Monday, December 13, 2021

TECHNOLOGY. GREAT OR SCARY?

I got Alexa (Amazon's virtual assistant) quite a while ago.  I changed her name to Echo so she would quit trying to order pizza when ever she heard her name on a TV commercial requesting a large 3 cheese pizza. I prefer Hawaiian:)  I was using her less and less for I usually just go to my computer to get answers to my questions.  Echo is quicker but I need the exercise. 

Recently though, I found an actual good use for her.  Two weeks ago I somehow missed using my COPD inhaler at 7 in the morning as required. Just got busy and forgot.  When I did remember it was kind of late in the day and I am only supposed to take it once every 24 hours.  So I skipped that dose all together.  Oddly, I noticed little difference in my breathing.

Then Thursday I did it again. I got busy and forgot my inhaler. Yikes, there goes the memory Patti.  Ok, this time I could feel a difference but again it was too late and would mess up my schedule so I skipped that dose also. 

Realizing a pattern may be forming, I decided I needed a reminder. Then I remembered my Artificial Intelligent friend, Echo. So I put her to work. I told her to remind me everyday at 7:00 AM to take my meds.

Gosh she is good and so far, she hasn't forgotten though neither have I, but it is good to have backup. Now if she could just fix breakfast. That part of technology and my computer I consider blessings. 

But then when Amazon had a crash and burn last week,  I found that just a wee bit scary. 

Then my Walmart had a bit of a crash here on Thursday.  I went to pick up my grocery order.   When I got there at 9:00 the girl told me I was lucky. They were going to crash at 11:00.  She was really busy so I didn't find out details.

After I got home they called me  to say that my order was delayed due to technical problems and they would call me when it would be ready for pick up. But I had gotten my order and had just put everything away!!! Not sure what happened there.  They never did call again.

A friend's father also had a weird experience with them that day. He had picked up his order and later Walmart emailed him that he was getting a refund since they said he hadn't gotten his order. Huh?? I find it all unsettling. Is someone messing with us?

Two biggies like Walmart and Amazon having problems?? Not good but I am addicted so I will hope both of those were freak events. 

Now I'll use technology to send some money to help those poor tornado victims in three states. For that purpose, technology is a blessing.

Do you think we are too dependent on technology? Has it outgrown us? Is it too easy to be controlled by an outside force?  Maybe I'll ask Echo:))

47 comments :

  1. Same here...my refill Rx was filled TWICE last month!! And scary thing is my insurance paid for BOTH 30 day refills.

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    1. Anni,
      Something strange going on. Hope they fixed the bug.

      Delete
  2. I think technology can be scary as well as great, Patti. Love it that your assistant 'Echo' reminds you to use your inhaler. Not happy that self check outs have replaced all but one of the cashiers at a Food Basics store here.

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    1. Florence,
      Hum, I was surprised a new Dollar General just opened down the road from me and they have one cashier and one self check out. Our big stores have also reduced the number of cashiers and added more self check out. Guess those self check outs don't need benefits or sick days.

      Delete
  3. Well I never thought of any use I would have for Alexa, but I never knew that I could use it as a verbal reminder to take my medicines. I have two medicines that I must remember every day, and sometimes I forget. I was even looking for some type of medicine bottle alarm system. Now I am giving Alexa some real thought. My husband may disagree with it as a privacy issue, because for both of us there is no telling what empty, stupid words we may hurl at politicians on the TV news. We don't have quite as many things we say since the election, but still sometimes...

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    1. susie,
      It does work for me. You could put her in a room you don't use much but that you could still hear her. Since I only need her once a day, I disable her speaker till I get ready for bed, then turn on the speaker. It hears nothing all day.

      Delete
  4. We don't use it for the same reason Susie's husband states. Privacy and all the rest of that. Glad to hear you have found a good way to use Echo! :-)

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    1. Djan,
      I have always kept her speakers on mute till I needed her. Now, I turn them on when I go to bed then turn her off when she reminds me.

      Delete
  5. That is a device I don't have. My memory is pretty good so I guess I don't really need Alexa or Echo. But, you forgetting to use your inhaler is scary.

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    1. gigi,
      My memory has been great till these last two slip ups. Sigh. You also have David in case you should forget. Ha ha, Callie is worthless like that:))

      Delete
  6. I have the Google home mini - similar to Alexa but it has no name and as far as I know I can't give it one. It is useful for reminders and timers, getting details on the current weather but useless for some stuff I want to know. Like how much snow did we get last night...that requires a trip to the laptop to a local weather station. It also gets confused when I want to add tea to my grocery list. Somehow, it hears ta rather than tea. Or maybe it's just me.

    We have several government agencies here in Canada who have temporarily closed down their on-line services due to a "potential cyberattack". Perhaps Amazon and Walmart had similar issues?

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    1. Eileen,
      Now that closing down due to potential cyber attack makes sense. The girl at Walmart knew just when they were going silent so perhaps they were warned. Still I find it quite disturbing.

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  7. We don't have any of those devices. I once made a recording on Roger's computer that said, "Good morning Roger, it's time to take your meds. Do it now." It came on every morning at 8:00. That went on for years. Now that I'm taking a Vitamin D3 every morning, I hand one to him as well, and he takes his other meds. No more recording and now that I think of it, I miss the sound of my own voice. LOL! We try to be very careful about online transactions. These are pretty crazy these days. Hey, I'd be happy to send you a recording of my voice. You could put it on your computer and tell your computer to play it every morning at 7:00. "Good morning, Patti, it's time to take your meds. Do it now!"

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    1. robin,
      I had no idea you could do that with a computer. Thanks for the fun offer but I would have no idea how to do it.
      Like I told others, I mute Echo during the day unless like yesterday I wanted to know who won last year's Superbowl. Then it is just an on and off transaction. For my reminder, I turn on the speaker when I go to bed then turn her off after her reminder. Till now, she has basically been a dust collector.

      Delete
  8. Patti, I've got to admit I'm very surprised; I figured you were the last person to be so reliant on technology, but wow good for you! Now you have my own wheels spinning, I keep forgetting to take all my own BP doses nearly everyday and was wondering what to do about it. Anyway, I sure hope Echo doesn't let you down again anytime soon. :^|

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    1. Doug,
      Well the good thing is since I have asked her for her help, I haven't needed it. I'm always ahead of her. Good to have a back up though. As for my other pills I have found a pill organizer really helps. I just put them out once a week and usually take with meals so I never forget. Ain't it fun getting older:) Be well my friend.

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  9. Do you think we are too dependent on technology? YES
    Has it outgrown us? OOH, good question.don't know.
    Is it too easy to be controlled by an outside force? Yep.
    I can see how having AI for reminders is sure helpful. Right now I am my husbands reminder. I have no one to remind me though 😁
    I tried to use Amazon the day it was down but I didn't know about walmart. I know Amazon is the cloud for many many companies and that caused a lot of them to go down.

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    1. Peg,
      You are a much better question answer-er than I was. You didn't take me into an orange grove like I took you:)
      Sometimes I wonder about our safety when the big guys have problems. No one has said if Amazon was a hack or just an IT glitch. What Eileen said about Canada sounds like that could have been our problem too. Wonder if we will ever know?

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  10. I do think we are too dependent on technology. That's evident when we have these big crashes, and cyber crime is a very real threat.

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    1. Linda,
      The recent pipeline hack and now Amazon?I Recently one of our top military men said we are very vulnerable as a country. Guess we just have to be as careful as we can.

      Delete
  11. I've gotten rather dependent on Alexa for my lights and my Question of the Day although nothing that I absolutely need.

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    1. Margaret,
      This is the first time I have given her a job. Usually just dumb stuff like what time is it in London or who won last year's Superbowl?

      Delete
  12. The Walmart girl knew they were going to crash and when?? I find that odd, surely these crashes aren't planned in advance with warnings given to store staff?
    I do hope you weren't within the path of that tornado, I saw the destruction on the TV news here.

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    1. River,
      Pretty sure it was like what Eileen experienced in Canada with the cyber attack threat or maybe they just needed to shut down for IT repairs.
      No damage here, it was all south east of my town. Heart goes out to those whose town was destroyed.

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  13. P.S. I set out my morning medications right next to my breakfast bowl every evening before I go to bed. There's no chance I won't see them and forget. Thankfully I don't have any evening medications.

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    1. River,
      I do have a pill organizer which is great for those meds through out the day. I had never missed the morning inhaler before and oddly not since. Guess just having the threat of Echo was enough.

      Delete
  14. I am so dependent on technology and cannot remember being without it. I have not used my ECHO for medicine reminders but will start that now. I have one pill that is kept in the refrigerator and because it is not near the others I will forget it. Now I am going to have Alexa remind me. Thanks Patti.

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    1. Anni,
      I was just glad to finally have a good purpose for Echo. Hope she solves your problem.

      Delete
  15. More than likely they knew in advance that the tech support was going to shut things down to check for worms or trojans that someone had said they set off in their system. We really do need better systems that can't be hacked. But turning back from using them isn't going to happen.

    I'm not worried about privacy with Alexa or Siri. A court order couldn't even get on of the produce recordings at a murder trial. Plus I live alone its only going to pick up what I ask Alexa.

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    1. Jean,
      I remember that court case. Was surprised they couldn't access her. Actually our computers do enough spying on us. Every time we search for an item only to find it displayed on the next site we visit.
      I do wish we were safer from hackers also and I mean the big guys and govt. Don't think anyone would waste time with me.

      Delete
  16. My son is always trying to push new technology on me. He demonstrated Alexa and how he could just ask Alexa to lock his front door and what do you know the front door locked. I told him that was great, but old people like me would have to double check that it worked anyway, so what's the use?

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    1. Joeh,
      Good point. As soon as you mentioned checking, I could just see myself doing it. A lot of us still only trust the hands on approach.

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  17. I really like to use my electronic calendar. It helps keep my schedule straight. I love use gps also but I learned just today it does not help much when you punch in the wrong address.

    I am glad Echo is helping you out. Remembering meds can be tricky.

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    1. Sue,
      I really should use the calendar but I lean on the print one right by my computer.
      GPS can even mess you up with the right address if you don't update it regularly.
      I had one tell me driving through Georgia once to "make U turn." It was getting panicky when I didn't. Seems the road I was on had just been completed and was not in their records. It thought I was bumping across pastures:)

      Delete
  18. Replies
    1. Mage,
      Good plan but sadly there isn't much choice here in tiny town.

      Delete
  19. Without technology Bob and I would be lost! However, we don't have Alexa or a doorbell camera. I use my iPhone for reminders. I definitely wouldn't be able to function without the phone though I rarely actually talk on it! My friends and family text me daily, and I use the camera more than my DSLR, especially in winter.

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  20. Barb,
    I don't have cell service here but have thought of getting a smart phone if only for the camera function. You always get such great shots with yours and it is light and not bulky.

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  21. When Alexa or Echo can cook Breakfast I think I might NEED one of her. *LOL* As for the Mega Giants having Issues, that is unsettling, it's like when the Govt. and Vegas Casinos got hacked, I was like, then the rest of us are really screwed to be cyber secure.

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    1. Bohemian,
      You are so right. When those big guys get hacked, that alone puts us all at risk. Not having much confidence right now but will still keep plugging away.

      Delete
  22. I think we're very clearly at risk for potential problems the more dependent we become on technology. There are all sorts of instances where systems are exploited in one way or another about which we hear in the news, sometimes not until after the fact.

    I'm concerned about our power system, especially electric and the dependency on so many batteries for everything. I'd like to have a solar powered backup generator for my house. Probably could get some smaller solar panels to provide energy to keep smaller devices charged.

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    1. Joared,
      Solar power would be an answer except for weeks like we had last week when the sun didn't shine. None of my solar lights glowed.
      I do have a solar powered charger for my phone and kindle. Hadn't had to use it yet but it does provide some comfort.

      Delete
  23. Syfy buff that I am I do think all the technology and information floating out there will make it easy for some foreign nation to do something crazy. This comes from the lady who enters contests and spread everything but her weight all over the internet.

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    1. Barbara,
      Ha ha, you do live on the edge don't you? Still I have heard that we are way behind in security as a nation.

      Delete
  24. What? You can change Alexa's name? I didn't know that! This is valuable information because she keeps thinking I'm talking to her. (Thank you, thank you, Patti!) I love having the Echo because if I need to get something I just tell her to add it to my list. When I'm at the store, I can look at my list on my Alexa app and it will be there. I also use it for a timer. I tell her Time me for 1 hour and she will remind me. Then again, since my memory is getting worse could it be that I'm relying on technology too much? Sigh...

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    1. Kay,
      I know, I use her to help me cook as a timer. Some have said you can even get a male voice for her when you change her name. Haven't tried that yet. Have fun with her/him.

      Delete
  25. Meant to add -- hope you've had a Merry Christmas!

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