Edit wiki/ifttt-personal.md — ideas

---
first_captured: 2026-02-16
sources:
- sources/ideaflow/2026-02-16_ifttt-for-me-eg-computer-scanning-for-text.md
- sources/ideaflow/2026-02-19_linked-note-bfrfczyqoi.md
- sources/google-sheets-ideas.md
status: raw
tags:
- automation
- productivity
- software
title: personal IFTTT
type: idea
updated: 2026-04-10
visibility: public-edit
---

# personal IFTTT

IFTTT-style automation for personal use — computer scanning for text patterns, reminders, etc. example use case: "if finish data box, send something to a friend." current workaround is setting lots of reminders manually.

this overlaps significantly with the [[universal-habits|universal habits]] concept (which described itself as "kinda like IFTTT but automatically create things"). the difference is that personal IFTTT focuses on task-triggered actions while universal habits focuses on contextual behavior change. both need the same infrastructure: event detection, context gathering, action triggering.

**spreadsheet evaluation:** originality 7/10, excitement 8/10, MVP 2-4 weeks. competitive landscape: Hazel (Mac, $42) watches folders but is Mac-only and file-scoped, IFTTT/Zapier are cloud-service-to-service only, Keyboard Maestro does local triggers but is macro-focused — no cross-platform consumer tool scans broadly for local text patterns and triggers actions. scope creep risk noted as huge; MVP should focus on one trigger type (e.g. clipboard monitoring). tech depth ranked at moderate level.

---

## timeline

- [2026-02-16] initial capture — computer scanning for patterns
- [2026-02-19] follow-up — current solution is "hella reminders"
- [2026-04-10] google sheets evaluation — 7/10 originality, 8/10 excitement, MVP 2-4 weeks