Tool of the week for journalists - ifttt, a promising app for dealing with data
A tool that 'puts the internet to work for you by creating tasks that fit this simple structure'
– 1 min read
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Tool of the week:
ifttt , shorthand for "if this then that".
What is it?
This tool is still in private beta but it is worth applying for an invitation and waiting to see when it goes public as it promises interesting possibilities for journalists.
The best way to understand it is to read this description of ifttt , which explains that the tool works on the premise of "if this then that" or "when something happens (this) then do something else (that)".
The ifttt site explains it clearly:
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The ifttt blog offers further explanation:
There used to be something here that couldn't be migrated - please contact us at info@journalism.co.uk if you'd like to see this updated!
A quick look at ifttt on Twitter will give you a sense of what is happening in the development of the tool.
How is it of use to journalists?
It could be extremely useful to journalists, for example, by providing a simple way to capture data from existing online platforms, and also to anyone who wants to set up automated posts.
Written by
Sarah Marshall is VP Audience Strategy at Condé Nast. She leads distribution and channel strategy globally. She is also the former technology editor for Journalism.co.uk (prior to it becoming JournalismUK)
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