Microsoft tests tools to make the Web talk

IDG News Service - Taking another small step toward creating a voice-enabled Web, Microsoft Corp. Tuesday released to developers a test version of its tools for building applications that can be controlled over the Internet using voice commands.
As expected, the company made available the beta version of its .Net Speech Software Development Kit Version 1.0. Used with Microsoft's Visual Studio .Net developer tools, the software development kit is designed to add voice to the list of methods for inputting data that also includes the mouse, keyboard and stylus.
The tools are intended to "help jump-start the industry" for building speech-enabled Web applications, such as an airline Web site that allows users to make reservations by talking into a microphone on their computers, said James Mastan, group product manager for Microsoft's .Net speech technologies group.
The .Net Speech Software Development Kit can be used to retool an existing Web application developed with Microsoft's popular developer tools, a benefit Mastan said would spur its use. Features of the software development kit include workspaces for programming applications as well as for creating the spoken questions and answers that a voice-enabled application would need to understand.
Microsoft was scheduled to detail the tool Tuesday at the Amerian Voice Input and Output Society Speech Expo in San Jose, a four-day event focusing on products and technologies that incorporate speech recognition, as well as on products for voice over IP.
Microsoft is targeting a wide range of developers with its speech tools, Mastan said. One important segment is those who already develop voice-enabled applications that are accessed by telephone, such as those used for telephone-based banking and reservation systems.
Commonly used in call centers, voice applications designed for use over a telephone typically can't also be accessed through a Web browser, Mastan said. Instead, call centers must build separate applications for the phone and for the Web. Using the .Net Speech Software Development Kit, a single application can be designed that users can access over the Web as well as by phone, he said.
"It sounds like Microsoft is going to take steps to make this easy for developers to actually implement," said Jeff Snyder, vice president and chief analyst at Stamford, Conn.-based Gartner Inc.
While speech technology is still young, Snyder predicted that voice-enabled applications will be pivotal in the future evolution of the Web.
"It allows a user to maneuver [through the Web] much more quickly and comfortably. The idea is to make the experience easier for the user, and that's really what speech enablement is all