I'm getting impatient

M

Mino

Northern Dreamer
When I was a lad I envisioned computers that would work with me and for me and so far all I have is this crude box with a keyboard and a mouse atttatched to it. I don't want to hammer out commands on a keyboard cos I'm a hunt and peck typist, "where is the ****ing e key!...It was here a minute ago". I want to be able to just tell the darned thing verbally what I expect it to do. I used to think that by now I would be able to wake up, flip a switch and just start talking!

"Computer Check e-mail and get my bath ready....open up the window ten percent and start the coffee".

It's not that computers won't do this at some point in the future, I just wanted it yesterday!

This rant came about while I was writing a script ( a job I loath). I'm hammering away at the keyboard and cursing every scene change because I've got to set up all the variables for the new scene...Hunt, peck, hunt peck and on and on when what I really want to be doing is just talking to this damned machine and having it do all the work. I want a computerized secratary!

Anyway...I really thought we'd be so much further down the line at this stage of the game...I mean come on Mr. Clarke...How could you put a vision of "HAL" in my young mind and lead me to believe it would be actual around 2001?

Sigh!
 
I would much rather computers not get that smart.

technology can only get so advanced before it starts to destroy every moral of mankind.
 
You know whats funny about this? I wrote an AI robot about 7 years ago that could understand plain english. I had a serious inkling to get dragon natural speaking and app it in, to where I could speak directly to a mic and the computer would understand.

You can buy these things called xswitches which are programmable serial devices that can set on or off toggles as well as voltage levels.

I had this fantasy of putting it all togethor and using these pro walkie talkies I had (1 mile range) to be able to order my computer to do whatever I wanted.

"Turn on living room lights"
etc.

sigh, I wish I'd done it. I had so much ambition once...
 
Bsmith said:
I would much rather computers not get that smart.

technology can only get so advanced before it starts to destroy every moral of mankind.
Click to expand...

I Know what you mean, but I don't think the technology will ever be at fault...The HAL 9000 series had a perfect opperational record! It will be our own greedy contolling ways that turn it all south IMHO! I just want a machine that doesn't only survive my house fire, but is the reason the fire never made it two feet from the source! I'd like to have my computer call me at work and inform me that someone was breaking into the house and I could just say " Thanks HAL, um could you let the bengal tiger out of its cage please!" Woops....What do you mean it was the neighbor trying to put out the fire!
 
It'll never happen, if people start think about it in practical terms.

Imagine sitting in a cube farm office somewhere with 50 people all talking to their computers at the same time. Oy.
 
Technology is like anything else. It's all supply and demand. There isn't a demand for water powered cars right now because people are still willing to pay $3/gallon at the pump. If we all stopped buying gas (and new cars) then WALLA! the market would suddenly create an alternative fuel and maybe even a flying car or two. You know its true.

Same with technology. The reason Mino's dream hasn't come true is because if we're still buying keyboards then that's what the market will produce. When businesses see fewer keyboards being sold, that's when new technology is developed. Necessity is the Mother of invention. ...And the Father? I'm pretty sure it was Barry Green. :)

I am 100% certain that companies are sitting on tons of mind blowing technology, but why would they release it when they're still making money from old keyboards?
 
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GenJerDan said:
It'll never happen, if people start think about it in practical terms.

Imagine sitting in a cube farm office somewhere with 50 people all talking to their computers at the same time. Oy.
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Couldn't be much worse than being on a city bus with 50 young girls taling into their cell phones?
 
That is pretty darned close to what I have in mind or at least seems to be a solid foundation for my dream world. Thanks Anhar. I guess I'm sort of being unrealistic in hoping my landlord would knock on the door on morning with a team of techs tp install a system like that in my home and still have my rent stay affordable. I can see though how over time some really cool modules could be developed for that system. On the other hand....I can also see where I could rely on HAL to make my morning coffee so totally that when it malfunctions I will have no choice but to go out and pay twenty dollars for a cup of Starbucks (future pricing) because I have long since forgotten how to make a pot manually. LOL
 
Ummmmm..... if all you want is an automated cup of coffeee, that's been available for decades.

mrcoffee.jpg
 
Terry_Lasater said:
Ummmmm..... if all you want is an automated cup of coffeee, that's been available for decades.

mrcoffee.jpg
Click to expand...
WOW!....How much do you think a beast like that would cost me Terry?:)
 
Hey--

I found the definition for Technology:

1. Human innovation in action that involves the generation of knowledge and processes to develop systems that solve problems and extend human capabilities;
2. The innovation, change, or modification of the natural environment to satisfy perceived human needs and wants.
3. The human innovation, change, or modification of the natural enviorment to help humans become lazier than they already are.
 
There are currently two approaches to voice recognition technology. One is speaker independent, meaning anyone who says the phrases the application is listening for will be understood. The other approach is speaker dependent, in which a speaker's voice is used to train the application. The former is good for voice command scenarios, the latter for dictation. Although the former appears to be limited in application it's possible to write applications capable of very complex interaction, such as a fast food order system "Gimme 4 big macs, some fries, a large coke and a couple of apple pies". A system that understands voice commands for a vcr or tivo would be pretty easy to write with current technology. There have been some applications for managing your computer by voice but those don't seem to have caught on.
 
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