iOS 8 is a significant change from this school of thought. Now applications can choose to integrate themselves alongside officially blessed networks. All the user has to do is enable them from the share menu. Hot tip: Just updated to iOS 8? Check out our running list of the best iOS 8 widgets. In the previous article, I’ve told you what extensions are, how they work and how to enable them. Here’s a recap. Once the app is installed, pull up the share sheet, swipe to the end, select More and enable the app extension.
What Are Share Extensions?
iOS 8 share extensions enable one app to talk to another without leaving the app you’re currently in. The concept of the share extension is simple. They allow you to share a web page, photo, video or any type of content to a specific app (and by extension, the internet). Just like the Facebook and Twitter integration we’ve been used to, these extensions have their own modal windows where you can customize/fine tune your selection.
The Best Share Extensions
1. Pinterest
Pinterest’s app has one of the best share extensions I’ve used so far. It’s so powerful that even a Social Media Expert can do all their curated pinning without leaving Safari or Chrome. All you have to do is bring up the Pinterest extension, select the image from the page you want to pin, assign the board and you’re done.
2. Tumblr
If Pinterest’s extension is feature rich, Tumblr’s is widespread. It works from anywhere that has a share menu and text/photos/video. It lets you pick content from any app and lets you share to your Tumblr blog, all without ever stepping into the Tumblr app itself.
3 & 4. Instapaper & Pocket
Pocket and Instapaper are two of the best read-later apps. And now with the Instapaper app going free for basic features, they are pretty comparable too. Both are great apps and your choice ultimately comes down to personal preference. What’s great is that both apps have iOS 8 extensions. Reading an article in Safari/Chrome that you want to save to Pocket/Instapaper? No worries, just bring up the share menu, tap the button and you’re done.
5. Day One
Day One ($4.99) is hands down the best journal app for iOS. With this extension you can import photos and media from your camera roll or content from the web without ever opening the app.
6. Evernote
Evernote is my “everything bucket”. Anything that I want to archive for a long time goes to Evernote (for everything else there’s Simplenote). With this extension you can send any kind of text, webpage or media to Evernote and in the modal window you can customize the note title and specify the notebook where it will be saved.
7. HootSuite
Here’s another app for the Social Media Expert. If you use HootSuite as a dashboard for all your social media conquests, the new share extension will make your work a little bit easier. Now you can share to any HootSuite linked account using the share extension.
8. Slack
We here at Guiding Tech use Slack for communication. My colleagues are spread across the globe and Slack helps to bring us together in one virtual room. With the Slack extension I can share files, photos, etc, to Slack channels and chats without even entering the said virtual room (the app).
9. Storehouse
Storehouse is a beautiful photo story app. All you do is import your photos, write a narrative for your photo story and the app will generate beautiful responsive webpages that you can share with your friends and family. Now, thanks to Storehouse’s share extension, you can directly send photos to the app from the Camera app and start working on the narrative.
10. Asana
If you’re using Asana for task management for your personal use or with your team you can now use the Share menu to create tasks from anywhere and attach links, media etc.
How Are You Using The Share Sheet?
Have you found interesting ways to use share sheet extensions? Something that has improved your productivity or changed your life? Feel free to share your story in the comments below.
