Create macOS automations using a little-known app

I use a lot of browsers for testing, so I created this launcher to make the process easier:

You may be wondering what third-party tool I used to do this. Such things are possible in Keyboard Maestro through custom HTML prompts, but that's a lot of work. I'm sure there are other apps that can do similar things. Surprisingly, though, I used nothing more than a built-in app to create this launcher. The app has existed since macOS 10.15 (Catalina), but I doubt more than a handful of Mac users (outside its target user base) even know it exists—I didn't hear about it until yesterday.

What app is that? It's called Panel Editor, and the easiest place to find it is here: System Settings → Accessibility → Keyboard → Scroll down until you see the Panel Editor button.

Launch the Panel Editor app, and you'll discover a well-written easy-to-use app that lets you quickly create panels that can help you automate tasks. Here's how the above launcher looks in Panel Editor (click for larger version):

Layouts consist of buttons, and buttons can do one of a number of things, as seen in the image at right. Notice that in that list are two powerful options that bring even more power to buttons: AppleScript and Run Shortcut.

With the ability to run AppleScripts (which must exist already and be saved in a file), the simple little button can suddenly do not so simple things. Including execute Keyboard Maestro macros, as you can do that via AppleScript. And running Shortcuts also opens up a whole new world of possibilities.

There are also layout tools available in the menus, and you can customize each button's appearance, group buttons, and more. Add a bunch of buttons and save your work, and you've got a panel. One panel (using the Inspector sidebar with the panel selected, not a button) can be your Home panel; it will show when you click the menu bar shortcut to show the keyboard viewer.

But buttons can be used to switch panels, too—see the light green button in the first screenshot in this post? If I click that, I get a vertical version of the browser launcher. When I click that, I get the vertical version of the launcher you see to the left of this post. And it has a button to switch back to the horizontal launcher.

So what exactly is Panel Editor? It's designed for those who use Switch Control or the Accessibility Keyboard; this app lets them add custom panels to streamline common tasks. In every day use outside of that realm, you access your panels through the "Show Input Menu in Menu Bar" option in System Settings → Keyboard →Input Sources → Edit.

There's a ton of power hiding in this simple little app, and I've barely touched on what it can do (mainly because I've only been using it for a day or so myself). If you've been looking for a simple automation tool with a good UI, give it a shot!