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Variable Chaining

Variables can reference other variables, allowing you to build complex workflows where one variable's output feeds into another.

Clipboard → Form Default​

The most common chain: grab clipboard content and pre-fill it in a form field for editing.

- trigger: ":edit"
  replace: "{{form.content}}"
  vars:
    - name: clip
      type: clipboard
    - name: form
      type: form
      params:
        layout: |
          Edit content:
          [[content]]
        fields:
          content:
            multiline: true
            default: "{{clip}}"

Shell → Form Values​

Use shell output to populate a choice/list field dynamically.

- trigger: ":deploy"
  replace: "Deploying {{form.server}} with {{form.branch}}"
  vars:
    - name: servers
      type: shell
      params:
        cmd: "cat ~/servers.txt"
    - name: branches
      type: shell
      params:
        cmd: "git branch --list | cut -c3-"
    - name: form
      type: form
      params:
        layout: |
          Server: [[server]]
          Branch: [[branch]]
        fields:
          server:
            type: choice
            values: "{{servers}}"
          branch:
            type: choice
            values: "{{branches}}"

Date → Form → Shell → Output​

A 4-step chain: get date, show form, run shell command with form values, output result.

- trigger: ":report"
  replace: "{{result}}"
  vars:
    - name: date
      type: date
      params:
        format: "%Y-%m-%d"
    - name: form
      type: form
      params:
        layout: |
          Date: [[date]]
          Ticket: [[ticket]]
          Description:
          [[desc]]
        fields:
          date:
            default: "{{date}}"
          ticket:
            placeholder: "JIRA-123"
          desc:
            multiline: true
    - name: result
      type: shell
      params:
        cmd: "echo '{{form.ticket}}: {{form.desc}} ({{form.date}})'"

Flow Diagram​

Important Notes​

  • Variables are resolved in the order they are defined
  • A variable can only reference variables defined before it
  • Circular references will cause resolution failure
  • Shell variables in form defaults are evaluated before the form opens

What's Next​

Learn about System-Wide Mode for expansion in any application.