Inspiration
My inspiration for this project was needing something fun to do while bored at home. Especially in these times, being stuck at home is more relatable than ever, and taking up new, socially-distant hobbies is a great, productive thing to do.
What it does
When my Alexa skill is invoked (say "Alexa, I'm bored), Alexa will randomly give you something to do. If you're not satisfied, just say the words again until you find something you like! This skill is available in two languages, English and Spanish.
How I built it
I built my hack using the Alexa Skills Kit in the Alexa Developer Console. I created a custom, Alexa-hosted (node.js) skill using the Fact Skill template. The template comes with one pre-made fact, so I changed it into an action and added many other actions that one can do while at home.
Challenges I ran into
This is the first Alexa skill I have built, so I had to learn how to build skills all in this weekend. It was stressful, yet fun, and explains why my hack is pretty simple. I hope to develop many new skills with my new Alexa device.
Accomplishments that I'm proud of
I'm proud that I finally made my very first Alexa skill, because it is something I've been wanting to learn how to do for a while. I have never really used hardware for hacks, and I'm proud that I tried it.
What I learned
I learned a lot about the introductory steps to creating Alexa skills. I can't wait to make more and hopefully release them for live demo in the Skills Store.
What's next for Alexa, I'm bored!
I want to further build my skill by adding more actions and developing the ones already made. For example, for the "watch a movie" action, I want Alexa to list some of my favorite movies to watch if you ask her more. This idea can also be applied to the "read a book" and "listen to music" skills. I also plan to convert the skill into more languages.
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