Alexa Skills Projects - Softcover

Bhargava, Madhur

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1788997255 ISBN 13: 9781788997256

Publisher: Packt Publishing, 2018

Synopsis

Get up and running with the fundamentals of Amazon Alexa and build exciting IoT projects

Key Features

• Gain hands-on experience of working with Amazon Echo and Alexa
• Build exciting IoT projects using Amazon Echo
• Learn about voice-enabled smart devices

Book Description

Amazon Echo is a smart speaker developed by Amazon, which connects to Amazon's Alexa Voice Service and is entirely controlled by voice commands. Amazon Echo is currently being used for a variety of purposes such as home automation, asking generic queries, and even ordering a cab or pizza.

Alexa Skills Projects starts with a basic introduction to Amazon Alexa and Echo. You will then deep dive into Alexa Programming concepts such as Intents, Slots, Lambdas and maintaining your skill's state using DynamoDB. You will get a clear understanding of how some of the most popular Alexa Skills work, and gain experience of working with real-world Amazon Echo applications. In the concluding chapters, you will explore the future of voice-enabled applications and their coverage with respect to the Internet of Things.

By the end of the book, you will have learned to design Alexa Skills for specific purposes and interact with Amazon Echo to execute these skills.

What you will learn

• Understand how Amazon Echo is already being used in various domains
• Discover how an Alexa Skill is architected
• Get a clear understanding of how some of the most popular Alexa Skills work
• Design Alexa Skills for specific purposes and interact with Amazon Echo to execute them
• Gain experience of programming for Amazon Echo
• Explore future applications of Amazon Echo and other voice-activated devices

Who This Book Is For

Alexa Skills Projects is for individuals who want to have a deep understanding of the underlying technology that drives Amazon Echo and Alexa, and how it can be integrated with the Internet of Things to develop hands-on projects.

Table of Contents

1. What is Alexa?
2. Hello World, Alexa!
3. Hands-Free Experience with Alexa
4. Let's Play Factly with Alexa
5. Making Alexa Talk About CryptoCurrencies
6. Home Automation with Alexa
7. The Future of Voice-Based Personal Assistants

About this title

About the Author

Madhur Bhargava holds a bachelor's degree in electronics and communication, after which he did a specialization in Wireless and Mobile Computing at CDAC ACTS Pune, India. He started his career at Electronic Arts as a trainee software engineer working on mobile games and eventually moved on to address problems in personalized healthcare, leveraging the power of mobile computing. He is proficient in various mobile/embedded technologies and strives to be a software generalist. Since the inception of his career, he has worked extensively with various mobile technologies, such as Android, iOS, J2ME, Brew, Blackberry OS, and Xamarin. He has designed and developed Bluetooth Low Energy applications pertaining to the healthcare and automation domains for both Android and iOS platforms. He believes that good software is the result of talented individuals working together as a communicative team in an Agile manner. He is both a Certified Scrum Master and a Certified Xamarin Developer. Apart from work, he likes to spend time with family, read, and watch movies.

Edition details

• Publisher: Packt Publishing
• Publication date: 2018
• ISBN 10: 1788997255
• ISBN 13: 9781788997256
• Binding: Paperback
• Language: English
• Number of pages: 250