Barbra Streisand asks Apple to fix how Siri pronounces her name

Broadway singer Barbra Streisand was unhappy with how Apple’s virtual assistant is pronouncing her surname, so she called up Apple’s CEO, Tim Cook, and asked him to program Siri to pronounce her name correctly.

“She pronounces my name wrong,” Babs admitted to music show NPR Weekend Edition Saturday. “Streisand with a soft S, like sand on the beach. I’ve been saying this for my whole career. And so what did I do? I called the head of Apple, Tim Cook, and he delightfully agreed to have Siri change the pronunciation of my name, finally, with the next update on Sep. 30.”

The 74-year old singer-filmmaker also said, “So let’s see if that happens because I will be thrilled.”

The topic about Siri came when the show’s host Scott Simon played a naughty game on his iPhone, Daily Mail reported.

“May I ask a question of my iPhone while you’re with us?” she asked Streisand, to which she agreed.

“Siri, who is the only female vocalist who has had hit records for six straight decades?” Simon asked the computer assistant.

“Barbra Streizzzand,” Siri replied in front of Streisand.

Streisand is on a tour for her new album “Encore: Movie Partners Sing Broadway” with guests such as Alec Baldwin and Anne Hathaway.  Gianna Francesca Catolico/rga

source: entertainment.inquirer.net

Man proposes to girlfriend using ‘Super Mario Maker’

To boost the relationship ‘to the next level’, a gamer in Arkansas, United States, devised a catchy way to ask his girlfriend’s hand by using Super Mario Maker, a forefront feature in the classic video game Super Mario Bros.

Pro gamer Shane Birkinbine purchased a 2015 version of the video game and designed a level to tickle his girlfriend, Pam Edwards. The latest version allows gamers to craft and rearrange levels for entertainment purposes, according to Daily Mail.

The memorable and romantic video was uploaded on video-sharing site YouTube with the caption, “Hope everyone enjoys just a bit of our special moment. Geeks do it better!”

In the trending video clip that stockpiled 756,000 views, Edwards was seen playing the game until she lurches at the Super Mario modified level.

Birkinbine asks his significant other,  “Babe, what does that say?” as Edwards glances at her name, which is spelled out in the hollow blocks. Then, the ultimate question popped out.

Astonished as ever, Edwards ecstatically replies his endearing question with a sweet ‘yes’. The video ended with the couple confessing their love to one another.

Many YouTube users were swayed with the proposal’s creativity and in return, Birkinbine thanked the people who gave optimistic remarks in a YouTube comment, “Just never thought it would come from our little corner of the world. This video is nothing without her reaction. She is the star. ” Gianna Francesca Catolico

source: technology.inquirer.net

Vietnamese low cost carrier hit over anti-women PR stunt

MANILA, Philippines—A Vietnamese airline that used bikini-clad endorsers for what appeared to be a promotional PR stunt earned the ire of netizens after it made rounds online.

“The models are seen inside the cabin opening the overhead lockers, walking down the aircraft steps and waving sparklers in the images which roused an angry reaction on social networking sites,” The Daily Mail reported last week.

It was Ngoc Trinh, a popular lingerie model in Vietnam, who posted the images on Facebook. Her photo album’s caption was: “Just finished shooting promo photos for VietJet Air for 12 hours nonstop from 9:00 am to 9:00 pm.” The album was later removed.

The Daily Mail said that the photos went viral and gained negative feedbacks, “with many criticizing the airline objectifying women in using them to promote their brand.”

An executive of the airlines said the photos were taken during a trial photo shoot for VietJetAir.

“We have yet to decide if we will use these photos or not,” he told Thanh Nien News, denying that the leakage of the photos was just a “PR ploy” employed by VietJet Air,” said Vu Pham Nguyen Tung, the carrier’s development director told Thanh Nien News.

VietJetAir was not the first airline to use females in skimpy outfits for brand endorsements. Irish airline RyanAir publishes a calendar featuring half-naked cabin crew annually.

In 2012, VietJetAir was fined was fined £611 by the Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam for having its flight crew perform a Hawaii dance in bikinis on its inauguration flight between Ho Chi Minh City and the coastal resort town of Nha Trang, the Daily Mail said.

It also used bikini dancers to celebrate the launch of Ho Chi Minh City-Singapore route last May.

source: lifestyle.inquirer.net