most of the current ones that the company is still selling. Promised earlier this year, the Philips Hue app now supports Siri Shortcuts allowing users to trigger scenes created in the app. Earlier this year, which significantly improved the creation of scenes. Users can pick from pre-built scenes created by designers to evoke a particular mood or create their own using photos or a color picker to control the color and brightness of a group of Hue bulbs. With the new Siri Shortcut support, those scenes can be triggered using Siri and incorporated as actions in custom shortcuts using Apple’s Shortcuts app. I have several Hue bulbs in my studio.

They aren’t the kind that supports a wide range of colors, but I can adjust the brightness and warmth of each bulb. To test the Hue's new shortcut functionality, I created a scene called Focus Mode that turns the brightness up to 100% with a cool blue cast. After using the scene, the Siri & Search section of the Settings app suggested I add my new scene as a Siri shortcut, which is how many apps approach Siri shortcuts. Frequently-used scenes will also be suggested on the lock screen, Siri watch face, and search. With a Hue Siri shortcut in place, you can also use it as an action in custom shortcuts you create in Apple’s Shortcuts app. I set up a simple shortcut that turns on the lights in my studio and enables a smart electrical outlet that controls an air filter. Now, as I finish my morning coffee, I can say ‘Hey Siri, start Workday’ and the lights and filter come on as I head downstairs.

The same sort of shortcut can be created to control lights using, but having similar functionality built into the Hue app is a useful alternative if that’s where you’ve set up your scenes.

Posted by Categories:, At WWDC 2018, Apple announced the next version of its desktop operating system for Macs, macOS Mojave. Here's what's new! MACOS MOJAVE FEATURES. Apple starts by showing off a new Dark Mode for macOS. It changes the color of the app windows, toolbars, dock, and more. Dynamic Desktop is a feature where your desktop wallpaper subtley changes throughout the day based on the time. Desktop Stacks is a feature that groups all of the files, folders, and tags to auto-organize your desktop.

Stack icons are also scrubbable. The Finder gets a new view called Gallery view. Makes it easy to preview images, videos, PDFs, documents, etc. New Finder sidebar to see the full metadata of any file(s) you have selected, along with quick actions along the bottom of the sidebar.

Markup has been added to Quick Look. New screenshots functionality - similar to iOS, the screenshot appears in the bottom corner of the screen, and when you click on it, you get a Quick Look with a bunch of readily-available tools. A new screenshot tool also allows for quick video recording. New Continuity Camerea feature allows you to use your iOS device as a camera to insert photos into Mac documents. This can also be used for document scanning from an iOS device into a Mac doc.

Apple’s comes with an eye-catching feature, a Touch Bar across the top of the keyboard that replaces the function keys with virtual buttons and sliders that change in context, depending on which program or app you’re using at any given moment. But starting at $1799 for a 13-inch model with Touch Bar, this is no small investment.

So is the new MacBook Pro really worth it? Of & Todd Bishop of have a new MacBook Pro in-studio for this special GeekWire podcast and video segment to give us their take. Tools:. Posted by Categories:, We've come to the end of another year, and as we wave goodbye to 2013, we figured it was only fitting that we share the most popular stories published on Gear Live this year, as determined by our readers (we've also got the regardless of publish date, as well as the!) These are the ten stories that were read the most, and when you consider that fact, it's pretty surprising to see what made the list.

Let's kick it off with our most read story of the year:: Anticipation for Apple's newest desktop operating system, OS X 10.11, trumped all other news here on Gear Live in 2015!. Tools:. Posted by Categories:, Here at Gear Live, reviewing gadgets, putting together gadget photo galleries, and creating image thumbnails for our. The thing is, there isn't much I need to do to make the images look great, and as such, Photoshop has always felt like overkill—a tool that is way more powerful than I need.

I recently spent time with the new. This is the prosumer version of Photoshop that immediately felt way more accessible upon launching the application than it's more capable big brother. Tools:. Posted by Categories:, has released OS X 10.11 El Capitan to the public, and all users with compatible Macs are able to download the updated version of Apple’s desktop operating system for free from the Mac App Store. Just launch the Mac App Store to grab the download, or if you don’t see it, you can use this link to take you right to it: OS X El Capitan brings with it a slew of bug fixes and performance improvements, tightening up everything from last year’s Yosemite release.

That said, there are still quite a few user-facing improvements as well. These include:. Tools:. Posted by Categories:, During a demo of the new iPhone 6s 3D Touch feature at the event, Apple's Craig Federighi opened an email on his iPhone 6s from Phil Schiller that announced that OS X El Capitan would be released on September 30th. Apple's latest OS X 10.11 Mac operating system has been in beta since in June.

Outlook For Mac Archive Location

Thanks to that peek at Federighi's email, we now know that all Mac users with compatible computers will be able to update to three weeks from today, completely for free. Tools:. Posted by Categories:, If you need an insanely fast external SSD drive for your Mac or PC, then look no further than the Elgato Thunderbolt Drive+. Despite the name, you can use this drive with either Thunderbolt or USB 3.0, and since it is an SSD with no moving parts, it's ridiculous fast with read and write speeds. I use it to do video editing directly off of for Final Cut Pro X, and it never skips a beat.

Don't forget to, and also—we are giving away - thanks for your support! Posted by Categories:, Summer is nearing an end, and back to school season is in full swing.

As you shop for those notebooks, backpacks, pencils, and the like, be sure to keep in mind that we live in a digital world where students are expected to become comfortable with technology. Homework now involves the Internet and the usage of tablets and laptops to get the job done. When moving those items around, it’a always good to have a backup, even in the age of cloud storage. Is always up to the challenge, and I’ve relied on SanDisk digital storage for over a decade when it comes to photography, and external storage. Tools:. Posted by Categories:, the company that makes Parallels Desktop (our favorite software virtualization software for Mac,) has announced the release of Parallels Desktop 11.

Interested users can buy for $79.99, while users of prior versions 9 and 10 receive upgrade pricing of $49.99. Major operating system support in Parallels Desktop 11 includes support for the latest Microsoft OS, Windows 10, as well as Apple’s upcoming OS X 10.11 El Capitan, which is set to launch this fall. Tools:. Posted by Categories:, Earlier today Apple released Developer Beta 5.

Developers who are already running Yosemite can get the 1.34GB update through the Mac App Store, while those who are looking to install it for the first time will need to log in to the Apple Developer Portal. As for the rest of the world, OS X El Cap is set to launch this fall, focusing on tightening up OS X and crushing nagging bugs, while also introducing features like split view apps, expanded Spotlight, an expanded Notes app, performance improvements, and more to Apple's desktop operating system.

Those interested in beta testing can. Tools:.