Amazon Echo: relying too much on Alexa?

[Michelle]

I read similar articles on two sites about record Echo sales and this comment (and responses to it) stood out to me:

vayapues · 1 day ago

We have 22 of them, including several dots, two echo shows (with screens) and a couple full-sized echos.

They turn our lights on and off (and change their color) they control our Christmas lights, turn our oven on, turn our fans on and off, control our thermostat, lock our doors, show us the doorbell camera, control our televisions (so we don't need remote controls) and a million other things.

We have one in every room, including every bedroom. They read our kids stories at night, help them with their homework, and on and on and on.

I bet we don't go more than five minutes without someone in the house making a request.

They have changed our lives. (and made us very lazy). Our house feels like the Enterprise. No matter where I am in the house, I just talk, and she does all my biding.

"Alexa, turn the temperature up..."
"Alexa, let's watch 'A Christmas Story...'"
"Alexa, Play Christmas music on the main floor"
"Alexa, Dropin to Ben's room..." (this works like an intercom)
"Alexa, order our usual pizza order from Dominoes..."
"Alexa, call me an uber..."
"Alexa, Ask life360 where mom is..." (this tells the kids where mom is, or dad, or any of the older siblings who have cellphones and are being tracked)

Then there is the calling feature that is great for our seven year old twins.
"Alexa, call dad..."
"Alexa, call grandma..."

The twins also use her a lot for reading
"Alexa read me Super Fudge..."
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Vejaman · 1 day ago
Half way through this I started to think the comment was a great joke. Got all the way to the end and now I am not so sure because I don't see the punchline. Really?? Reading the kids bedtime stories and helping with homework?? No wonder why the kids need to ask where the parents are... who even needs them anymore. We are gradually using our Echo more and more but nothing like this!

https://www.ksl.com/?sid=46224577&nid=157

There were a couple of supporters, but a lot of negative comments about using Alexa to avoid parenting.

Thoughts? Most of you who have read other posts from me probably already know where I stand.

[kittycat51]

It's funny that KSL posted this talking about Alexa and Amazon Echo. Just last week they had posted an article where the CIA warned people about toys and devices that could steal their information or spy on them. What a LAUGH coming from them. Well I would guess that Alexa and Dot are tops in this category. No way in the world I would ever have either of them in my home period.

As far as "vayapues" comments...that just makes me laugh. That is what you call lazy and letting something else do everything for you. (Yes including some parenting.) Can you say Wall-E?

[iWriteStuff]

True story: my niece is home schooled, enrolled in an online academy. Recently she was telling me about how she just passed her French final with a stunning "A" grade, despite not opening the book once all semester. I asked her how she accomplished the miracle.

Her answer: Google Translator.

Thank you, technology, for making us all lazier and stupider.

[Michelle]

It's funny that KSL posted this talking about Alexa and Amazon Echo. Just last week they had posted an article where the CIA warned people about toys and devices that could steal their information or spy on them. What a LAUGH coming from them. Well I would guess that Alexa and Dot are tops in this category. No way in the world I would ever have either of them in my home period.

As far as "vayapues" comments...that just makes me laugh. That is what you call lazy and letting something else do everything for you. (Yes including some parenting.) Can you say Wall-E?

I seriously think "Wall-E" all the time when talking to people about tech. lol

[Michelle]

True story: my niece is home schooled, enrolled in an online academy. Recently she was telling me about how she just passed her French final with a stunning "A" grade, despite not opening the book once all semester. I asked her how she accomplished the miracle.

Her answer: Google Translator.

Thank you, technology, for making us all lazier and stupider.

This is my concern.

Adam and Eve left the Garden of Eden to work and experience opposition: to earn their bread by the sweat of his brow and greatly multiply her sorrow and her conception.

Humankind has spent the last 6000+ years trying to recreate the Garden here in the wilderness, and not to our benefit.

When people tell me how great the modern technological world is, all I can think is, "Are we closer to God, our families and becoming like Christ because of technology?"

Interestingly, technology is not necessary for salvation. Neither Adam, nor Christ, nor any person ever alive has NEEDED tech for salvation.

That doesn't mean it can't be used as a tool, but I don't know that I have ever actually seen its use as a tool outweigh its downsides as a trap. Sure, we may have moment in our life when we are so glad we had technology (like being able to drive to a hospital.) But how many hours of our life are wasted staring at a screen?

Just to throw this 2016 data out there:

"Americans devote more than 10 hours a day to screen time, and growing"

http://www.cnn.com/2016/06/30/health/am ... index.html

Just to clarify this is not just time working and learning, at least 4 1/2 hours a day are just watching tv. If you allot 8 hours for sleeping, not a lot of time left for real life interactions and activities.

If you lose 10 hours a day to a screen, how much life have you lost in a year? 10 years? and looking forward 80 years? Maybe you lost more life to the screen that you gained from taken to the hospital. Especially when you consider most hospital trips aren't life and death.

Maybe, just maybe, God had it right when he told Adam to till the ground. (Think of the health benefits! Organic food, plenty of exercise and fresh air. Probably not a lot of heart disease, obesity, or type II diabetes with that kind of life. As for infectious disease: I would recommend a reading of the Law of Moses. No longer a law, but lots of good advice in this area.)