Google announces 40 new third-party integrations for Siri competitor Google Now

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Comments

  • Reply 21 of 71
    mstonemstone Posts: 11,510member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by TBell View Post

     
    I think Apple has done it right. Siri has actually come a long way. 


    Still a long way to go to be useful for general searching. She can set a reminder or an alarm but still lacks understanding natural language. I'll give you an example:

     

    This how she interpreted a recent query. "How to raise Choi fish?" Let me think about that. Sorry... Choi? Really? I always give Siri first shot but if she fails, I switch immediately to Google app. In this case as in every other, Google got it right without a hitch. If you use Google in a browser, you'll have no doubt noticed that when you make a typo Google automatically corrects it perfectly which is why it works so well, unlike Apple's auto spelling correction which gets it wrong 90% of the time. It is all about context not just choosing some similar word that is completely unlikely. Apple does a pretty good job of predictive words but needs better interpretation of language.  Of course there is no such thing as a Choi fish but Siri can't figure that out.

  • Reply 22 of 71
    Siri is like having an assistant that can do a few helpful things. Google Now is like having a small team that monitors more of your needs and makes those available to you if and when you need them.

    I do hate saying this but Google Now > Siri right now. And, at least on Android devices, I don't personally think it's even a close fight.
  • Reply 23 of 71
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by mstone View Post

     

    Still a long way to go to be useful for general searching. She can set a reminder or an alarm but still lacks understanding natural language. I'll give you an example:

     

    This how she interpreted a recent query. "How to raise Choi fish?" Let me think about that. Sorry... Choi? Really? I always give Siri first shot but if she fails, I switch immediately to Google app. In this case as in every other, Google got it right without a hitch. If you use Google in a browser, you'll have no doubt noticed that when you make a typo Google automatically corrects it perfectly which is why it works so well, unlike Apple's auto spelling correction which gets it wrong 90% of the time. It is all about context not just choosing some similar word that is completely unlikely. Apple does a pretty good job of predictive words but needs better interpretation of language.  Of course there is no such thing as a Choi fish but Siri can't figure that out.




    Sorry... Choi?

  • Reply 24 of 71
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by Jordon Schultz View Post



    Google Now is like having a small team that monitors more of your needs and makes those available to you if and when you need them.

     

    That small team monitors your search needs and makes that available to governments if and when they need it.

  • Reply 25 of 71
    robmrobm Posts: 1,068member
    [quote name="Suddenly Newton" url="/t/184597/google-announces-40-new-third-party-integrations-for-siri-competitor-google-now#post_2669397"]
    That small team monitors your search needs and [URL=http://www.google.com/transparencyreport/userdatarequests/countries/]makes that available to governments[/URL] [B]and anyone else who is willing to pay[/B] if and when they need it

    Tftfy :D
  • Reply 26 of 71
    mstonemstone Posts: 11,510member
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by Suddenly Newton View Post

     

    That small team monitors your search needs and makes that available to governments if and when they need it.


    Of particular note at that link is China.

     

    2 requests of 4 users with data revealed 50%.

     

    I'll bookmark this post so when we get information on what Apple is going to give the Chinese government is exposed we can compare.

     

    There is a reason Google bailed on China. They refused to bend to the government demands. Will Apple?

  • Reply 27 of 71
    mstonemstone Posts: 11,510member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by RobM View Post

     

    and anyone else who is willing to pay if and when they need it



    Tftfy image



    I'll let everyone know when I start getting junk mail and web ads for Koi fish. I doubt that will ever happen. I haven't received any ads or spam related to a Google search yet and I have been logged into Google continuously for several years.

  • Reply 28 of 71
    xixoxixo Posts: 450member
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by Roake View Post

     

     

    Sounds like their budget was too low to afford a Photoshop jockey, so they went with the "computer is invisible but sounds just like this girl who is breaking into show-business and will work for minimum wage" option.


     

    Scarlett Johansson works for minimum wage? I'd buy that for a dollar...

  • Reply 29 of 71
    mstonemstone Posts: 11,510member
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by Suddenly Newton View Post

     
    Sorry... Choi?


    Apple should start scrapping data from Google app like Bing did so they can figure out how a search engine actually works.

  • Reply 30 of 71
    xixoxixo Posts: 450member
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by mstone View Post

     

    Apple should start scraping data from Google app like Bing did so they can figure out how a search engine actually works.


     

    My wife uses BIng on her Mac & phone. Everytime I find myself searching for something for her, it drives me nuts. Bing sucks as a search engine.

     

    I write web apps that integrate with google APIs (drive, calendar, user authentication) but I would not want to integrate with this. Same reason I would not write a point of sale application that integrates with Amazon - you're giving them the ammunition to shoot you.

     

    AirBnB - great. The attorney general of your state cannot get AirBnb's records of the all the times you rented out mom's basement, so they go to Google instead.

     

    Waze - where have you been (specifically)?

     

    Walgreens - what prescription / OTC drugs are you looking for?

     

    It's obvious why Google is doing this - these mobile apps are shut off from Google's web crawlers. Also Google seems fascinated with recording and analysing human behaviour in general. 

  • Reply 31 of 71
    cpsrocpsro Posts: 3,192member

    Google Never!

  • Reply 32 of 71
    gwydiongwydion Posts: 1,083member
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by Suddenly Newton View Post

     

     

    That small team monitors your search needs and makes that available to governments if and when they need it.


    Like every other American company has to do?

  • Reply 33 of 71
    robmrobm Posts: 1,068member
    mstone wrote: »
    I'll let everyone know when I start getting junk mail and web ads for Koi fish. I doubt that will ever happen. I haven't received any ads or spam related to a Google search yet and I have been logged into Google continuously for several years.

    It's quite apparent to me - eg. my wife's a travel broker and works from home, logged in all day (and night sometimes, but that's another story). They have to use Gmail through the corp Citrix shell. I'm looking at an ad for Airpoints dollars from the ANZ bank here in NZ at the head on this very page. Other common "offers" are from cruise companies, airlines, hotels in Europe, the States (whoever she's been in contact with) and even from some of her competitors eg House of Travel.

    If my daughters on line, I'll get ads for teenage girl crap. Her school uses gmail, hangouts etc.
    My son doesn't have a Google account so I get no offers of lusty, rampant sex, or penis enlargements or offers to terminate with extreme prejudice using the latest most bloodthirsty title. :)
  • Reply 34 of 71
    mstonemstone Posts: 11,510member

    Ok well to test your theory I paused Ghostery and reloaded the page. I got some ads for App Annie, which is not anything I would have a need for and an ad for Hilton Hotels where I have never stayed although I do stay at a lot of hotels so maybe. Then I went to the AI home page, littered with ads and absolutely none of them interested me at all. Nothing about coffee, medical imaging, programming, gardening, home remodel, cars, motorcycles, bicycling, wine, gourmet dining, travel, desktop publishing, small business, latin America etc and those are all big commercial topics -  but they presented nothing at all that I am interested in. Why? If I am constantly logged into Google you'd think there would be at least one relevant ad.

  • Reply 35 of 71
    alfiejralfiejr Posts: 1,524member

    as others have noted, what this really does is:

     

    - let those third party apps PUSH their context/location-aware promos into Google Now's equivalent of iOS' Notifications/Passbook. is it opt in? i assume you can at least opt out. otherwise, it's outright SPAMing.

     

    - lets Google DATAMINE anything you do with those third party apps to do you-know-what.

     

    is it any wonder so many droid people are now switching to iPhone? there is only so much of being constantly hustled that many can take.

  • Reply 36 of 71
    robmrobm Posts: 1,068member
    I can only think that you have altered some of you privacy settings in your account Prefs.
    GG is always banging on how this is easy to do and therefore we needn't worry - but for the corps many IT departments don't allow the user access.

    I know you are talking about search and that may be true - it's the email etc side of Googles data mining that concerns me.
    This latest move to dish up meaningful information/ads using Google Now is just another example of how Google mines your data, stores your profile for free all the while enriching itself.
    I accept that it's there, it ain't going to go away but - it stinks.
  • Reply 37 of 71
    mstonemstone Posts: 11,510member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by RobM View Post



    I can only think that you have altered some of you privacy settings in your account Prefs.

    GG is always banging on how this is easy to do and therefore we needn't worry - but for the corps many IT departments don't allow the user access.



    I know you are talking about search and that may be true - it's the email etc side of Googles data mining that concerns me.

    This latest move to dish up meaningful information/ads using Google Now is just another example of how Google mines your data, stores your profile for free all the while enriching itself.

    I accept that it's there, it ain't going to go away but - it stinks.

    Perhaps. We use a Google paid business email for our domains and we don't see any ads. I believe they also said they don't track us either since it is a commercial account. We switched to Google for our corporate mail a couple years ago but I have had a personal Gmail account since they first came out.

  • Reply 38 of 71
    robmrobm Posts: 1,068member
    mstone wrote: »
    Perhaps. We use a Google paid business email for our domains and we don't see any ads. I believe they also said they don't track us either since it is a commercial account.

    Interesting - I checked with my wife. Their Gmail operates outside of the Citrix shell so that will be where the tracking will be coming from, I guess.
    hmm, have to dig a bit further on that. But it's no biggie - if its not an ad that's relevant to her it'll be something else, lol
  • Reply 39 of 71
    mstonemstone Posts: 11,510member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by RobM View Post

     
    Interesting - I checked with my wife. Their Gmail operates outside of the Citrix shell so that will be where the tracking will be coming from, I guess.

    hmm, have to dig a bit further on that. But it's no biggie - if its not an ad that's relevant to her it'll be something else, lol

    Google knows how to maximize their profits from ads which may not make sense to average people. For example I have AdSense running on a few of our domains. One in particular is all about coffee, however the domain name has the word "stone" in it which is logical because that is a family name. The funny part is that Google decides to run nothing but architectural stone, marble, pavers, granite and tile ads even though the site is 100% about coffee, I really don't care because we rake in hundreds of dollars a month with their odd algorithms. Same could be said about AI although in reverse, where a lot of the ads are about Mac instead of what the users other tracked interests might be.

  • Reply 40 of 71
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by Gwydion View Post

     

    Like every other American company has to do?




    Except when they can't decrypt it.

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