Advances Make Common Tech More Reliable and Accurate

Voice activation of computer technology, beginning with using human speech to get a computer to understand a function you want it to perform and developing from there, has been a dream for many years but a practicality much more recently. The potential applications are almost innumerable, and one cannot exaggerate the helpfulness of technology that you do not need to sit directly next to, hold in your hand, or even touch. IBM’s Shoebox, introduced at the 1962 Seattle World’s Fair, was able to recognize sixteen spoken words and the digits 0 to 9. Now, nearly everyone carries a device with them daily that can perform dozens of tasks, if not more, via voice command. Read more »

Having a digital personal assistant has been a science fiction fantasy for many consumers for decades.  Computers that speak to you and act as a personal assistant has been a common trope in popular television shows, books and films over the years.  However, only recently did the idea become a viable reality for the everyday consumer.  When Apple’s Siri feature for the iPhone debuted several years ago, it was a major hit. The conversational interaction that triggered the feature tapped into to many people’s fantasies about artificial intelligence.  Suddenly, people had the ability to ask their smartphone to make appointments, look up information and perform basic online tasks with just a few spoken words.  Flash forward a few years later and now there is a cool product called GoDog Fetch that acts in a similar way, but does so for other platforms besides the iPhone, such as Android and Windows devices.  Users who have trouble downloading the product for any of their devices can get help from a smartphone IT support service. Read more »

Voice control is a growing trend in the smartphone arena.  Both of the two biggest smartphone operating systems—iOS and Android—have voice-activated virtual assistant features built in to their system (Siri and Google Now, respectively).  However, these virtual assistants often don’t work within many specific applications, limiting how many actions they can actually perform.  This is why cool person in technology Stuart Patterson is making virtual assistant style voice control available for individual mobile applications with his company Xtone.  Consumers have responded well to the ease-of-use presented by Siri and Google Now, so Patterson sees an opportunity for app creators to transplant that experience into their own mobile software.  Patterson targets Xtone’s services at small and medium-sized app developers who want to add a Siri-like experience to their product.  Xtone’s own website lists various potential applications of such a feature.  One could use Xtone’s technology for booking hotels and rental cars quickly with a travel app, transferring money or paying bills with a banking app, or even connecting to an online tech support service when you have trouble operating an app.  While virtual assistants like Siri and Google Now can only let you open certain programs or access specific OS commands by voice, Xtone’s technology lets people commit these essential tasks the same way.  Read more »

Apple’s iPhone 4S has found its voice with Siri, the new digital assistant that comes integrated into the phone’s OS. The feature allows users to interact with their iPhones as if they were talking to a personal assistant, albeit one who has limited functionality. Siri lets users control functions using their voice; users can send messages, check and make changes to their calendars and even search for nearby restaurants.

Siri is different from other voice-operated systems or features because, according to Apple, it not only understands what people say, but also what they mean. It understands the contexts of requests and can keep track of the conversation. For example, when a user says “reply,” Siri automatically understands which message the user is referring to based on context.  Apple calls Siri proactive, meaning that it will keep asking its user questions until it actually understands what he or she wants to know.

The voice control functionality works extremely well with text messages. Users can ask Siri to read incoming texts and to respond by typing what they dictate. Likewise, Siri is programmed to work smoothly with the iPhone’s calendar application. Siri can check for appointments, make new ones, and remind its users when tasks or meetings are scheduled. This feature, coupled with Siri’s understanding of colloquialisms, makes it easy to say things like, “Make sure I remember to pay my credit card bill after work.”

Siri also keeps track of its user’s geographic location, so to get directions, users don’t need to load a map and enter the final destination; instead a user only needs to say, “Where’s the nearest gas station?” If Siri isn’t quite sure what’s being asked, it may ask its user more questions for clarification.

The voice recognition technology works fairly well when it comes to recognizing mumbles and whispers, according to Mark Milian who reviews the feature for CNN.

Siri currently works with several of the iPhone’s integrated apps like music player, calendar, text messaging, and Yelp; but it has some limitations. Siri can’t work with outside apps and will not be able to do so until third party apps can be tied to it. The feature can’t access the iPhone’s camera, nor can it take email or memo diction.

Siri talks to users in a female voice (except in France and the U.K. where it has a male voice) and doesn’t have a heavy computer-software accent, so it seems rather friendly. Thanks to the ongoing advances in anthropomorphic voice technology, Siri adapts its tone to suit its sentence’s intended meaning, and doesn’t sound completely like a robot reading strung together words.

Overall, Siri isn’t perfect yet; it has quite a few limitations and will require strong tech support to improve. Besides, many people may not feel comfortable talking to their phones in public. Still, Siri’s future is promising; it can only get better as it gets tied to third-party apps and as its voice recognition and tonality become more advanced.

About RESCUECOM:

RESCUECOM provides computer repair and computer support, 24/7: Meeting every tech support need including data recovery, virus removal, networking, wireless services, and computer support for all brands of hardware and software. For computer support or information on products, services, or computer repair, visit https://www.rescuecom.com or call 1-800-RESCUE-PC.

For More Information, Contact:

David Milman, CEO

315-882-1100

david@rescuecom.com