SIri

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Apple Rolls Out Smarter Web Answers for Spotlight Search

Andrew Orr ·

Some Apple users are seeing smarter web answers when they use iOS Spotlight Search and Siri.

The new web answers appear to be a further expansion of this technology. If the statistics are not readily available from the knowledge database, it seems Apple is now using algorithms to crawl websites and find possible responses to questions.

I think this is great, and it might be the first front-facing results we’re seeing from Apple’s hiring of John Giannandrea.

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Future Apple Headphones Could Tell Which Ear They’re In

Andrew Orr ·

New patents reveal that future Apple headphones could tell which ear they’re in using machine learning.

Apple notes that “During operation, capacitive sensor electrodes may be used by the control circuitry in capturing capacitive sensor ear images that are processed by a machine learning classifier. The machine learning classifier may be used to determine whether the headphones are being worn in a reversed or unreversed orientation.

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UN Report Says Making Siri Voice Female by Default is Sexist

Andrew Orr ·

A report from the United Nations says that making virtual assistants like Siri have female voices by default is sexist.

As voice-powered technology reaches into communities that do not currently subscribe to Western gender stereotypes, including indigenous communities, the feminization of digital assistants may help gender biases to take hold and spread. Because Alexa, Cortana, Google Home and Siri are all female exclusively or female by default in most markets, women assume the role of digital attendant…

I think it’s a fair point.

Scriptable Can Make Shortcuts and Siri More Powerful
Cool Stuff Found

Scriptable Can Make Shortcuts and Siri More Powerful

Andrew Orr ·

Scriptable is an automation tool that enables you to write scripts that integrates with native features of iOS such as files, calendars, reminders, documents and much more. An extensive support for Siri Shortcuts enables you to present images, tables and more in Siri as well as making Siri read out loud a text when you run a script from a Siri Shortcut. Your scripts can be run from the Scriptable app, from a Siri Shortcut or from other apps using the share sheet extensive or Scriptable’s URL schemes. Features include writing and running JavaScript; auto complete of variable names, functions, keywords and properties as you type; access lots of native iOS features from your JavaScript code, including managing files, calendars, reminders, contacts, photos, location, pasteboard, web views and more. App Store: Free (Offers In-App Purchases)

Podcast

Migration Is (Not Only) For The Birds – Mac Geek Gab 757

John F. Braun · · Add Comment

Siri, Stringify, Space Lens, and Emergency Bypass don’t all begin with the letter ‘S’, but they have one thing in common: your two favorite geeks discuss them in this week’s episode of Mac Geek Gab. In addition, listen as John F. Braun and Dave Hamilton answer your questions, including some about migrating to a new Mac the right way. The best way. Press play and enjoy learning at least five new things!

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Female British Siri Voice Given an Upgrade

Charlotte Henry ·

LONDON – Apple customers in the UK might be feeling that Siri is just that little bit more human. It is reported that the digital assistant’s British female voice has been given an upgrade. Cult of Mac noticed a number of users commenting on the improvement to the voice on iPhone, iPad, and HomePod. The male voice was improved earlier in 2019.

Apple launched a mission to make Siri sound less robotic in 2017. The release of iOS 11 that fall brought big improvements to Siri’s voice in a number of markets, and the improvements have slowly but surely continued since then. Apple is thought to be using machine learning techniques to make its assistant sound more natural. It hasn’t changed the voice artists behind Siri — at least not for the British accents — but they now sound more human.

TMO Deals

Siri Shortcuts Might Just Be Misunderstood

Charlotte Henry ·

Thursday’s update to Siri Shortcuts got writer Lance Ulanoff wondering if the feature is actually widely misunderstood. He saw it in action, working with apps that made an Espresso on command or could order your favourite pizza. He posted a column on Medium about the demo, and how Siri Shortcuts works. He concluded that the “ability to take deep dives into disparate apps without even touching your phone” is “the most compelling aspect” of the feature.

Getting Siri to launch an action isn’t that surprising, but what iPhone and iOS 12 users might not realize is the extent to which Siri’s been watching them and using local machine learning to build up a potential library of Siri Shortcut actions. It starts pretty simply. If you drag your thumb down on your home screen, you’ll immediately see a collection of 4-to-8 apps selected by Siri as those you use most often. There are also those Siri Suggestions that helpfully popup on your lock-screen offering to, for instance, initiate a call that its gleaned from your schedule.

TMO Deals

Apple HomePod: $296.10

Bryan Chaffin ·

We have a deal on an Apple HomePod. This is Apple’s Siri-based speaker with a built-in subwoofer, 7 tweeters, and microphones to hear your commands for Siri. It retails for $349, and our deal is for $329. But, our friends at Stack Commerce gave us coupon code “HOMEPOD10” that will save 10%, for a checkout price of $296.10. Our link points to the Space Gray mode, but you can also choose the White version in the deal listing. Get it while you can.