The Siri-like Home Assistant

Would you use this type of assistant? It sounds really cool and this is the type of thing I saw in “homes of the future” as a kid. It’s something I’ve thought about, but when I think deeper, I’m not sure I’d use it.

I like to do things myself. As much as opening/closing windows are, or turning lights on or off, I think there’s some value in my going to manipulate the environment. Frist it’s a touch of exercise, but it also keeps me in tune with the environment. As much as I hate getting up to turn off the light, I think it’s good for me not to depend on too much.

Siri is interesting to me. There are times, like when I’m cooking, I wish I could have something flip pages or manipulate the iPad or other device for me. Or read me news. The problem is I’m not sure how I’d want it to work since I rapidly change tasks, need to pause things, etc. Would a digital assistant work? Would it remove some thinking time from me that I don’t realize I need?

I rarely change the temp, worry about alarms, lights, sound, etc. It’s a habit for me to just turn things on/off as I enter/leave rooms. About the only thing I might want to do is kick of the fans in the bathroom after some time, but that could be handled with a timer and a digital assistant might be overkill.

I’m torn on this, though I should think it through longer. Maybe it’s something that could improve life.