[NO LONGER SUPPORTED] Ask Alexa

Got it…I really appreciate it. Let me know if you ever need any help or have features you feel would benefit the user community.

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How can I update to the newest version. I don’t really want to configure everything again. I tried update from repo but ask alexa isn’t an option.

There has to be an easy way

What version are you on now?

2.2.2a 03/02/17

Lambda 1.2.3.

Ok…not too bad, but every piece of code has changed…If you link you IDE to GitHub it should change color when I update the code. However, that is half the battle.

I would recommend you read the first post here where I give a high level view of the step to take to make upgrading as easy as possible:

It is Friday, and it is time for another Ask Alexa update. It has been an exciting week in the world of home automation, including Alexa…A few weeks ago Amazon released the ‘color’ selection on the native integration. While it doesn’t give you the 150+ colors of Ask Alexa, it is a step in the right direction for the native integration. It will be a great day when the integration even gets to 50% of the abilities on my application. However, I don’t anticipate you will ever get the detailed reporting of your home as it is now in Ask Alexa. In addition, Amazon has released some new tools this week (beta). While really targeted at non-programmers, I recommend NOT going into the beta as I have not updated the instructions yet and if you are a newbie, the difference in screenshots and processes WILL be confused (I even got confused until I opted-out of the beta interface). Finally, Google Home now has the ability to distinguish users in the household. I actually don’t anticipate this to come over to the Alexa, and it doesn’t appear developers can access this feature yet within the Goggle developer interface. However, Ask Alexa has a form of this with personalized message queues that can allow for messages for each member of the family.

Right now, the next version (2.2.5) of Ask Alexa is being beta tested and so far so good! I have heard your comments about the upgrade cycles of apps and I will be slowing these releases down, focusing on ensuring clean instructions and few bugs upon release.

There ARE a couple updates that are out there since my last update that you can update now. First, the message queue extension has been updated to version 1.0.1. This is really just a small update and is NOT required right now for proper operation. It simply updates partner apps that use the new message queues when a queue name has change.

In addition, the Lambda code has been updated to 1.2.5. Again, this is NON CRITICAL and simple changes the wording of ‘macros’ to the new ‘extension’ wording. If you DO choose to upgrade, please do it in the following order:

  • Open your Lambda session and copy the 3 lines for your Token and App ID. Place in a text notepad.
  • Copy the RAW code from GitHub for Lambda, and paste into the AWS Lambda site
  • Copy/Paste the 3 lines back into the code that you copied is Step 1
  • Save the code

Both of the links in the documentation have been updated so you can get the new versions. http://thingsthataresmart.wiki/index.php?title=Ask_Alexa#Latest_Version Please note these updates WILL be required when I release 2.2.5, so please update within the next few weeks.

Regarding 2.2.5, as mentioned in my roadmap ([RELEASE] Ask Alexa), this will break out the voice and weather reports into separate code. In my testing, this has reduced the code size by 25%, and I am seeing consistent speed improvements in response of 10-20%! However, this WILL require you to document your old voice reports, delete them, and recreate them in the new extension. There is no automated way to do this in SmartThings, but some beta tester are validating a process I created that will document this. I will publish this 1 week before the release of 2.2.5.

Since 2.2.5 is locked and being tested, I have already started work on 2.2.6 and the scheduler app. I have received a LOT of mail regarding this with suggestions on what to include for scheduling, and I am building it so it can be easily expanded as new ideas come along… Ironically, it is not the schedules that are so difficult, it is how to filter for invalid dates (i.e. Feb 30th, April 31st, etc). I have that worked out now and operational.

One question that I do get asked is whether you can create a schedule with your voice. Right now, the answer is no….Native Alexa can already schedule simple alarms by voice, so I decided to focus on using the power of the message queues to do something cool with the scheduler extension. A really good use case is a reminder of birthdays…Simply create a new schedule with someone’s birthday and annually it will put a message into your message queue (or notify you with lights or even voice to an ST connected speaker) to remind you of the event….IN REAL TIME (which you then have the option of seeing in the mobile app, or being pushed/texted to your phone). Basically, you should never have an excuse for missing a birthday or anniversary again! Right now you can set up one-time events, simple reoccurring events, and complex reoccurring events…Any of these CAN be turned on or off via a voice command, but creating them will be all in-app.

I will be out of town next week, which will allow me to actually code even MORE than I can at home. If you need anything, please reach out.

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Hi, its been a while since i set up ask alexa and i’ve just come back to it and set up 3 voice macros to help set morning alarms via a virtual switch in webCoRE.

‘Alarm off’ works great

‘Wake up at six’ and ‘Wake up at six fifteen’ I cannot get to work, alexa always replies cannot find a macro/alias named ‘wake up at six’.
i’ve updated the slots etc but all to no avail, am i missing something?

Jon,

Sorry this isn’t working for you. Typically, this is one of those things where the numbers are probably messing with Alexa’s ‘STT’ (speech to text). I would go to Live Logging and then watch what Alexa is actually hearing. You will probably find a 6:00 or 6:15 (in other words, numeric instead of words, or vis versa). Once you determine what she hears we MAY be able to craft your macro name to something that is more compatible with what she hears.

Let me know what you find out.

tried with macro called ‘alarm at six’, then tried ‘alarm off’ then renamed first macro to ‘alarm at 6’

logs below

5555b94a-bd87-4f4e-bee3-9888593baba2  4:10:32 PM: debug I could not find a macro or alias named 'alarm at 6'.
5555b94a-bd87-4f4e-bee3-9888593baba2  4:10:32 PM: debug -Macro command received-
5555b94a-bd87-4f4e-bee3-9888593baba2  4:10:31 PM: debug --Begin commands received--
5555b94a-bd87-4f4e-bee3-9888593baba2  4:07:47 PM: debug I have switched off the morning alarm for tomorrow
5555b94a-bd87-4f4e-bee3-9888593baba2  4:07:47 PM: debug mPW: undefined
5555b94a-bd87-4f4e-bee3-9888593baba2  4:07:47 PM: debug Param: undefined
5555b94a-bd87-4f4e-bee3-9888593baba2  4:07:47 PM: debug Cmd: undefined
5555b94a-bd87-4f4e-bee3-9888593baba2  4:07:47 PM: debug mNum: undefined
5555b94a-bd87-4f4e-bee3-9888593baba2  4:07:47 PM: debug Macro Name: alarm off
5555b94a-bd87-4f4e-bee3-9888593baba2  4:07:46 PM: debug -Macro command received-
5555b94a-bd87-4f4e-bee3-9888593baba2  4:07:46 PM: debug --Begin commands received--
5555b94a-bd87-4f4e-bee3-9888593baba2  4:07:13 PM: debug I could not find a macro or alias named 'alarm at 6'.
5555b94a-bd87-4f4e-bee3-9888593baba2  4:07:13 PM: debug -Macro command received-
5555b94a-bd87-4f4e-bee3-9888593baba2  4:07:13 PM: debug --Begin commands received--

EDIT: didn’t rename macro in Ask Alexa app to ‘alarm at 6’, tried a gain and it has now worked!!

5555b94a-bd87-4f4e-bee3-9888593baba2  4:15:42 PM: debug The Alarm is set for 6:00am
5555b94a-bd87-4f4e-bee3-9888593baba2  4:15:42 PM: debug mPW: undefined
5555b94a-bd87-4f4e-bee3-9888593baba2  4:15:42 PM: debug Param: undefined
5555b94a-bd87-4f4e-bee3-9888593baba2  4:15:42 PM: debug Cmd: undefined
5555b94a-bd87-4f4e-bee3-9888593baba2  4:15:42 PM: debug mNum: undefined
5555b94a-bd87-4f4e-bee3-9888593baba2  4:15:42 PM: debug Macro Name: alarm at 6
5555b94a-bd87-4f4e-bee3-9888593baba2  4:15:42 PM: debug -Macro command received-
5555b94a-bd87-4f4e-bee3-9888593baba2  4:15:41 PM: debug --Begin commands received--

Another EDIT: Thanks for the tip, I’ve never looked in live log to see what Alexa hears, I’ve now sorted the problem and renamed macros to what she hears…6:15 is heard as 615!

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Jon,

Yeah…if anything, Alexa is inconsistent…during the development of Ask Alexa I found she would capitalize some words, spell out others, etc.

Enjoy and let me know if you ever run into difficulties with the app.

Updated Ask Alexa via the IDE. Received an error message that Lambda code need to be updated.
Updated the Lambda code to 1.2.5 (added ID’s)
Updated slots
Updated sample utterances
App version is 2.2.4b

When I ask about a device I get silence.

Log error
5:28:27 PM: error groovy.lang.MissingMethodException: No signature of method: java.lang.Boolean.contains() is applicable for argument types: (java.lang.String) values: [Primary Message Queue]

What did I do or where did I go wrong?

You didn’t do anything wrong. There was a variable that inadvertently changed from the old to new version…

The fix is simple. Go to the message queue extension, select each of the global options and set them to the primary message queue. Click Done at the top and the error should go away. You can then go back and unselect those options if you so choose.

Let me know if that resolves it.

Works like a charm. TY

No problem! Enjoy!

Here is my Friday update. I have been out of pocket this week (in lovely Madison WI eating cheese), but it allowed me to focus a LOT on Ask Alexa and some of the new features. I figured I put in about 3 weeks worth of work in 5 days simply from the fact I was not at home and didn’t have ‘cat duties’ or any other responsibilities to distract me :slight_smile:

Anyway, it was another ‘interesting’ week in home automation. Last week the big news was the multi-user config for Google Home. After testing this myself, it is kind of a ‘meh’…while ‘neat’ it really doesn’t give any benefit to the developers as the ‘person identifier’ is not accessible when creating the Google equivalent to a ‘skill’. I have a version of ‘Ask Alexa’ working for Google Home, but it is even more complicated to install than Ask Alexa, however, I did get past a few hurdles that may make this app a reality some day. Until then, Google Home Helper that I wrote is still out there and works amazingly well with IFTTT for personalized responses using virtual switches.

Another item is the Echo Camera (the Echo Look) that Amazon announced this week. These are ‘interesting’ , and (of course) I have one on pre-order, but marketing it a ‘virtual mirror’ is another ‘meh’ moment for me. I have seen the comments about the use cases (mostly for women), so it might be a sleeper hit like the original Echo was. Just not sure it will have any features outside of what the Echo already does. If so, and they are accessible via the developer’s interface, you can be sure Ask Alexa will support it

Finally for home automation news, Amazon is rumored to have an Echo with a screen on it. THIS might be the killer app we have been looking for. There is even talk that THIS unit might allow for push notifications, which Ask Alexa is all primed and ready to utilize with the existing Message Queue features. We will wait and see on that one. I think it will be ironic if the Echo Look is more popular than an Echo with a screen :slight_smile:

Anyway, as promised I wanted to give everyone a process to prepare for the next version of Ask Alexa. This will be version 2.2.5. Right now, it is simply a SmartThings update, however, it WILL new Message Queue Extension and Lambda code that are available now. I outlined their update process here: [RELEASE] Ask Alexa. Please upgrade before next Friday if you plan to go to 2.2.5.

So, what is in 2.2.5? Well, I separated out the voice and weather reports from the main app. Just these two modules were 25% of the total size of Ask Alexa’s code, and removing them speeds up some functions of the app up to 20%! So, it is a VERY worthwhile upgrade. However, it will require you to do some prep work to NOT lose your voice reports. Fortunately, the process is rather simple:

  • First, identify ALL of your voice reports. Be sure to identify also WHERE the reports are used (specifically, in Macro groups)
  • Using paper or a LOT of screenshots, go through each voice report and record the settings. If you have a weather report as part of one of your voice reports, be sure to capture those settings as weather was removed from the voice report (it is now its own extension as well)
  • REMOVE all instances of voice reports from any macro groups you may have. This is important as you will confuse the app when the main app is upgraded.

After upgrading the apps next week (and installing the new extensions), the structure is a bit different (The steps below are NOT yet needed until I release 2.2.5):

  • Working in reverse, if you had a weather report, create it first with the new weather extension. Name it something unique
  • Recreate your voice reports. The format should look very similar. If you had a weather report in a voice report, you will now add the weather to the ‘Include other reports’ section of the voice report
  • Finally, Macro groups have been renamed ‘extension groups’ (they are still under macros, however). Re-add the voice reports back in. Remember the order they are executed is the same order you select them in. You can also add weather reports in Extension groups as well, but if you already have them in a voice report you will get them twice.

Always be sure to update your slots after every upgrade or configuration change. The new extension names still live in the LIST_OF_MACROS, however, since the weather report is new you will see it in the list as well. Please note you technically DON’T have to add any of the voice or weather reports to the developer slot IF YOU DON’T PLAN TO USE THEM DIRECTLY AND ONLY ACCESS THEM FROM EXTENSION GROUPS. If that doesn’t make sense, just add them…it won’t hurt.

From there, it will be another month or so and I will release 2.2.6 and the scheduler extension release. This will be VERY interesting as it is the first extension to Ask Alexa that is NOT directly voice editable; however, it is VERY powerful. Now, you can have voice reminders be put into your message queues so the next time you activate your Alexa with a command it will tell you that you have a reminder. This is PERFECT for birthday or anniversary reminders, along with alerting to adverse weather in your area.

In addition, the partner developers and I have been working together and they have made some great suggestions to expand the message queue even further for their apps. External apps can now overwrite messages (they have sent) in the queue so you only have the latest version (think alerting where you only want the last message sent. Also, you can now have messages expire. Again, this great for those birthday reminders…you can set a reminder for 24 hours before the birthday, and then if you happen to not delete the message it will expire on its own, keeping you from feeling bad that you forgot little Billy’s big day. Finally, a ‘notification only’ feature will allow you to set up a message queue as you normally would (with voice, SMS or other notifications) but allow the developer to tag the message as notification only. It won’t go into your queue mailbox, but it will alert based on your notification settings. This is perfect for those weather advisories that are more real time and lose context shortly after the announcement is made. Big thanks to @erocm1231 for the suggestions on some of these (His Device Manager app will support a good number of these features).

I anticipate this will be released by June 1. The hardest part of the whole app was allowing the users to get a schedule that would work for them (and to filter incorrect days). As such, I give multiple options, including a direct CRON input method for those advanced users.

Well, that is it……Have a great weekend and enjoy!

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Looks like something interesting is coming in this space:

Notice the possible intercom feature…

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Actually did you see this?

Does this mean that later today you could enable push audio via Alexa and not require extra speakers???

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Unfortunately no…No where in the documentation does it say anything about push audio. The FAQs on the developer site also don’t mention it, but you CAN start off other cameras in the environment and utilizing the screen.

It may be coming, but this doesn’t appear to be the catalyst.

Thanks Michael, I appreciate the quick response! I keep trying to hold off on buying more speakers because I know this is coming…