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Star Trek's LCARS Could Become Your Virtual Assistant (cnet.com)

Posted by BeauHD on from the beam-me-up-Scotty dept.

H_Fisher writes: It has arguably inspired many other technological innovations in the fifty years since its premiere, and now another Star Trek-inspired touch could be coming to your device: the voice of Majel Barrett from the Star Trek universe's LCARS computer system. CNET reports: "The voice of LCARS was provided by Majel Barrett, who was married to Star Trek creator Gene Roddenberry. Although Barrett sadly passed away in 2008, she took several roles on the show over the years, including nurse Christine Chapel in Star Trek: The Original Series and Betazoid ambassador Lwaxana Troi on Star Trek: The Next Generation. According to a tweet by the official Roddenberry account yesterday, this has provided enough phonetic data to perhaps get Barrett's voice appearing in upcoming new 2017 TV series Star Trek: Discovery -- and maybe even a Siri-like virtual assistant."

5 of 145 comments (clear)

  1. Feels a bit ... too much by Calydor · · Score: 4, Interesting

    Maybe I'm just old and boring, but I really don't like the way that being dead is no longer the end for appearing in new things you never knew about. Between the holographic appearances of ... was it Tupac? And now this, it all just feels a bit too morbid to me.

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  2. Is using a dead womans voice... by Viol8 · · Score: 4, Interesting

    ... a fitting tribute to the actress or just that little bit creepy? I can't decide.

    1. Re:Is using a dead womans voice... by azcoyote · · Score: 3, Interesting

      I miss Firefly too, but I think it's dangerous to assume that we can simply get back to the past. Whenever I watch Next Generation now, I realize how much it is a product of a bygone era, e.g. its extremely optimistic technological future (who would really work without money?). We can artificially bring back names and faces, but it would never be the same show again; in fact, it would probably just annoy the original fans for being different.

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  3. I've always thought this by TheCastro1689 · · Score: 4, Interesting

    When watching ST I always figured there were more than enough lines for her to be the computer forever in the series and the movies. Some people talk about it being morbid or creepy, but I think it's more of a tribute to her. We don't see her as replaceable even in death. My mom was always excited when she was on the shows as Lwaxana Troi and would always comment that she was Gene's wife and that she was the nurse on TOS. I doubt she could be a Siri or Cortana type assistant due to the words/products we use in speech that were never said by her and I don't think they recorder her just making phonetic sounds to combine into every word imaginable, but I would love to hear her on Star Trek again.

  4. Re:Wishing for a spin-off by Oswald+McWeany · · Score: 4, Interesting

    I'd love a darker series Colonists crash landing on an alien planet disconnected from the rest of the federation Losing most of their technology. Finding out they're not alone and there is a semi-hostile primitive species there. Then they have to struggle, how hard do they try and stick with the prime directive, and non-interference, how does it impact their own survival.

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    "That's the way to do it" - Punch