Siri is pro life. Petition To Correct Siri's Apparent Anti-Abortion Bias Collects Nearly 30,000 Signatures
^^^ Haha.... hey, it's just another piece of free publicity for Siri/Apple. It's sort of like the claims that (Microsoft) Kinect is racist.
Another way to look at it, I ask Siri for a hamburger and that bitch tells me to drive to Nevada to a tofu joint. Update Apple: Siri 'Abortion' Blackout Is A Beta Software Issue (UPDATE) Now they're saying that it's a beta issue? Wth Apple, I thought you test your shit before releasing it to the public. Are you running out of excuses and can't think of anything else? Really? beta?? Just admit it, Apple is pro life.
LOL! Apple's said all along (so far) that Siri is in beta. It's mentioned at Apple - iPhone 4S - Ask Siri to help you get things done., Apple - Siri - Frequently Asked Questions and Apple - Press Info - Apple Launches iPhone 4S, iOS 5 & iCloud. It is a "good" way to err... explain away bugs or service outages.
If that's the case, then every one can use that excuse. Ice Cream Sandwich - beta. Mango - beta. iOS5 - beta. Prius - beta. They all will be replaced with a more stable version in the future. Prius brake problems... it's ok, it's beta. They'll get it fixed in future releases. Carrier IQ - beta. They just want to see how the phone's performing. It's part of diagnostic protocol. You got cancer? no problem, you're just beta. Your offspring will be a better version of you. Look, Apple is known for their innovation. I'm sure they got guys that does nothing all day long but sit there and think shit up. For them to say it's beta is just unacceptable. I can understand if they admit that there's a software glitch and that they're looking into it. Even Blackberry was man enough to admit when their network went down instead of blaming it on the weather. You gotta remember, someone designed Siri, someone programmed Siri. Someone is responsible for everything s/he says. Siri is not Watson or Skynet. Edit: Come to think of it, is Siri programmed to respond with politically correct answers? What happens if you ask Siri "I want to get drunk?" Does it find bars near by or does it refer you to alcohol treatment centers or it listens for the keyword "drunk" and automatically refers you to cab companies.
I presume that when you tell Siri "I want a doughnut" it does an internet search for doughnut shops. If you say "I need gasoline" it will do an internet search for gas stations. So it seems as though the absence of abortion clinics from the results when you ask for an abortion clinic must be an intentional exclusion, which means someone made that decision. Either the execs at Apple, or possibly one anti-abortion programmer who managed to sneak in a bit of code on the sly. I don't know how large-team programming works, so I don't know how hard it would be for a rogue programmer to slip something in.
The video (see below) shows Schappi turning a lamp on and off using only his voice via Siri and the Ninja board. He then goes on to open a Web page via voice. But one trick that you won't see in the video is Schappi's latest hack—opening the pod bay doors! "We've actually just hacked the locks on our home to have a remote control," says Schappi. "So now we can ask Siri to lock and unlock our front door." http://mobile.pcmag.com/device2/art.../www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2397142,00.asp
Following the above link, I found THIS link, which offers a possible, and reasonable, explanation for the abortion clinic snafu in Siri. Apparently, if you ask for Planned Parenthood by name, Siri will direct you there. But the Wolfram Alpha search engine Siri uses operates differently than, say, Google, and gets confused because abortion clinics typically don't put "abortion" in their names or their search tags, whereas the anti-abortion places do.
Found out about this hilarious parody thanks to the TWiT podcast: Siri Commercial Parody - CollegeHumor Video. It has some NSFW language though.
It'd be cool to say, "open the pod bay doors" to actuate my electric garage door opener. Wait, I don't have one of these phones. Never mind.
Cool, yes. But not quicker than pressing one button. Btw, I've been thinking about installing a wireless, keyless lock in my front door. I wonder if it can be opened by the Prius like a garage door.
That's the idea behind HomeLink. But better not ever lose the SKS fob, or they'll not only be able to steal your car, but also open your house.
Very true. But, if someone can get into my car today they also can open the garage door then enter my house through the utility room door! Perhaps Siri (or some other app) can be programmed to require a password/code before opening a door. Now that would be better than what Homelink is capable of today.
I just got a set of FRS/GMRS 2-way radios with NOAA weather channels. The female sounding automated voice sounds just like SIRI. I wonder if they are related?
I finally found a great use for Siri when I'm running. It's a pain in the arse to fumble through my playlist while I'm running but now I can press the little button on my earphone wire and say PLAY AEROSMITH and never miss a stride. It's pretty sweet!
An article in Businessweek about voice recognition and TV indicates that Steve Jobs, just prior to his death, revealed quizzically that Apple had arrived at a solution to take the clunkiness out of Apple's set top box. Has yet to be revealed, but speculation is Siri-style voice recognition replacing the table full of TV remotes.
Siri is using the results of over 40 years of r&d by DARPA and SRI (hence the name), but I still don't think it can pass a Turing test by any means. Perhaps Google's cloud based search engine will have more resources for that scenario.
