Speakable items
The Speakable Items window, executing the "Tell Me a Joke" command. Speakable items' are a feature of Mac OS X which allow the user to use natural speech to execute commands. The commands must be present in the Speakable items folder though and can be created with something as simple as a shortcut, applescript, keyboard command, or Automator Workflows (see below).
Introduction
Speakable items was introduced to the mac with the introduction of Mac OS X v10.4 Tiger. It was featured as #12 on there Mac OS X Features list, and was removed from the list when the page was changed to not be in list form (this was also the day of the introduction of the OS X 10.4.3 update).
History
Originally, Speakable Items was made with these preset commands:
- Cancel last command
- Close Speech Commands Window
- Close this window
- Get My Mail
- Hello World Book
- Hide this Application
- Listen Continuously
- Log me Out
- Look up in the dictionary
- Make this into a sticky note
- Minimize Speech Commands Window
- Move page down
- Move page to bottom
- Move page to top
- Move page up
- Open a document
- Open speech commands window
With the release of the OS X 10.4.2 update, the following important commands:
- Copy
- Define a keyboard command (which gave the user the ability to create new commands)
- Make new item
- Make this speakable
- Minimize this window
- Minimize Speech Feedback Window
- Open my browser
- Show me what to say
- Quit this application
- What day is it?
- What time is it?
Later updates gave custom abilities for various apple-based applications and other services
Automation
It was soon figured out that Automator workflows could be used in Speakable items.
All that needed to be done is save a workflow as an application and put in the Speakable Items folder. The words the computer will recognize to execute the command will be the name of the saved Automator application. Some words might have to be mispelt for the computer to know the proper pronounciation. (For example, the computer best recognizes "Les Misérables" as Lay Mizzer Ob).
Problems
While Speakable Items is useful, as well as innovative, recognition gets hard and distorted some times.
1. When playing iTunes tracks (or other audio) Speakable Items often doesnt recognize voices or mistakes sounds as commands not being spoken at all. 2. Audio in the background easily distracts the reciever and does not recognize a user's command.