When building stories in Tines, selecting the correct function to transform your event data is crucial for efficiency. Just like how spreadsheet formulas help you manipulate data in cells, Tines functions help you transform, combine, and manipulate data as it flows through your workflows. This guide will show you the different methods for choosing the right function to use.

Need a refresher on functions? Read this article on functions in Tines or check out the University course here.

Tactical planning for data transformation

Before getting started, it is helpful to plan your data transformation logic.

Define your goal in plain language: Determine exactly what you want the data to look like at each step.
Translate to plain language: Write down the action you want to take, for example: "I want to remove any data that comes in that is inactive," or "I need to change the timestamp format to this specific format".

This initial planning process will help you clarify your requirements before you engage with the documentation, community or our AI tools, ensuring you find the most suitable function.

Here are our recommended approaches for identifying which Tines function to use.

AI-powered assistance

Leveraging Tines' AI tools is the most efficient way to find the correct function, and some options are AI credit-free.

If you need help learning any of our AI features, check out our Builder: AI learning path in University.

In all of these examples, we will be prompting AI to “remove any objects from the array that have a status of inactive”.

Here is the data we’re transforming:

[
  {
    "id": "1",
    "status": "inactive"
  },
  {
    "id": "2",
    "status": "active"
  },
  {
    "id": "3",
    "status": "active"
  }
]

Auto generate

Available within a formula pill, auto generate allows you to use plain language prompts to create functions.

Auto generate automatically places the formula into your action.

Automatic mode

Automatic mode is one of the modes available within the event transform action.. It allows you to use plain language to build the action for you.

Automatic mode allows you to see the output before saving.

Notes:

If the initial result isn't perfect from either auto generate or automatic mode, don't be discouraged; you may need to make minor adjustments to your prompt to get the desired result.
Both auto generate and automatic mode are highly recommended because they do not consume AI credits, unlike Story copilot.

Story copilot

Story copilot is an AI tool that can suggest methods for function generation. There are two modes you can use here: Ask and build mode.

Workbench

Workbench is a Tines-powered AI chat interface that allows you to take action and interact with your data in real-time. Read more about Workbench here.

Note: Workbench doesn't have contextual knowledge of the story/action they're working with.

Tips for using Workbench to choose the right function:

Provide your ask in plain language.
Provide an example of the incoming event data structure.
Provide an example of the desired result.

Manual or community resources

If AI assistance is not an option, or if you are looking to learn more about the functions, you can use manual and community resources:

In-app chatbot

You can use the in-app chatbot, Fin, to receive guidance on the correct Tines function.

For example, you could ask Fin “I have an array of objects where I need to remove any objects that have a status key of inactive. What Tines function should I use?”

Fin could then suggest functions like REJECT or FILTER when you need to process an array of objects.

Best practice for Fin

Since Fin doesn't know your specific data, you should provide specific input, such as a plain language description of the action you want to perform or the expected output, to help it provide the best response.

Function documentation

The function documentation lists all available functions and provides a summary of what each does. You can find the list of all functions available in Tines here.

Clicking into any of the functions gives you a description, syntax, and usage examples.