Introduction

If you’re reading this, then it’s a safe bet that you’re a software developer. If so, then what drew you to this craft?

Speaking for myself, I was drawn to working with computers early on by the way that computers were portrayed in the science fiction shows that I watched as a kid. In shows like Star Trek, the crew of the Enterprise could talk to the ship’s computer, and the computer would answer with a spoken response. Will Robinson would talk to the robot on Lost in Space, and the robot would talk back, often warning him of danger. Fast-forward to modern-day science fiction, who wouldn’t want a computer like Iron Man’s Jarvis to assist with your work?

When I finally got to use a real computer, I was a bit disappointed that I couldn’t talk to my Commodore VIC-20. And even if I tried, it wouldn’t do anything or talk back in response. Where was my talking computer? Oh well, that’s why it’s called science fiction.

Nevertheless, I continued to pursue a career in software development as I observed that science fiction often eventually becomes science fact. The computers we have today are far more powerful than the writers of science fiction would have imagined. The tablet that Captain Picard used in his ready room on Star Trek: The Next Generation is now commonplace in tablet devices such as the iPad. Smart watches worn by many these days rival anything James Bond ever had on his wrist. And recently, voice assistants such as Alexa have given us a talking computer that’s not entirely unlike Jarvis.

As a software developer, there are very few things more exciting than writing code that implements what was once science-fiction. That’s exactly what we’ll do in this book—write code that implements science fiction with Alexa and voice-first applications.