[vi-android] Re: Using "OK Google"

  • From: Quentin Christensen <quentin.christensen@xxxxxxxxx>
  • To: vi-android@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
  • Date: Fri, 13 Jun 2014 09:41:28 +1000

Thanks Gary, I'll check them out!

Is Dragon Assistant the one integrated with Swype keyboard or is it separate (but related?).

Also what's the easiest way of activating any of these? The iPhone's approach of holding down the home key is quite simple, swiping up from the home key on a Nexus is similar, but on a non-nexus Android there doesn't seem to be a good quick and easy way to access these things? Saying "OK Google" only works on one of the Moto X phones I vaguely recall, otherwise it works once you're already in Google search (and it is quite handy when you are in there as you don't need to touch the device again to ask a new question).

The best thing I can think of currently is to use a full screen widget (or a 1x1 screen layout in the latest version of Big Launcher) and have Google Search icon take up the full screen (I downloaded a voice search widget awhile ago but I think the preinstalled Google search icon will do the same thing now).

Regards

Quentin.

On 13/06/2014 9:26 AM, gary melconian wrote:
Yes take a look at Utter and dragon assistant. They do a better job then ok 
Google . I have been beta testing utter and the other list suggested dragon. I 
will notgo back to the list as I find its dto hosttle to be able to debate some 
issues in regards to matters.

-----Original Message-----
From: vi-android-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx [mailto:vi-android-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx] 
On Behalf Of Quentin Christensen
Sent: Wednesday, June 11, 2014 11:12 PM
To: vi-android@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: [vi-android] Using "OK Google"

Hi everyone,

I finally set aside some time to have a play with "OK Google", and I must 
admit, I'm a bit disappointed.  I've put my thoughts below and I'd be interested in 
other's experiences.

I tried Google Now awhile ago on my Galaxy Nexus and found it would only give 
me the weather each morning, and randomly, the driving time to work (which is 
irrelevant as I don't drive to work).

Today I tried OK Google, I setup a widget on my home screen to Google Search 
which seemed to go straight into it and I could get it to do some basic things 
from the list at:

http://www.androidpit.com/how-to-use-ok-google-voice-commands


I think some of them like sports scores are only for the US (it couldn't tell 
me anything about Aussie Rules, though it did offer me the AFL webpage as the 
first result).

I tried emailing myself, but even though I have two entries in my address book, 
it couldn't find either of them (even though it spelt my name correctly).  I 
could email my wife, though I couldn't add a subject, only the body of the 
message and when I agreed to send it, the message was opened in Aqua Mail with 
the focus in the subject ready for me to write that and then send it manually.

I could dial contacts and numbers, and I was impressed when I told it to ring work, and it found two entries 
and asked me which one and I replied "the first one" and it rang it.  I wasn't expecting that, but 
I would have expected when I dictated a number that it should have been able to figure out what the word 
"double" meant, as in "dial 1, 2, double 3, 4", it instead did a google search for that...

I could get the weather and do arithmatic and conversions and some of the easter eggs worked (do a 
barrel roll, "when am I" and "who are you" were cute, how much wood can a 
woodchuck chuck would have been more entertaining if it had read the entire answer and overall I 
must confess, Siri is a lot cleverer with it's easter eggs).

I was disappointed that I couldn't open apps (it generally just did a web 
search, occasionally it crashed).

I was surprised I couldn't even ask it where am I (it gave me a map, but 
refused to offer an address, though it could give me directions from my 
'current location' when I gave it a location to go to it understood.

I found it quite inconsistent in that it would give me voice answers / feedback 
on some things, but not others.

I asked it to take a photo and it did open my camera, but left it to me to actually take my shot - 
I could see in an emergency wanting to to say "take a photo" or even "record 
video" and wanting it to just do it.

I would say I was impressed with how accurately it did understand me most of 
the time, even when I talked quite quickly, I was just disappointed how a 
search feature designed by the world's most sucessfull search engine company, 
was really, fairly limited in what it could actually do with the information I 
gave it.  EG, I would have liked to have fully written an email, and when I 
tried to email a contact who didn't have an email address, it should have 
walked me through adding an email address, not just offering me the (correct) 
contact card to tap on physically and edit manually.  I would have liked to 
have been able to tell it to open apps, read my notifications, lock the screen, 
and basically tell me more.

I've used Siri and as a comparison, I can do most of the things Google offered, many the 
same, some better, some worse.  I do like being able to say "ok google" once 
I'm in it to start a new query, whereas on the iPhone you have to tap the microphone, 
though Siri is easier to get into as you can just hold down the home key (On a nexus I 
think you can swipe up from the home key?  My Nexus is playing up at the moment so I 
can't test it).  For the most part, I just find it easier and quicker to do what I need 
manually, but I'll keep an eye on it.

How do others find it?  Do others use OK Google / Google now / voice dictation 
/ anything similar?

Regards

Quentin.
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