Virtual Assistants

There are three well-known smart phone virtual assistants currently on the market that we selected today to explore with you. These Include:

• Siri
• Cortana
• Google now

Just in case you haven't herd about them, or don't know too much, we are going to tell you about them, and also show you some videos to show you how they work, and what sort of things that have brought to handset usage for smart phone users.

Siri: Siri is a computer program that works as an intelligent personal assistant. Siri is a knowledge navigator, part of Apple Inc.'s iOS, watchOS, and tvOS operating systems. Siri uses a natural language user interface to answer questions, make recommendations, and perform actions by delegating requests to a set of Web services. The software, both in its original version and as an iOS feature, adapts to the user's individual language usage and individual searches (preferences) with continuing use, and returns results that are individualised. Siri was originally introduced as an iOS application available in the App Store by Siri Inc., which was acquired by Apple on April 28, 2010. Siri, Inc. had announced that their software would be available for BlackBerry and for phones running Android, but all development efforts for non-Apple platforms were cancelled after the acquisition by Apple. There are several accent and gender combinations for the voice of Siri.

Siri is also integrated into Apple Watch's watchOS, where the feature can be activated by holding down the Digital Crown or by saying "Hey, Siri." Siri is additionally integrated into Apple TV's tvOS, where the feature can be activated using a button on the included Siri Remote.

Since 2014 Siri has been available in some cars via CarPlay, a system that enables a the vehicle audio system to be a display and controller for an iPhone. It is available on all iPhones from iPhone 5 with at least iOS 7.1 software.

Cortana:

Cortana is an intelligent personal assistant created by Microsoft for Windows 10, Windows 10 Mobile, Windows Phone 8.1, Microsoft Band, Xbox One, iOS and Android. Cortana was demonstrated for the first time at the Microsoft BUILD Developer Conference (April 2–4, 2014) in San Francisco.[1] It has been launched as a key ingredient of Microsoft's planned "makeover" of the future operating systems for Windows Phone and Windows.[5] It is named after Cortana, a synthetic intelligence character in Microsoft's Halo video game franchise originating in Bungie folklore, with Jen Taylor, the character's voice actress, returning to voice the personal assistant's US-specific version.

Cortana is currently available in English, French, German, Italian, Spanish, Chinese, and Japanese language editions, depending on the software platform and region in which it is used. Cortana mainly competes against assistants such as Apple's Siri and Google's Goggle Now.

Google now:

Google Now is an intelligent personal assistant developed by Google. Google Now is available within the Goggle Search mobile application for Android and iOS, as well as the Goggle Chrome web browser on personal computers. Goggle Now uses a natural language user interface to answer questions, make recommendations, and perform actions by delegating requests to a set of web services. Along with answering user-initiated queries, Goggle Now proactively delivers to users information that it predicts (based on their search habits) they may want. It was first included in Android 4.1 ("Jelly Bean"), which launched on July 9, 2012, and was first supported on the Galaxy Nexus smart phone. The service was made available for iOS on April 29, 2013 without most of its features. Goggle Now was released for Goggle Chrome on March 24, 2014. Popular Science named Goggle Now the "Innovation of the Year" for 2012. Goggle Now mainly competes against assistants such as Apple's Siri and Microsoft's Cortana.

So as you can see these virtual assistants have been integrated into our smart phones for everyday use, and attempt to cater to a variety of different cultures and languages. Their compatibility even extends as far as our TV remotes and our cars.

Here we see an example of an Individual that is part of the digital divide, encounter Apples, Siri for the first time, and it doesn't go so well.......

Whether or not you like or dislike, use or not use any of these features, they have now been made accessible for those if us with smart phones. I'm sure at times that they can become useful, but in saying that I'm sure there will be times when they can be frustrating for us too, especially when the answer is not known or the feature mis-hears or does not understand you.  I have also included a social experiment that was posted to show the interactions that the virtual assistants have with each other, enjoy

By Bulesa

References:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-HJodK56EsU&feature=youtu.be
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jXXtCE_zi34
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cortana_(software)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siri
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Google_Now