These IFTTT Halloween-themed recipes will digitally get you in the spirit

Here’s a crash course in automating various online tasks: IFTTT stands for “if this then that,” and it’s a great tool to use on popular services (called channels) to get them to do an action (that) when a certain trigger is hit (this).

There are plenty of recipes out there to streamline your social media usage, and IFTTT even found a few creative, Halloween-theme actions you can use, and we spied some as well. Here are the best IFTTT recipes to get you digitally into the Halloween spirit. 

Trick-or-treaters at the front door? Turn on something scary!

This is probably the only time in the year that it’s perfectly OK to scare the bejesus out of kids, so you might as well go whole hog on your scream-inducing tactics by setting up your WeMotion sensor on quiet mode and have its switch go on and off when movement is detected. Load up your Halloween playlist with sound effects and scary movie theme songs for the full effect.

Flicker my lights to scare everyone

Another great WeMotion sensor trick from IFTTT? You can make you lights flicker at (seemingly) random on Halloween. Alter the recipe to time it to your needs and scare your roommates/significant other/party guests/anyone who you want to convince your house is haunted. 

Make all #TrickorTreat Instagrams my screensaver 

Want to see the trick-or-treating action from behind your desktop? This recipe will deliver them as they happen. The recipe does require you to download and install SkyDrive, so just know that going in. 

Text me if the CDC reports a Zombie outbreak

Obviously, on a day such as this, anything can happen. You can get attacked by a ghost, just like in the movies. You can run into a psychopath who abhors last-minute Halloween costumes. As a precaution, this recipe will send you an SMS if any news of a zombie apocalypse breaks out. Maybe just leave this one activated year-round … you know, just in case. 

Wish your friends and followers a Happy Halloween

If you’re just too busy today (or next year, or the year after that) to post “Happy Halloween!” message to Facebook and Twitter, these recipes will do it for you every year on October 31. 

Turn your lights orange

If you’re lucky enough to own a set of the Hue lightbulbs, this recipe will turn them all appropriately orange in time for the holiday.