What are Triggers?
Triggers are criteria sets that cause a session to automatically start or end by itself. You define the criteria needed for a Trigger to automatically start and end. In order for a Trigger to start a new session, your Mac must already be awake. For instance, if you want your Mac to stay awake from 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM on weekdays, your Mac must already be awake at 9:00 AM. Amphetamine cannot wake a Mac that is already asleep.
Triggers can be set up in Amphetamine’s Preferences. Each Trigger you set up has is own set of criteria. If you have multiple Triggers configured, if any individual Trigger’s conditions are met, a new session will start (unless a session is already active).
Enabling/Disabling Triggers
You can disable all Triggers by unchecking the Enable Triggers box in Amphetamine’s Preferences. In Amphetamine 4, you can also disable each Trigger individually by deselecting the Enabled box next to each Trigger’s name in table displayed in Amphetamine’s Triggers preference tab. Note that if the global Enable Triggers box is unchecked, no Triggers will run even if the Enabled box is checked for a specific Trigger.
Creating New Triggers
Creating a new Trigger is super easy:
1. Open Amphetamine's Preferences
Click on Amphetamine’s icon in the system menu bar and select Preferences… . In Amphetamine’s Preferences Window, select the Triggers tab. Click the + button in lower left corner of the window and follow the prompts.
2. Give your Trigger a Name
Enter a memorable name for your Trigger. This will come in handy later on if you need to find your Trigger in the list for editing and if you have automatic session start/end notifications enabled.
3. Configure Display/Screen Saver Options
For each Trigger you create, you can choose to allow or prevent display sleep, screen saver activation, and system sleep while your Mac's display is closed. These per-Trigger options override the choices you have made in Preferences → Sessions → Non-Trigger Sessions.
4. Select Criteria for Your Trigger
Select criteria for your Trigger. All criteria must be met for your Trigger to start a new session.
A. Click the + button in the Criteria section of the Trigger Configuration window. From the list that appears, select a criterion. A pop up window showing that criterion's options will appear.
B. Select/define your criterion's options. In the example screen shot below, the App criterion is used. Use the ⟳ refresh button to refresh the list of running applications.
C. Click the Add Criterion button. Click the ? button to the right of the Add Criterion button to learn more about that specific criterion.
5. Save
Click the Save button in the Trigger Configuration window to save your new Trigger. Make sure you have enabled both the global Enable Triggers setting as well as the individual Enabled setting for your Trigger to run successfully.
Editing Triggers
To edit a Trigger, double click its name in the Preferences → Triggers table. Depending on your Mac's current state, some previously selected Trigger criteria may no longer be available. For instance, if you had set up a Trigger for when a specific USB device is connected to your Mac, and the device is no longer connected, you won't be able to re-select the disconnected USB device. Double check all of your criteria before saving an edited Trigger. Use the Cancel button to exit Trigger editing without saving changes.
Deleting Triggers
To delete a Trigger, click to highlight it in the Preferences → Triggers table. Then, click the minus button at the bottom left side of the list to delete the Trigger (this cannot be undone).
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