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What's New in Shortcuts #100

Alex Hay's apps, Obscura 4, new podcast episodes, new actions from third-party apps, and an iPhone safety shortcut

Welcome to Issue 100 of What's New in Shortcuts!!

Since the last issue mid-August, things have slowed down as developers gear up for iOS 17 and the betas stabilize a bit more.

We have some good news around Alex Hay's apps, a new release of Obscura, and I'm ramping up podcasting again with Clockwise and my second members-only show – I talk about a lot of updates coming soon in that episode.

Otherwise, I wanted to thank you for your support as a reader of my newsletter – here's to the next 100 issues!

Until next time, here's what's new in Shortcuts:

📰 Posts Since Last Time

While I worked on some background material for this fall, these were the main posts from late August – I'm glad to see all these updates:

The Shortcuts Apps Of The Late Alex Hay Will Continue With Trusted Developers

After the tragic passing of Alex Hay, his Shortcuts apps will continue development under Snailed It Developement LTD with community member Rosemary Orchard's team.

Obscura 4 is the all-in one app to replace your iPhone camera

Obscura 4 from developer Ben McCarthy has released, giving you photo and video controls to replace your iPhone camera – check out the excellent new app in my short review (and my Automation idea).

Guest spot — Clockwise: I Can See All the Electrons in the Universe!

I had the pleasure of being a guest on Clockwise with Dan Moren & Mikah Sargent, plus fellow guest Kathy Campell. And yes, I talk about Shortcuts.

Members-Only Podcast #2: Shortcuts Summer Recap

Covering July 17 through August 31, this second member episode recaps everything I've shared this summer – and includes teasers for my in-progress workflows coming to the Catalog soon.

🔄 Links Worth Checking Out

After saving some of these apps to my notes in early August, I got around to sharing link posts out to great shortcuts and apps from the Shortcuts community:

If you are in danger, use this iPhone shortcut »

FuelForTheSole on Instagram shared this iPhone safety shortcut for anyone who feels like they might be in danger – send this to someone you know.

Focus Pomodoro Timer Adds New App Shortcuts »

One of my regularly-used apps Focus has added new App Shortcuts support – check out the update.

The New Dual Shortcuts Widget Could Use Some Work »

Federico Viticci shared his hot take on the new dual widget for Shortcuts – and I added my thoughts in the comments.

Automadon app provides dedicated Shortcuts actions for Mastodon »

Automadon is a dedicated utility for providing Shortcuts actions for Mastodon – check out the set for Lists, Posts, Accounts, and more.

AirScrobble adds Shortcuts support for Last.FM »

If you love to track your music with Last.FM, AirScrobble brings Shortcuts support for the service – check it out.

Automating Devices with Elgato Stream Deck via Apple Shortcuts »

Daniel Raffel shares his experience setting up HomeKit devices as a single-press toggle in Shortcuts – so he can control his lights via Stream Deck.

How to run shortcuts using Audio Hijack’s automation features »

Dan Moren shared this great automation for Audio Hijack to move his episodes to Dropbox after each recording – and I'm saving his Run Shortcut method for later.

📃 Linked Posts Of Note

Beyond stories directly relevant to Shortcuts users, I'm continuing to share more developer-focused and platform-focused updates – two worlds I'm embedded in, but don't link out to enough:

How to migrate from custom intents to App Intents »

Tyler Hillsman shared the Tech Talk from Apple that guides developers through the process updating from older Shortcuts APIs to the newer App Intents.

How to Pin Links in Apple Messages »

I'm linking Gruber who's linking AppleInsider about pinned links in Apple's Messages app – here's how it works, and why it's a bit odd right now.

Name This Pet Is the Best Feature of iOS 17 »

Jeremy Burge highlights an excellent features of iOS 17 – improved Pet detection in the People album. My cat approves.

OverPicture gives easy access to Picture-in-Picture on macOS, iOS, and iPadOS »

OverPicture adds easy access to picture-in-picture from your Safari toolbar – get it for a few bucks on the App Store.

Fuoco lets you easily edit Portrait Mode photos »

If you've shot with Portrait Mode and want to change focus points—both in and out—Fuoco is the app for you.

Thanks for your support

Thank you to all my readers for your support these last three years since I started this newsletter alongside my membership program.

Without you all, I wouldn't have been able to go fully independent and share what I know with the world.

If you have gotten value from my work and want to see even more of it in the future, please consider signing up to be a member – I have endless desire to continue doing this, and your support directly enables that.

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