Yesterday, I saw this commercial for the new Droid Razr. Apparently, it can translate phrases from one language into another for you. Please note, the woman is speaking to a dog and not another person. That probably should be taken as a warning sign.
Instantly, I knew this feature spelled trouble with a capital T. In this day and age, everyone has come into contact with voice recognition software of some kind. Be it Siri or when you call up UPS, FED Ex or any other high call volume company, you have felt the annoyance of a computer not understanding your speech even though you ENUNCIATE with superiority.
Either let me push a button or speak to a human. Even with a low IQ, I have better odds of them understanding me than some dumb software.
Can you imagine being in a foreign country and relying on an app to speak for you?
You want to use the restroom, and try to ask a local that but the stupid machine thinks you want a whore. So there you are in some quaint village square, yelling at your phone while it spews bizarre phrases back at you in the native language. That should endear you to the locals quickly…or end up in a mental hospital.
It’s a good idea, Google, but voice recognition software is going to be awful for a VERY LONG time. Language is a complex dance that even people have yet to master.
Mmm, hou zi shui zai li du. (Your monkey sleeps inside me).
I was thinking of that episode of Big Bang Theory when I wrote this post. 🙂
Laughing at work at “You want to use the restroom, and try to ask a local that but the stupid machine thinks you want a whore.” OOOOOPSIE!