Slashdot Mirror
Microsoft is Separating Cortana From Search in Windows 10 (theverge.com)
Microsoft is making some big changes to Cortana in Windows 10. The company intends to decouple search and Cortana in the Windows 10 taskbar, allowing voice queries to be handled separately to typing in a search box to find documents and files. From a report: This change will be implemented in the next major Windows 10 update, currently scheduled for April. Windows 10 will direct you towards an built-in search experience for text queries, while Cortana will exist for voice queries instead of them both bundled together. "This will enable each experience to innovate independently to best serve their target audiences and use cases," explains Dona Sarkar, Microsoft's Windows Insider chief. "This change is one of several we've made throughout this release to improve your experience in this space, including updating the search landing page design, enhancing your search results, and integrating Microsoft To-Do with Cortana."
But you'll have greater hope that it can be removed completely.
It's so much more satisfying to crush people's hope right after you increase it....
'Hi, Would you like me to search the internet instead of your desktop for your Word File?'
This is something I don't think Microsoft really gets.
The Average person don't need PC's anymore. Most of their computing experience can be done with a phone or tablet.
For the people who do need PC's need them for real work.
Microsoft is continuously making the UI meant for tablet and home users, while frustrating people who need to do real work. When I am on a PC, I am expecting to want to use multiple apps at the same time, take advantage of the big screen to have all the apps available visible and usable at once. I have a full keyboard, I am going to want to use it as much as possible, also I will still have a mouse or a pointer, the work layout doesn't allow for touch screen to be all that useful.
Oddly enough, for me, I wish all the major OS's were not Windows (as in the UI methodology) based or full screen App. But had a good Frame type interface, where I can layout all my apps, resize the content where they are usable, but may be smaller then designed. Windows just get messy. and full screen, is just unproductive.
If something is so important that you feel the need to post it on the internet... It probably isn't that important.
The windows-key then type style search has been broken on 90% of our work computers. Does nothing. Much like searching in explorer. Broken too. The windows search features are so fucked up that it doesn't take me long to get pissed at it and just install a third party search program like agent ransack or it's equivalent.
How about rolling back hideous "modern" PC settings, making telemetry opt-in, vs almost impossible opt-out and having a normal release cycle, i.e. a new version each 3 years?
Honestly: " "This will enable each experience to innovate independently to best serve their target audiences and use cases," explains ... Microsoft's Windows Insider chief.
WTF does that even mean? Can we create a mandatory post-MBA bootcamp to beat this out of them?
Never let a lack of data get in the way of a good rant.
I don't want any trendy, pop culture stuff .. reliably
I don't want to follow fashion
I want a reliable operating system that does what I need
Wake me up when they separate all of the creepy malware from Windows 10.
Support for Win7 runs out in a year. I hope they pick up speed, if they continue at that pace, Win10 will not be ready for use by the time Win7 bites the dust.
We used to have a Bill of Rights. Now, with the rights gone, all we have left is the bill.
If you look at the field of "voice assistants" Cortana may still have a chance over time.
Right now there are three:
Google "we know who you are, where you are and have been, what you search for, what you shop for, every website you visit and which pages, how long you spend there, everything. We don't just know everything you like including porn, we know what kind of porn you don't realize you like. We're going to use all of this to target ads at you. Oh, and now we're getting you to add our microphones to your home even without using your phone." If you're on an iPhone they may know slightly less about your physical movements.
Amazon's Alexa "We may not know as much about where you are, but we know everything you buy because even if you didn't buy it through us you looked at our reviews of it. We've had our voice assistants in your home for years now, they do all kinds of things, oh, and by the way now we're getting into advertising as the third largest online ad platform (for now) with better conversion rates than Google or Facebook. Oh, and would you like to get free shipping with that? Have you met Prime?"
Apple's Siri "If you've bought into our high-profit-margin phones and tablets you can do some things with voice recognition, but we don't do as much or as well as the other two. On the upside we're much better about respecting your privacy!"
So right now the voice assistant universe is pretty much covered by "creepy AF," "creepy and selly AF" and "not as good but hey isn't that a nice thousand dollar phone?" I'm pretty sure there's space in there if Microsoft wants to carve out its own niche if they handle it well.
fencepost
just a little off
The first thing I do on a Windows 10 machine is disable cortana but that does make the search not work well. Now I can disable cortana and keep search! Yay!