I've never used it on iPhone, surely wouldn't use it on my Mac. It's just awkward, I don't want to talk to my device.
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Siri interface on OSX
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We've been saying that since Siri was released on iPhone back in 2011!
2015? Siri is still MIA on MacBooks.
I'd like siri to understand typed requests/instructions - would be great to just call up spotlight and type in 'schedule an appointment at 10.30 tomorrow with Lou' and have it go straight into my calendar. I use Alfred but it's not as intelligent as Siri could be.
Yes, this!!! I've been saying this for years. At the very least this should be an Accessibility feature for those with auditory and/or vocal impairments. But also for those of us who share an office and don't want our coworkers to hear all that, haha.
It's that kind of attitude that will lead to robots taking over the world! Then you'll be the one making the sandwiches!
True, but I'd imagine Apple doesn't want to lose much ground to Microsoft and Cortana.
I'm looking forward to an Orwellian future where I'll be making sandwiches for our overlords.
This would be a lot more useful than talking to my rMB!
I just submitted feedback on this actually. To implement Siri on OS X, and to let us type out our queries if we choose.
I don't have a smart phone so I've never use Siri. But take in the changes they are making to spotlight search queries. And the few demos I've seen oh Siri being demonstrated, using Apple dictation it seems you can do basically the same things. Apple dictation allows you to search spotlight. But like I said I don't know a lot about Siri's abilities.
Is Microsoft really competition these days? Between Edge being able to stream Apple keynotes, Apple bringing them in stage with the line "this is the company that does productivity, and Microsoft using the iPhone to show off their services, I'd say they're more friends today than they ever were.
From a functional standpoint it's not really necessary to add Siri to OS X.
Using the existing voice control, alongside existing OS X features provides similar functionality, without the novelties.
Though putting Siri in may make using such functionality more accessible to a casual user.
Using the existing voice control, alongside existing OS X features provides similar functionality, without the novelties.
Though putting Siri in may make using such functionality more accessible to a casual user.
Remember, Apple is getting $$$ for setting bing as their default browser, plus they don't want to use google as their default as google is the primary competitor.
Regarding the Siri question, as a long-time, dedicated Mac user of 25 years, I have watched as Mac OS has slowly become bloatware.
Like some of the other big players, Apple is now caught in a vicious cycle where it is compelled to continuously add new features, bells and whistles, in order to remain attractive, competitive and relevant in today's market. Apple has become a pro at selling us what we don't really need. They depend on that tactic for their survival, and we willingly acquiesce.
Speaking from a personal perspective, there are so many things in the latest iterations of OS X which I don't even use, and for which I have little or no use. In fact, if I were to list the Apple native apps which I use on a regular or at least semi-regular basis, it would be something like this, in no certain order:
App Store
Mail
Dictionary
Messages
System Preferences
Disk Utility (even less now that repair permissions is gone)
iTunes (rarely)
Terminal
FaceTime
Preview
That's it. Most of the stuff I use -- close to 60 apps -- are third party apps which better fit into my personal workflow.
If you take the time to install some of Apple's high quality voices via the "Dictation & Speech" preferences pane -- I have Allison, Ava, Samantha, Susan, Alex and Tom installed -- you can get some pretty good results with Text to Speech and audio alerts. However, as has already been noted by others here, they do not perform the same search function as Siri.
Personally, I find it a bit unnerving, and a little uncomfortable, talking to a machine. Thus, I have never really embraced the technology. In fact, I prefer to work on my computer in complete silence.
While some folks may find Siri very useful on Mac OS X due to their particular workflow, in my case, it would just be more bloatware to make the OS look cute and appealing, but which would just drag the overall system down.
Apple may someday add Siri to OS X, but I would probably use it once or twice out of curiosity, and then forget about it.
Like some of the other big players, Apple is now caught in a vicious cycle where it is compelled to continuously add new features, bells and whistles, in order to remain attractive, competitive and relevant in today's market. Apple has become a pro at selling us what we don't really need. They depend on that tactic for their survival, and we willingly acquiesce.
Speaking from a personal perspective, there are so many things in the latest iterations of OS X which I don't even use, and for which I have little or no use. In fact, if I were to list the Apple native apps which I use on a regular or at least semi-regular basis, it would be something like this, in no certain order:
App Store
Dictionary
Messages
System Preferences
Disk Utility (even less now that repair permissions is gone)
iTunes (rarely)
Terminal
FaceTime
Preview
That's it. Most of the stuff I use -- close to 60 apps -- are third party apps which better fit into my personal workflow.
If you take the time to install some of Apple's high quality voices via the "Dictation & Speech" preferences pane -- I have Allison, Ava, Samantha, Susan, Alex and Tom installed -- you can get some pretty good results with Text to Speech and audio alerts. However, as has already been noted by others here, they do not perform the same search function as Siri.
Personally, I find it a bit unnerving, and a little uncomfortable, talking to a machine. Thus, I have never really embraced the technology. In fact, I prefer to work on my computer in complete silence.
While some folks may find Siri very useful on Mac OS X due to their particular workflow, in my case, it would just be more bloatware to make the OS look cute and appealing, but which would just drag the overall system down.
Apple may someday add Siri to OS X, but I would probably use it once or twice out of curiosity, and then forget about it.
That's just the thing though...every user is completely unique and has their own personal workflow. I'm almost the exact opposite of you - I find a ton of the built in apps very useful, often because I enjoy how they're seamlessly integrated into the OS and I don't have to pay for them. So, I would say I do need many of the built-in apps on a daily basis that some others would call bloatware. I do have third-party dictionary and calculator apps, but that's pretty much it.
I guess the only way to keep all users happy would be to include or offer these native apps but to give a way to easily uninstall them without affecting the rest of the operating system too much. That way, the users who would make good use of built-in apps don't have to miss out on them, whereas the ones who see them as bloatware wouldn't have to deal with them. Of course I doubt Apple would ever do that...
Boston, you are exactly right, and I agree with your final statement. With each OS upgrade, we should in fact be able to custom install only the Apple-native apps that we really want and need, or at least have the option to uninstall them without messing up the balance of the entire system.
Furthermore, I think that there should be a mechanism whereby once we identify Apple-native apps which we don't want on our hard drive, and cluttering up our Applications folder, Applications Support folder, Preferences folder, etc., future OS upgrade installers should recognize that, and NOT install them again, so that we are forced to remove them again.
In this regard, Apple is now so big, it is becoming somewhat like Microsoft with its heavy-handedness. Just as Windows users used to be forced to use Internet Explorer whether they liked to or wanted to or not, Apple is pushing all of this eye candy on us, all under the guise of "You really need this, and you will really like this, and you want to be cool and ahead of the crowd."
Personally, I don't buy into that mentality. I have been a dedicated Apple Mac user for 25 years, and I enjoy using their products. However, when you remove all of the personal charisma and charm, product hype, etc., the bottom line for Apple is the profit margin, just like with any other big company.
It's bloatware to me, but not to you,
Hey Mr. Cook, whatcha gonna do?
Some like a lot, and some like few,
Giving us a choice is long overdue.
Lean machines, and fat ones too,
Think differently, do something new.
Furthermore, I think that there should be a mechanism whereby once we identify Apple-native apps which we don't want on our hard drive, and cluttering up our Applications folder, Applications Support folder, Preferences folder, etc., future OS upgrade installers should recognize that, and NOT install them again, so that we are forced to remove them again.
In this regard, Apple is now so big, it is becoming somewhat like Microsoft with its heavy-handedness. Just as Windows users used to be forced to use Internet Explorer whether they liked to or wanted to or not, Apple is pushing all of this eye candy on us, all under the guise of "You really need this, and you will really like this, and you want to be cool and ahead of the crowd."
Personally, I don't buy into that mentality. I have been a dedicated Apple Mac user for 25 years, and I enjoy using their products. However, when you remove all of the personal charisma and charm, product hype, etc., the bottom line for Apple is the profit margin, just like with any other big company.
It's bloatware to me, but not to you,
Hey Mr. Cook, whatcha gonna do?
Some like a lot, and some like few,
Giving us a choice is long overdue.
Lean machines, and fat ones too,
Think differently, do something new.
I think I actually find Cortana on rMBP more useful than Siri on the iPhone. The thing I like best about Cortana is the fact that I can set it to activate simply by calling its name, without having to press a key. So I can simply tell it to do something while I'm working, which is easier than grabbing the phone, long-pressing the home button and then speaking to Siri.
That's why I'd like Siri on OS X.
That's why I'd like Siri on OS X.