News for hackers. Stuff that matters.
Re:Very few owners of Alexa-powered devices use them for sho... by VLM on Tuesday August 07, 2018 @09:21AM (#17706297)
You have subscribe and save and amazon dash buttons as non-voice alternatives.

I've never had the slightest problem with my dash button WRT counterfeit and SKU foolishness... push button next to empty kitchen trash bag box, receive kitchen trash bags tomorrow, it really is that simple.

Re:Very few owners of Alexa-powered devices use them for sho... by Symbiote on Tuesday August 07, 2018 @10:17AM (#17706811)
Frankly, I'm disgusted.

I couldn't be part of the electronic, energy, packaging and transport waste that this approach contributes to.

If I run out of trash bags, I buy more next time I'm at the supermarket. If I'm likely to forget to do that, I'll leave the empty box somewhere visible until I do remember, or if it's urgent write a note on a scrap of paper.

"Alexa, next time I'm at the supermarket, remind me I need trash bags" would be far more reasonable.

Re:Very few owners of Alexa-powered devices use them for sho... by WorldMaker on Tuesday August 07, 2018 @02:11PM (#17709046)
"Cortana, next time I'm at Kroger, remind me to get trash bags" is something I use all the time still. It really is the best approach, and something I don't think Cortana gets enough credit for, as one of the key "personal assistant" workflows that they made sure they got right.
Re:Very few owners of Alexa-powered devices use them for sho... by VLM on Wednesday August 08, 2018 @11:15AM (#17716601)
Notification spam on my phone makes that unusable. In between google asking my review of a gas station and some mobile phone game bugging me for not playing enough and a notification about an email that I handled on a desktop six hours ago and a missed call from a suspected spam number there might or might not be an important shopping list notification but I'll never see it buried in the reflexive clearing of spam notifications. And I have it relatively easy...
Re:Very few owners of Alexa-powered devices use them for sho... by dvfjsdhgfv on Wednesday August 08, 2018 @11:47AM (#17716880)
One of the first things to do is to switch off and actively refuse all notifications unless you find one that is really very, very useful to you. It makes no sense to leave the defaults.
Re:Very few owners of Alexa-powered devices use them for sho... by WorldMaker on Wednesday August 08, 2018 @12:38PM (#17717304)
There are entire apps that I've found alternatives for simply because I didn't like their notifications. I'm also very quick to deprioritize and/or block notifications for apps that don't need notifications. Notification management is a real concern.

I still think that the Windows Live Tile approach to notifications that don't need immediate attention is still one of the best, and wish Android and iOS would both offer something much more similar to that as a good option to help clean up the notification world.

Re:Very few owners of Alexa-powered devices use them for sho... by mcbits on Wednesday August 08, 2018 @07:04AM (#17714808)
The composition of waste is probably different between online and brick-and-mortar stores, but the total waste is probably similar given that the total costs are similar.
Re:Very few owners of Alexa-powered devices use them for sho... by bhandziuk on Tuesday August 07, 2018 @09:49AM (#17706516)
What happen's when your kid presses the button 20 times?
Re:Very few owners of Alexa-powered devices use them for sho... by jhall1468 on Tuesday August 07, 2018 @09:57AM (#17706599)
They won't send you 20. And stop putting little buttons where your kids can press them. Of course they want to.
Re:Very few owners of Alexa-powered devices use them for sho... by sp332 on Tuesday August 07, 2018 @10:18AM (#17706817)
They won't send you another one until the first one has arrived. Also you get notifications and the option to cancel each one when the order is made.
Re:Very few owners of Alexa-powered devices use them for sho... by wybiral on Tuesday August 07, 2018 @10:45AM (#17707083)
For all those times I'm in my house without my phone or laptop to order something?