There is one key issue which will hold this technology back until a point where we are all working from home. Imagine your work environment where everyone around you is constantly talking to their computer. "Cut! Paste! Close window! Go to thaitrannyporn.net!" (Sadly, I think everyone working from home is also unlikely, but that's a topic for another post.)

That being said, I still would like to see more voice integration, if only for use in the home. The key places I would like to see speech integrated into my software:

Word processing. Dictate and hold down modifier keys for commands. For example, mouse over text, hold control, say 'cut,' move mouse, say 'paste.'

Image processing software. I use keyboard commands extensively in these programs, but would like to free myself to simply work with my voice for commands, and my mouse as the tool. (I tried this with PhotoShop a while back. In PhotoShop, all the tools are tied to single keys, and so the software recognized each phonetic element, and rapidly switched between the related tools as I spoke...)

I'm sure there are many other examples, but these are the ones I've found myself wishing for in the past.

I think 'Apple haters' should be more appropriately phrased 'Apple fanboy haters.' I don't really like Apple as a company, but I do respect them.

Apple fanboys, on the other hand, can be rather annoying. I wouldn't go as far as hating them, but I'm not sure I would blame others for doing so.

And no, not everyone hates Windows. Much like Apple, I don't really like them as a company, but I do respect them. In fact, I would go as far as lumping Windows haters in with Apple fanboys. Both are pretty annoying.

I would have to disagree.

In the case of doctors, I'm sure you could go to any doctor and get plenty of anecdotes regarding patients refusing to heed their advice. For example, the doctor says "You have to quit smoking, or you will die." and then watches the patient light up the moment they step out of the office.

With mechanics, I would expect similar stories. "I told him he needed a new oil pump, but he ignored me. Now he needs a new engine." From my experience, mistrust of mechanics is pretty common.

I suspect the real difference in behavior is based on the separation. Much like how people behave differently in online forums than they would in real life, the simple separation of the telephone line makes users more likely to be blunt about their unwillingness to take advice, whereas in face-to-face relations with doctors or mechanics, they simply nod, agree, and then ignore.