Apple Shortcuts for Frequently Used Apps

#1 · 28.12.2024, 17:26

I’ve done a simple Apple Shortcuts Menu that allows me to quickly perform a function on the iPhone.

This may be of use to other riders (not tested with CarPlay)

Using Settings I have set up two shortcuts in the Navigation Menu

1) Ride stopped send Gmap Msg - (this has been discussed here before) if riding in a group and I stop for some reason I can quickly hit this button and it’s sends a message to other riders with my Google Maps location,

The message is one of the following:

The second shortcut “My Scenic Shortcuts” is a list of shortcuts as follows, things I often want do, self explanatory really;

Play a Playlist pops another shortcut to allow selection of a playlist;

What is that Song;

Open Waze, Tyre Pressure App - this saves lots of battery as the App pulls power via Bluetooth.

Great Roads allows me to capture the current address and tag it with note about the place and write it to a notes file - great road, potholes, scenic, cafe, gravel etc. This was documented here before as well - not my invention 😁

So most things I can do in 4 clicks so I’m not mucking around with screens.

Apple Shortcuts - my career has been in IT and programming 1980 to 2005 but Apple Shortcuts sure are a strange thing to get used to with its visual programming.

I can share these shortcuts if there is interest.

Guido, BONES and Marts have reacted to this post.

#2 · 30.12.2024, 16:13

Would be cool if you could share how you built the “playlist list” one. I’ve tried that but haven’t been able to get it to work right. Thanks!

#3 · 30.12.2024, 17:21

This works for me. Let me know. Filter is set to anything but you could filter 5 star rated songs etc

This link to download might work (not tried it before)

https://www.icloud.com/shortcuts/c45f82ecabf1468d9145ec8d43bc8c57

#4 · 30.12.2024, 17:24

When a shortcut shows an Alert or Notification do you know how to clear the background screen? I’ve googled but cannot find anything. I imagine you could build an image or a Notes file and display that but try to keep it simple

#5 · 31.12.2024, 18:15

Interesting. I'd like to know how to send a message from within Scenic, or via CarPlay (on the Chigee, for example). I take it that you're using the Messages app for this and not something like Facebook Messenger or some other app?

Some of the guys with whom I ride have CarPlay mirroring devices, or connected Garmins or even just having their phones mounted on Quadlocks. So, this could work for when Cardo's mesh system isn't (when you and the guy in front are separated by a corner and blocking the mesh signal).

#6 · 31.12.2024, 23:55

I'll post screenshots of the Shortcut and also a link to it. Send message use SMS Text Message not FaceBook messenger.

the first Run Get Location sub is a subroutine that grabs your current location, sometimes it takes 15 seconds!

In Scenic Settings / Navigation Menu the Shortcut name must match the shortcut

Above subroutine is called s shortcut which Scenic calls via the Navigation Menu

Get location subroutine

https://www.icloud.com/shortcuts/7c5be93068b74ccc8f1480f12e9a2efe

Message menu choose and send

https://www.icloud.com/shortcuts/7eafcf459f834ea8a8f39353e98c1fab

#7 · 01.01.2025, 00:05

scenic Settings Navigation Menu setup

Marts has reacted to this post.

#8 · 01.01.2025, 05:44

Very interesting!

I tried a variation of your "Play a playlist" shortcut; my iphone (running iOS 18.2) doesn't appear to offer the same options - for example, I cannot find the "get songs in" function you show in your example.

Anyway, it looks like each sub-option of your "Ride Stopped..." shortcut is "hard-coded" to contact individuals you've added to the command line. Could each sub-option be made to contact everyone on a contacts list instead? That way you could just create a special Scenic Ride list and have all of your messaging options "automatically" reach out to the group of the moment?

#9 · 01.01.2025, 15:34

Interesting.

Play a Playlist: Get songs in … Playlist is actually Get Playlist and when you add it to the shortcut flow it changes to Get songs in … and you select Ask Everytime. Apple Shortcuts are notorious for changing stuff. Some people do amazing code and then find it breaks years later.

#10 · 01.01.2025, 16:30

…Anyway, it looks like each sub-option of your "Ride Stopped..." shortcut is "hard-coded" to contact individuals you've added to the command line. Could each sub-option be made to contact everyone on a contacts list instead? That way you could just create a special Scenic Ride list and have all of your messaging options "automatically" reach out to the group of the moment?

Yeah I’ve tried to do this but I think Apple Shortcuts works hard to stop you sending mass messages. SPAM control.

I tried this. It worked the first time but not after that! And it sent a message to someone not in the filter.

i added the field Nickname to each contact record but then the name of the person shows as that too! Not elegant.

#11 · 01.01.2025, 17:44

Oh well...

#12 · 01.01.2025, 23:14

I just downloaded the Ride Stopped etc. shortcut and applied it to the Mac Mini. I then opened Scenic on the Mac and added the shortcut.

I tested it by starting a ride then opening the menu that appears when you're riding and tapped on the Ride Stopped shortcut.

It did everything as you've shown. But I didn't send the text as it has two programmed numbers in there, presumably mates of yours.

I'll look at it on the iPhone and see how I go editing it and then running it on CarPlay on the Chigee.

Thanks for doing that, it's appreciated.

#13 · 02.01.2025, 01:38

Yes you’ll need to add your own message recipients

Marts has reacted to this post.

#14 · 02.01.2025, 18:31

Last night I imported the "stopped and gmap" shortcut and tried to edit it but being me I totally screwed it up. So, I've deleted all shortcuts and will try again as soon as I finish entering this message.

In the meantime, one for Guido - Shortcut 1 refers to one of OME's shortcuts which I imported and have now deleted. But I cannot delete it from Scenic. I can edit the title and of course it won't do anything as the shortcut doesn't exist. Probably not a problem.

#15 · 02.01.2025, 20:19

10-4. Give it another go. Apple Shortcuts are quite capable but can drive you nuts until you’ve used the system for a while. I’ve spent all morning trying to simply my Great Roads shortcut.

It’s here in its new form

https://www.icloud.com/shortcuts/c4440956c0fb4d78a55991ad655bd469

A debug nightmare as each action can create a result with the same object name like all the Text objects in this one. You have to visually select which one you want to use. A completely different style of programming to what I used in the 80’s and 90’s.

Marts has reacted to this post.

#16 · 02.01.2025, 21:55

Thanks.

I edited it and tested the message one. Looks ok. Sadly though, even though the shortcut is in the Nav menu it does show up in CarPlay. As I use Scenic in that mode with the CHIGEE AIO-5 Lite the function is moot for me.
😩

#17 · 03.01.2025, 05:10

Quote from Old Man Emu on 02.01.2025, 20:19

It’s here in its new form

https://www.icloud.com/shortcuts/c4440956c0fb4d78a55991ad655bd469

Thanks OME! But I fetched your shortcut and even though it appears in the shortcut app and I can open it to view or edit the details, it won't actually run on my phone. I get an error: "Shortcut Not Found - Make sure a valid shortcut is selected in the Run Shortcut action." If I tap "OK," the warning just disappears; if I tap "Show," the shortcut opens for me to view or edit - including red warning text matching the quote above.

Any ideas?

Old Man Emu has reacted to this post.

#18 · 03.01.2025, 16:50

Arh correct! Sorry about that. That shortcut uses two other shortcuts to get the address components.

I will post them here; Address txt sub (clean text format) and Address GPX sub (GPS code format). Once you have it running you could remove Address GPX sub part if you don’t want that. Other comments are in the shortcut.

Great Roads shortcut writes to an Apple Notes document and you need to create that first. Apple Notes / New Note enter Great Roads as the first line. Probably a better way …

Address txt sub

https://www.icloud.com/shortcuts/3a0ffd6263624ac3b51f1b9dfade962c

Address GPX sub

https://www.icloud.com/shortcuts/74deedf2e04c4e1381cb2fcbeacbab98

I have also updated Great Roads shortcut to append to a .txt file called Great Roads.txt. If this file does not exist then it will be created for you unlike the Notes document.

the update is here

https://www.icloud.com/shortcuts/5f8cf3dfc97e4da9b3437412bf8fdd31