# SF Symbol for vCard Menu | Shortcuts Library

> used to create and encode an Apple SF Symbol for a vCard menu

## What this shortcut does

A video demonstration of this shortcut is available here (reddit, /shortcuts).
Important Caveat
This shortcut,
SF Symbol for vCard Menu
uses the
Create Icon
action included in Toolbox Pro. This action requires the
Toolbox Pro Premium
in-app purchase.
Toolbox Pro
is an amazing utility for the
Shortcuts
app. If you develop shortcuts, do yourself a big favor and install it today. You'll be amazed how it extends the capability of your shortcuts. Many of the additional actions it provides are free, but as mentioned above some require an in-app purchase.
Purpose
The purpose of this shortcut is to generate encoded photos suitable for shortcut vCard menus. All photos are based off one of the 1500+ Apple SF Symbols thanks to the
Toolbox Pro
Create Icon
action.
To create a vCard menu, the encoded photo that this shortcut generates can be pasted into the location indicated below (in a
Text
action).
BEGIN:VCARD
VERSION:3.0
N;CHARSET=utf-8:Main Text For Item 1;;;;
ORG:Optional sub text for the 1st menu item;
PHOTO;ENCODING=b:_ENCODED PHOTO INSERTED HERE_
END:VCARD
Since the encoded photo is a very long string of text characters, it is more partical to paste the text into a
Dictionary
action
Text
value and then reference that dictionary value in
Text
action. See below for an example.
Application
If you are going to create a shortcut only for yourself and you have made the
Toolbox Pro Premium
purchase to activate the premium actions (IMHO
well worth
the nominal cost), the
Create Menu
action would be the quickest and easiest way to create
vCard-style
menus. In fact, it appears that the
Toolbox Pro
author, Alex Hay, is planning to add some additional menu features.
However, if you plan to create and share a shortcut and you can't be certain that the users will have purchased
Toolbox Pro Premium
, then the approach discussed in the previous section should be used. This is when
SF Symbol for vCard Menu
becomes useful.
Instructions
The operation of
SF Symbol for vCard Menu
is simple:
Choose one of the Apple SF Symbols. (Or type any of the 1,500+ SF Symbol names.)
Choose one of the thirty-two iOS Colors for the
SF Symbol
.
Choose one of the thirty-two iOS Colors for the
background
.
Preview the SF Symbol created.
The encoded SF Symbol will be automatically written to the
iOS Clipboard
.
Using the Encoded Photo
After exiting
SF Symbol for vCard Menu
, the value in the clipboard can be pasted into a shortcut that includes a vCard menu. Below is such a shortcut named vCard Menu Example.
Adding to the SF Symbol Menu
As mentioned above, SF Symbol names can be typed after selecting
[
Type any SF Symbol name
]
. However, if there are certain
SF Symbols
that you use often that are not included on the
SF Symbol Menu
, you can add them by modifying a
Dictionary
action that appears near the top of this shortcut. Just be aware, however, that if you reinstall or update SF Symbol names you will loose those additions and need to add them back after the install/update.
Resources
When
SF Symbol for vCard Menu
is opened it renders a menu that gives you quick access to this help and links to Apple and 3rd party
SF Symbols
information.
Shortcut Testing
SF Symbol for vCard Menu
, has been tested with the following:
iOS 14.5 beta 5
iPhone 8 Plus
iPad Pro 10.5"
Shortcut Development and Acknowledgments
SF Symbol for vCard Menu
is available exclusively at
.co
. Versions obtained elsewhere might be out-of-date.
The framed screenshots were created using the shortcut
Apple Frames (iOS)
from the MacStories Shortcuts Archive.
SF Symbol for vCard Menu
checks for updates of itself every 7 days using
Embed-a-Update
(Version: 1.1.2, Updated: 10/13/19).

## Compatibility

iPhone, iPad, Mac

## Required apps

Toolbox Pro for Shortcuts

[View this page](https://shortcutlibrary.app/shortcuts/sf-symbol-for-vcard-menu)

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