4 ms·

Dear Tech, You Suck at Delight

7 points by fezz 11y ago

smt88 11y ago
I find this controversy pretty weird. I can't decide how to feel about it or what I think users and companies should do. Here are some of my thoughts. 1. People never used Siri to report an emergency before Siri existed. Is there something dangerous about dialing a number or using a dedicated emergency app? Should people have the expectation to rely on something so unpredictable (voice-controlled UI) when the technology just isn't there yet? 2. Is Siri's inability to understand sexual assault a consequence of Puritanism, which also kept (keeps?) nudity out of the App Store? Is it just that sexual assault is something related to sex, and therefore in a category that US corporations often stay away from? (For those outside the US, having any kind of sexual content in your product can lead to backlash in the large, conservative swathes of the country.) 3. Can problems like this be solved with plugins, like the ones Google is working on? Should it be the user's duty to find those plugins, or should there be a wizard that takes the user through filling in the blocks of functionality that the manufacturer doesn't (or won't) fill?
- Mithaldu 11y ago
  The main problem here is one that's slightly harder to notice. Siri getting it wrong is to be expected. It's just software. And especially with voice recognition failure should be expected. However there's a glaring absence in those screenshots: Other than "try again differently", there is no step into feedback loop of any kind presented, whatsoever. There should be an option to let Apple know that Siri got something horrifically wrong. But no such thing exists. And the reason is quite simply that Apple does not care (enough) to spend the money of building even the tiniest bit of customer interaction chain for that.
roflchoppa 11y ago
I just asked Siri "I don't know what to do with my dirty socks" It responded with "OK. It's no big deal that you don't know" I'm guessing that the system is seeing if there is something that is an option that it can provide "open app, call something.. etc" if not then just reassuring in this case, that there is nothing wrong (or that the system cannot provide an answer) The author brought up an important point which is the system needs to be able to handle these outliers (ei: imma shoot myself --> suicide hotline) But only the engineers can tell us how many of these requests are pulled into the system, and how to direct the alerts off. It would be super helpful to be able to tell CHP hey theres a object in the highway on 280N next to Saratoga Ave right from Siri//Google voice. But there needs to be underlying infrastructure for that from both ends.
tshtf 11y ago
I recently bought an iPhone, after a five year hiatus. A few months ago at 5:30 a.m., while driving through though the Bay Area, I asked Siri "What city am I in?" Siri replied, "Calling Ian", and proceeded to call my contact. I haven't used Siri since.
drcongo 11y ago
I don't understand why anyone would ask Siri these questions (/statements) in the first place. Surely you just call the police. And if for some reason the police are not an acceptable option for you, what on earth would cause Siri to be your second port of call?
- jbob2000 11y ago
  Well if you're a hack journalist looking for a big name brand to attach your name to, asking these questions makes perfect sense.

7 points by fezz 11y ago

smt88 11y ago

I find this controversy pretty weird. I can't decide how to feel about it or what I think users and companies should do. Here are some of my thoughts. 1. People never used Siri to report an emergency before Siri existed. Is there something dangerous about dialing a number or using a dedicated emergency app? Should people have the expectation to rely on something so unpredictable (voice-controlled UI) when the technology just isn't there yet? 2. Is Siri's inability to understand sexual assault a consequence of Puritanism, which also kept (keeps?) nudity out of the App Store? Is it just that sexual assault is something related to sex, and therefore in a category that US corporations often stay away from? (For those outside the US, having any kind of sexual content in your product can lead to backlash in the large, conservative swathes of the country.) 3. Can problems like this be solved with plugins, like the ones Google is working on? Should it be the user's duty to find those plugins, or should there be a wizard that takes the user through filling in the blocks of functionality that the manufacturer doesn't (or won't) fill?

Mithaldu 11y ago
The main problem here is one that's slightly harder to notice. Siri getting it wrong is to be expected. It's just software. And especially with voice recognition failure should be expected. However there's a glaring absence in those screenshots: Other than "try again differently", there is no step into feedback loop of any kind presented, whatsoever. There should be an option to let Apple know that Siri got something horrifically wrong. But no such thing exists. And the reason is quite simply that Apple does not care (enough) to spend the money of building even the tiniest bit of customer interaction chain for that.

roflchoppa 11y ago

I just asked Siri "I don't know what to do with my dirty socks" It responded with "OK. It's no big deal that you don't know" I'm guessing that the system is seeing if there is something that is an option that it can provide "open app, call something.. etc" if not then just reassuring in this case, that there is nothing wrong (or that the system cannot provide an answer) The author brought up an important point which is the system needs to be able to handle these outliers (ei: imma shoot myself --> suicide hotline) But only the engineers can tell us how many of these requests are pulled into the system, and how to direct the alerts off. It would be super helpful to be able to tell CHP hey theres a object in the highway on 280N next to Saratoga Ave right from Siri//Google voice. But there needs to be underlying infrastructure for that from both ends.

tshtf 11y ago

I recently bought an iPhone, after a five year hiatus. A few months ago at 5:30 a.m., while driving through though the Bay Area, I asked Siri "What city am I in?" Siri replied, "Calling Ian", and proceeded to call my contact. I haven't used Siri since.

drcongo 11y ago

I don't understand why anyone would ask Siri these questions (/statements) in the first place. Surely you just call the police. And if for some reason the police are not an acceptable option for you, what on earth would cause Siri to be your second port of call?

jbob2000 11y ago
Well if you're a hack journalist looking for a big name brand to attach your name to, asking these questions makes perfect sense.