Derrick.Blarg

Tag: productivity

  • Get First Date of Week in Google Sheets, When the Week of the Year is Related to the Row Number

    Get First Date of Week in Google Sheets, When the Week of the Year is Related to the Row Number

    *phew* what a title

    For a recent project, I wanted to set up a Google Sheet that tracked something daily/weekly. I wanted one column to show the starting day of the week to help keep me on track, and I ended up with this:

    I used ChatGPT to help me make the formula to determine the first day of the week, indexed to the current row:

    =DATE(YEAR(TODAY()), MONTH(DATE(YEAR(TODAY()),1,1)+(ROW()-2)*7-WEEKDAY(DATE(YEAR(TODAY()),1,1))+1), DAY(DATE(YEAR(TODAY()),1,1)+(ROW()-2)*7-WEEKDAY(DATE(YEAR(TODAY()),1,1))+1))

    This is how ChatGPT explains how the function works:

    This Google Sheets function returns the date that corresponds to the first day of the week for a given row number. The row number is specified by the ROW() function, which returns the row number of the current cell.

    The function uses the following steps to calculate the date:

    1. It uses the YEAR(TODAY()) function to get the current year.
    2. It uses the DATE(YEAR(TODAY()),1,1) function to get the first day of the current year (e.g. January 1).
    3. It uses the WEEKDAY(DATE(YEAR(TODAY()),1,1)) function to get the day of the week of the first day of the year as a number (e.g. 1 for Monday, 2 for Tuesday, etc.).
    4. It uses the (ROW()-2)*7 expression to calculate the number of days to skip from the first day of the year to get to the desired week. For example, if the ROW() function returns 2, then the expression will evaluate to 0, which means that no days need to be skipped. If the ROW() function returns 3, then the expression will evaluate to 7, which means that one week needs to be skipped.
    5. It uses the DATE(YEAR(TODAY()),1,1)+(ROW()-2)*7-WEEKDAY(DATE(YEAR(TODAY()),1,1))+1 expression to calculate the date that corresponds to the first day of the week for the given row number.
    6. It uses the MONTH(DATE(YEAR(TODAY()),1,1)+(ROW()-2)*7-WEEKDAY(DATE(YEAR(TODAY()),1,1))+1) function to get the month of the calculated date.
    7. It uses the DAY(DATE(YEAR(TODAY()),1,1)+(ROW()-2)*7-WEEKDAY(DATE(YEAR(TODAY()),1,1))+1) function to get the day of the month of the calculated date.
    8. It uses the DATE() function to combine the year, month, and day into a single date.

    For example, if the ROW() function returns 2 and the current year is 2022, the function will return the date January 3, 2022. If the ROW() function returns 3 and the current year is 2022, the function will return the date January 10, 2022.

    It took a lot of trial and error, and manual adjustments to get the function to work, and it was really fun to play with ChatGPT and work together to get this working. While I could have trial and errored myself to the end functionality eventually, this did end up saving me quite a bit of time.

    If you, random Internet stranger, want to use this function yourself, but your rows aren’t lined up the same as mine, you’ll just need to adjust the (ROW()-2) type areas to change the row offset you’re currently starting at.

  • How to Use Backticks for Inline Code in Google Docs with a Chrome Extension

    How to Use Backticks for Inline Code in Google Docs with a Chrome Extension

    https://chromewebstore.google.com/detail/backtick/gfollmknbahbmikbkhepbggabhdpjlhh

    Update from the extension author:

    Update Aug 11, 2023:

    About a year after this extension first came out, Google released built-in inline code markdown support for Google Docs, rendering this extension obsolete for most use-cases. The extension will remain for those want to continue using it, but I don’t intend on making any further updates. To get the built-in inline code and code blocks working via backticks, ensure the Tools -> Preferences -> “Automatically detect Markdown” checkbox is enabled inside Google Docs.

    Zach Brogan, you are my new best friend! I have to confess, I’m a big fan of Markdown. It’s an elegant and straightforward markup language that allows for easy formatting and structuring of text. Whether it’s writing blog posts, documentation, or even taking notes, Markdown is my go-to tool.

    One issue I’ve encountered, however, is that not all platforms fully support Markdown. For instance, when working in Google Docs, despite the presence of a “markdown” option, inline code blocks never seemed to work as expected. It was frustrating to say the least.

    That’s when I stumbled upon the “Backtick” Chrome extension, and it has been a game-changer for me. The extension seamlessly integrates into the Google Docs editor, allowing me to effortlessly insert inline code blocks using backticks. No more struggling with wonky formatting or trying to find workarounds.

    With the Backtick extension, I can write and format my inline code snippets in Markdown within Google Docs. It has truly revolutionized my workflow and made my writing experience a lot smoother and more enjoyable.

    So, if you enjoy Markdown as much as I do, I highly recommend giving the “Backtick” Chrome extension a try. It will save you time and frustration, and let you focus on what you do best – creating great content. Happy writing!

    Thank you!

    https://backtick.zachbrogan.com
  • iOS Reminders to Habitica To Do’s via IFTTT

    iOS Reminders to Habitica To Do’s via IFTTT

    After digging around for a while trying to see how I could link up iOS’s Reminders with Habitica‘s To Do’s to help keep me organized, I finally found an easy way through IFTTT.

    This works easily because Habitica offers a wonderful API💥

    Specifically we’re looking at the “Create a new task belonging to the user” API endpoint:

    https://habitica.com/api/v3/tasks/user

    With this, we’ll need to make a POST request with some special headers to authenticate and then a body payload made of JSON:

    Headers:

    X-Client: my-user-id-IFTTTiOSRemindersSync
X-API-User: my-user-id
X-API-Key: my-api-keyCode language: HTTP (http)

    Body:

    {
	"text": "{{Title}}",
	"type": "todo",
	"notes": "{{Notes}} (Imported from iOS Reminders via IFTTT)"
}Code language: JSON / JSON with Comments (json)

    From here, IFTTT will fill in the title, notes, and ship it off to Habitica for me to check off for some sweet XP!

  • My Favorite Firefox Addons

    My Favorite Firefox Addons

    For my own posterity in case I ever lose them, or if anyone is curious, here’s what I use:

    https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/1password-x-password-manager/
    https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/clearurls/
    https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/edit-cookie/
    https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/decentraleyes/
    https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/duckduckgo-for-firefox/
    https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/facebook-container/
    https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/image-search-options/
    https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/old-reddit-redirect/
    https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/recipe-filter/
    https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/reddit-enhancement-suite/
    https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/soundcloud-dl/
    https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/sponsorblock/
    https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/the-camelizer-price-history-ch/
    https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/ublock-origin/
    https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/view-image-in-google-images/
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