Between RSS feeds, multiple email accounts, and enough social networking options to sink a ship, it can be difficult to stay organized in these plugged-in times. If you're struggling to keep your Internet ducks in a row, IFTTT may be just the task-automating service for you.
An IFTTT Primer:
Short for "If This Then That," IFTTT can put the Internet to work for you. Based on a set of prescribed conditions, the service allows you to create “recipes” that perform certain commands. For example, you could receive an email every time a new title is released on Netflix streaming. In this case, the recipe means "If [Netflix updates its instant streaming RSS feed], then [you receive a notification]." Alternately, you could use a recipe that automatically sends your Instagram photos to Dropbox, or pushes your starred items on Google Reader to Instapaper.
If writing conditional statements from scratch isn't quite your style, IFTTT users have created a whole mess of recipes from which to choose – incorporating most major social channels and notification preferences. My personal favorite recipe is one that sends me a text message every morning alerting me to the day's forecast low and high temperatures. As someone who constantly battles with dressing appropriately for the weather, IFTTT has been a great morning assistant!
Three IFTTT recipes you might consider this Halloween season:
- Receive a text if the CDC reports a zombie outbreak.
- Stay clear of vampires – know the daily time of your local sunset.
- If you've had one Tootsie Roll too many, set a goal to lose post-Halloween candy weight.
Happy automating, everyone!