Tech Tutorials

TextSoap - Creating a Custom Cleaner

Sat, 03 Sep 2022 06:00:00 +0000

TextSoap is a text processing utility for the Mac that allows you to utilise built-in and custom workflows to manipulate text. Fixing issues and rebuilding the text in the format you need. In this video I walk through creating a custom cleaner (workflow) utilising a range of simple actions.

Alfred - Custom Doctor Drafts Workflow

Sun, 31 Jul 2022 12:00:00 +0000

Doctor Drafts is an Alfred workflow I created for working with Drafts and provides a wealth of functionality out of the box. But most users do not realise that they can use it to build their own workflows, letting Doctor Drafts do all the heavy lifting. In this tutorial I’m going to show how you can tap into Doctor Drafts with an example to open a particular Drafts workspace.

Code Runner - Set Script Arguments

Sun, 31 Jul 2022 11:00:00 +0000

Code Runner is a great tool for developing scripted solutions on your Mac, but sometimes you need to be able to pass data into your scripts as arguments. This tutorial shows you how you can do this without having to create a launcher script.

Drafts - Share an Action

Sun, 31 Jul 2022 10:00:00 +0000

Drafts actions allow Drafts users to tap into powerful automations. While there are a great many actions available, the real power is unleashed when you are able to craft your own. You may wish to share your action with others so they can benefit, or so you can get some help in fixing or refining it in some way. Fortunately, Drafts will let you easily get a URL via which you can share your creation. In this brief tutorial I am going to show you how to do this as well as explain a few of the considerations around sharing...

Drafts - Basic Internal Links

Sun, 31 Jul 2022 09:00:00 +0000

Did you know that Drafts has a special syntax to allow you to link one draft to another so you can easily navigate between them? Did you know that you can jump to specific sections within a draft? In this tutorial I show you how easy and accesisble this feature is.

Drafts - Linking into Drafts

Sun, 31 Jul 2022 08:00:00 +0000

Being able to cross-reference content and resources is growing ever more prevalent these days as people struggle to track and stay on top of everything they have and do. Hyperlinks that function between applications allowing them to link together is a trend that has been picking up pace for years and Drafts is no exception. In this tutorial, I’ll show you how you can get and use a link to open a draft, and what to do when an application won’t accept a Drafts URL.

Drafts - Automatic File Import

Sun, 31 Jul 2022 07:00:00 +0000

Drafts has a way that you can easily, and automatically import content into it from a text file. It only takes a moment to configure it. Find out how in this tutorial.

Shortcuts - Simple Shell Input

Sun, 31 Jul 2022 06:00:00 +0000

One of the Mac’s most powerful features is the command line and the power of shell scripting. While you absolutely do not have to be a scripting wizard to use Shortcuts, sometimes tapping into that power from Shortcuts can save you a lot of effort, speed things up, or maybe even allow you to do something you would not have been in able to do otherwise. In this tutorial, I am going to go through probably the simplest way to pass a piece of information from Shortcuts into a shell script.

Shortcuts - Sorting Text

Sun, 31 Jul 2022 05:00:00 +0000

In this tutorial I share a trick that the Workflow developers shared before Apple acquired the application and built it out into Shortcuts. It lets you sort a set of text alphabetically (or reverse alphabetically) without relying on third-party application shortcuts.

Shortcuts - Replacing Text with Newlines

Sun, 31 Jul 2022 04:00:00 +0000

By default, you can’t replace text with a newline character in Shortcuts. In this tutorial I’ll show you a simple trick to allow you to do just that. You may be surprised just how useful this becomes as you create more shortcuts.

Shortcuts - Repeat with Each Loop

Sun, 31 Jul 2022 03:00:00 +0000

Shortcuts often produces sets of related items as a set of items. The key to working with these sets is to use a loop. Specifically a repeat with each loop action. In this tutorial I will show you how to make use of this loop to work with an entire set of items. Computers are great at doing this sort of thing and it is a key technique to tap into the power of Apple Shortcuts.

Shortcuts - Share a Link to Download a Copy of Your Shortcut

Sun, 31 Jul 2022 02:00:00 +0000

Sharing shortcuts with others enables everyone to benefit from each other’s efforts. Likewise, if you have a problem with your shortuct, you need to be able to share the shortcut with others. Sharing screenshots just doesn’t cut it. in this tutorial, I cover the details around this and how you can easily share a link for others to access a copy of your shortcut.

I also go through how to use import questions so you can protect your personal information by never including it in the shortcut that is shared, with the added benefit of prompting those accessing a copy...

Shortcuts - Magic Variables

Sun, 31 Jul 2022 01:00:00 +0000

In this tutorial, I explain what “magic” variables are and show you how you can make use of them in Apple Shortcuts. They are a really powerful way of simplifying shortcuts and accessing items of data efficiently.