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What can you do on a Mac with Shortcuts vs AppleScript vs Hammerspoon?

by kbd 6mo ago

alin23 6mo ago
There are some things that are only available in Shortcuts because Apple gave the app entitlements to communicate with parts of the system that an AppleScript or other apps can't. Things like setting/getting the Focus Mode, changing some system settings like Airdrop Receiving, Color Filters, Background Sounds etc. Also some apps export Shortcut actions that can run in-app code: for example my Lunar app has an action that can help fixing arrangement when monitors flip around [1] It's much easier to implement a struct for a Shortcut, than exporting AppleScript sdef files or creating IPC command-line tools, so a lot of apps take this route for code that needs access to the memory of the running app. [1] https://lunar.fyi/shortcuts#fix-monitor-arrangement https://lunar.fyi/shortcuts#fix-monitor-arrangement
- _doctor_love 6mo ago
  I didn't realize you were the Lunar guy! I freaking love your apps! Thank you for making good and useful software. Being able to adjust my monitor brightness during the pandemic actively changed my quality of life for the better (I was in a small SF apartment).
  - alin23 6mo ago
    Thank you for the kind words! Love to hear from people that were helped by my work! That was also my pain point with Lunar, working on a small balcony in a small apartment where the light from the window was constantly changing and the monitor always being way too bright or way too dim. I broke one of those LG monitor joystick OSD buttons before I got to building Lunar.
    - jen20 6mo ago
      TIL Lunar... and it solves at least three different problems I have. Looking forward to playing with it when I'm back at my desk tomorrow!
hrmtst93837 6mo ago
[flagged]
- criddell 6mo ago
  > Apple designed Shortcuts to look like a shiny toy demo Apple bought Workflow from DeskConnect (they may have bough the entire company).
- hirvi74 6mo ago
  > If you care about serious Mac automation, you'll probably mix them and curse each one for a different reason. I do. I completely left all of the automation options. I just use Swift and the private macOS APIs. Though, I will admit that there are still some things that Shortcuts can do that I have not found a to hack around in Swift. The difference is likely due to App Intents, which is big lame.

What can you do on a Mac with Shortcuts vs AppleScript vs Hammerspoon?

by kbd 6mo ago

What can you do on a Mac with Shortcuts vs AppleScript vs Hammerspoon?

There are some things that are only available in Shortcuts because Apple gave the app entitlements to communicate with parts of the system that an AppleScript or other apps can't. Things like setting/getting the Focus Mode, changing some system settings like Airdrop Receiving, Color Filters, Background Sounds etc. Also some apps export Shortcut actions that can run in-app code: for example my Lunar app has an action that can help fixing arrangement when monitors flip around [1] It's much easier to implement a struct for a Shortcut, than exporting AppleScript sdef files or creating IPC command-line tools, so a lot of apps take this route for code that needs access to the memory of the running app. [1] https://lunar.fyi/shortcuts#fix-monitor-arrangement https://lunar.fyi/shortcuts#fix-monitor-arrangement

_doctor_love 6mo ago
I didn't realize you were the Lunar guy! I freaking love your apps! Thank you for making good and useful software. Being able to adjust my monitor brightness during the pandemic actively changed my quality of life for the better (I was in a small SF apartment).
- alin23 6mo ago
  Thank you for the kind words! Love to hear from people that were helped by my work! That was also my pain point with Lunar, working on a small balcony in a small apartment where the light from the window was constantly changing and the monitor always being way too bright or way too dim. I broke one of those LG monitor joystick OSD buttons before I got to building Lunar.
  - jen20 6mo ago
    TIL Lunar... and it solves at least three different problems I have. Looking forward to playing with it when I'm back at my desk tomorrow!

hrmtst93837 6mo ago

[flagged]

criddell 6mo ago
> Apple designed Shortcuts to look like a shiny toy demo Apple bought Workflow from DeskConnect (they may have bough the entire company).
hirvi74 6mo ago
> If you care about serious Mac automation, you'll probably mix them and curse each one for a different reason. I do. I completely left all of the automation options. I just use Swift and the private macOS APIs. Though, I will admit that there are still some things that Shortcuts can do that I have not found a to hack around in Swift. The difference is likely due to App Intents, which is big lame.