Automating reminders

Automating Reminders (JXA-first, AppleScript discovery)

Relationship to the macOS automation skill

• Standalone for Reminders; reuse automating-mac-apps for permissions, shell helpers, and ObjC debugging patterns.
• PyXA Installation: To use PyXA examples in this skill, see the installation instructions in automating-mac-apps skill (PyXA Installation section).

Core Framing

Reminders works like a database: everything is accessed via specifiers (references to objects). Start by exploring the Reminders dictionary in Script Editor (switch to JavaScript view). Read properties with methods like name() or id(); write with assignments. Use .whose for efficient server-side filtering to minimize performance overhead. For creation, use constructors + .push() instead of make to avoid errors. Note: no native move command—use copy-delete instead. Priority: 1 (high), 5 (medium), 9 (low), 0 (none). Recurrence/location scripting is limited; use Shortcuts for advanced features.

Quickstart (create + alerts)

First, ensure Reminders permissions are granted (see automating-mac-apps for setup).

JXA:

try {
  const app = Application("Reminders");

  // Get list by name, or fall back to first available list
  let list;
  try {
    list = app.lists.byName("Reminders");
    list.name(); // Verify it exists
  } catch (e) {
    // Fall back to first available list
    const lists = app.lists();
    if (lists.length === 0) {
      throw new Error("No reminder lists found");
    }
    list = lists[0];
  }

  const r = app.Reminder({
    name: "Prepare deck",
    body: "Client review",
    dueDate: new Date(Date.now() + 3*86400*1000), // 3 days from now
    remindMeDate: new Date(Date.now() + 2*86400*1000), // Reminder 1 day before due
    priority: 1 // High priority
  });
  list.reminders.push(r);
  console.log("Reminder created in '" + list.name() + "'");
} catch (error) {
  console.error("Failed to create reminder: " + error.message);
  // Common errors: Permissions denied, list not found
}

Note: The list name varies by system. Common names include "Reminders", "Inbox", or localized versions. Using app.lists()[0] as a fallback ensures the script works across different configurations.

PyXA (Recommended Modern Approach):

import PyXA
from datetime import datetime, timedelta

try:
    reminders = PyXA.Reminders()

    # Get Inbox list
    inbox = reminders.lists().by_name("Inbox")

    # Create reminder with due date and reminder alert
    reminder = inbox.reminders().push({
        "name": "Prepare deck",
        "body": "Client review",
        "due_date": datetime.now() + timedelta(days=3),
        "remind_me_date": datetime.now() + timedelta(days=2),
        "priority": 1  # High priority
    })

    print("Reminder created successfully")

except Exception as error:
    print(f"Failed to create reminder: {error}")
    # Common errors: Permissions denied, Inbox list not found

PyObjC with Scripting Bridge:

from ScriptingBridge import SBApplication
from Foundation import NSDate

try:
    reminders = SBApplication.applicationWithBundleIdentifier_("com.apple.Reminders")

    # Get Inbox list
    lists = reminders.lists()
    inbox = None
    for lst in lists:
        if lst.name() == "Inbox":
            inbox = lst
            break

    if inbox:
        # Create reminder
        reminder = reminders.classForScriptingClass_("reminder").alloc().init()
        reminder.setName_("Prepare deck")
        reminder.setBody_("Client review")

        # Set due date (3 days from now)
        due_date = NSDate.dateWithTimeIntervalSinceNow_(3 * 24 * 60 * 60)
        reminder.setDueDate_(due_date)

        # Set reminder date (2 days from now)
        remind_date = NSDate.dateWithTimeIntervalSinceNow_(2 * 24 * 60 * 60)
        reminder.setRemindMeDate_(remind_date)

        reminder.setPriority_(1)  # High priority

        # Add to inbox
        inbox.reminders().addObject_(reminder)

        print("Reminder created successfully")
    else:
        print("Inbox list not found")

except Exception as error:
    print(f"Failed to create reminder: {error}")

Workflow (default)

1. Discover: Open Script Editor, view Reminders dictionary in JavaScript mode to learn available properties.
2. Target List: Get your list by name (e.g., app.lists.byName('Work')) or ID.
3. Filter: Use .whose for queries (e.g., reminders.whose({name: {_contains: 'meeting'}})). For dates, use _lessThan/_greaterThan.
4. Create: Build with Reminder({...}) then add via .push() to avoid errors.
5. Batch Operations: Collect IDs before changes, update/delete in batches.
6. Move: Copy item to new list, then delete original (no native move).
7. Advanced Features: For recurrence/location, call Shortcuts or clone template item.

Example: Filter overdue reminders:

const overdue = list.reminders.whose({dueDate: {_lessThan: new Date()}})();

Validation Checklist

After implementing Reminders automation:

• Verify Reminders permissions granted
• Test list access: app.lists().length > 0
• Confirm reminder creation with valid dates
• Check reminder appears in Reminders UI
• Validate .whose queries return expected results

Common Pitfalls

• Permission errors: Grant Reminders access in System Preferences > Security & Privacy.
• -10024 errors: Use constructor + push instead of make.
• Invalid dates: Validate before assignment.
• Missing lists: Check existence with app.lists.byName(name) before use.

When Not to Use

• For cross-platform task management (use Todoist API or similar)
• When complex recurrence patterns are needed (limited JXA support; use Shortcuts)
• For non-macOS platforms
• When location-based reminders require programmatic setup (use Shortcuts)

What to Load

Load progressively as needed:

• Basics: Start with automating-reminders/references/reminders-basics.md for specifiers and simple operations.
• Recipes: Add automating-reminders/references/reminders-recipes.md for practical create/query/batch examples.
• Advanced: For complex scenarios, load automating-reminders/references/reminders-advanced.md (priority, limits, debugging).
• Dictionary: Reference automating-reminders/references/reminders-dictionary.md for full type mappings.
• PyXA API Reference (complete class/method docs): automating-reminders/references/reminders-pyxa-api-reference.md