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Microsoft Voice Command Almost Here
PDA User writes "The new Microsoft Voice Command for Pocket PC isn't supposed to be out until the next Comdex, but someone inside the company posted details to Handango and Geekzone posted a preview.
The application notifies users of appointments, and answer simple English questions. It does not have "Do you want fries with that?" in the vocabulary though."
I've been listening to the voice of Microsoft command me for years.
Every command must be followed with "Make It So."
(somebody in the audience yells...)
format c!
(then another one...)
enter!!
yes!!!
enter!!!!
Looking for people to chat about multicopters, coding, music. skype: gtsiros
now you'll need three people to reset your machine!
CONTROLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL!
ALTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTT!
DELETEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!
gives an entirely different meaning to "chording", eh?
Why can't you talk to your computer? Sounds like a good idea, right? Hell, it's a star trek fanatasy come true for 90% of the geeks out there. So why can't you?
The answer is not because the technology is not good enough. Speech command software has come a long way, and in most situations, with the right microphone, it can be very realiable...if you talk clearly.
The problem is that people don't naturally talk clearly. They repeat themselves, add in lots of "ummm"s and "errr"s and "like"s, and generally speak in ways that only another human could symantically understand. Because of this, using a keyboard or mouse to communicate with a computer is always going to me a more effecient mechanism.
Think about it...which is faster: Saying (in a clear, even tone) "Select the 3rd item in the list" or just clicking on it. Even in ideal environments using buttons on a PDA is going to faster and more reliable than voice command.
The only reason humans can use speech to effciently communicate with each other is that along with speech comes tone, body language, and symantic context that conveys as much (if not more) information than the vocal message itself. Computers cannot pick up on those kinds of things.
I seriously doubt that anyone will make extensive use of this feature.
PDA: "Where do you want to go today?"
... wait ... what are you doing with that battery hatch? ... no, Dave ... I'm scared, Dave ... will I dream?"
You: "Open http://www.kernel.org"
PDA: "Error 403: Forbidden. You are obviously attempting to circumvent my artificial intelligence by installing Linux -- which is currently legally owned by SCO, by the way -- and therefore I'm going to need to
topreacher@signature.slashdot.org 1% rm -rf sig
ain't quite 100% yet...
And regular speech is?
FYI it's at 97%, give or take a couple. Good enough for TellMe to increase ATT's 800 automation rates from 15% to 70%. Good enough to automate cop cars. It's been a long time coming, and noisy environments are still a challenge, but it's fo real, now.
(Shamelss plug: the really good stuff is running on the engine from Nuance.)
Did no one read the article, or even the post? This is software for Pocket PCs. PDAs. Not desktop or laptop PCs.
It's specifically targeted at Pocket PC Phone Edition devices, but will also work on non-Phone Edition Pocket PCs. I've been testing this for a while on my Pocket PC Phone Edition 2003 device.
On the Phone Edition, the ability to call any one of your contacts at any one of their numbers (work, home, cell, etc.) by just speaking the command ("Call John Smith at work"), with no recognition or name training at all, is pretty darn cool. Add in a hands free headset, and you can interact with your Pocket PC Phone, including making calls, checking your appointments, and listing to WMP, all while never taking the device out of your pocket. Or better yet, while in the car, never taking your eyes from the road.
The software isn't meant for Joe Laptop user, and it doesn't replace simple interactions with your PDA (there's no way to create new items, for example), but for Phone Edition devices especially, it does add a lot of functionality and even safety. It's a lot faster for me to call someone by saying "Call so-and-so's cell" than by tapping through my Contacts until I find them, and then tapping the number I want to call. And if I'm driving, it's a lot safer for me to speak what I want than to futz around tapping on the screen.