I agree with Jeremy Horwitz when he writes that Siri on macOS «barely registers as a feature.» He specifically refers to the Hey Siri functionality though. I’ve used Siri once or twice on my Mac when it first came out, but that’s it.

Apple first added “Hey Siri” — a voice trigger for the assistant — to iOS devices four years ago. Since then, I’ve found that I can consistently rely upon it for basically three things: to tell me the time, to recite the most basic weather when I’m in bed, and to stop or start playback on my office’s infrequently used HomePod. On occasion, I ask it to do more, but frequently have to ignore or manually correct its irritatingly wrong responses.

Voice control is not a good interface for a computer, at least in my life.

Samsung’s latest Galaxy Note 9 marketing campaign bags on Apple store employees, portraying them as bumbling fools blindly pushing iPhones. ZDNET decided to put that to the test. Spoiler alert: they aren’t. My take is that the employee in the ads is a proxy for Apple customers and Samsung is saying you’re stupid for buying an iPhone. They do more to bolster people who are already Samsung customers, and if all your ad campaign does is slam the competition what does that really say about your product?

Aimée Lutkin wrote that it’s time we all quit Twitter. This Friday, August 17, some Twitter users are organizing a «social media walk out» using the hashtag #DEACTIDAY.

BoingBoing writer Mark Frauenfelder posted that his decision to leave is motivated largely by the platform’s refusal to ban Alex Jones, whom they’ve admitted has violated their official policies. Jones has long been spreading conspiracy theories to his many followers, and has encouraged the continued harassment of parents of Sandy Hook victims.

I tend to agree with Kara Swisher when she wrote, «Rules won’t save Twitter. Values will.»

Check out this great side-by-side comparison of the original version of a key scene in The Hobbit to the version we know today. It’s the scene where Bilbo meets Gollum and steals the One Ring in the bowels of the Misty Mountains. Each paragraph of both versions is laid out side by side, with changes highlighted in blue. I’m such a huge Tolkien nerd, and this is intensely cool. Here’s a passage from the introduction:

The following is a side-by-side comparison of the two versions, presented in order to provide insight as to how the smallest of details can affect the overall themes of Tolkien’s work. Of particular interest is the characterization of Gollum, who in the revised version is much more malevolent and treacherous, and yet also more pitiful, echoing the later role that he will play in the Lord of the Rings trilogy.