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Google Launches Voice Search Hotword Extension For Chrome
An anonymous reader writes "Google has launched the Google Voice Search Hotword extension for Chrome, bringing the 'OK Google' feature to the desktop. You can download the new tool, currently in beta, now directly from the Chrome Web Store. Android users with version 4.4 KitKat will recognize the feature: it lets you talk to Google without first clicking or typing. It's completely hands-free, provided you're already on Google.com: just say 'OK Google' and then ask your question."
Quick, someone wire Pocketsphinx up to Firefox, or integrate Simon into Krunner.
I wonder if it'll have more PC-centric voice actions? Time to get a mic for my PC.
When will this work with Firefox (or IE, etc. etc.)?
Time for bed, said Zebedee - boing
"...it lets you talk to Google without first clicking or typing."
EFF has been sending out stickers to cover cameras on devices. Let's hope they start sending out little cotton balls to plug mics.
Just as google reads all your e-mail, not just what you search for, to "help you" get better advertising. they will no doubt listen to everything you say, not just what you search for, in order to improve their service to you. It's all about you.
Some drink at the fountain of knowledge. Others just gargle.
I don't want to talk to my computer.
"Google, where has my keyboard gone?"
You can also do this with the "google" application for iphone. They added in one of the last updates.
Every day you have to hear the idiots with the cell phones on speaker phone while holding it in front of their face.
The last thing I need at the damn office is to hear a whole bunch of "Okay Google"
Fuck that. Quit being so god damn lazy and TYPE it in!
I bet the mic is always on and always recording. If they hear a dog in the background I bet I'll get ads targeted to dogs.
If anyone at my work dares to use this and start disrupting everyone else, all you need to do is run up to their mic and say " OK Google, Search Images for Donkey Penis, Open First 100 links" After the 3rd time, they might get the hint.
#!/bin/sh
;;
# Brad Conroy's public domain speech processing tool (lite version)
computer(){
case $1 in
open)shift; which $1 && $@ || text2speech "I can't find that program.";;
disregard)exit;;
*)text2speech "I can't handle the $@ command yet.";;
esac
}
pocketsphinx_continuous $SOMERANDOMOPTIONS |while read ROW COMMAND ARGS; do
case "$ROW$COMMAND" in
[0-9]*:computer)$COMMAND $ARGS;;
[0-9]*:dictate)[ "$DICTATE" ] && DICTATE="" || DICTATE=true
[0-9]*:*)[ "$DICTATE" ] && echo $COMMAND $ARGS >>$HOME/dictations
esac
done
... if I worked from home or had a private office.
As it is, in an open-plan office, I don't want to disturb my colleagues, or feed them a constant stream of what I'm searching for.
However, I've only just started using voice on my Nexus 4. I'd simply assumed it wouldn't work well enough, but I gave it a go when I wanted to send a text in a hurry -- and was astonished to find that it *faultlessly* transcribed "I'm on my way. If I'm not there in ten minutes avenge my death", spoken at full speed.
So since then I've checked out the full range of voice instructions, and plenty of them are useful.
You don't like it? Don't install it. Don't install Chrome for that matter. You want all the nice free services and excellent search, but don't feel like paying for it? Go start your own search engine. Everyone seems to expect free services but everyone balks when a company tries to make a profit from it. Newsflash, THEY ARE IN THE BUSINESS OF BUSINESS! Google may or may not be evil. But they certainly aren't stupid.
It's actually pretty neat. If your hands aren't free at the time, just talk to your computer. Very cool!
Until I can walk up to a computer and say "Computer! Tea, Earl Grey, Hot" and actually receive said tea, I'm not interested. Wake me up when the holodeck is a reality. Everything else is too incremental and boring.
I got bored with the Commodore 128 in the early 80s and moved on to other OSs. Moved to Windows, then UNIX, then Linux, now BSD. Getting bored with computers, programming, and IT in general. What's next? Mobile is boring and I have what many consider to be a great mobile, but it's boring, plethora of apps aside. I think people need to get out more...
How is it hands free if I have to launch Chrome and turn on the voice recognition bits?
Same goes for my Android phone. I have to launch Google Now by holding the Menu "button" before it'll listen to me. It doesn't work if the phone is:
1: Asleep and locked
2: Asleep and unlocked
3: Awake with another program in the foreground
4: Awake and at a home screen page
5: Awake and at the default home screen page
6: Awake and at the default home screen page with the Google search widget loaded
You HAVE hold the Menu "button" to get to Google Now to get it to listen to you. (Or tap the microphone icon on the Google search widget.)
It's not hands free and it shouldn't be billed as such. Yet all the commercials show people with their phone on their desk while they give their mocha skinned girlfriend a sensual massage, and all it takes to get shit done is talking. Am I missing something? How can I get my phone (Galaxy Note 2) to behave in such a manner?
CERTAINLY not the ones at work, since most of us have a) cubes, where we can hear a lot of what our co-workers are saying, and just try to block it out - can google deal with *that*?; b) those living in "open plan" offices, which means it would be completely unusable.
mark
--
Why voice computing will never come into the workplace:
Just fired employee, walking out of HR: START! RUN! FORMAT C:, YES, YES, YES!!!!!
Works just fine to say "OK Goo" as well.