Apple Says it Will Finally Stop Autocorrecting a Word that Louisiana Uses More Than Just About Any Other State
A new update from Apple feels like it was almost exclusively made for the people of Louisiana.
Once upon a time in Louisiana, iPhone users faced a peculiar autocorrect challenge. Whenever they attempted to type a certain four-letter expletive, their devices would cunningly replace it with the name of a waterfowl species that rhymes with it.
What the duck is up with that? Amirite?
This quirk often led to amusing and frustrating situations while simultaneously birthing a ton of social media accounts, memes, and even a song, all dedicated to the comical mishaps caused by autocorrect.
However, relief is on the horizon for Louisianans, as Apple has unveiled its new iOS 17 iPhone software, set to revolutionize the autocorrect experience.
During Apple's annual Worldwide Developers Conference, Craig Federighi, Apple's senior vice president of software engineering, took the stage to announce the upcoming changes. The highlight of the presentation was the removal of autocorrect substitutions for swear words, thanks to advanced machine learning technology.
Federighi humorously acknowledged the desire to type a certain word and assured users that the keyboard would now adapt and learn it too.
Apple's enhanced autocorrect system utilizes a transformer language model, which the company hails as a cutting-edge on-device machine-learning language model for word prediction. This AI-powered model offers improved accuracy in predicting the words and phrases users are likely to type next.
Over time, it familiarizes itself with a person's most frequently used phrases, habits, and preferences, influencing which words it corrects and which it leaves untouched. Not only will the new autocorrect tackle cursing and swear words, but it also promises to become more proficient at rectifying grammatical errors and accurately predicting words or phrases as users type. Apple aims to enhance the overall typing experience for its customers.
By the way, hi, it's me. I'm customers.
But where does Louisiana come in? Why is this specifically such a good thing for us? I was digging around the internet, basically looking for something to prove what you and I already know to be true.
According to a 2013 survey, Louisiana joins New Jersey, Ohio, and Illinois at the top of the list when it comes to states that swear the most. Based on your vernacular and those around you in Louisiana, are you going to argue with that survey? I didn't think so.
With Apple's upcoming iOS 17 and its intelligent autocorrect system, Louisianans can bid farewell to the unintended "duck" references caused by autocorrect and look forward to an "improved typing experience"—because that's how I'm describing the F-word in this article.
As the fall approaches, excitement brews for the technological advancements and innovative features that Apple has in store for its users; and it's about ducking time.