This github repository contains the code base for a Amazon Echo web series created by the Coding Dojo. Throughout the web series we take you through the process of creating a "skill" for Alexa which is the voice service that powers the Amazon Echo. All of the links are listed below.
- Video 1 of 6 (Intro)
- Video 2 of 6 (Course Overview)
- Video 3 of 6 (Building out the skill service - Lambda)
- Video 4 of 6 (Building out the skill interface)
- Video 5 of 6 (Code walkthrough)
- Video 6 of 6 (flask-ask & ngrok)
Short intro video to give quick overview of what you will be learning throughout the webseries
In this video we outline all of the neccessary technologies needed to create the Coding Dojo skill. The technologies discussed are as follows:
- Alexa Skill Kit
- Amazon Echo
- AWS Lambda
In this video we walk you through the process of creating the skill service (backend) for the Coding Dojo skill using AWS Lambda. After signing up for an AWS account you will learn all of steps needed to quickly set up a Lambda function. We also provide all of the code (python 2.7) that will be placed inside of the Lambda function.
In this video we walk you through the process of creating the skill interface for the Coding Dojo skill. After signing in to the Amazon developer console we walk you through all of the steps to complete the skill. After completing all of the settings to create the skill interface we use the testing feature to make sure your skill is working. We also stop to explain the meaning of important settings throughout the process. Some of these settings are:
- Invocation Name
- Intent Schema
- Sample Utterances
- Custom Slot Types
In this video we take some time to explain how information is passed from the skill interface (Alexa Skills Kit) to the skill service (AWS Lambda) and back. We also touch on the different attributes and functions that you may encounter with building any new skill.
For viewers who may want to use their own customized server we created this video to give you great starting point using flask-ask and ngrok. Flask-ask is a flask extension that can be placed on any server using python and it is built to easily handle requests from the Alexa Skill Kit. Also, we teach you how to download and use ngrok which allows you to securely test your skill locally. This helps developers avoid creating and setting up a https enabled server just to test out their skill.