Grumman-581 wrote in
:

Having dealt with quite a few of the various voice response systems over
the years, I would have to say that such a system would pretty much
ensure that I never called for a briefing again... When you have the
repeat the same damn think 10 times and the ****in' system *still*
doesn't recognize what you're trying to say, they're basically ****in'
useless... The menu systems that require touchtone responses are quite a
bit better since they are working with fairly discrete responses that
all phones need to be able to generate in order to even dial a number...

I agree with you - the system should use touch-tone dialing for selection.
IVR as a category predates the voice recognition capability that exists
today. It implies responses by callers to voice prompts, not necessarily
voice responses, though.

My biggest problem with the ones that try to do voice recognition is that
they only seem to work if there is absolutely no background noise, which is
unrealistic to happen in a car or plane (or even at home with the kids)...

That being said, our FSS currently offers callers the ability to hear any
of about 2 dozen weather reports for popular routes and areas. It also
allows callers to file a flight plan as a recording.

I believe the evolution of the system is to voice prompts that allow you to
easily get you the information you need, along with a small group of
national customer support reps who help people who are having trouble from
a single location.