We at Vision Forward would like to welcome everyone to start their 2025 off on the right foot with another fantastic episode of Tech Connect!
We already covered how to use the new Envision Ally on your computer, but today our Assistive Technology Specialists, Cory and Luke, are demonstrating how the Envision Ally app can be particularly useful for blind and low vision iPhone users.
Although Envision has not yet officially released their new AI powered Ally, they have provided us with beta access. That way we can test what it already does well, but more importantly this beta is our opportunity to make our voices heard while there is still time to improve certain features. So if you have any suggestions be sure to post them in our comments section!
By now we all know just how useful an AI companion can be. Envision Ally sets itself apart by encouraging its users to take an active role in designing the personalities of various AI, each intended for different uses. For example you might decide to make one AI who is prone to flowery tangents, and another AI which delivers quick, clear instructions. The first AI would be ideal for creative pursuits or entertainment, but the second AI might be better if all you need is directions. Envision allows you to easily create and switch between whatever your particular needs are.
One of the best reason to use Envision Ally on your iPhone instead of your computer is to make use of its portable and very powerful camera! Anytime you want more information about your surroundings, simply whip out your iPhone and use Envision's powerful AI to answer any questions you might have. This can be particularly useful if you misplace something like your keys. After taking a quick look, the AI can explain where and how far something is. If you happen to be cooking, you can put your iPhone in a stand and use its camera as a product identifier and to read instructions or answer questions all using vocal commands. It may seem trivial, but we recognize that using handsfree controls can be a real game changer because you no longer have to stop everything and wash off your hands every time you need to move on to the next step of a recipe.
0:00 Start
1:45 Summarizing Envision AI. What sets Ally apart from other AI? Customized Personality!
5:26 Identifying products with handsfree controls and advice for cooking with AI!
9:24 Unpacking how useful Envision was in this Kitchen demo, and some British currency jokes
10:35 How smooth is it to interact with and operate? Mute button, Walkie Talkie, Keyboard.
12:45 Demo using Envision to help find things in a camera's field of view
14:50 Analyzing Envision Ally beta access, suggested improvements
18:00 Free on-demand ACVREP Credits, Upcoming Livestreams, Product Reviews and AI generally
If you have any additional questions about the Envision Ally, or AI generally, please add those down in the comment section and we will endeavor to help!
We already covered how to use the new Envision Ally on your computer, but today our Assistive Technology Specialists, Cory and Luke, are demonstrating how the Envision Ally app can be particularly useful for blind and low vision iPhone users.
Although Envision has not yet officially released their new AI powered Ally, they have provided us with beta access. That way we can test what it already does well, but more importantly this beta is our opportunity to make our voices heard while there is still time to improve certain features. So if you have any suggestions be sure to post them in our comments section!
By now we all know just how useful an AI companion can be. Envision Ally sets itself apart by encouraging its users to take an active role in designing the personalities of various AI, each intended for different uses. For example you might decide to make one AI who is prone to flowery tangents, and another AI which delivers quick, clear instructions. The first AI would be ideal for creative pursuits or entertainment, but the second AI might be better if all you need is directions. Envision allows you to easily create and switch between whatever your particular needs are.
One of the best reason to use Envision Ally on your iPhone instead of your computer is to make use of its portable and very powerful camera! Anytime you want more information about your surroundings, simply whip out your iPhone and use Envision's powerful AI to answer any questions you might have. This can be particularly useful if you misplace something like your keys. After taking a quick look, the AI can explain where and how far something is. If you happen to be cooking, you can put your iPhone in a stand and use its camera as a product identifier and to read instructions or answer questions all using vocal commands. It may seem trivial, but we recognize that using handsfree controls can be a real game changer because you no longer have to stop everything and wash off your hands every time you need to move on to the next step of a recipe.
0:00 Start
1:45 Summarizing Envision AI. What sets Ally apart from other AI? Customized Personality!
5:26 Identifying products with handsfree controls and advice for cooking with AI!
9:24 Unpacking how useful Envision was in this Kitchen demo, and some British currency jokes
10:35 How smooth is it to interact with and operate? Mute button, Walkie Talkie, Keyboard.
12:45 Demo using Envision to help find things in a camera's field of view
14:50 Analyzing Envision Ally beta access, suggested improvements
18:00 Free on-demand ACVREP Credits, Upcoming Livestreams, Product Reviews and AI generally
If you have any additional questions about the Envision Ally, or AI generally, please add those down in the comment section and we will endeavor to help!
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TechTranscript
00:00Insert funny cold open.
00:11It's 2025 and we are back for another full year of Vision Forward Tech Connect.
00:16First video of the year, Corey. How are you feeling?
00:18I am feeling alive. I'm feeling good. I'm recharged.
00:22Nice.
00:22Let's do this. I like that you said that we're here for a whole nother year. We don't know that.
00:26I'm assuming.
00:28I like that. Let's think positive.
00:30As you can tell from the cold open to this video,
00:33we are just on a fuller fighting form, full of ideas for 2025.
00:38So it should be a good year.
00:41We thought in this video we would cover Ally again.
00:43We did cover it at the end of last year, Corey.
00:45Seems like a long time ago now.
00:47We took a look at it on the PC, but now we're going to take a look at the Ally app on the iPhone.
00:53I think we kind of made a funny video, a little wrap up,
00:57where you're using InVision's Ally.
01:00But now we're going to actually show it on an iPhone and give some real world
01:05experiences on how it could be helpful.
01:07That's right.
01:08A little bit more helpful than our last video.
01:10Let's hope so, yes.
01:11And Corey, before we get into it, I would like you to point
01:14at the iPhone that you are going to use in this video.
01:17Yes, right here.
01:18Okay. Now can you point how you would normally point?
01:21All right. Usually I point with my pinky, a little more casual.
01:26Put it down in the comment box, and you probably haven't even thought about it.
01:29What finger do you use to point?
01:32Every video this year, we will ask you a random question in the intro.
01:36Today's, what finger do you point with?
01:39So we're going to start a new hashtag, pinky pointer 25.
01:42Oh, there you go.
01:44All right, let's get into it.
01:47InVision Ally is currently in beta.
01:50We showed it on the computer, as we mentioned before.
01:53And today we are showing it specifically as an iPhone app.
01:56We do have access to the beta.
01:58And so we'll share that with you today.
02:00But because it's in beta, you have to remember that, obviously,
02:04things are going to be different by the time you actually get access to it.
02:08They're constantly changing.
02:10Even within the beta cycle, they're continuously adding new things.
02:14And I think, Corey, we were watching a video early on today about the features of this.
02:18And some of the features that they were highlighting are not actually in it as of yet.
02:22Such as calendar integration.
02:23So yeah, that's stuff that's going to come down the road, I assume.
02:26Yeah, and I've also heard a bird whisper.
02:28Does a bird whisper?
02:31I've also heard a bird whisper that it is free today during beta.
02:36But when it launches, there may be a cost.
02:39Now, that obviously can change.
02:41But just be aware of that.
02:42Be aware of when it actually launches.
02:44Check all that stuff out before you use it.
02:46But one of the things that I think InVision Ally has going for it
02:50that some of the other apps don't,
02:52is the ability to give it information not only about yourself and your preferences,
02:58but also the ability to create and personalize the Assistant
03:03to really fit your needs.
03:04Making it your personal Assistant.
03:08Yeah, and we were talking earlier, Corey, about the older InVision Ally,
03:12which is now called InVision Companion,
03:14which would connect you to a family member or a friend.
03:18And they would be able to help you out by seeing through your device's camera.
03:21This is kind of the same idea, but it's not a real person.
03:24However, it almost is a real person.
03:27It has a personality.
03:28It has a particular name, a particular voice.
03:31It has certain quirks that you can give it, basically.
03:34So it's almost like talking to a real person and getting assistance,
03:38but it's not actually a real person.
03:39Which I think is really cool.
03:40I'm a big fan of these kind of apps like Be My Eyes,
03:43especially around the Be My AI feature and the InVision Ally.
03:48I like to not bother people.
03:50You know, I think everybody needs help in life,
03:52but especially if you have a visual impairment,
03:55there's times when you need to ask assistance.
03:56So if I can get the answer and get something done
04:00that I need to get done without bothering a human,
04:03even if that is a volunteer, I think that's great.
04:06That's weird, because I feel like you always bother me.
04:09I totally feel feelings mutual.
04:12I bother myself all the time.
04:14So that's what's cool about the InVision Ally.
04:17And in today, we're going to...
04:19In today?
04:20In today.
04:20Yeah, today we'll be doing two different demonstrations.
04:24And in both of those demonstrations,
04:25we will use two different personalities
04:29so you can see kind of what that's like.
04:31Yes.
04:31I'm not going to actually go in and create the new ally or the new personality,
04:37but I wanted to quickly let you know that on the main screen,
04:40if you tap on preferences and then you tap on about ally,
04:45in there, you can either choose from some predefined ones
04:49and they give you a little description of quirky and fun or calm.
04:52But then you can also tap the add new personality button.
04:56And within that, you can actually really create your own.
05:00So today I created one called Nigel.
05:02Nice.
05:03And Nigel is friendly, but he is quick to the point.
05:06I want my information right away.
05:09I don't want a lot of flowery language or a lot of stuff that just doesn't pertain to me.
05:15And so those will be the two today.
05:17One will be Lee, who is more funny and gives you way more quirky answers.
05:21And then Nigel, the one that I created.
05:24All right, Corey, let's stop talking about it.
05:25Let's do it.
05:26All right.
05:28Okay, so for our first test,
05:29we are going to be trying the InVision Ally out
05:32with identifying a kitchen product and then making something from it.
05:36So the point is, Corey, that we might be in the kitchen and maybe we're baking.
05:40Not me.
05:41I don't bake.
05:41But let's say that we were and we wanted to bake.
05:44And we've got stuff flying all over the place.
05:45We've got flour flying around.
05:46We've got eggs flying around.
05:48We've got chocolate sauce.
05:49We've got oil.
05:50We've got vinegar.
05:51We've got...
05:54A lot of those things sounded like they went together until you said vinegar.
05:57No wonder you don't cook.
05:58We've got sugar, everything.
06:00And it's all over our hands, right?
06:01Okay.
06:01We need to talk to our AI assistant.
06:04But also, we don't want to have to touch our phone screen.
06:07Okay.
06:07So luckily for us, InVision Ally has hands-free talking to it.
06:11And so we can talk to it without having to touch the screen.
06:14Although we do have to initiate the conversation by touching the screen.
06:16But after that hands-free, we can ask it questions and hopefully get some good tips.
06:21Now for this test, Corey, we will be using the voice, the personality, Lee.
06:27Tell us a little bit about Lee.
06:28Lee is quirky.
06:29She's funny and very personable.
06:32Okay.
06:32So we should hear that in the personality of the voice as it gives our answers to us.
06:37All right, Corey, do you want to take it away here?
06:38Yeah.
06:38So I've got a stand here in front of me.
06:41So if you're using it in the kitchen, you're going to want to probably put it
06:44on some kind of stand because you want the rear camera facing towards you.
06:50And so you want something to at least prop it up.
06:52Yeah.
06:53So we're going to go ahead.
06:54We've got the Ally app open.
06:55I'm going to tap the talk to Lee button.
06:58That's going to get us going live.
07:00Once I do that, then I'll put it in the stand.
07:02And we'll see if Lee can help us here in the kitchen.
07:10Hey there.
07:10It's a beautiful day to chat.
07:12What's on your mind?
07:14What product is this?
07:19Let me take a look.
07:21This is a box of soft to silk cake flour.
07:23Perfect for when you want to bake something soft and fluffy.
07:26Are you getting ready to bake something delicious?
07:29I don't know.
07:29What kind of things can I make with this flour?
07:32Soft to silk cake flour is terrific for all things delightfully light and delicious.
07:40You can whip up anything from classic birthday cakes to airy cloud like angel food cakes.
07:46It's ideal for cupcakes that melt in your mouth or even a tender pound cake.
07:51If you're feeling a bit adventurous, you might want to try your hand
07:54at making fluffy pancakes for breakfast with your love of creativity.
07:59Lee, can you tell me how much a pound cake weighs?
08:06The weight of a round cake can vary based on its size,
08:10ingredients, and any frostings or fillings you use.
08:14Lee, tell me how to make a pound cake.
08:22Making a pound cake is a fun adventure.
08:25Here's a simple and cheerful recipe just for you.
08:29Ingredients.
08:31One cup of unsalted butter, softened.
08:34Two cups of granulated sugar.
08:36Four large eggs.
08:37Three cups of soft to silk cake flour.
08:40One and a half teaspoon of baking powder.
08:43One and a half teaspoon of salt.
08:45Lee, how much eggs did I need?
08:52For a delightful pound cake, you'll need four large eggs.
08:55Eggs add richness and structure,
08:58creating that perfect buttery crumb.
09:00Let's get cracking and make a sweet symphony in the kitchen.
09:03Can you make it for me?
09:08I wish I could join you in the kitchen and whip up that pound cake together,
09:12but I'm here to cheer you on every step of the way.
09:15You're going to do amazing and I promise it will be a delightful treat.
09:19If you have any other questions or need some encouragement, just let me know.
09:24So we just saw how Lee performed in the kitchen there, helping us to make a cake.
09:28And she certainly was very personable.
09:30Goy, I think you had a nice chat with her.
09:32Yeah, I think this is one of the kind of cool things about choosing different personalities.
09:35I think it depends on the task, like a cooking one, more creative,
09:40having kind of a fun vibe like that.
09:42It does make it a little bit better.
09:44Yeah, I obviously identified the product, no problem.
09:47Yes.
09:48And then it was kind of cool to take it from there to next step.
09:51What kind of cakes?
09:52What is this specific cake?
09:54Obviously, it misheard me when I said how much it doesn't understand my jokes.
09:58Yeah, you were trying to make it laugh and you failed miserably.
10:01Yeah, yeah.
10:02But the recipe was cool.
10:04Yes.
10:06A quick question, Colin.
10:07In England, how much does it cost to buy all the ingredients for a pound cake?
10:12Probably about one and a half pounds.
10:14One pound, 16 quid.
10:17You realize that a quid is a pound, right?
10:19Actually, it's funny.
10:21I don't want to get into this now, but I often...
10:22What is the difference?
10:23I don't know the difference between pound and quid.
10:25They're the same.
10:26They're the same?
10:26Then why not?
10:27It's slime.
10:28Okay.
10:28Oh, okay.
10:30It's like you call a book a dollar a buck.
10:32Okay, gotcha.
10:33There we go.
10:34Facts galore.
10:35Yeah, I like it.
10:36Yeah.
10:37Obviously, we could have had it...
10:39I interrupted it, but we could have had it go through the whole recipe.
10:42But then again, with AI, you've got that ability to ask follow-up questions
10:47and to say specifically how many eggs.
10:49And get that answer.
10:50So again, I think that's such a cool thing.
10:52Couple of small downsides, Corey.
10:53Number one, in the edit, we should have left the gaps in.
10:56That is to say, we're not editing it to remove the wait time
11:01between asking the question and getting the answer.
11:03Now, this time, actually, the wait time wasn't too bad.
11:06But the wait time between talking to the AI and getting the response can vary.
11:10And that does affect how realistic it feels when you're talking to it.
11:13Because obviously, if you're talking to another person,
11:16it's going to be a quick back and forth.
11:18Whereas with the AI, sometimes you're waiting a while.
11:20So that's one of the downsides.
11:21The other downside, of course, Corey, is that when you are using this hands-free,
11:27the microphone is always listening.
11:30And if you make a noise while it's talking,
11:33it's going to cut off the talking because it thinks you're trying to talk to it.
11:36And so you can imagine in the kitchen,
11:38if you're banging the pots and pans around like I probably would be doing,
11:41then that might actually interrupt how well it's going to work.
11:44Yeah. And I know we've been talking hands-free.
11:45And I just want to quickly mention it here.
11:47One of the new features they added in this latest beta is a mute button.
11:52So you do have the ability to go up and tap mute.
11:54So in those cases, again, you are losing a bit of hands-free at that point.
11:59Yes. But you can.
12:00The other feature that they've started now is a feature called walkie-talkie.
12:04And that turns it from having to just have voice back and forth.
12:09But instead, you can tap and hold the speak button.
12:12And then when you let go, it will then process what you said and then won't be interrupted.
12:17So they do give you a couple other ways to interact.
12:20And then the last one really quick is keyboard.
12:23And that'll take you to more maybe what you're familiar with Be My AI,
12:27where you're entering in via the keyboard, whatever your questions are.
12:31All right. Well, call me.
12:32Quick question.
12:32Do you have your keys on you?
12:33Because I need to get into your office.
12:35No, I lost them somewhere over the rainbow.
12:40Okay. Well, we better get to the end of the rainbow and see if we can find them.
12:42All right.
12:45We're now going to find out if Envision Ally can help us find something when we drop it on the floor.
12:51I don't know about you, but I know if I drop something,
12:54I don't like getting down and doing the crab walk, trying to find something on the floor.
12:59So I'm going to see if Ally can help us.
13:01In this example, I'm using Nigel.
13:04If you remember, that is the AI I created.
13:07So it's going to be a little bit more curt, I think, and get me my information right away.
13:12I'm also going to be using the walkie talkie mode,
13:15which means I have to tap and hold the speak button when I want to give it instruction.
13:20So let's find out where my keys are.
13:26Do you see my keys anywhere?
13:33Let me take a look.
13:38I don't see any keys in the video.
13:40You might want to check around the desks and chairs more closely, as well as any bags or jackets.
13:45I'm going to try pointing it down a little bit more.
13:47Maybe I'm missing it.
13:48Let's try another picture.
13:52Do you see my keys anywhere?
13:54Let me take a look.
13:55I don't see any keys in the image.
13:57It might be helpful to check any areas where keys tend to fall or blend in,
14:02like near the edges of the room or underneath chairs and tables.
14:06I didn't know that that's where keys typically go.
14:08Let's try. I'll turn a little bit more.
14:09Maybe let's try one more.
14:13Do you see my keys on the floor?
14:20Let me take a look.
14:22I see something shiny that looks like it could be your keys on the floor.
14:26It's near the center of the image.
14:28You might want to check there.
14:30Okay, let's see.
14:32About how far away are they?
14:36They appear to be approximately a few feet away from where you are.
14:41It's not too far, perhaps just a few steps in front of you.
14:45All right, let's see if we can find them.
14:52Well, we managed to find Corey's keys,
14:54so thankfully now he will be able to get into his office and get the bag of Cheetos,
14:59which is no doubt in his desk drawer.
15:01I don't like Cheetos.
15:02Oh, I do though, so hopefully they're there for me.
15:04Cheetos are like the food that keeps on giving.
15:06You eat it and then 10 minutes later, you've still got that cheese dust all over your fingers.
15:10Yeah, it's like a little snack for later.
15:11That's for sure.
15:11Saving it for later.
15:13Let's hope you wash your hands first, though.
15:14That's all I can say.
15:15Anyway, the cool thing about it, Corey,
15:17was that it did help you not only to identify that your keys were in the picture,
15:21but also how far away they were
15:23and then helped get you to the position of the keys so that you could find them.
15:26Yeah, I mean, as we mentioned before,
15:28one of the hard things if you drop something,
15:30especially being blind or visually impaired,
15:32it's very hard to find it.
15:33So it was kind of cool to be able to tell where it was.
15:35I like that feature.
15:37Indeed.
15:38Yes, so some cool uses for the Envision Ally.
15:41But, Corey, is it the revolution in AI technology
15:45that people with vision loss deserve?
15:48Well, that's a good question.
15:51It's the villain, or no, what is it?
15:53The hero.
15:54It's not the hero you want.
15:56It's the hero you need.
15:57No, so it's a little bit deserving.
15:59Because it's the hero Gotham deserves.
16:02But not the one it needs right now.
16:04So obviously, some of the things that stands apart,
16:06you know, is the ability to be voice only.
16:08Yes.
16:09I like the personality building.
16:11Yeah.
16:11That's different from some of the other ones.
16:14If they start to charge,
16:17that changes the picture or landscape a little bit for people.
16:21True, but it also depends what features go.
16:23In the video, Corey, to give people a bit of behind the scenes here,
16:26there was a video that they have that shows certain things,
16:28including being able to ask, like, when is my bus?
16:31Or was it a train?
16:32When is my train?
16:33What should I eat at this restaurant?
16:35And stuff like that,
16:36that shows integration with outside information that isn't currently available.
16:40Yeah.
16:41If it can do that stuff, then I think charging for it makes more sense at that point.
16:45Yeah, I think you're right.
16:46Because then it is something that's standing it apart from some of the other ones.
16:49Yeah.
16:50At the end of the day, it's like a lot of the stuff we cover,
16:53it works for certain people.
16:55It's exactly what they want.
16:56For others, it's not what they need.
16:58Yeah.
16:59And so that's why we are here, Luke.
17:01Indeed.
17:01We are here to show you.
17:03Yes.
17:03And tell you.
17:04And then you can decide.
17:05No, we decide for you.
17:07We decide for you what you want and what you need.
17:10There you go.
17:10At the moment, the big draw is the personalities and the hands-free.
17:14And that's basically it at the moment.
17:15So if that sounds appealing, Corey,
17:16I believe that people can sign up for the beta through the website.
17:21Yeah, head over to their website and you'll be able to find the beta sign up.
17:25I don't know when, you know,
17:27this is January 10th as we are shooting today.
17:30Yes.
17:30It'll release on the 23rd.
17:35Oh yeah, good point.
17:36But anywho, things obviously being beta,
17:38they may change.
17:39They will be different from when it actually releases.
17:42So head over to their EnVision's website.
17:44You'll get all the information that you need.
17:46Also, shameless plug, we already did a video, as we mentioned,
17:49on EnVision Ally on the computer.
17:51So check out that video, Jonathan, if you put a card in there for us.
17:55Check out that video and that one will give you an idea how it works on PC.
17:59And also put down in the comments, Corey, whether you,
18:02well, not you, I mean, I don't mean you, Corey,
18:04because I know about you, but our audience out there,
18:06put down in the comments whether you are all using EnVision Ally, the beta,
18:11or whether you're using the EnVision app or what you think about the app.
18:15Yeah, are you using the EnVision glasses?
18:18Yes.
18:18I'd be curious.
18:19And then also throw down what is your favorite,
18:22tell us about the personalities you've created.
18:25I think that's kind of fun.
18:26In our last video, ours said buddy a lot and she meowed often.
18:32So let us know if you've done anything funny like that.
18:35Also, if anybody can tell us how much a pound cake weighs,
18:39put it in the comments and there may be a prize.
18:41Or how much it costs in England.
18:43We are on the grind to 6,000 subscribers.
18:46Producer Jonathan has got himself a little contest
18:49that he's started between us three here.
18:52When are we going to hit 6,000 subscribers?
18:56We're all looking at the end of February or early March 2025,
18:59but prove us wrong and get us there in the next couple weeks.
19:04So what you're saying is smash the like button, hit the notifications bell,
19:09and then subscribe to the channel.
19:11All of those things are exactly what you should be doing.
19:14EnVision Ally told us to tell you that you need to subscribe,
19:18like, and turn on notifications.
19:21And if you do like our content, well, there is more content.
19:23Go to our learning management system aka LMS
19:26and you will find some webinars there designed for professionals in the field
19:30and you can watch those.
19:31And then if you answer a quick quiz afterwards,
19:34you can earn free on-demand ACVREP credits.
19:37Did you say free?
19:38I said free and I said on-demand as it happens.
19:41So if you need those, if you are a CATUS or a COMMS,
19:45or if you are, you know, any of those other ACVREP certifications,
19:49then why not head on over to the LMS?
19:51Corey, what was the URL?
19:53techconnect.vision-forward.org
19:55techconnect.vision-forward.org
19:59We also do a live show every other Thursday
20:01and you can find it here on our YouTube channel, 11 a.m. Central Time.
20:06And the one coming up, Corey, will be about InnoSearch.ai.
20:09Yes, and that will be on January 30th.
20:14You should see one.
20:15Yeah, so that's some kind of browser thing that helps people with vision loss.
20:19Sure, I don't know too much about it at the moment,
20:22but we're going to find out all about it.
20:23So join us 11 a.m. Central on the 30th.
20:26Why not?
20:27We also have a podcast.
20:28If you don't want to join us live for that live show,
20:30that seems kind of weird,
20:32or you just don't want to look at us,
20:33you can do a search in your podcast app of choice.
20:36Look for Vision Forward Tech Connect.
20:38You'll find our podcast.
20:40Go ahead and subscribe, listen, enjoy, have fun.
20:44Be merry.
20:45Have a great 2025.
20:48Find all of your resolutions.
20:50I hope they come true.
20:52Okay, this is getting extreme.
20:54I think it's time to say goodbye.
20:55Goodbye.
21:06Yep, we're good to go.
21:07Okay, ready?
21:11Oh no!