If you or someone you know is dealing with cognitive issues, this is the video for you.
Today, I'm going to be teaching you my top 10 Siri commands for anyone who is dealing
with memory loss.
Coming up next on Tech Talk America.
Hi, everyone and welcome to the class.
Today's video is a little bit personal.
Recently, someone in my life was diagnosed with the condition known as MCI which stands
for Mild Cognitive Impairment.
It's basically a mild form of dementia which can sometimes go away, other times it can
be stabilized and other times it can lead to dementia.
So, today, I decided to use my talents to create a video tutorial for anyone else out
there who is dealing with memory challenges.
Personally, I think that the technology that we have these days at our fingertips is incredible.
It can do amazing things, but the problem is that the people who most need that technology
don't know how to use it.
That's where this video comes into play.
Oh, and since we're talking about memory loss, one of the things that I also wanted to do
was I wanted to give you all a resource to help you retain the information that we're
about to go over.
And, so, for that reason, I have created a free PDF guide, you can download it through
a link in the video description or over on my website.
You can print it out and it goes over all of the commands that we're about to cover.
Last thing before we begin, I love making these videos for you guys, but, believe it
or not, I make all of this stuff from a 10-foot by 10-foot room.
Seriously, it's tight.
My goal is to build a little production studio so that I can take what I do right now to
the next level.
I'm a long way away from getting to that goal, but if you're willing to contribute, even
if it's just a couple of dollars, every little bit helps.
You can contribute whatever amount you like through my website at techtalkamerica.com/support.
Alright, let's begin the class.
I wanted to take a very brief moment to say that I happen to think that if you are dealing
with cognitive issues, you should really consider checking out the Apple Watch.
There's a lot of reasons for this recommendation.
For one, you have instant access to Siri on your wrist.
There's also a button that you can hold where if you have an emergency, you can call for
help.
Your Rolex might look good, but it's not going to save your life.
The latest version even has a feature called Fall Detection, so if you pass out for whatever
reason, it can automatically call for help.
And when you compare that to something like Life Alert, you remember that one, right?
[audio plays in the background] Woman: I've fallen and I can't get up.
David: She's fine.
That service, by the way, is $40 to $90 a month.
The Apple Watch is a one-time payment with no monthly fee.
Yes, you do basically need an iPhone to use it.
To use any of the commands that we are about to go over, all you need to do is say the
words 'Hey, Siri' followed by the command.
Now, in the interest of not setting off all of your devices at home, you'll notice that
whenever I say it, you're going to hear [sound effects].
You're welcome.
The first Siri command that I want to cover is a really simple reminder for reoccurring
events, for example, like taking medication.
Now, to do this, all you need to do is say [sound effects] "Remind me every day at 7
a.m. to take my blood pressure medication.
So, now, every day, at 7 a.m., all of my devices are going to go off at the same time and just
play that reminder.
Now, you might be thinking to yourself: "Oh, that's the end of that trick."
Oh, no, there's more.
What if you take several medications over the course of the day and what if you have
trouble with remembering visually what each of those pills looks like.
That is where this next trick comes into play.
Whenever you create a reminder using Siri, it is going to save that information into
the Reminders app, and if we tap into that Reminder, you'll see these icons appear here.
Now, let's just tap on the Camera icon and then tap where it says 'Take Photo'.
At this point, it's going to launch the Camera app on your phone and you can just take a
picture of that pill.
In that way, anytime that reminder is delivered, you'll have a color photo to accompany it.
I don't think that's blood pressure.
[sound effects] The next Siri reminder we're going to be going over is location-based reminders,
and there's a couple of different ways that you can use this feature.
So, let's say you're out and about and there's something that you think of that you need
to remember when you get home.
In this type of situation, you can just say to Siri: [sound effects] "Remind me when I
get home to unload the dishwasher."
This can also be very handy whenever you're going to be meeting up with someone.
So, let's say for example that at some point, I'm going to be meeting my accountant at his
home, and there's something that I need to remember to discuss with him.
As long as his address is located in my contact for him, I can then just say: [sound effects]
"Remind me next time I go to Chip Capelli's home to tell him that I'm going to reference
him in my next video."
Hi, Chip.
Trick number three goes hand in hand with trick number two.
Communication-based reminders.
Now, let's say that instead of going to see Chip, there's something I just want to mention
to him the next time that we're texting each other.
So, in that type of situation, you can just say, [sound effects] "Remind me next time
I message Chip Capelli to tell him that we need to start printing cache if I'm ever going
to afford this new production studio.".
At number four, we have your current location.
Now, I actually use this feature all the time whenever I'm driving and I come across a really
pretty area and usually, it's I'm thinking I'm going to come back and drone it later
on.
So, in this type of situation, you can just say: [sound effects] "Where am I?"
The next trick is language translation, and I am definitely going to need this one next
week because I am taking a little trip to Madrid, Spain, and just by taking two years
of Spanish, twice, yeah, you know where this is going, right?
Not so good at the Español.
You know the one thing I do remember from Spanish class is Soy Embarazada does not mean
'I'm embarrassed'.
Good to know.
Trick number six is you can now use Siri to access rideshare apps like Uber.
Now, this is a really good option to know if the person who is dealing with memory issues
is at a point where maybe they shouldn't be driving behind the wheel.
Now, I know that giving up your license can feel like losing your independence.
But, the reality is that thanks to technology like Uber and Lyft, now people who can't drive
still have a way to get from place to place.
Now, for this to work, of course, you are going to need to download one of those various
ride-sharing apps and while I personally use Lyft for several reasons, they have yet to
add Siri support.
So, at this point, let's try this out, let's go with Uber. [sound effects] "Call for an
Uber." [audio plays in the background] Woman: What type of ride do you want?
David: So, it has asked me what type of ride, and at that point, you just basically say
where you want to go.
Number seven is a really simple one.
We have measurement conversion.
So, if you forget how many teaspoons are in a tablespoon, you can just say: [sound effects]
"How many teaspoons are in a tablespoon?"
At number eight, we have basic math.
So, for example, next time that you go out to a restaurant and you need to calculate
a tip, you can just say: [sound effects] "What's 25% of $58?"
That's right, we tip good here.
We tip well.
Sorry, bad English.
The final two items on my list are both quite serious and can potentially be lifesaving.
So, I want to address this next item to the people who are the caregivers because they
are most likely going to be the ones to set up this feature.
If you have someone in your life who is dealing with Alzheimer's or dementia, I highly recommend
that you set up the following feature on that person's device.
There is an app that comes with every Apple device at this point called 'Find My'.
When you go into it, you're going to tap on where it says 'People' and if this is the
very first time that you've used that app, you're then going to tap on where it says
'Start Sharing Location'.
From here, all you need to do is add yourself into this list and when you do, you're going
to see these options which include share location for one hour, until the end of the day, or
indefinitely.
I also wanted to mention this is a very good feature to know about for those of you who
are parents, who have young adults who are now starting to go out to things like parties
and concerts.
So, for this type of situation, we're going to go with indefinitely, so, if you ever need
to locate your loved one, all you need to do is say: [sound effects] "Where is" and
then the name of that person.
And, finally, my number one tip, and it is critical that you memorize this verbatim.
If you have an emergency and your phone is not physically on you but your phone can hear
you, you can just yell the words: [sound effects] "Call" and then the emergency number "on speaker".
Now, the most important part of that command is the ending where I said the words 'on speaker',
and the reason why is once you start a call using Siri, once that call has been initiated,
you cannot then give a further Siri command.
So, you can't then tell it to turn on speakerphone.
It will only give you that ability once that person hangs up, and people who work at 911
and other emergency services are trained not to hang up.
So, it is absolutely critical that you remember to say the words 'On Speaker' at the end.
Thank you so much for watching, everyone.
If you enjoyed this video, make sure you hit the 'like' button and please leave me a little
well-constructed note down below in the comment section.
You know, as a teacher, I love creative feedback.
I love positive feedback, and I love hearing your thoughts.
It gives me energy, it gives me life to be able to keep doing this.
So, thank you so much.
Take care, everyone.
This is David A. Cox with Tech Talk America.
Class dismissed.