I actually like this, at least in some way it could lower the barrier for actually explaining what a function does. Though I don’t see this working in an office environment
You can’t skim an audio file, you have to listen from the beginning to the end. Audio makes symbols that are often used in programming difficult to parse or confusing. I… really dislike this
Audio is also impossible to edit/correct. You’d have to re-record the whole thing (or embed an audio editing suite in the IDE). And also make sure only one person recorded the comments (for a consistent voice).
AI generated text to speech would be far better than this.
but what about programmers with problems hearing? An alternative of webcam video with sign language, pantomime and subtitles is needed!
edit: OOH! Use AI to generate the sign language videos. Could be wild, considering how good AI is at drawing hands.
As a severe hearing impaired developer,
Use AI to generate the sign language videos
hurt me in my fucking soul.
Always found it strange anyway when services make a sign language video instead of subtitles
Nah that’s okay, it’s like providing a dub instead of a sub, in the way it feels.
But not an AI generated one, please! Not with those 7-fingered hands! It’ll be like a dub where someone’s gurgling while dubbing it!
Good point. I wonder if there was a way to like auto-transcribe these voice/video comments and automatically embed them in the source code so you have like a written-out comment that people could read.
Whisper AI? https://openai.com/research/whisper
The rant comment will be forever changed.
And dare I say improved.
All my comments would just be Rick Astley
I already hate people who send voice messages in a world where dictation software exists. I hate whoever even thought of joking about this even more.
The dictation software we have is pretty shitty though. It almost always needs proof-read, or re-dictated several times to get it right. At that point you may as well just send an audio clip.
Until the day that dictation software gets it 100% correct, it’s not going to be worth my time.
For now, the human on the other end will always have an easier time understand an audio clip than a machine, because human minds are more capable of using context and getting past regional accents.
I’ll read comments, but I would never listen to voice comments. Literally never. I’d spend an hour googling for context and solutions before I’d listen to a voice message in the code pages.
Voice is objectively the worst way to convey data via computer. It almost always wastes my time, is horrible to skim for relevant info, and for complex topics is an absolute nightmare.
Text is so, so much more efficient. I can’t imagine why anyone would want this. If it’s ever implemented, please don’t make it obvious. Nobody should be encouraged to inflict this on coworkers or future devs.
e: errant ’s’
The dictation software we have is pretty shitty though.
As someone who used dictation software when said software needed to be trained first and also trained its users how to speak more clearly, it always amazes me when I hear people say things like this.
The problem is human speech is lazy and inaccurate. Half of the time I have to listen to a voice clip there are two or three words in the clip that are barely intelligible. If I don’t catch it by the third pass I stop and just guess by context. It is the same thing the AWESOME dictation software we have today does, but saves me the time and effort and gives the sender a chance to fix their own mumbles.
Of course, I’m one of those people whose voicemail message used to be, “Don’t leave me a message unless your call went straight to voicemail. I will see your missed call and call you back.”
Most of the times I get a voice message it could be written in two sentences, but they still decide to make it a two minute voice message. Just a lot of useless stuff added for free
Dude you’re not thinking about it the right way. We can define a new multi byte character set to help define mood (both speaker and listener), intention, irony, sarcasm, sincerity, bodily functions, and so on. This is a solvable problem.
I have literally given up friendships from people that wouldn’t stop sending me voice messages.
I accept it from family, kids, the elderly and such. I just can’t believe people want me to turn off my music and slowly listen to your shitty voice when I can easily multitask.
