Voice Commands To Improve Data Input on Small Devices

An article in the New York Times explains how the barrier between man and machine is fading away.

For decades, we've been stuck with the mouse, icons and drop-down menus, originally invented at the Xerox Palo Alto Research Center in the 1970s and made popular by Apple and Microsoft in the next decade.

How far have we come?

Personal digital assistants (PDAs) introduced a new, more familiar form of data input - the pen. These devices were popular with busy corporate types and health care professional but never caught on in the mainstream as a simple way of creating, editing and managing information on small devices.

Only in the last two years have two gadgets truly introduced something revolutionary in terms of data input.

The first is the Nintendo Wii, a gaming console the differs from its competitors by allowing for hand movements to control actions on the screen. Punching into the air will perform give upper-jab to your opponent on screen.

Named the product of the year in 2007, Apple's iPhone delivers a touch-screen interface, something never before experienced on a mobile phone.

And now, Multi-touch technology is being added to Apple laptops giving users the ability to scroll through documents, rotate pictures and open files by moving your fingers on the laptops trackpad.

Aside from gadgets, there are trends taking hold that will further simplify how we work and play in a world of computers.

The most obvious being the same way in which we communicate with each other; our voice.

John Markoff of the New York Times suggests that:

Voice, too, is finally beginning to play a significant role as an interface tool in a new generation of consumer-oriented wireless handsets. Many technologists now believe that hunting and pecking on the tiny keyboards of cellphones and P.D.A.’s will quickly give way to voice commands that will return map, text and other data displayed visually on small screens.

“We’re on the verge of creating something as compelling as touch, except with voice,” said Mike McCue, general manager of the Tellme subsidiary of Microsoft.

With more hardware and software utilizing speech technologies, the need for pre-programmed voice prompts will continue to create demand for professional voice talent who give the human touch.

And if history is any indication, the winning technologies are those that make the technical details invisible to the user and reassure that we, as humans, are still in control.