The Alexa App, In-Depth, Part 3 (Smart Home Series, Part 4)

The Alexa App, In-Depth, Part 3:
Extending Alexa with Skills

Adding Additional Alexa Skills, and
Fun Things to Do with Alexa

This is Part 3 of an in-depth look at Amazon's Alexa app and the Echo Family of Alexa-enabled devices. Part 1 introduced the Alexa app, talked about setting it up, accessing menus, using Alexa as a media and audiobook player, as well as pairing devices to the app. Part 2 looked at all the submenus in the settings section, as well as about lists, alarms, and reminders. It covered personalizing your devices, setting up news briefs, setting your location, changing your wake word, and changing other Alexa defaults. Part 2 discussed pairing accounts to Alexa, as well as customizing news and sports briefings, pairing a calendar, changing your music streaming defaults, and voice purchasing with Alexa.  Part 2 covered customizing almost every Alexa setting that can be customized. Today, we're going to get to the fun stuff.  Alexa can do a lot that's fun, inane, or just silly. Some of these things are available natively, while others require enabling skills.

What is an "Alexa Skill?

When you get a new Smartphone, it comes with certain abilities, like voice dialing, messaging, and a camera. It may not come with things like Facebook or a photo editor, but you can easily go to the App Store to add these capabilities. Likewise, a new PC comes with little more than a web browser pre-installed.  You usually download or install additional software.  Your Echo device comes with a lot of functionality built-in, but you can extend it through adding new skills.

An Alexa skill is like a phone app or a software program. It is a little program that will add new features to an Alexa compatible device.  Presently, all Alexa skills are voice-driven.  (That may change as Amazon develops Alexa devices with screens or cameras, like the Look and the Show.) And rather than "installing" a skill, you merely have to "enable" it.

The Alexa App, In-Depth, Part 2 (Smart Home Series, Part 3)

The Alexa App, In Depth, Part 2:
Personalizing, Refining, and Customizing Alexa;
News Briefings, Lists, Timers, and Alarms

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This is the second part of a series on using the Alexa app, and the third article in our series on Smart Home Devices.  Part 1 introduced the Alexa app, talked about setting it up, accessing menus, and using Alexa as a media player and audiobook reader, as well as about pairing devices to the app. Today, we continue our in-depth look at Alexa and how to use it, discussing the settings menu, lists, alarms, and reminders. We'll go through the Settings Menu, item by item, so you can customize your device, as well as your Sports and News Briefings.  We will also learn how to change Alexa's defaults. Part 3 will look at calling and messaging, adding additional Alexa skills, and fun things to do with Alexa. Then we will move on to smart home devices, and using them with your Echo device. We are breaking this down as there is A LOT to learn. However, once you finish going through this series, you will be an Alexa Master.  And you'll enjoy having a Voice Controlled Personal Assistant even more.

If you haven't already read Part 1, we suggest you do so before reading this week's post.  And if you want to be notified when new articles are published, please subscribe to this blog and/or follow us on Twitter (@techlaurels.)  You can use the appropriate widgets in the sidebar to do either.

The Settings Menu

You can find "Settings" near the bottom of Alexa's menu. The Settings menu is, of course, where you can adjust the settings of the Alexa app, as well as of your paired Amazon Devices.  The first part of the menu lists the devices, (Echos, Dots, Dash Wands, Fire TVs, etc.,) while the lower half, titled "Accounts,"  adjusts various Alexa functions. At the bottom is a "General" section with your Alexa history, as well as app information. There is also an entry here to add a new Alexa device.  The settings section is where you customize and personalize Alexa and your connected devices.

Part 1 discussed how to set up a new device, so we will not repeat that here.  Instead, we'll talk about adjusting settings on devices already paired to the app, as well as using the Settings section to personalize the way Alexa responds.

Of course, the Devices section lets you set-up and change each Alexa compatible device. The Accounts section helps you personalize the way Alexa responds to various requests. The most important parts of each section are detailed below.

The Alexa App, In-Depth, Part 1 (Smart Home Series, Part 2)

The Alexa App, In Depth, Part 1: 

Getting the Alexa App,
Adding your Echo, and

Using Alexa as a Media Player
    

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The Alexa App is the Companion to the Echo Family of Devices;
Use the Alexa App to Set Up and Customize your Echo Device.

Part one of this series introduced Alexa and the Amazon Family of Echo Devices.  This week, we're starting our in-depth look at the Alexa app. This app is the companion to the Echo and other Alexa-enabled devices.  You set up your Echo and other Smart Home Devices using the Alexa App.

There is a lot to Alexa and the app itself, too much really to cover in one post. Thus, we're going to start with how to get the app, and what the app is compatible with. Then we'll go on to show you how to pair an Echo device with the app.  Finally, we'll talk about using Alexa as a media player. Part 2 of this article, (which will be Part 3 of the series) will continue our review of all the things you can do with Alexa.  After that, we'll review various Smart Home Devices and how to integrate them with Alexa.

July 12th is Save Net Neutrality Day

Join TechLaurels in this Day of Action,

Protecting Net Neutrality

Techlaurels opposes the FCC’s plan to slash Title II, the legal foundation for net neutrality rules that protect online free speech and innovation.

On July 12, 2017, websites, Internet users, and online communities are uniting to sound the alarm about the FCC’s attack on net neutrality.

Right now, new FCC Chairman and former Verizon lawyer Ajit Pai have plans to destroy net neutrality. They want to give big cable companies total control over what we see and do online. If they get their way, the FCC will give companies like Comcast, Verizon, and AT&T control over what we can see and do on the Internet, with the power to slow down or block websites, and to charge apps and sites extra fees to reach an audience.

In practical terms, this means Comcast could potentially throttle Netflix's bandwidth, so that their own pay-per-view movies would stream flawlessly, while Netflix buffered and sputtered along. They could charge extra for users to use Gmail, or filter it heavily, in order to almost force their users to be tied to a Comcast e-mail address.  Spectrum could potentially block the use of competing apps and services on any connected Smart TVs. The ISPs would have control of what is allowed to flow through their pipes, as well as the speed at which individual apps or services flow. With our limited choice in providers, the end users are sure to suffer. Consumers already hate throttling due to data caps; can you imagine if throttling by provider was actually sanctioned by the Government? It's almost like advocating Jim Crow laws for cyberspace.

If we lose net neutrality, we could soon face an Internet where some of your favorite websites are forced into a slow lane online, while deep-pocketed companies who can afford expensive new “prioritization” fees have special fast lane access to Internet users – tilting the playing field in their favor.  You can be sure there are no more "viral superstars" that are not ISP sponsored. Independent artists will be forced back into unfair distribution systems, as they will not be able to afford the fees they'll be charged for audio traffic. I shudder to think of the potential consequences.

Prime Day is Here!

Prime Day, 2017 is Here

July 11, 2017

(Note: You may want to disable your Ad-Blocker so you can see the current pricing data and the images on this page.  Sale Prices may not show in graphic links; some sale prices are not reflected until you get to checkout.)

Amazon has started Prime Day early. Many deals are live on the Amazon Prime Day entry page. There are plenty of blogs spotlighting Prime Day Deals.  We are not going to rehash them all here.

However, as we are in the middle of a Smart Home series, we would be remiss if we overlooked Prime Day altogether.  The prices of Alexa-enabled devices have all been slashed to historic lows, and may sell out by afternoon.

An Alexa Powered Smart Home (Smart Home Series, Part 1)

My Smart Home, Part I:
Powered by Alexa & The Amazon Echo

Alexa is Amazon's Voice Controlled Personal Assistant

Alexa is Compatible with a Plethora of Devices

  

After last week's article reviewing The Dash Wand, I received an email request asking me to talk a little more about Alexa and my own Smart Home.  So today, a new series begins, focusing on the Smart Home. We'll take a look at my own Smart Devices, and how they have changed my life for the better.

This series will begin with an introduction to Smart Devices, as well as an Introduction to Alexa, Amazon's software-based Personal Assistant. Alexa acts as the hub for my own Smart Home devices, and she adds the voice control component to them. Later articles will go into more depth about how to use Alexa, how to integrate various devices into your smart home, and how to use Alexa to tie it all together and make it simple to operate. (In fact, I would not have expanded my own stable of smart devices had I not fallen in love with the Echo's ease of use.)

If you'd like to be notified when new articles in the series are published,we recommend you subscribe via e-mail, using the box in the sidebar of this  blog, or follow us on Twitter.  (Facebook can be flaky at showing followers our posts.) Future posts in this series will include items such as Smart Outlets, Smart Thermostats, and Smart Light-bulbs.  Today's post will concentrate on Alexa, Alexa-enabled devices, and the Amazon Echo.

What is a Smart Home?

Many of us remember the voice-directed computers featured in classic science fiction. 2001: A Space Odyssey had Hal, and on Star Trek, Spock often called to the computer for help. And while neither Knight Rider's KITT nor the Jetson's Rosie have materialized yet, we have made great strides in artificial intelligence over the last couple of decades. In 2017, having a voice controlled home is no longer in the realm of science fiction, nor limited to the wealthy.

Simply put, a Smart Home is a home equipped with lighting, heating, and other devices that can be controlled remotely, usually by means of a computer or a mobile phone. A smart device is merely a single component of a Smart Home. Smart devices usually depend on a live internet connection to function.  Most can be controlled via wi-fi, even if you are not inside your house.

Today, you can buy devices with smart technology built in.  You can also buy accessories to bring smart technology to older devices.  You can find Smart Devices in all categories, from lighting to entertainment to security to appliances. Most devices come with some sort of app to use as a controller. Some devices also use hubs for communication. (We will be covering various smart devices and their capabilities in future articles in this series.  Again, if you have an interest in this area, you may want to subscribe to this blog, and/or follow us on Twitter, so you don't miss a single article.)

Many manufacturers are making smart devices. Some of the more common names in Smart Home Technology are Wink, Nest, Belkin We-Mo, TP-Link, Phillips Hue and Ecobee. Samsung is probably the leader in Smart Appliances, including refrigerators and washers, and is getting into the hub and lighting areas as well.

Most smart devices do not have built in voice control. To control the device, you must open an app on a phone, tablet, or computer.  That is where Alexa, and her Echo Family of devices come in.  Alexa is an easy and economical way to bring hands-free control to your Smart Devices.  Alexa brings voice control to your Smart Home and frees you from the apps.

What is Alexa, and What Can She Do?

Alexa is the name of Amazon's software-based Personal Assistant.  Alexa is not a smart device per se, but rather, can interface with a plethora of smart devices, including those made by other manufacturers.  In addition, Alexa powers Amazon's own array of smart home devices, which in turn, extend voice control to compatible Smart Home devices.