IFTTT - Why so rubbish?
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Discussion

paulrockliffe

Original Poster:

16,665 posts

258 months

Thursday 26th October 2017
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If I Google for info on IFTTT I get lots of propaganda about how it lets me automate anything I fancy.

But it's all lies, I can automate a narrow subset of features determined by the various app developers and like it to one narrow condition, also set by the app developers.

I gave used it for a few semi useful things, but every time I try to do what I actually want I run into the fact that it's basically rubbish. Eg, I have a wifi socket and want IFTTT to turn it on if I'm out of the house in the evening. Sounds simple, especially as Tado happily tells IFTTT that I'm away. No, because you can't add conditions or logic. WTF.

I thought maybe I could get around it by using the Date / Time IF to toggle the IFTTT that turns the socket on when Tado is away on and off. But they haven't even managed to add their own app to their own service. Which would have been a simple thing to do to add a lot of extra power as you could nest actions.

So why is it so disappointingly simple? When I look through the recommended actions it's all set a reminder to take the bins out stuff that I can already do without a third party getting involved.

Has anyone found anything genuinely clever to use it for?

ooo000ooo

2,647 posts

225 months

Thursday 26th October 2017
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It turns my Bluetooth off when I disconnect from a device. The only device I connect to is the obd reader in the car and that's only when I want to clear an engine warning light.
To be fair it's an El cheapo Peugeot so that's every couple of days.
Also tells me if it's going to rain tomorrow. Handy in Ireland...

SystemParanoia

14,343 posts

229 months

Thursday 26th October 2017
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Sounds like you want the maker channel

Scott W

575 posts

274 months

Thursday 26th October 2017
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Take a look at Stringify. I started off with IFTTT but this app allows me more functionality by providing logic in there.

paulrockliffe

Original Poster:

16,665 posts

258 months

Thursday 26th October 2017
quotequote all
SystemParanoia said:
Sounds like you want the maker channel
I did find a complicated thing that uses the maker channel that looked ok but too much work for tonight. But IFTTT wouldn't let me copy the URL thing you need to authorise with, so I gave up!

paulrockliffe

Original Poster:

16,665 posts

258 months

Thursday 26th October 2017
quotequote all
ooo000ooo said:
It turns my Bluetooth off when I disconnect from a device. The only device I connect to is the obd reader in the car and that's only when I want to clear an engine warning light.
To be fair it's an El cheapo Peugeot so that's every couple of days.
Also tells me if it's going to rain tomorrow. Handy in Ireland...
That's my point, none of that is particularly clever, the Bluetooth thing is android to android, so it's just a missing feature and the weather thing can be done from a weather app already. Yes it's good, but it's very nature and wouldn't work for most people.

You can tell it to open Google maps navigation when you connect to as Bluetooth device. So you could have it navigate to work when you getting in the car. Except it triggers ever time my watch connects or anything else because you can't choose a device. And you can only run one location, and can't convince it with times or start locations so it navigates to work in the morning and home in the evening. Ideally only when my calendar didn't have non-working day in it.

That would be clever.

The one thing that I've found a use for is turning off my amplifiers if I no one is home, but so many things would be useful if only it had more flexibility.

SystemParanoia

14,343 posts

229 months

Thursday 26th October 2017
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if you setup a raspberry pi as a ble beacon at home, you can then run your custom logic on that, and have it send an assortment of pings to IFTTT when whichever trigger event happens.

paulrockliffe

Original Poster:

16,665 posts

258 months

Thursday 26th October 2017
quotequote all
Yeah, I came across a few things like that, sounds fun but I don't have the time to learn all that stuff right now. Maybe one for the future. Stringify looks better, though it doesn't have Tado support, so I need to hope I can use IFTTT for the Tado part. IE it won't work.

So frustrating when it should be a simple fix to make a lot of this work.

paulrockliffe

Original Poster:

16,665 posts

258 months

Friday 27th October 2017
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Right, stringify came up trumps!

I can use IFTTT to trigger a Stringify flow, so when I leave the house Tado switches to away, IFTTT triggers a flow which turns on a light of it's dark outside.

Certainly got some potential now!

nmd87

839 posts

221 months

Friday 27th October 2017
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Tasker?

mike_knott

344 posts

255 months

Friday 27th October 2017
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nmd87 said:
Tasker?
This ^

SystemParanoia

14,343 posts

229 months

Friday 27th October 2017
quotequote all
mike_knott said:
nmd87 said:
Tasker?
This ^
Not too good with GPIO or controlling 433mhz items around the house, as well as relays and other physical constructs

JimbobVFR

2,822 posts

175 months

Friday 27th October 2017
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SystemParanoia said:
Not too good with GPIO or controlling 433mhz items around the house, as well as relays and other physical constructs
I'd be surprised if there wasn't a way to use them together.

paulrockliffe

Original Poster:

16,665 posts

258 months

Friday 27th October 2017
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Had a look at Tasker, looks very flexible but the reviews on the play store are pretty bad. Too much to learn au the moment anyway.

DuraAce

4,272 posts

191 months

Friday 27th October 2017
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Tasker is very good IMHO. Bad reviews are from people who can't use it properly.
It does require some effort to learn as the UI isn't intuitive (to an non computer person like me). Lots of videos on YouTube explaining it, I learnt how to do the things I need from there.

FourWheelDrift

92,395 posts

315 months

Saturday 28th October 2017
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Not quite what you wanted but did you know Google Assistant can connect to Tado if you go into GA settings and add a device, it's listed.

Just FYI if you want yo play around with voice commands. You can then add new voice shortcuts to do specific things.

paulrockliffe

Original Poster:

16,665 posts

258 months

Saturday 28th October 2017
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Ha ha, yes I did I had that working until they moved it from Home to Assistant and introduce custom phrases. Completely broke it and took me months to find how to make it work again.

Trevatanus

11,349 posts

181 months

Friday 19th January 2018
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Just dipping my toe in the water with this, before I waste time on something that is NOT possible, can this be done?
I used Google Maps for my route to work, and it provides me with an eta.
Can I get Google Home to announce at 730 am, my eta to work, based on it checking Google maps for traffic problems and thereby giving me a heads up to leave early?

Charley1

2 posts

94 months

Tuesday 22nd January 2019
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Hi guys, I was just reading this thread and wondered if anyone can help me. I have tried to get the BMW Labs widget to show up in my media screen in the car but can't even get his far, anyone got a step by step guide they can provide?

Thanks in advance.

paulrockliffe

Original Poster:

16,665 posts

258 months

Tuesday 22nd January 2019
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Trevatanus said:
Just dipping my toe in the water with this, before I waste time on something that is NOT possible, can this be done?
I used Google Maps for my route to work, and it provides me with an eta.
Can I get Google Home to announce at 730 am, my eta to work, based on it checking Google maps for traffic problems and thereby giving me a heads up to leave early?
You can do that from the Google Home App with a Routine, though yo have to ask Home to run the routine. Google updated their Clock app so dismissing the alarm can run a routine too, which is a more nuanced trigger than your 7:30am. But the clock app doesn't have the feature for me, no idea why.

I think IFTTT has a clock in it now. If not Stringify will do it.

I'm still using a combination of IFTTT and Stringify to make things work properly, but it does seem to be getting better.