Keyword-triggered Workflows

[jakub]

I've madly spent the last 40 minutes reading help/tutorials for Alfred Workflows but I'm not getting it and I'm dumbstruck that everybody else seems fine. 

 

What I want:

 

- I downloaded the excelent "Sleep Display" workflow (http://blog.wwwjfy.net/2011/11/01/alfred-extensions-sleep-display/) and double-clicked to add it into Alfred

- it is configured to use a Hotkey as trigger (disabled for safety when the workflow was installed)

- but I'd like it to be triggered when I type some text into the Alfred search box, in the same way that "sleep" or "emptytrash" are built into Alfred

- so after some searching I've concluded that this must be the Fallback Search trigger (no other seems remotely appropriate)

- but no matter what I set as the title or subtext of the Fallback Workflow, it is not shown/

 

Example here: https://www.dropbox.com/s/u33ahxifmth9irq/Screenshot%202013-10-23%2016.38.21.png

 

What am I doing wrong?

[jdfwarrior]

I've madly spent the last 40 minutes reading help/tutorials for Alfred Workflows but I'm not getting it and I'm dumbstruck that everybody else seems fine. 

 

What I want:

 

- I downloaded the excelent "Sleep Display" workflow (http://blog.wwwjfy.net/2011/11/01/alfred-extensions-sleep-display/) and double-clicked to add it into Alfred

- it is configured to use a Hotkey as trigger (disabled for safety when the workflow was installed)

- but I'd like it to be triggered when I type some text into the Alfred search box, in the same way that "sleep" or "emptytrash" are built into Alfred

- so after some searching I've concluded that this must be the Fallback Search trigger (no other seems remotely appropriate)

- but no matter what I set as the title or subtext of the Fallback Workflow, it is not shown/

 

Example here: https://www.dropbox.com/s/u33ahxifmth9irq/Screenshot%202013-10-23%2016.38.21.png

 

What am I doing wrong?

 

No no no, sorry for the confusion. In order to add the functionality that you are looking for, you need to add a keyword to the workflow. With that workflow selected in the Workflows area of Alfred's preferences, in the workflow editor (the area to the right), click the + in the top right hand corner and select Input->Keyword. Set your details for the keyword trigger accordingly and then save that item. Now, mouse over that item and a little tab should appear on the right hand side of it. Click the tab and drag it to the Run Script item. It should create a little line between them. This connects the keyword to the action. Once you do that, the keyword should work just as you expect it to.

[jakub]

No no no, sorry for the confusion. In order to add the functionality that you are looking for, you need to add a keyword to the workflow. With that workflow selected in the Workflows area of Alfred's preferences, in the workflow editor (the area to the right), click the + in the top right hand corner and select Input->Keyword. Set your details for the keyword trigger accordingly and then save that item. Now, mouse over that item and a little tab should appear on the right hand side of it. Click the tab and drag it to the Run Script item. It should create a little line between them. This connects the keyword to the action. Once you do that, the keyword should work just as you expect it to.

 

Thanks David, now everything works as expected! I will add that linking the boxes together in the workflow editor I found intuitive and without problems, however the descriptions and functionality of various different triggers and actions I found very confusing and assuming a lot of knowledge that I didn't have. I'm still confused why a Fallback Search trigger somehow applies only to Contact results (or at least another help post here seemed to indicate that).

 

But now I have all I need and somebody else can preach the usability to you

[jdfwarrior]

Thanks David, now everything works as expected! I will add that linking the boxes together in the workflow editor I found intuitive and without problems, however the descriptions and functionality of various different triggers and actions I found very confusing and assuming a lot of knowledge that I didn't have. I'm still confused why a Fallback Search trigger somehow applies only to Contact results (or at least another help post here seemed to indicate that).

 

But now I have all I need and somebody else can preach the usability to you

 

Fallback Results aren't for contacts only. Fallback Results are for when you search something in Alfred and Alfred doesn't find anything. The default fallback searches are to provide the option to search Google, Amazon, and Wikipedia for the text you entered. By creating Fallback Searches though, you can modify the options that are available for when Alfred doesn't find anything.

 

If you need any further help or need any kind of explanation of what things are, don't hesitate to ask. That's what I'm here for

[RyanJM]

How do we use a keyword to trigger a workflow in Alfred 3? I'm trying to simply run an Apple Workflow that I created. I'm surprised that "Keyword" isn't one of the trigger options.

[RyanJM]

Nevermind, finally found Keyword under inputs.