The new Windows 10 has a voice assistant - Cortana. The appearance of this function at Microsoft has long been asking, because Apple has long embodied this idea in Siri and Google's platform has already begun to implement similar developments in its operating system.

What is Cortana in Windows 10?

This system first appeared as an assistant for Windows Phone. What was mundane and standard for Mac and iOS users has become a novelty for Windows users. Many reacted negatively to the new product. In this article, we will try to understand all the pros and cons, consider all the functions of the voice assistant. The application is distributed free of charge with all licensed copies.

Cortana Features Overview

The creators tried to make the Cortana service as functional and friendly as possible. As the update progresses, new features are added to it, so the list of all may be incomplete and inconclusive.

Cortana is a complete assistant in all matters. Its capabilities are amazing. Firstly, it helps to plan events, meetings and carefully reminds of them. At your request, the program will collect the necessary information, structure it and display it for you. You can discuss upcoming meetings with her and mark important dates. The service will carefully remind you of everything.

• Voice control is one of the main functions. Cortana improves and develops with each new version. It is clear that this program cannot be made a full-fledged interlocutor. But no one is forbidden to improve and add features. All requests and control can be done using voice. Those phrases that Cortana does not understand can be driven into a special field. It is enough to turn on Cortana and it will start collecting information about your requests and personal data. Imitation of communication is an experimental aspect in the work of an assistant. She will help you in all matters related to working with a PC and even tell you how to use certain functions. Very handy for beginners.
• And the most important element of the program is voice search, which can be opened through the Start menu. This function will not surprise anyone, but Windows is trying to pass off such an ordinary phenomenon as unique. The voice-activated assistant in Cortana Windows 10 can handle just about any request and wording. You can also control the navigation on your system - search for files, clean up the disk, delete folders, and so on. Cortana as a secretary - Performs monotonous paperwork and notifies you of upcoming important events. If you wish, you can remove all alerts with a voice command and take a break from the obsessive assistant Cortana.

Russian version

For Russian users of Microsoft products, there is one unpleasant moment: Cortana does not work in Russian. Moreover, at the start, the application only supported English and Chinese. Gradually, developers began to add the most relevant languages \u200b\u200bin the world. Unfortunately, we haven't gotten to the Russian yet. Because of this, it is impossible to work with Cortana without a minimum knowledge of English. Cortana (Cortana) in Russian in Windows 10 will not appear soon - there is still no official announcement. The developers are silent, and users can only hope for an early announcement. If support for the Russian language appears, it will greatly expand the user base and increase sales. There is no way to download the pirated version.

How to enable or launch Cortana (Cortana) in Windows 10 while in Russia

So, Cortana. It is not so easy to establish a relationship with her. Not all countries are supported by it, so you have to cheat. And, it would seem, set the settings in such a way that the computer would think that we are in the USA, and that's it. But in some cases, this process can take longer and more effort. So, what will you need to go through to befriend Cortana.

This works only in the licensed version of windows. In any case, you can always turn off the application if you experience difficulties.

How do I disable Cortana in Windows 10?

This procedure will take you no more than a minute.

• Go to Settings and find the "Privacy" section.
• In "Privacy", in turn, there is a section "Speech, inking and typing". Let's go there.
• In this section, you need to click on the "Stop getting to now me" button.

Basically, that's all. Cortana will be turned off, and information collected during its use will be deleted. But at the same time, you can always turn it back on. That is, Cortana is part of the Windows 10 system, so this way we can only disable Cortana, but not remove it. Then return the previous settings back and change USA to Russia and english to russian. And if it haunts you - read on.

How do I uninstall Cortana on Windows 10?

To uninstall, you will need additional install_wim_tweak files with the cmd extension. We warn you right away that by removing Cortana, you will damage the entire system, so problems may arise. So you act in this case at your own peril and risk.

But if you really need to delete for some reason, it is recommended to do the following:

How do I enable Cortana on Windows Phone Mobile 10?

If you own Windows Phone Mobile 10, then you may have problems installing some applications, but you can turn on Cortana on your phone. Installing Cortana on your phone is pretty simple. You will need to change the settings in two sections: "Language" and "Region".

• First, in the settings we find the first section - "Language" - and instead of Russian we choose English.
• After that, we reboot.
• The phone turned on and you can go to the "Region" section. Here it is necessary to indicate that we are now allegedly not in Russia, but in the United States.
• Reboot again.
• Now all that is required of us is to find Cortana among all programs and launch it.

Outcome

Many are worried about the question: "When will Cortana appear in Russia Windows 10?" The release date for Cortana in Windows 10 is unknown. Perhaps this is a big mistake for Microsoft, since they are depriving themselves of a huge percentage of software sales.

Even before the release of the Cortana interface for Windows 10, which is under development, testing and debugging, users tried to organize voice control of the computer. How such a function can be implemented in Windows that came out before 10 will be discussed in today's article.

Cortana

Cortana is an AI-powered voice assistant developed by Microsoft for Windows 10, Phone, and Android, with further expansion to XBox and iOS. It replaces the classic search string and performs many actions, primarily related to the search for information and system commands, receiving them from the user in the form of voice commands. Deep integration into Windows 10, the absence of the Russian language (so far), the collection of virtually all information about the user sent to Microsoft servers and the absence of the final version do not allow most users to get full voice control of their own computer.

In addition to Cortana, there are many applications that allow you to control your PC through the user's voice commands. Let's take a look at the most common products for solving this problem in Windows 7 and 10.

Typle

The application occupies a leading position among Russian-speaking users who want to command a computer through their voice. The utility will easily replace a significant part of Cortana's functions on Windows 10, and on the "seven" will add a function often shown in films where people control computers using their voice.

Before starting work, create an account and come up with a key phrase, upon hearing which the application is activated. Then we set a voice command to control the computer or perform a certain action and assign the operation to it (launching the application, going to the specified site). In the window for editing the created commands, it becomes possible to set the parameters with which the application will be launched, and specify the launch mode (full-screen, windowed).

The utility's functionality is very limited, and the interface is far from the Metro style implemented in Windows 10. Full-fledged PC voice control via Typle cannot be implemented: it only supports opening files, applications (with arguments) and following predefined links. There is not even support for controlling the player (pause, start the next track).

Speaker

• taking screenshots of the screen state;
• switching keyboard layouts;
• shutting down Windows 7;
• launching the application;
• opening a file.

The process of reading and recognizing information arriving at the microphone starts after pressing the specified key (it is better to choose the button you use the least rarely in order to avoid false alarms of the program). It takes a lot of time to process, recognize speech and execute a command - 5 or more seconds than you have to pay for cheapness. Keywords are specified by text, not words, therefore the recognized speech is compared with the entered text, which is far from ideal. There is no player control in the application.

The developers of a software package for managing a computer with Windows 7 and 10 are the first Russian team to release an application for solving such problems. The Western "Dragon Dictate" was taken as the core of the application, where the domestic software module for Russian speech recognition was introduced.

In addition to executing system commands, Gorynych is able to perform voice input in text editors for Windows 10 with a performance that exceeds the typing speed of an average PC user. AI adapts to the user's voice and over time the quality of command and text recognition becomes much higher, until the next uninstallation of the program or reinstallation of the OS without saving user data.

From the system functions, the software complex can easily launch applications, create new text files.

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Is the official voice assistant, natively built into Windows 10. You don't need to download Cortana separately, you just need to activate the program. By default, Cortana is turned off for all users, but you can turn it on. Turning on the voice assistant Cortana in Russia is a whole quest, and in this article you will learn both about the service itself and how to enable Cortana in Russian on Windows 10.

Сortana - what is this service

Cortana first appeared in 2014, back in the days of Windows 8.1. Then this service was so crude that it received almost no recognition. Cortana got its laurels of fame only on Windows 10. It is a universal head-assistant that performs user tasks. These tasks are issued by voice commands. Accordingly, in order for Cortana to work on your computer, at least you need a microphone, either built-in or external. There will be no problem if you use Windows 10 on a tablet or laptop, there are usually built-in microphones. For a regular computer, you will most likely have to purchase an external microphone.

Features of Cortana on Windows 10

Imagine a real helper you can turn to with some errands. Here Cortana is the very same assistant, just virtual. You can teach Cortana a lesson and the highly intelligent system will follow your instructions. Microsoft has created not just a system that understands your speech, but a system that truly understands what the user needs. You can assign Cortana to one of the following tasks:

• Open or close a specific program on your computer;
• Make a note or note, make a note on the calendar;
• Provide you with background information;
• Make settings for the system or a separate program;
• Find a file or program on your computer;

Microsoft has combined the search engine and voice assistant functions. Сortana can work both without the Internet and when connected to the Internet. You can find a specific file on your computer or some information on the Internet. Cortana is also linked to the browser, it can provide you with help information not only in its interface, but also in the browser window. For example, she can open an encyclopedia. Information about the weather or exchange rates is also provided in a convenient format.

Сortana in Russian - can I download it for a computer on Windows 10

You cannot download Сortana in Russian. You won't be able to download Cortana at all, this program is a pre-installed service. And if you somehow "broke" or deleted this service, then the only way to get access to Cortana again is to restore the system. But even in this case, you will not receive Cortana in Russian, since it simply does not exist in Russian. At the beginning of 2017, Cortana was working in 6 languages:

• english;
• chinese;
• german;
• italian;
• spanish;
• french;

Support for the Russian language is still in the plans. It is expected that by 2020, 5 more languages \u200b\u200bwill be added to the list of languages \u200b\u200bsupported by Cortana, one of which is Russian. And then you can use Cortana in Russian. Until then, you can only choose one of the available languages. If you are fluent in, for example, English, then you can activate Cortana. In Russia, this process is associated with some additional steps, so you will probably need instructions on how to activate Cortana in Russia.

How to activate the Cortana voice assistant in Russia

To begin with, let us reassure everyone who asked if Cortana works in Russia. Yes, it works, but for this you have to make some manipulations with your computer. If you activate the system in the standard way, the system will give you an error. The fact is that Cortana only works with 6 languages, and if your OS is in Russian, the system will inform you that "Region is not supported." The good news is that Cortana doesn't care where you are physically, the service determines the region solely by the language used on your computer. And if you want to activate the voice assistant in Russia, then you just have to add the speech package of the required language. To do this, you need to follow the next instruction.

In the "Start" menu bar you need to find the "Settings" button and click on it:

Next, a panel of parameters will open in front of you, where one of the last items will be the item "Time and language", you need to select this item and click on it with the mouse:

In a new window, you will have a choice of regions and languages. If you want to connect Cortana in English, then you need to select any English-speaking region. For example, the USA or England. And in the section for adding languages, select English. And the following window will open before us:

The system will automatically download the English written package. Below you will see the speech package and its parameters. You must initiate the download of the English Speech Pack yourself. Of course, for the initial setup and connection to Cortana, you will need Internet access. The setup time depends on your internet speed. In the same section of the Speech Packet options, make sure the English download is complete. Next, mark English in the paragraph on speech recognition. Below there is a paragraph on accent recognition. You can also check this if English is not your first language. But don't put high hopes on this point, you will still need to speak sufficiently clear and understandable English for Cortana to be able to understand your speech.

After all the changes, you definitely need to restart your computer. Once launched, reopen the Start menu. And in the settings section, turn off the Cortana service as a personal voice assistant. This item will already be in English, since we have previously installed the English language pack. Therefore, to activate, you need to select the "On" position in the "Cortana can give you suggestions" item.

1. Voice assistant - how, why and for whom.
2. Turn on Cortana regardless of location.
3. When to speak Russian.
4. Disable voice assistant.

Cortana Voice Assistant

Man is constantly looking for an opportunity to shove some of his work onto machines. Over the past few years, due to the spread of social networks, and with this movement of the human circle of communication into the global network, new teaching methods have become available to developers. It is no secret for anyone today that the largest search engines, together with software developers, constantly monitor the actions of users online. This gives them huge databases for the creation and training of "Smart Home" systems of which the voice assistants Siri (Apple), Cortana (Microsoft Windows), Google Assistant will become a part.

It should be noted that attempts to create such assistants have been going on for a long time, however, due to the limited set of functions, they have not become widespread. For example, we can take voice control of a phone from large device manufacturers, while a smartphone was still a luxury. Such phones had to be trained for a long time, recording commands with your voice.

Enabling Cortana

At the moment, Windows 10 Voice Assistant Cortana only understands and works with a few languages: French, English, German, Italian, Spanish and Chinese. The OS does not speak Russian yet. In this regard, in order for Cortana to appear on your computer, you will need to change the regional settings to one of the language it has learned. And, of course, you will have to communicate with her in this language, so that basic knowledge and conversational experience will be necessary for the user. Let's analyze the activation of the assistant for the English language.

First, go to the page for changing regional settings. We open "Settings" through the "Start" menu (gear icon) or from the keyboard using the Win + I key combination. Here we need the item "Time and language", where on the left we select the item "Region and language". In the window that appears, change the region to a more suitable one for our choice (for example, the USA), add the language with the appropriate button (the system will offer you to download the required language pack), clicking on the desired language, note that we will use it by default.


For full work, in the "parameters" item you need to download a voice package, otherwise cortana will not be able to speak. After the download is complete, go to the next item - "Voice recognition". Here we select the language for communicating with the system (in our case, English), be sure to mark the point about the accent (unless, of course, the language is not native) and the preliminary configuration of the system is completed.

If any of the above is not available, then the user has Windows 10 for one language. Or, you have not logged into windows 10 as a registered user, which can be solved by activating an online account, which is impossible with unlicensed software.

Next, you should restart the device for the new interface settings to take effect. Click on the "Search" icon on the quick access panel, on the left, select the settings and there we already see the offer to activate cortana windows 10. A little later, you have to configure its work. We change the switch, if it is necessary for the system to respond to the phrase "Hey Cortana", the "Respond best" function collects the data of each voice command, which gives the assistant the opportunity to self-learn and further understand the commands more accurately. In it, you can choose training only for yourself or for all users.

Everything, cortana is functioning. For faster learning and full performance, you can optionally activate tracking user actions. To do this, in the "Settings" select the "Privacy" tab, and there the item "Speech, handwriting ...". On the right, we read a warning about the activity of this function and, if everything suits us, click "Meet me". Now Cortana and Microsoft will know almost everything the user is doing and suggest some actions based on his preferences.

Cortana for other languages

Officially in Russia, the developers claim that support will appear for several other languages \u200b\u200bin the first half of 2017. Due to the complexity and lack of qualified assistance, the system will not work in Russian soon. Probably the assistant will come included in a big update this spring. Since it is not yet possible to turn on cortana in Russian windows 10, users who do not speak other languages \u200b\u200bcan only wait.

Deactivating Cortana Voice Assistant

After it was possible to enable the assistant cortana in windows 10, the user will definitely think about disabling it in the future. To do this, again go to "Settings" (Win + I) - "Privacy", here in the "Speech, handwriting ..." tab, we prohibit the system from getting acquainted. After that, Cortana will stop collecting data and delete all accumulated knowledge. It remains only to return the original state to the regional settings in the Russian-language view.

In the case when the fear of being monitored by the assistant does not let the user go, any of them will name a dozen problems, there is a radical way. But the matter is complicated by the fact that cortana is deeply embedded in the search system and the start menu of Windows 10. It follows that completely removing it can cause problems in the operating system, which are solved by installing third-party software.

To uninstall, you will need the InstallWimTweak program with the bundled batch file (winaero.com/download.php?view.1832). It is required to run it with administrator rights. When the utility finishes, you can close the program window and restart the operating system.

In the course of another attempt to implement ideas from science fiction films, the tech giants, one after another, began work on virtual assistants. At Google I / O 2016, the company presented Google Assistant, as well as an analogue of Amazon Echo - the home voice assistant Google Home.

The latest big company is entering the virtual assistant race. Let's see what competitors it has (including among startups).

10 virtual assistants: an overview

Alexey Zenkov

First, let's remember what Google Now is.

Google Voice Search / Google Now

Features: Fast. Extremely accurate when creating routes. It scares you with its knowledge of your flights, reservations and other details. with some third party applications: manage notes, messages and music playback.

Disadvantages: Sometimes it gets boring with excessive initiative (for example, it shows the results of games of teams that are not interesting to you, or routes to your home from known places). Useless when controlling a smart home. Work on integration with third-party apps seems to have stalled.

Humanity Level: Zero. Not conducive to communication. It doesn't even have a name other than Google.

Summary: Google's vast store of personal data and access to a search engine should, in theory, have made Google the industry leader, but the company has yet to figure out how to leverage its strengths and create an assistant that can understand the user. Today, Google Now and voice search are on par with Siri, but they have not yet reached a new level of development.

And now about the competitors.

Apple Siri

What: A voice assistant that can talk to the user and make proactive recommendations. Activated by a long press on the Home button on and iPad. Recently, there was support for the assistant on Apple TV and Apple Watch.

Features: Easy to use on iOS devices. Understands natural speech. Knowledgeable about news, weather, sports, movies, routes and local businesses. Can tell you what to watch on TV. Knows how to interact with some elements of the "smart home".

Disadvantages: Cannot interact with most other applications and services. Slower than some competitors.

Humanity Level: Not able to maintain a full-fledged conversation, but at certain moments demonstrates his own wisdom. The female voice sounds comparatively human.

Disadvantages: Feels great on Windows - the platform that is least interesting to developers, and possibly users. Using the assistant on Android and iOS is more difficult, and there are fewer functions.

Humanity Level: Loves jokes, especially banal ones. Has a long list of witty answers to common questions at the ready. Can read extracts from Shakespeare.

Summary: After years in the shadow of Siri and Google, Cortana has become a much more interesting chatbot. Microsoft wants to make its voice assistant the basic intelligence for all other bots, able to manage your travels, appointments, to-do lists and other things, as well as increase the degree of integration with other Microsoft products, such as Office. The company aims to create a new shell for the computing technologies of the post-PC era, but it is too early to judge whether it will succeed or not.

Facebook M

What: Partly operated, partly by humans, and still in development. M will be a text-driven assistant in the Facebook Messenger environment.

Features: Will try to do whatever you ask.

Disadvantages: It is not yet a finished product, and it will not be for a long time. Only available to a small number of users in San Francisco.

Humanity Level: Extremely high, since people will participate in the formation of answers to questions. According to Wired, the company hopes that over time, M will learn from these operators and be able to operate more independently.

Summary: At the moment, M is just a little more than an idea. But given Facebook's interest in chatbots in general, it should come as no surprise if M eventually becomes superintelligent.

X.ai

What: One of the few virtual assistants with only one function. Works only via e-mail, where he can make appointments at your request.

Features: Knows your schedule and preferences, negotiates with other participants for you.

Features: Viv promise that their product will be able to understand difficult questions such as: "Will the temperature near the Golden Gate Bridge be above 20 degrees the day after tomorrow after 5 pm?" Work is underway to ensure compatibility with third-party applications.

Disadvantages: So far, apart from the prepared presentations, there is no evidence that everything works exactly as stated.

Humanity Level: He values \u200b\u200bvisual aids and concrete answers more than detailed descriptions. The presence of wit is questionable.

Disadvantages: The possibilities for integration with third-party applications are limited, and it is impossible to open the service directly on iOS or Android. Requests that the assistant cannot recognize are redirected to Ask.com.

Humanity Level: Does not dispose to long conversations, but knows how to answer additional questions.

Summary: It looks like Hound's mobile apps actually exist only to showcase the capabilities of the Houndify service, which SoundHound plans to sell to other companies. If everything works out, we will not even know that we are using it.

Ozlo

What: AI, the main function of which at the moment is the search for cafes, bars and restaurants. Available for a limited number of users.

Features: Finds and combines data from multiple sources, including Yelp and Foursquare, and then presents everything in the form of easy-to-use cards. Attempts to communicate by asking and answering additional questions such as "what places are open now?" or "what's on the menu?"

Disadvantages: Limited features unless the creators of Ozlo add new features. AI training is highly dependent on users.

Humanity Level: Avoids unnecessary pleasantries, only greets briefly by name.

Summary: Ozlo would be no different from many other chatbots if it didn't have the prospect of creating something bigger. The ability to combine data from multiple sources into a single SERP is unique, but it is not yet clear if developers will be able to realize the full potential they claim. In the meantime, Ozlo's business plan is limited only to the application, there may be problems with collecting the data necessary for training.

SpeakToIt Assistant.ai

What: One of the many copies of Siri. In the app store, searching for Siri brings up a variety of similar programs, such as Voice Commands, Voice Secretary, and Assistant.

Features: Not much different from Siri, but can learn custom commands to activate a list of functions.

Disadvantages: Not as useful as the built-in assistant in your smartphone, and not as convenient.

Humanity Level: Sounds pretty unnatural, but portrays himself as a human assistant whose gender and appearance can be changed.

Summary: Some of these Siri clones look like a relic of the past, when not all iPhone models could work with Apple's proprietary assistant and needed to be replaced. In any case, it seems that their creators are aware that this approach will not succeed. For example, SpeakToIt moved on to create a set of tools that other developers could use to make their own chatbots.