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Voice-response talker function

 Eliminate need for talking to newfangled voice-response systems
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Many newfangled voice repsonse systems have done away with DTMF input and instead require the user to speak the desired function. This can make them very hard to use in places where a person would like to be discrete.

My idea would be to return things back to the glorious days of yesteryear when everything could be done with buttons. Let the user indicate the necessary responses via keypad and have the phone automatically speak them to the system at the other end.

—supercat, Sep 12 2005

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       [oops, you're right, I misread the idea. MFD removed.]
—jutta, Sep 12 2005
   

       Let’s all, [jutta]? If the idea were to switch VRU’s back to DTMF, then I’d agree it’s a ‘let’s all’, but this is a new phone capability, where the phone accepts keypad input and speaks to a VRU in place of your voice. Seems newfangely to me.
—Shz, Sep 12 2005
   

       "discrete" ?
—DrCurry, Sep 12 2005
   

       Yes, you know, when the caller wishes to be definitely themself rather than a blurred identity that merges seamlessly with other callers.   

       I'll bun this if there is a 'five minutes of verbal abuse' button for when the Scam Robot call me on a Friday evening to tell me about the holiday I've just 'won'. That would ensure the job gets done without raising my blood pressure.
—wagster, Sep 12 2005
   

       I'll let you in on a little secret: if you get pissed at the voice system, it puts you through to an operator. When one of those things picks up, I just let loose with a string of vulgarities, and I usually get a live person within a few seconds. Much better than listening to Kenny-G's renditions of the latest pop music, occasionally broken by "We value your business. Please stay on the line for the next available operator. Your call will be taken in the order it was received.".   

       Granted, that doesn't help in situations where you want to be discreet, unless you want everyone around you to think that you've got tourette's.
—Freefall, Sep 12 2005
   
      
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