Every time I ask Siri to
set the timer for X minutes
I get corrected with
set a timer for X minutes
I consulted some tech sites, they seem to agree on "a timer". At least, I didn't find any "the timer" questions.
Hey Siri, start a timer for 15 minutes.
Say something like "Set a timer for 20 minutes."
I don't understand why, though.
I've got a phone (my phone, the phone I am possessing), I've installed some software on it (the applications I find handy and use on a daily basis), there are some pre-installed programs running on it (the applications provided out of the box). Being perfectly aware of the timer feature, I am asking Siri to launch it. To launch the timer, not a timer. To set the timer, not a timer.
Where am I wrong?
Feel free to correct any mistakes. I'd be utterly grateful if you cleared up my confusion.
UPDATE:
Yes, I understand that other words (including articles) around "timer" and "X minutes" don't play a big role, and they won't even be taken into consideration after parsing the keywords.
But corrections/replies from Siri like
Setting a timer for X minutes…
A timer is already running.
bring ambiguity and are totally confusing to me.
I am absolutely sure my iPhone is well aware of the processes it initiated (the applications it ran) X minutes ago.
The timer (from the Clock app/the one I can run) is already running.
Setting the timer (the timer installed in the Clock program/the one I have access to/the one I can set).
Best Answer
When you say
you know what timer you are talking about. But from the point of view of Siri, it is not very clear what you have in mind.
First, the device already uses a lot of timers which you know nothing about. They are set, reset, incremented, decremented, stopped all the time, without your knowledge.
Second, timers can be implemented by several programs. It is even possible that every (or some) programs are able to set more than 1 timer.
Therefore, it is much better to talk "generically" and use "a timer":