How to improve commands with Tasker

Tasker is a tool that may not be well known to the general Android audience. However, for people who are more knowledgeable about this software, it is an app that is well known for its functionality and its history. In fact, thanks to the integration that it already has in Google Assistant, we can use better commands on the mobile, and thus improve the experience.

What is Tasker?

First of all, and since we know that it is not a very popular app, we are going to explain what this program consists of so that it is understood. It is certainly the best app on android for automation of a terminal. It is also true that the app had a upgrade since the original developer transferred his rights to Joao Dias, who currently runs the application. A good example is this integration with Google Assistant.

It is the most complete way to automate commands on Android. That is, it performs tasks or actions based on contexts (an app, a date, a gesture, etc.). The union between tasks and contexts is what Tasker calls ‘Profiles’. This is what the Google Assistant is going to execute in our voice command. It is not extremely complex to use at a basic levelAlthough to get the most out of it – which is a lot – you have to dedicate some time to it. With Tasker you can create small user interfaces or run tasks manually, so in a way it also helps you create small utilities or applications who perform certain tasks or interact with Android or other applications. What happens then if we put Tasker together with Google Assistant? That a very interesting cocktail is created.

How to download Tasker on Android

The only bad news in this process is that we have to pay for it. However, there are nuances, and that is that we have two ways to avoid that payment. The first is temporary, where the Tasker website offers a 7-day trial version, where we can see all Tasker functions in full. After that time, we have to pay the slightly more than 3 euros it costs. On the other hand, it is included in the Play Pass program, so if we have that service, we can take advantage of it and save that cost. However, it is a price that for the great utility it has, is quite justified and pays for itself very quickly.

How to improve Google Assistant commands

We can only see how we can get the most out of Google Assistant with this Tasker app. The process must be divided into two parts. First, you have to configure the tasks in Tasker and then apply them in Google Assistant and give it the order to execute them.

Create the task in Tasker

So let’s head to the Tasker app first. To start using Tasker, after granting all the permissions required for its operation, we are going to create a very simple configuration to open the Anchor podcast app at 4:00 p.m. A simple task but one that can be usefully automated.

The fastest way to do it is from the profiles tab, by tapping on the floating button. You must first choose a name for the profile (it is just for your information, so choose what you want). Then choose the context or condition in the drop-down list. For our example we are interested in »Time». We select the time interval or a specific time to perform this action.

Now it’s time to give that action a task. We will put a context to the task, for example, »App». Next, we are going to add several actions to the same task, although we will only use one, and in our example we are going to choose »Application» and then »Start application». Go back to the previous window and you will see that your two actions have been added to the task. If you want you can test that they work properly pressing the play button. If you want to make any adjustments, tap on the action to edit it, or long press to delete it.

Once the action is applied, we will not want the app open forever. For the terminal to return to its normal state, we must add an exit task. To do this, go back to the list of profiles and tap on the one you just created. You will then see the option ‘Add Output Task ‘, which you must press to then choose the task you created before.

Time to run the command in Google Assistant

The long-awaited moment has come to execute the actions that we have designed in Tasker through the voice with Google Assistant. With the integration that this app has with the assistant, it has a very simple way to do it. We simply activate the wizard with the typical ‘OK Google’, to then release the following command: ‘run my task in Tasker’. With the name of our example, it would be ‘run App in Tasker’.

We write it in English because this function is only available in that language, although the phrase is always the same, so it does not have great difficulty. However, we can change the word »run» to »Start», »do», »set» or »send». In our case, “start” has worked better for the wizard to recognize the command.