X10 Community Forum
🔌General Home Automation => Automating Your House => Topic started by: Tuicemen on December 14, 2017, 03:10:34 PM
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Cortana has been around for a while now (Since Win 8 I believe) however I never played with it much.
Since Windows has been developing Speech recognition for several years you'd think Cortana would be light years ahead of
Siri, Alexa, Google.......
Sadly Windows never used the clouds processing power until Cortana.
Recently I started looking at Cortana a little more. There are even skills for her though not as many as Alexa or Google.
There isn't anything yet for X10 directly but there are skills for the Wink, Smart things, Insteon, Philips Hue and other hubs.
Again like the other Voice assistants many things are only available in the Unite States B:(
It makes sense to enable Cortana and utilize her for when your at the PC even if you use another Voice recognition enabled Program.
Since there is a software developers tool kit (SDK) for Cortana for creating skills as well as integration with other apps I may look into doing something with her ( If I don't to confused and lost in the documentation) ::) :'
I think you should be able to get X10 working with a RM Broadlink and Smart Things since a hub isn't required for Smart Things
For now I'm interested in how others may be using her and what skills your using.
Also If you've got Cortana controlling X10 please share how you've done it. ;)
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..... Since Windows has been developing Speech recognition for several years you'd think Cortana would be light years ahead of
Siri, Alexa, Google...................
Interestingly.... the old joke (in the early 90's) about PC voice recognition was that since IBM had made the original big gain in voice recognition.... Microsoft was considering buying IBM to get the technology. It was a reflective sign of the times. The idea that "BIG BLUE" could be gobbled up by the creator of DOS... it made people chuckle and wonder... what's next.
IBM... grew too big. It loss any agility and ability to change or keep up with other, newer, leaner and more flexible business models. I am afraid... the same may be said about Microsoft. Even Apple seems to have lost much of it's innovative progressiveness. Like MS... Apple is becoming dependability.... clunky.
The cutting edge rarely belongs to the old standard, big building, corporate giant.
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I had a bit of time to kill so I opened a chat with Microsoft about Cortana's Connected Home which I couldn't get to display.
After several mins the tech stated it was only available in the US And they had no idea why B:(
I asked if there were plans to distribute it to the countries currently having access to Cortana.
I was told yes :)% however they had no ides when that would be rolled out B:(
So If your using Cortana please don't post to tease me! rofl
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..... the tech stated it was only available in the US And they had no idea why B:( .............
What the hell is the deal with the way we're treating Canada? B:( We American's have always thought of you guys as one of our own.... and a potential 51st state. It's totally unfair you guys are being treated like this. :(
Maybe... just thinking out loud here... bunches of you Canadian's should sneak across the border. Then... thinking out loud again... if you'd shoot at our boarder agents, sell us deadly drugs, visit our hospitals and sponge free medical care, illegally vote in our elections and maybe enroll for welfare money.... the American politicians as well as Bill Gates.... might treat you better.
It seems to have worked elsewhere. rofl
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rofl
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I updated my ThinClient the other day and Cortana displayed the home control from the notebook section I'd been trying to get on my Desktop for over a month. :o
Humm still doesn't work though.
Checked my phone as I've added her to it as well with a little playing I got Smartthings to work! :)%
trick was the language setting ::) :'
went back to the office and pulled up cortana settings and sure enough the language was set to english (Canada)
Set the language to english(US) and presto! rofl :)%
I now have Cortana controlling my X10 via SmartThings!
I can now take my Google mini elsewhere in the house.
>!
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....... trick was the language setting ::) :'
went back to the office and pulled up cortana settings and sure enough the language was set to english (Canada)
Set the language to english(US) and presto! rofl :)%
Do you get the feeling that Bill Gates isn't a big fan of the far north?
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rofl Actually it is the same for all voice assistants.
If the language isn't selected as English (US) on any of them you lose lots of skills and options.
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I now have Cortana controlling my X10 via SmartThings!
Just out of curiosity.... what is the delay time? I've just noticed with the new X10 phone app and wm100... the response time is very fast.
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If the language isn't selected as English (US)..... you lose lots of skills and options.
Well then... that's OK! USA #1
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Cortana is probably the slowest of all the Voice assistants for X10 but bareable.
Followed by Google Home & Alexa which are very close to each other even using different methods for x10 control.
I plan to do a side by side comparison over the weekend possibly. ;)
The x10 WIFI app would be the fastest as your using local control not the cloud.
An Alexa skill for it would put Alexa ahead of Google for X10 control at least till a skill was developed for it.
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They probably haven't let Cortana loose in Canada, because the language is so different. In the US, the last letter of our alphabet is "zee". In Canada (and just about the entire rest of the world), it's "zed".
I've also wondered if 90kph feels like it's much faster than 55mph.
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I figure Cortana will be the first to die.
Hey, Canadians : settle this argument with my wife. Which is colder, -40°C or -40°F.
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It feels the same to me rofl
The only temp where it is the same ;)
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It feels the same to me rofl
The only temp where it is the same ;)
Please don't ever tell my wife. rofl
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Hope she doesn't have to experiance it first hand, either way it is cold!!!!
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The metric system can be confusing. I generally just pretend to convert all my American standard weights and measures.... to "liters". 55 miles an (non-metric) hour is slightly over 4 liters.
Here in America we bicyclists ride a 100 mile ride we call a century. The rest of the world century rides... are 100 KM. In this case I side with the rest of the world.
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For users looking to setup Cortana for x10 control, currently it involves a bit of work and a free SmartThings developers account.
I created SmartCloud for this but you could use X10 commander or any x10 program that will accept GET commands (web requests). SmartCloud comes with two device handlers (one for dimmable lights, one for appliances) for Smart Things which you need to edit with your connection info and copied to the SmartThings device handler section.
I created a tutorial to help with setup which can be found in the SmartCloud thread.
http://forums.x10.com/index.php?topic=29997.msg171186#msg171186
If you don't wish to use SmartCloud the http:// line will need to be edited differently then I describe in the tutorial.
>!
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The metric system can be confusing.
I know what you mean. Multiplying by 10 is so incredibly difficult. Multiplying by 12 or 16 or some other random number is so much easier. rofl
Oh and having 0 degrees the freezing point of water and 100 degrees the boiling point is so much more arbitrary than 32 and 212 respectively. >*<
Reminds me of a poem my mum tells Americans about Celcius:
30 is hot
20 is nice
10 is cool
0 is ice
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In the medical field, it's all metric. My gripe is when I ask a parent how much their child weighs, and then have to convert. In the US, our official system has been metric since 1865, but we're too stubborn to follow this edict.
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In the medical field, it's all metric. My gripe is when I ask a parent how much their child weighs, and then have to convert. In the US, our official system has been metric since 1865, but we're too stubborn to follow this edict.
I find it funny that the Americans are the ones stuck using the old British system. It is as if they are having troubles letting go of their colonial roots. :P
That is where Canada is kind of funny. We are mostly metric. Temperatures are always in Celsius (most under 50 have no understanding of Fahrenheit and have to convert) and distances (and speeds) are always in kilometres (though more commonly in hours and minutes). However body height/weight are most commonly in imperial (except for immigrants). Cooking and construction measurements are also in imperial though beverages are metric (I have no idea how big a 16oz drink is, but I know exactly what 500ml is), except hard alcohol is measured in oz.
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I find it funny that the Americans are the ones stuck using the old British system. It is as if they are having troubles letting go of their colonial roots. :P
Thanks to America's excellent federal Department of Education (enacted in 1979).... only Americans over the age of 50 are even aware of our "colonial roots". The One World - One Standard.... is regressive by nature. Our problem with weights and measures isn't that we have two systems.... it is that we ONLY have two.