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Tag: Assistant

  • Lady Gaga Finally Settles Lawsuit

    Lady Gaga Finally Settles Lawsuit

    Miss Gaga is back from trial.

    Lady Gaga has finally settled a lawsuit filed in 2011 by a former assistant who claimed that the “Applause” artist owed her album $400,000 in overtime salary. The suit was for 7,168 extra hours that she said were spent attending Gaga’s every need during her period of employment.

    All of the terms of the settlement are being kept secret. Neither of the side’s attorneys have commented either.

    The case was scheduled to go to trial in New York on Nov. 4.

    Although neither side’s legal teams are speaking, Gaga had a few words of her own to share about her ex-assistant.

    “She’s just—she thinks she’s just like the queen of the universe,” she angrily said about plaintiff Jennifer L. O’Neill in a deposition taken in August 2012. “And you know what, she didn’t want to be a slave to one, because in my work and what I do, I’m the queen of the universe every day.”

    “You don’t get a schedule,” she reportedly testified. “You don’t get a schedule that is like you punch in and you can play…at your desk for four hours and then you punch out at the end of the day. This is when I need you, you’re available.”

    U.S. District Judge Paul G. Gardephe had set a trial date after ruling that being “on call” 24/7, as O’Neill referred to it in her suit, could potentially qualify for overtime compensation.

    The attorneys alerted him on Friday that they were close to a settlement.

    According to Bloomberg.com, both parties filed a stipulated order informing him that they had settled on an undisclosed amount and requesting a dismissal with prejudice, meaning O’Neill can bring no other wage or overtime-related claims against Gaga.

    Watch Gaga in her latest video, “Applause.”

    Photo Credit: YouTube

  • Google’s Siri Competitor Will Reportedly Be Called “Assistant”

    We’ve known that Google has been working on a competitor to Apple’s Siri for quite some time. A few months ago, it became known that it’s been in development under the name Majel, an homage to Star Trek.

    TechCrunch is now reporting, without naming sources, that it will simply be called Assistant, and will go beyond what Siri does so far. “I have no idea whether that name was scrapped but do know that ‘Assistant’ is not a part of GoogleX as Majel was,” reports Alexia Tsotsis.

    Google X would be that “secret robot lab” of Google’s

    She says her source has indicated that it’s being developed by the Android team, but that Google’s Amit Singhal (of the search division) is involved, that’s it’s about gathering data, adding a personalization layer, and that it’s about accomplishing goals, rather than just returning search results.

    Google does already have voice search for that.

    In 2010, Google acquired Phonetic Arts, a speech synthesis company that generates natural computer speech from samples of recorded voice.

    “In Star Trek, they don’t spend a lot of time typing things on keyboards—they just speak to their computers, and the computers speak back,” said Google Speech Technology Manager Mike Cohen at the time. “It’s a more naturalway to communicate, but getting there requires chipping away at a range of hard research problems. We’ve recently made some strides with speech technologies and tools that take voice input: for example, we launched Voice Search, Voice Input and Voice Actions for mobile phones, allowing you to speak web searches, compose emails by voice, ask your phone to play any song, and more. And last year we started automatically transcribing speech to produce captions on YouTube videos.”

    But Phonetic Arts comes in when you start talking about computers talking back to you – voice output as opposed to input – kind of like Siri, though Google has offered some things in this area since long before Siri came to the iPhone. Examples include features in Google Translate and Maps Navigation.

    Soon, there will be a lot of new examples, from the sound of it.

    One big difference between Google’s Assistant and Apple’s Siri, according to Tsotsis’ report, is that developers will be able to utilize Assistant for their own concepts.

    Of course, Google’s lack of a Siri competitor hasn’t stopped developers from trying to create their own counterparts for Android users. One recently revealed example of this would be Utter:

    It’s cool, but projects like this may be largely a waste of time as Google prepares its own solution.

  • iPhone 5 Rumor: Launch Will Be A “Game Changer”

    When the new iPhone is finally unveiled at the just-announced “Let’s Talk iPhone” media event scheduled for October 4th, there’s no doubt that it will already have a massive amount of excitement and buzz surrounding it. People want the new iPhone. Those iPhone 4s and (god-forbid) iPhone 3Gs might as well be Motorola RAZRs sitting in people’s pockets.

    But how much of a “game changer” will the new iPhone really be? What will the much-anticipated phone bring to the table that will position itself as a true “next-gen” device?

    For many, it’s the new voice control platform called “Assistant” that everyone has been talking about for the past few days.

    The leaked reports trickling out of the Apple fountain suggest that iOS 5 on the iPhone 5 is going to come with a new voice control platform that is more than just a feature – but the predominant way that users will interact with the new phone. Details about the “Assistant” system have emerged, and they sound quite interesting.

    Basically, Assistant is said to be voice control that really works. Seamless appointment scheduling, text messaging and even search – simply through the power of your voice. Not only will Assistant understand what you say, but it is apparently intuitive. That’s right, according to reports, you can expect to have a little conversation with your new iPhone from time to time when it needs to specify a command that you give it. “Tell Jim I’m going to be late to the meeting,” you say. Assistant might ask, “Should I notify his work or personal email?”

    For more on those expected features, check here.

    Could this technology be the main new thing about the iPhone 5 – the game changer? In my opinion, this voice control platform is more important than all the other rumored features – the 8 megapixel camera, faster processor, even all of the slick redesigns that people are hoping for.

    Long-time Apple follower and investor Jason Schwarz says that this part of the new iPhone is “the most significant upgrade to the Apple ecosystem since the initial launch of the product back in 2007.” No wonder that the invitation to the October 4th event said “Let’s Talk iPhone.” As many across the internet pointed out, that phrase could easily be interpreted “Let’s talk, iPhone.”

    Schwarz continues to talk about the amazing new user interface –

    At the original iPhone event in January 2007, Steve Jobs stated, ‘We are all born with the ultimate pointing device-our fingers-and iPhone uses them to create the most revolutionary user interface since the mouse.” Well, I would add that we’re also born with the ultimate communication tool-our voice-and iPhone is about to create the most revolutionary user interface in the history of technology. I expect that this voice assistant will quickly make its way into laptops and desktops as well. Apple’s competitive advantage is widening by the day.

    If Schwarz and the details prove correct, the Siri voice “Assistant” integrated into iOS 5 could change the way people interact with mobile technology. Love Apple or hate Apple, iPhone user or not, you have to admit that this is a big deal. It might not dominate the game, but it will sure as hell change it.

    What do you think about a voice-based user interface in the upcoming iPhone? Let us know in the comments.

  • iPhone 5 Rumor: “Assistant” Brings Precise Voice Control to iOS 5

    With the release of of iPhone 5 just around the corner (if you believe all the rumors), folks are anxious to learn what new features will make it worth their money. With all that anticipation, the iPhone has got to bring something to the table to differentiate itself from the previous models of the phone – right?

    This latest rumor suggests that the iPhone 5 will be launching with a pretty substantial new feature: Assistant. Assistant is apparently the evolution of the voice control system that Apple debuted on the 3G. According to the descriptions of Assistant, it really would be a game-changer for Apple.

    9to5 Mac posted an article today that is basically a detailed spec report on the upcoming iPhone – based on what they know so far from sources.

    Most of the specs the they discuss are expected specs that people have been talking about for a while – like the dual-core A5 processor and the 8 megapixel camera.

    But the details regarding the new Assistant feature are new. First off, the iPhone 5 will reportedly come with 1 GB of RAM, which it will need in order to run the Assistant. Because of that, Assistant will not be able to run on the IPhone 4 or 3GS.

    Assistant is basically the new way in which you will interact with your iPhone – and it is all based on voice –

    Assistant taps into many aspects of the iPhone, according to people familiar with the feature and SDK findings. For example, one can say make appointment with Mark Gurman for 7:30 PM and Assistant will create the appointment in the user’s calendar. On noting events, Assistant also allows users to set reminders for the iOS 5 Reminders application. For example, a user could say “remind me to buy milk when I arrive at the market.” Another example would be integration with the iOS Maps application. A user could ask: “how do I get to Staples Center?” and Assistant will use the user’s current location via GPS and provide directions.

    So assistant will allow you to run your calendar and reminders by voice, as well as navigation. But that’s not all. It will also power your text messaging. According to the sources, you will be able to ask your iPhone to text your friend and tell them you’ll be running late. It will even repeat back the text that it generated in order for you to confirm its accuracy. With this, texting while driving will become a little easier (and more legal, at that).

    Also, your iPhone will apparently talk to you. That’s right – robot conversation style. Basically, as you talk to the Assistant, it will ask you questions in order to gain more information about the task it needs to perform. For instance, if you asked your iPhone to set up a meeting with a client, it might ask you which email to use to notify them – personal or private.

    My first thought (and your first thought, I assume) is that it’s probably clunky, like all other voice control. Apparently, the “speech interpretation is so accurate that users don’t even have to speak very clearly or in a slow and robotic tone.” If that’s the case, then Assistant could be truly amazing.

    iOS 5 on the iPhone 5 will also sport Wolfram Alpha integration through Assistant. If you don’t know, that’s an online knowledge engine. I’m sure you’ve already deduced that that means you would be able to ask your iPhone general knowledge questions like “What’s the capital of Tunisia?” or “What’s 144 divided by 37?”

    All of this info seems pretty specific, almost like 9to5 Mac’s sources have already had a hands-on. If Assistant launches on the iPhone 5 and resembles this, it could be an enormous hit.

    What do you think of the voice control possibilities? Let us know in the comments.