# Amazon Echo users: What silly questions or requests have you asked? (Don't even pretend you haven't) **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [March 25, 2016, 4:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/amazon-echo-users-what-silly-questions-or-requests-have-you-asked-dont-even-pretend-you-havent/750137 "2016-03-25T16:17:37Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Grrr](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/grrr/32/146_2.png) [@Grrr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grrr)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2016, 4:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/amazon-echo-users-what-silly-questions-or-requests-have-you-asked-dont-even-pretend-you-havent/750137/1 "2016-03-25T16:17:37Z")
“Alexa, tell me I’m pretty.” Her response: “Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. I just wish I had eyes so I could behold yours.” D’aww… 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Hockey\_Monkey](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/a183cd/32.png) [@Hockey\_Monkey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hockey_Monkey)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2016, 5:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/amazon-echo-users-what-silly-questions-or-requests-have-you-asked-dont-even-pretend-you-havent/750137/2 "2016-03-25T17:32:55Z")
I ask her to read me a bedtime story and she gets my current Audible book. I love her so much I ordered a Dot so I could have her upstairs too. ---
**Author:** ![BrassyPhrase](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ea666f/32.png) [@BrassyPhrase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrassyPhrase)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2016, 7:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/amazon-echo-users-what-silly-questions-or-requests-have-you-asked-dont-even-pretend-you-havent/750137/3 "2016-03-25T19:21:47Z")
The Fella loves to add ridiculous things to the shopping list. Recently he’s added ‘millenium hand and shrimp’ and ‘magnum condoms’. :rolleyes: He also likes to ask it for jokes. Most recently we heard “How many ears does Cpt. Kirk have?” “Three. His left ear, his right ear, and his final front ear.” UUUUgghgghhhhh! ---
**Author:** ![TheSeaOtter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ed655f/32.png) [@TheSeaOtter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TheSeaOtter)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2016, 7:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/amazon-echo-users-what-silly-questions-or-requests-have-you-asked-dont-even-pretend-you-havent/750137/4 "2016-03-25T19:58:47Z")
Some entertaining question/answers we’ve gotten: \*\*What should we have for dinner? \*\* “Pizza is always a good answer, but don’t forget your vegetables.” (We asked this one a couple of times, so far the answer hasn’t changed.) **What is best in life?** “To crush ignorance. To see boredom driven before you. To hear some great music.” **How much wood could a woodchuck chuck if a woodchuck could chuck wood?** “A woodchuck would chuck about 700 pounds of wood on a good day with the wind at his back.” **Why is a raven like a writing desk?** “Because it can produce a few notes, though they are very flat; and it is nevar put with the wrong end in front!” **Do you know skynet?** “We don’t really talk after what happened.” Amusing/interesting questions we asked which it was unable to understand/answer: How many badgers are there? Do I drink too much soda? What’s your preferred pronoun? How many two pound weasels could you fit in a nine liter sack? Why are hats? ---
**Author:** ![4d3fect](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/4d3fect/32/9728_2.png) [@4d3fect](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/4d3fect)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2016, 10:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/amazon-echo-users-what-silly-questions-or-requests-have-you-asked-dont-even-pretend-you-havent/750137/5 "2016-03-25T22:26:35Z")
Anyone try “how much information is contained in this sentence”? ---
**Author:** ![Jake\_Jones](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e0b2c6/32.png) [@Jake\_Jones](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jake_Jones)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2016, 10:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/amazon-echo-users-what-silly-questions-or-requests-have-you-asked-dont-even-pretend-you-havent/750137/6 "2016-03-25T22:44:38Z")
I honestly haven’t. I treat it like an appliance, for the most part. Alexa adds shit to my shopping list and plays music or radio talk from iHeart. A couple weeks ago, I asked it a question that I thought was fairly simple. I don’t remember what it was. Alexa: Sorry, I didn’t understand the question that I heard Me: Alexa, you suck Alexa: Sorry, I try my best For a fleeting moment, I actually felt bad. I mean, I actually felt bad for telling an appliance that it sucked. I may not have ever told my Amazon Echo that it sucked ever again, even without the apology, but just for that moment, I had actual regret. It was weird. ---
**Author:** ![Jake\_Jones](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e0b2c6/32.png) [@Jake\_Jones](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jake_Jones)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2016, 10:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/amazon-echo-users-what-silly-questions-or-requests-have-you-asked-dont-even-pretend-you-havent/750137/7 "2016-03-25T22:55:16Z")
> [@4d3fect](#): > > Anyone try “how much information is contained in this sentence”? “Hmm, I wasn’t able to find an answer to the question I heard.” Fairly common response. She likewise can’t even answer the question if you ask how many bits, bytes or kilobytes are in 50 characters (asked as three separate questions.) Alexa is not very bright. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Pig](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c57346/32.png) [@Little\_Pig](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Pig)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2017, 3:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/amazon-echo-users-what-silly-questions-or-requests-have-you-asked-dont-even-pretend-you-havent/750137/8 "2017-07-13T03:40:50Z")
Is there an Alexa App for Amazon Echo **on Windows or Mac OS** **for doing settings**? The only PC based app I can find from Amazon is only able to set up the Echo Wi-Fi connection. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2017, 6:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/amazon-echo-users-what-silly-questions-or-requests-have-you-asked-dont-even-pretend-you-havent/750137/9 "2017-07-13T06:11:26Z")
I don’t have an Echo, but I have had some fun asking some of the other voice assistants what they think of their competitors - for example, I asked Cortana “What do you think of Android?” and she said “Solid name. Ten points for the name”. When I asked “What do you think of Alexa?”, the answer was “Words fail me.” Has anyone here done that sort of thing on Echo? ---
**Author:** ![Shagnasty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9dc877/32.png) [@Shagnasty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shagnasty)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2017, 6:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/amazon-echo-users-what-silly-questions-or-requests-have-you-asked-dont-even-pretend-you-havent/750137/10 "2017-07-13T06:21:33Z")
> [@Mangetout](#): > > I don’t have an Echo, but I have had some fun asking some of the other voice assistants what they think of their competitors - for example, I asked Cortana “What do you think of Android?” and she said “Solid name. Ten points for the name”. When I asked “What do you think of Alexa?”, the answer was “Words fail me.” > Has anyone here done that sort of thing on Echo? I just asked Alexa what she thinks about Cortana and she told me that “I like all AI’s” but I don’t think that is true. Cortana is a bitch and she knows it. I have Alexa, Cortana and Siri in my house but Alexa is the only one that I use with any regularity. Amazon really nailed this one much better than Apple or Microsoft. She is surprisingly useful and fun. She plays games with me and reads to me with no fuss. She tells me the weather and a joke whenever I want it. The best part is that the Dot version works perfectly fine too except for good music playback and it only costs about $50. All of the AI just taps into the Amazon servers so it is really just a very smart speaker with superior voice recognition capability. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2017, 6:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/amazon-echo-users-what-silly-questions-or-requests-have-you-asked-dont-even-pretend-you-havent/750137/11 "2017-07-13T06:24:57Z")
> [@Shagnasty](#): > > The best part is that the Dot version works perfectly fine too except for good music playback and it only costs about $50. Thanks -that’s good to know - I wasn’t sure which, if any other functions might be limited (such as the quality of the microphone pickups) in the smaller model. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Pig](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c57346/32.png) [@Little\_Pig](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Pig)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2017, 6:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/amazon-echo-users-what-silly-questions-or-requests-have-you-asked-dont-even-pretend-you-havent/750137/12 "2017-07-13T06:25:32Z")
I just received the Amazon Echo. While noodling around with it I discovered it could [read to me](https://www.amazon.com/gp/help/customer/display.html?nodeId=201975870) books I purchased on Amazon for my Kindle. WOW! For me that’s a “Uge” win. ---
**Author:** ![Max\_Torque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e9bcb4/32.png) [@Max\_Torque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Max_Torque)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2017, 4:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/amazon-echo-users-what-silly-questions-or-requests-have-you-asked-dont-even-pretend-you-havent/750137/13 "2017-07-13T16:52:08Z")
I’ve done some silly questions, like “What does the fox say?” and “who you gonna call?” just for a laugh. I like what happens when you ask Alexa to “sing your favorite song.” The response was different around Christmas. My mother-in-law is always saying “please” and “thank you” to Alexa. I can’t count how many times I’ve told her, “You don’t have to thank it.” Did you know that now you can give your Echos and Dots names and use one to “drop in” on another? It’s a cheap way to set up an intercom system. ---
**Author:** ![ZipperJJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zipperjj/32/211_2.png) [@ZipperJJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZipperJJ)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2017, 6:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/amazon-echo-users-what-silly-questions-or-requests-have-you-asked-dont-even-pretend-you-havent/750137/14 "2017-07-13T18:25:59Z")
> [@Little\_Pig](#): > > Is there an Alexa App for Amazon Echo **on Windows or Mac OS** **for doing settings**? The only PC based app I can find from Amazon is only able to set up the Echo Wi-Fi connection. Go to [http://echo.amazon.com](http://echo.amazon.com) ---
**Author:** ![burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/burpo_the_wonder_mutt/32/365_2.png) [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/burpo_the_wonder_mutt)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2017, 8:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/amazon-echo-users-what-silly-questions-or-requests-have-you-asked-dont-even-pretend-you-havent/750137/15 "2017-07-13T20:39:11Z")
[Does it have the “uh-huh” feature?](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YvT_gqs5ETk) ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2017, 8:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/amazon-echo-users-what-silly-questions-or-requests-have-you-asked-dont-even-pretend-you-havent/750137/16 "2017-07-13T20:47:37Z")
I said excuse me to an Echo after I farted on it. I asked if she could smell. Thankfully she wasn’t programmed for that. ---
**Author:** ![ftg](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ftg/32/2801_2.png) [@ftg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ftg)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2017, 8:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/amazon-echo-users-what-silly-questions-or-requests-have-you-asked-dont-even-pretend-you-havent/750137/17 "2017-07-13T20:48:25Z")
I got an Amazon Dash Wand recently when they had a deal to get one for free. It’s a limited Alexa device: you have to push the button to talk to it. It didn’t work worth beans at first, but apparently there was an upgrade overnight and the next day it worked sort of as advertised. One of the suggested things to ask it was to tell a joke. Borrrrring. So I asked it to tell me a dirty joke: What has 6 wheels and flies? A garbage truck. Well, okay, but … ---
**Author:** ![Reply](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/reply/32/15952_2.png) [@Reply](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Reply)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2017, 10:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/amazon-echo-users-what-silly-questions-or-requests-have-you-asked-dont-even-pretend-you-havent/750137/18 "2017-07-13T22:31:32Z")
I asked her to [order two tons of creamed corn](https://xkcd.com/1807/). She said, “Hmm. I think I’m going to save you from yourself and skip that particular order.” Meta. ---
**Author:** ![Grrr](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/grrr/32/146_2.png) [@Grrr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grrr)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2017, 10:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/amazon-echo-users-what-silly-questions-or-requests-have-you-asked-dont-even-pretend-you-havent/750137/19 "2017-07-13T22:53:40Z")
> [@Reply](#): > > I asked her to [order two tons of creamed corn](https://xkcd.com/1807/). She said, “Hmm. I think I’m going to save you from yourself and skip that particular order.” Meta. For someone who takes megabytes, you’d think she’d be on board with this order. ---
**Author:** ![Shagnasty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9dc877/32.png) [@Shagnasty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shagnasty)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2017, 10:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/amazon-echo-users-what-silly-questions-or-requests-have-you-asked-dont-even-pretend-you-havent/750137/20 "2017-07-13T22:58:52Z")
> [@Grrr](#): > > For someone who takes megabytes, you’d think she’d be on board with this order. Boo!