If you use Google’s Chrome browser to access the internet here is something that may interest you. Its called Voice Search. If you ever watched the old Star Trek TV programs you may remember the ship’s computer was asked all sort of difficult questions and provided the answer almost immediately. Well we are not there yet, but the Voice Search we have now can be amusing. Sometimes its even helpful. Over time I’m sure it will become even more useful. Read the article below and see what you think.
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Google Voice Search for the PC has Arrived
June 16, 2011 01:10 PM EDT
Google has added a new feature to their Chrome internet browser's Google search engine. Google Voice Search is its name, and it has been a feature available to smart phone users for some time.
It makes sense to use voice search on your smart phone. It is especially useful if you are looking for directions while in the car, and don't have your hands free to type in your search request.
This particular search feature for the PC is something that the world has been anxiously awaiting, and is only available if Chrome is your internet browser. Probably, the truth is, most Chrome users haven't even noticed it.
When you go to the Chrome Google search page you will see a little microphone icon located within the area where you type your search text. You just click on the microphone, and a little box will pop up that tells you to "speak now." You have to speak directly into the microphone to get the best result. Also, if your television is on, you might need to turn the volume down or mute the sound. Otherwise, Google will give you some pretty funny results.
For instance, with the volume pretty loud on the TV, speak "top business news." You might get a result something like Baton Rouge area top business news. Need a laugh? Get your aggressions out, and holler top business news. Google might come up with a result like Christmas music. Do those two things sound remotely alike? Apparently to Google Voice Search it does.
As you can see, voice search might take a little getting used to. In order to get the search results you want you will need to speak clearly, not have a lot of room noise, and be willing to make a couple of tries to get it to work correctly.
Is it actually worth using? An article written on a CBS web site called Tech Talk mentions that it doesn't seem to be a very useful tool especially in the workplace. Google Voice Search would certainly be more of a distraction and cause confusion in the office. Can you imagine a roomful of people yelling at their computers?
At home it probably isn't any more useful, but it can afford a few laughs for some of the silly results you might get. You'll shake your head wondering how Google Voice came up with "that one." The tool seems more of a novelty, and maybe someday it will be more helpful. If Chrome is your web browser, give it a try to see how it works for you. More than likely you'll find that it's easier to just use the keyboard.
Addendum – 6/18/2011
#1 - I have experimented with Google’s new voice search feature off and on yesterday and some again today. One of the things I was trying to do was see if it could get it to easily find the link to our class web site. I already knew from past experience that if you manually type “fairpark1961” into the Google search box it will bring up a list of links that go directly to the web site and its pages. However, I have tried every different way I can think of to get the voice search to find the class web site and failed on nearly every try. However, just now I had some modest success using “Fair Park Class of 1961”. One I didn’t have much success with was “Fair Park Class of 1961 Email Directory.” That one was repeatedly translated as “Pulled pork clash of 1961 email directory.” If you want in on the fun, jump in. Please let me know if you find a phrase that consistently works for you.
#2 – I just had a note from Jerry Cook. He has tried the voice search and found that it works well for him. He said he was using a combo headphone-microphone that he uses when making telephone calls on his computer. It sounds like his headphone-microphone set is a better quality product than the standalone microphone I am using. That would be something to consider if you wanted to try the voice search process.
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