What is Microsoft Cortana? (all you must know)

What is Microsoft Cortana? (all you must know)

If you’ve ever used a Microsoft product, chances are you’ve come across Cortana a few times while performing your day-to-day tasks, but haven’t really had the time to figure out what it’s all about.

If this sounds like you, whether you know a little or nothing about it, this article is for you, as it will help you learn everything you need to know about Microsoft Cortana.

What is Microsoft Cortana?

Cortana is a virtual assistant first launched in 2014 by Microsoft itself. Originally designed to work with Windows devices, this assistant’s capabilities include organizing and managing your daily meetings, reminders, and more. Additionally, it will aid traditional web searches with text or voice prompts.

If you want to learn more about Microsoft Cortana, keep reading until the end of this article as it will teach you everything you need to know!

What can Microsoft Cortana be used for?

Cortana is a virtual assistant primarily connected to Microsoft 365 users to help users track, organize, and manage their daily work.

With Cortana, users can now manage their personal and professional work hassle-free.

Cortana is included with any Microsoft 365 plan you may have or are considering buying, and is compatible with Windows 10 computers and the Edge browser.

In addition, it is compatible with Bing search engine and different applications such as Word, PowerPoint, OneNote, email and calendar services via Outlook.

Plus, you can use it with file services like OneDrive, Forms, and social and meeting products like Teams and Yammer.

With Cortana enabled, using the wake-up phrase followed by Command Prompt can open many different apps and gather information about news and weather.

Plus, you can add to lists in Microsoft To-Do, schedule reminders for calendar events, find files, join meetings, browse presentations in Teams, and more.

How does Microsoft Cortana work?

No matter what device, service, or program you plan to use Cortana on, the Microsoft virtual assistant helps its users quickly get valuable information with simple commands.

Microsoft’s Cortana is more focused on helping you use MS products, which means it’s more of a true assistant than ever.

Once you’re signed in to your Microsoft account, summoning Cortana is as easy as saying “Cortana” or “Hey Cortana.”

After that, Cortana will respond to your requests and questions before completing the associated task. Also, it collects certain data about you while it is on your computer.

This can include things like search, calendar, contacts, and location to help personalize your experience with Cortana in the future.

Collecting this information helps Cortana make more relevant recommendations for you and personalize your voice assistant experience as much as possible.

Once Cortana is enabled, you can prompt for it in a number of different ways. This includes clicking the microphone icon in Cortana’s integrated products and services.

Again, this doesn’t include the keyboard command “Shift + Windows Key + C” or, as mentioned, “Hey Cortana” followed by a voice command or question.

In order to use Cortana on your PC, you need to enable the program if you haven’t already.

What are the command prompts for Cortana?

Once you activate Cortana on your device, you can use it for almost anything.

In fact, commands can be as basic as checking the weather, making phone calls, sending emails, scheduling meetings, setting reminders and alarms, and updating device settings.

However, you can also use it for more complex tasks like math, translation, definitions, food and travel recommendations, music and entertainment app control, and more.

If you want to try it out but don’t know which commands to try, check out the following list for some ideas:

• “how’s the weather?”
• “Go to/Open [app name / website]. “
• “what is [percentage] of [dollar amount]? “
• “Where’s my package?”
• “from [date / time]. “
• “Find a restaurant near me.”
• “What song is this?”
• “What was my step count yesterday?”
• “Turn on/off Bluetooth.”
• “for [date and time]. “
• “When do I [event name]? “
• “Send email to (contact): (message).”
• “Tell me the public transport route to [location / address]. ”
• “Flying Track [flight number]. ”
• “Call (contact) at home/work.”
• “Who shall I meet next time?”
• “How to change default apps?”

To learn more, you can also read our posts on Microsoft Intune, Microsoft Money, and Microsoft Bookings.

in conclusion

Microsoft Cortana is a virtual assistant that originally launched in 2014 and has gotten better over the years.

Designed to work with Windows devices, digital assistants can accomplish many everyday tasks, such as managing daily meetings, reminders, and more. Likewise, it will aid traditional web searches with text or voice prompts.