The Company We Keep

Voice recognition software.  It’s a common enough experience today.  I remember when it wasn’t.  Let me give you a couple of examples.

Johnny Carson (maybe you’re too young) was the “king of late night television” for more years than I know.  One night, he was discussing a new car that would tell you when your door was open.  Should you start your car when one of the doors was not closed all the way, a voice would replace the ‘old ding-ding warning sound’ with the words, “Your door is ajar!”

Although he was thoroughly impressed, he said he'd never buy the car.  It seems that this primitive assistant spoke only in it's native language, that being Japanese!  A video search was not successful but this line still makes me laugh.