Help me keep Reminders from turning all numbers into alerts

Question

Level 1

14 points

Help me keep Reminders from turning all numbers into alerts

Here's the problem:

When I write 8-10 as, say, a unit of measure--e.g., 8-10 oz Rotini for my groceries list--or any similar number, or if I just want to include a date in a reminder, Reminders automatically turns that into an alert at a time it interprets from the numbers in the subject (in this example, it chose 8am today). This is a fairly big nuisance. Enough to turn me off from using it, if it weren't within the system I'm already using to sync everything else and if it wasn't otherwise working fine.

Sometimes it's nice to watch the natural language reminder setting at work, but I don't usually set reminders for my Reminders, so it actually creates more work for me to remove the reminder and edit the reminder so that it reads the way I meant. Frankly, I have my reminders converted to dates when I don't want it more often than when I do want it, so it makes more sense for me to turn the feature off... Guess what? I can't!

Wish Apple could just throw me a small bone with a toggle on this feature in preferences. But, given that there isn't an option, there must be a file I can modify in Terminal to switch this feature off so that I can set my own reminders when I want them, and leave the rest alone. This really will save me quite a bit of work over the long haul.

Anyone?

Mac mini, OS X Mountain Lion (10.8.2)

Posted on Feb 7, 2013 3:23 PM

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Answer 1

Aug 25, 2017 3:52 PM in response to epskionline

This is driving me nuts! It keeps deleting relevant information and making it into an alert. Not only for my personal lists but I sync a list with my boss, so she ends up getting irrelevant and annoying notifications as well. Reminders is supposed to help productivity. I wish this were an option that I could toggle on and off for certain lists.

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Answer 2

Barney-15E

Level 10

122,306 points

Feb 7, 2013 4:19 PM in response to epskionline

Don't break the units from the numbers. E.g. 8-10oz as opposed to 8-10 oz.

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Answer 3

epskionline Author

Level 1

14 points

Feb 11, 2013 4:36 AM in response to Barney-15E

That works for this particular example, so that is partially helpful, but that does not help for dates.

So, for example, if I type in a list of things to do in my area, and make a time related comment, it automatically creates a reminder for 9am today:

MFA (free Sundays 9am-12pm)

I have to go in and remove the reminder, add the correct time range again (it strips the times entirely), and then I get what I want.

I could put the parenthetical part in notes, but then that would be additional work. When I am cranking through a list, I don't want to have to stop and click around on stuff to add notes. I just want to type, hit Command+N, and keep going.

Productivity is the name of the game here. Reminders are most useful to me when I can capture stuff quickly and not get bogged down in editing.

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Answer 4

Barney-15E

Level 10

122,306 points

Feb 11, 2013 4:43 AM in response to epskionline

Try Evernote, or some other list app instead. Reminders isn't working well with your way of doing things.

Or, develop your own tagging that it can't understand, like 9.a - 12.p

Automatically grabbing the information and formatting it as the Reminder date/time is productivity for most of us. For you, not so much.

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Answer 5

epskionline Author

Level 1

14 points

Feb 13, 2013 5:17 AM in response to Barney-15E

I appreciate your input, but I have various reasons to use Reminders as my reminders app, including Siri integration (I use Evernote for research gathering and for archival purposes, and it's great for that). I'd also be curious to know whether you are right that *most* people consider the feature productivity-enhancing. While I agree that this is the intention, in practice I can't be the only who is having reminders set unintentionally. The feature just isn't smart enough (yet?).

What I'm really seeking in the community with this thread is for someone with knowledge of the system to tell me whether there is a default I can turn off using a command in Terminal. In the meantime, I do like your suggestion to screw around with the formatting of times and dates until I find a system that fools Reminders. In a way, that is better than shutting the feature off entirely. This way, when I *do* want the reminder to set automatically, I can just use regular language again.

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Answer 6

Jun 13, 2013 1:37 PM in response to epskionline

I'd like to find a terminal command to stop this auto-interpreter too. I don't accept that the users should change how they type to avoid the unwanted conversion.

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Answer 7

Jul 30, 2013 4:36 AM in response to epskionline

I find it also quite inconvenient that it tries to convert any kind of number into a date/time. In my case I need a reminder like "Confirm meeting for next week 27 at 12", it cuts off the 12 and sets it as the time to remind me, and even replaces the time that I had alerady set.

There should be a way to escape that, e.g. by putting it in brackets or so like "Confirm meeting (next week monday at 12)" or so.

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Answer 8

Atom Mac

Level 1

4 points

Sep 7, 2013 2:06 PM in response to epskionline

I completely agree. Microsoft OSs are appropriately criticized for being the over-active Boy Scout. Now Apple has crossed into this territory. Unfortunate.

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Answer 9

mahagogo

Level 1

0 points

Mar 15, 2014 9:22 PM in response to epskionline

I too am often annoyed by this feature

(enough to post to these forums for 1st time as a Mac user for 25 years).

My latest instance of this is: adding "5H" as measurement unit (WxDxH)
is auto cut from the text, and then converted it to the small grey time (Today 5.00pm)

Sure there are workarounds such as adding parenthesis etc...
but imho that is totally undermining the whole point of enhancing productivity.

Maybe, I'm not a "smart user"... or maybe I'm getting old and grumpy 🙂 ...

or maybe I'm just getting more tired of seeing Apple drop the ball more frequently of late...

Why can't Apple just add an on/off for this function in the prefs/settings?
or at least give the user the ability to customise or rules/execptions...

In the grand scheme of things, yes this is a tiny "bug" compared to other doozies over the years...
perhaps that's why it's so annoying!

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Answer 10

Eric Root

Level 10

685,257 points

Mar 17, 2014 12:49 PM in response to mahagogo

Send Apple feedback. They won't answer, but at least will know there is a problem. If enough people send feedback, it may get the problem solved sooner.

Feedback

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