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Best answer

Passing a a string as a literal

  • 24 November 2021
  • 5 replies
  • 468 views
J
Userlevel 1

I’m not sure if I’m even characterizing my question correctly. Here is the situation:

  • I want my Zap to send the string {{Date:DDD}} to a text file in Google Drive. From there, I have an desktop automation that transforms it into a markdown file which is ingested by Obsidian.md.
  • The problem is that Zapier uses the double brackets to indicate an internal field within the Zap. Thus it returns “No Data” and doesn’t pass the string to the text file
  • I’ve tried to use backslashes (e.g. \{\{ and \}\} ) but then all I get is “Date:DD” passed to the text file. I get the same result when enclosing the string in quote marks.

Does anyone know how I can get the desired string into the text file without Zapier processing it as an internal field?

 

Thanks!

Jack

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Best answer by Troy Tessalone 24 November 2021, 17:22

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This post has been closed for comments. Please create a new post if you need help or have a question about this topic.

5 replies

Troy Tessalone
Userlevel 7
Badge +14

@john-jack 

Not sure if this helps, but 1 Code step can be used to place of multiple Formatter steps: https://zapier.com/apps/code/help

⚡ Troy Tessalone - AutomationAce.com | Premier Certified Zapier Expert | #1 Zapier Community Contributor
Troy Tessalone
Userlevel 7
Badge +14

@john-jack 

Here’s a good JavaScript resource to reference: https://www.w3schools.com/jsref/default.asp

⚡ Troy Tessalone - AutomationAce.com | Premier Certified Zapier Expert | #1 Zapier Community Contributor
Troy Tessalone
Userlevel 7
Badge +14

Hi @john-jack 

Check this related topic:

 

Perhaps use a different notation to have your desktop automation reference.

⚡ Troy Tessalone - AutomationAce.com | Premier Certified Zapier Expert | #1 Zapier Community Contributor
J
Userlevel 1

Thanks @Troy Tessalone -- that is indeed the same issue. Unfortunately, I have no control over the destination application’s use of the curly brackets for templated data, so it seems like I’m stuck for the time-being.

My specific use case can actually be solved by using Zapier’s Formatter, but that solution means using up precious action steps in Zapier (which I pay for) instead of Obsidian (which is not pay-per-action). Sigh… Oh well, onward and upward!

Jack

J
Userlevel 1

Oh, that would be perfect… except that I’m not a coder :)

Maybe I will try to look into this over the upcoming holidays. Javascript can’t be too hard, can it? LOL. If I do, I’ll report back for posterity’s sake! Thanks again!

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