Alex Cox returns to Automators to share a few new automation tricks and get answers for some more involving NFC tags, Keyboard Maestro, and automation possibilities with Apple’s Vision Pro.
This episode of Automators is sponsored by:
The Information has an article by Wayne Ma reporting Apple is spending “millions of dollars a day” on Artificial Intelligence initiatives. The article is pay-walled, but The Verge summarizes it nicely.
Apple has multiple teams working on different AI initiatives throughout the company, including Large Language Models (LLMs), image generation, and multi-modal AI, which can recognize and produce “images or video as well as text”.
The Information article reports Apple’s Ajax GPT was trained on more than 200 billion parameters and is more potent than GPT 3.5.
I have a few points on this.
First, this should be no surprise.
I’m sure folks will start writing about how Apple is now desperately playing catch-up. However, I’ve seen no evidence that Apple got caught with its pants down on AI. They’ve been working on Artificial Intelligence for years. Apple’s head of AI, John Giannandrea, came from Google, and he’s been with Apple for years. You’d think that people would know by now that just because Apple doesn’t talk about things doesn’t mean they are not working on things.
Second, this should dovetail into Siri and Apple Automation.
If I were driving at Apple, I’d make the Siri, Shortcuts and AI teams all share the same workspace in Apple Park. Thus far, AI has been smoke and mirrors for most people. If Apple could implement it in a way that directly impacts our lives, people will notice.
Shortcuts with its Actions give them an easy way to pull this off. Example: You leave 20 minutes late for work. When you connect to CarPlay, Siri asks, “I see you are running late for work. Do you want me to text Tom?” That seems doable with an AI and Shortcuts. The trick would be for it to self-generate. It shouldn’t require me to already have a “I’m running late” shortcut. It should make it dynamically as needed. As reported by 9to5Mac, Apple wants to incorporate language models to generate automated tasks.
Similarly, this technology could result in a massive improvement to Siri if done right. Back in reality, however, Siri still fumbles simple requests routinely. There hasn’t been the kind of improvement that users (myself included) want. Could it be that all this behind-the-scenes AI research is Apple’s ultimate answer on improving Siri? I sure hope so.
I have launched a new Field Guide, designed to take everyone’s Obsidian usage to the next level. Learn more on this episode of Mac Power Users.
This episode of Mac Power Users is sponsored by:
This week’s Home Screen features Andrew Hall. I’ve got to know Andy in the MacSparky Labs. He’s an engineer and an app developer (Lifeorities and Starship SE Corps). Andy is also a really nice guy. Show us your home screens, Andy.
What are some of your favorite apps?
I love the FotMob app. I use it to follow all my soccer action. I also love and daily use the App Store Connect app and, recently, the Disneyland app. Overcast is also a daily favorite.
Which app is your guilty pleasure?
What app makes you most productive?
Since my daily work is on a Windows PC, my productivity using my iPhone and other Apple devices is for personal and hobby productivity. I would say, for me, I use the Photos , Calendar, Reminders, Safari, Mail, Notes, and Messages apps. However, if I had to pick one, I would say Reminders because it is my daily task go-to app.
What app do you know you’re underutilizing?
Many. For work I use OneNote a ton. I definitely underutilize that for my personal use. Instead, I use the Notes app a lot, and it is great for my personal project notes.
How many times a day do you use your iPhone/iPad?
iPhone: many times an hour.
iPad: usually once a day — at night for YouTube and tv.
What Today View widgets are you using and why?
I have a ton of Today View widgets, mostly news-type widgets. However, I rarely swipe over to the Today View. Instead, I’ve got a lot of what I need on Home Screen widgets, particularly using Widgetsmith. My main Home Screen features the Siri Suggestions widget at the top.
What is your favorite feature of the iPhone/iPad?
Lately, the Dynamic Island.
In general, so many apps and content available on a great platform. That is why I enjoy my hobby of app development! I love how these devices can be so personal and become a great creative and information tool.
If you were in charge at Apple, what would you add or change?
I would improve/fix Siri.
What’s your wallpaper and why?
I have different iPhone wallpapers by Focus mode. Most of my Focus modes use the Photos wallpaper, and I have it randomly cycle through my favorite photos.
Thanks, Andrew!
September is Childhood Cancer Awareness Month and time for the annual Relay FM St. Jude Fund Raiser. St. Jude’s mission is simple. You give them money, and they use it to cure cancer in children. That’s pretty simple, and over the years Relay.FM has now raised over $2.2M for St. Jude. We’re at it again this September on all the Relay Shows. If you’ve got a little extra money that you would like to put to some use, I can’t think of a better way.
Mike and I discuss the satirical self-help book How to Be Miserable by Randy J. Paterson on this episode of Focused, and we share the dysfunctional skills we are particularly good at.
This episode of Focused is sponsored by:
With Audio Hijack, you can record any audio on your Mac. Save audio from individual applications such as Safari or Zoom, record from hardware audio devices like microphones and mixers, or even capture the audio output of the entire system. Whatever you need to do with audio on your Mac, Audio Hijack can help.
– Record conversations from Zoom, FaceTime, and other VoIP apps
– Create podcasts, both remote and in-studio
– Save streaming audio from the web
– Digitize vinyl
– And so much more
I use Audio Hijack daily. I don’t know how I’d be able to do my work without it. It’s powerful, stable, and constantly improving. If you want to do just about anything with audio on your Mac, this is the app you’ll need.
Check out the latest version of the award-winning Audio Hijack today. Through the end of September, MacSparky readers can save 20% when purchasing using coupon code MACSPARKY20. Learn more and download a free trial on the Audio Hijack site.
In the last week, we’ve had a lot of rumors that a gray iPhone Pro is in the works. If true, it will replace gold in the new titanium iPhone 15 Pro lineup.
My guess is that making a gold-colored titanium phone isn’t easy, so Apple decided to lean into the titanium gray.
Whatever the reason, I am down with it. I’m unsure if it is because I’m sick of the standard white and black iPhones or because my hair is also increasingly trending titanium gray. Regardless, I like the new look.
Source: 9to5Mac
Here’s what I sent out to Labs Members in August 2023:
If you’d like to be a part of the MacSparky Labs, you can join right here. Use the code “HEADSETS4EVERYONE” to get 10% off. That code expires tomorrow.
I’m so pleased to announce the release of the Obsidian Field Guide. Hooray!
Obsidian is a remarkable app, and the new Field Guide came out great. You can even get a 40-minute free sample at the above links. Check it out.
Obsidian brings new tools and paradigms to working with our thoughts on computers. Obsidian can be a game changer, and I’ve been using it since its early beta release. You can turn Obsidian into any sort of notes and data management tool you need: research, client work, PKM, or whatever. I use it primarily to document my own personal operating system, but there is more on that in the course. However, before you can make Obsidian truly race, you need to get some time behind the wheel and figure out how it works.
Obsidian allows linking to and from notes throughout your Obsidian “vault”, making connections of thoughts easier and more illuminating. It’s built on a plugin-style architecture that gives the app an ever-increasing feature set with plugins built by Obsidian’s developers and the Obsidian community. It’s based on a folder full of Markdown text files, so you always own and control your data. It can be end-to-end encrypted to protect your privacy. People use Obsidian to gather their thoughts, write their dissertations, plan their projects, and even track visits to the veterinarian. The app is powerful and flexible.
However…
The Obsidian on-ramp is steep. It takes a while to wrap your arms around exactly what you can do with this app and unlock its full potential. You need a guide. That’s me, MacSparky, your Obsidian pal. Once you master Obsidian, you’ll also need help picking plugins and figuring out exactly how far down that rabbit hole you want to go. I’ve got you covered there, too.
The Obsidian Field Guide is a 6-hour course including 78 instructional videos that will get you up and running. The course starts with the basics and goes straight through to the advanced. It is carefully paced so anyone can take advantage of Obsidian. Each tutorial includes a full transcript and closed captioning. The transcripts are even bundled into ePub and PDF documents you can download.
Your purchase will also get you access to the Obsidian Field Guide Private Vault, where you’ll get additional resources, links, and access to the samples used throughout the course.
In addition to the above, with the Obsidian Field Guide Plus Edition, you’ll get an additional webinar series going deeper into Obsidian with additional materials, guest speakers, questions and answers, and even more Obsidian goodness. All webinar sessions will be recorded and added to downloadable content for plus edition customers.
There’s a lot more, along with a free 40-minute sample, at the below Obsidian Field Guide links. If you’ve ever wondered why so many people love Obsidian, now’s your chance to learn.
Don’t forget, the code OBSIDIANLAUNCH gets you 10% off.
Want a 40-minute sample? Here you go.