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John Giannandrea named to Apple’s executive team

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Re: John Giannandrea named to Apple’s executive team

#211

Post by mathnmusic »

ams6110 wrote: post #210
skizm wrote: post #122

Lots of comments about improving Siri here. This is interesting to me for several reasons I won't address, but I will ask this: Do people really use voice commands for, well, anything? From a purely functional standpoint, they seem super awkward to me. I like buttons that click and reassure me of every input. I like to feel confident my actions won't be misinterpreted. I like that no one else near me will get weirded…

I dislike voice commands. I have tried using speech-to-text for text messages and emails, and I usually spend more time correcting the mistakes than it saves.

Not to mention that this input can only be used in private spaces: Home or separate office cabins.

Re: John Giannandrea named to Apple’s executive team

#212

Post by imandride »

skizm wrote: post #122

Lots of comments about improving Siri here. This is interesting to me for several reasons I won't address, but I will ask this: Do people really use voice commands for, well, anything? From a purely functional standpoint, they seem super awkward to me. I like buttons that click and reassure me of every input. I like to feel confident my actions won't be misinterpreted. I like that no one else near me will get weirded…

I used Google voice a handful of times every day when I was on Android. Now that I'm on iOS I have Siri disabled. It's infuriating that Apple supply sub part services, and don't let you choose something else as a default replacement.

Re: John Giannandrea named to Apple’s executive team

#213

Post by mcphage »

ryanwaggoner wrote: post #179
mcphage wrote: post #38

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Also for a bit of fun, ask Siri for the population of Buffalo NY. Nice

Someone at Apple may be reading this thread, because it returned the answer normally for me.

Yeah, they must have—this afternoon it told me the population of Buffalo, New York was 69. I’ve got a window, I was pretty sure that’s not correct.

Re: John Giannandrea named to Apple’s executive team

#214

Post by freyir »

saagarjha wrote: post #137
freyir wrote: post #93

Earlier quoted context omitted.

His experience seems to be entirely focused on compilers. He's a talented engineer and leader, and his decision to join Google Brain indicates interest in AI, but wouldn't the chief AI/ML engineer have some demonstrable expertise in that particular field?

Chris Lattner works on Swift for TensorFlow, so it’s not hard to see why he was picked for this role.

That might be credited more to his role in creating Swift than his expertise in ML.

To be clear, I'm not claiming he's not capable of the role at some point. I don't know one way or the other. But his transition from compilers to AI seems fairly recent.

Re: John Giannandrea named to Apple’s executive team

#215

Post by joejerryronnie »

ronilan wrote: post #209
zjaffee wrote: post #158

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That's the thing though, given how cheap they an echo dot is, especially during promotions, there's very little reason not to get one. They're the perfect small gift. Virtually every other hot gadget from the last decade has been far more expensive at this stage to the point where it slowed down the adoption rate (smartwatches, certain cameras), or made it absolutely never go anywhere near what the hype train lead us…

> given how cheap the echo dot is ... they’re the perfect small gift . At the Real Canadian Superstore you get a gift when you spend over $300. It changes weekly. Sometimes it’s a box of cereals or chocolates. Sometimes it’s houseware, a plant or a lawn chair. At thanksgiving it’s a frozen turkey. That one time it was 2kg of bacon. Last week it was an Echo Dot. Based on popularity within the family, and compared to t…

I would take 2kg of bacon over an Echo Dot

Re: John Giannandrea named to Apple’s executive team

#216

Post by friedman23 »

skizm wrote: post #122

Lots of comments about improving Siri here. This is interesting to me for several reasons I won't address, but I will ask this: Do people really use voice commands for, well, anything? From a purely functional standpoint, they seem super awkward to me. I like buttons that click and reassure me of every input. I like to feel confident my actions won't be misinterpreted. I like that no one else near me will get weirded…

> Do people really use voice commands for, well, anything?

Setting alarms and reminders

Re: John Giannandrea named to Apple’s executive team

#217

Post by jen20 »

donaldknuth123 wrote: post #144
jen20 wrote: post #67

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> improvements to the iPhone are less compelling every year [citation needed] > Haven't the latest Macbooks suffered from significant feature regressions? No.

So dongle mania and crap keyboards aren't an issue for you?

I vastly prefer the keyboard in the 2016 series even to a Lenovo X220, and don't possess a single dongle - other than a (desktop) USB-C dock which connects everything in one hit.

So no, both were significant improvements from my perspective.

Re: John Giannandrea named to Apple’s executive team

#218

Post by jen20 »

UseStrict wrote: post #109
threeseed wrote: post #86

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The keyboard issues were fixed in the 2018 MacBook Pros. And there is no systemic issues with the security chips. We have entire floors of developers using MacBook Pros and no one has had “frequent crashes” from the T2 chip.

I know it tends to be more preference, but even on the 2018 MacBook Pros I find the keyboards terrible. Dust and spill resistant sure, slightly improved tactile response yes, but unlike my 2015 MacBook Pro my fingers seem to get strained and sore from the butterfly keyboards. I like travel in my keys.

I find the opposite. I can happily type all day on a 2016 MacBook Pro, but got RSI pain after an hour or so from the 2012-era keyboards.

Re: John Giannandrea named to Apple’s executive team

#219

Post by earenndil »

pmart123 wrote: post #175
matwood wrote: post #150

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Do people really use voice commands for, well, anything? Siri plus shortcuts have made many mundane tasks easier. When I get in my car to come home from work I say "Hey Siri, heading home." That causes my phone to text my wife my arrival time and starts the last podcast I had playing. It's a simple thing, but is so much easier than texting and then thumbing through the podcast player to start where I left off. I ha…

I am skeptical when technologists say voice assisted systems will become the dominant interface at least in countries with a high rate of literacy. I just look at TV vs radio, texting versus calling, or audio books versus written content. I believe most studies indicate that people are better at visual comprehension versus auditory: https://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2014/03/140312-audi... I know scientists lov…

I agree with your main point, but your examples seem suspect to me. TV is video _and_ audio, audiobooks are a translation of an existing artform (that is, books were originally created to be read, not listened to), and I find texting to be extremely clunky as a concept and do not enjoy tapping out long or interesting messages on a tiny touchscreen.

Re: John Giannandrea named to Apple’s executive team

#220

Post by aphroz »

briandear wrote: post #167
aphroz wrote: post #118

Apple is not an innovative company.They are a marketing company. What do marketing teams do when they have a lot of money ? They start removing stuff, remove the wires, remove the inputs/outputs and kill the company. Good bye Apple, even this guy can't save you. I won't miss you.

Are we trotting out that old trope again? Two words for you: Apple Watch. Nobody is even close to what they did with Watch and what they are doing with health. Look at the camera and photos app: on device ML. Look at the tech behind Memories for instance. They’re doing this without sending your photos to some privacy-invading server. Look at FaceId. Sure Samsung had facial recognition — but it could be fooled with a…

Yes, I couldn't resist. I am sorry, but I have maybe seen 2-3 people wearing an Apple watch and never heard about Memories. Apple watch (and Siri) might be a thing in the US but definitely not in Europe or Asia. I feel like Apple have only 2 successful products: Iphone and Macbook. Their biggest success however is creating a cult and closing personal computer hardware (remember IBM/compatible).
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