Famous Places

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  Famous Places

Inspiration

To make an easy to use, educational skill that shows children some of the most incredible landmarks in the world.

What it does

How I built it

I used VoiceApps.com and the Amazon APL tool to develop the skill.

Challenges I ran into

The biggest challenge I ran into was with writing the descriptions for each location. I didn't want to just copy the first paragraph of Wikipedia, Alexa already provides that information. So, each landmark needed to be individually researched and written about. In essence, leaving a task of writing 60 or so essays. I nice virtual trip back to 6 grade social studies class for me :) I also, didn't wanted any of the famous places contained in the skill to repeat within a session, so that needed to be configured.

Accomplishments that I'm proud of

The images look incredible on the Show. The information is useful and exciting. The music is appropriate and says a lot about different cultures of the world. In the end, I am very pleased with how the skill came out.

What I learned

I learned how to use the APL tool to create screens for Alexa devices and how to integrate them using a platform such as VoiceApps. I also learned A LOT about the world researching and writing about all the Famous Places in the skill. Having a 2 year old who will soon use skills like this himself, it became apparent that it isn't only children who will benefit from learning a bit more about the world and it's many different cultures. ;)

What's next for Famous Places

More and more Famous Places can be added to the skill as time goes on. Users can suggest new places via email or in an Alexa app review. If interest is peaked enough as time goes on, the skill can be expanded with a "travel the world adventure" and / or a fun "what did we learn" quiz(s).

Built With

• voiceapps.com