Today is my first test using Dragon NaturallySpeaking. I’ve been testing speech recognition software for some time when now, and I’ve never really found a software solution that works. In the past, when using speech recognition software, I found that I spent a lot of time editing and formatting my document. I didn’t save any time.

I heard some good things about the Dragon Naturally Speaking software, so I thought I would give it another shot. Right now it seems to work fine, and so far on this post I’ve only had to make two edits. I know that I could have typed this post faster, but I have been told by some of my peers that Dragon Naturally Speaking becomes much more accurate in time. It takes time for the speech recognition engine to recognize your voice, and in turn, it takes time for the user to learn how to utilize the software properly.

What’s taking longer during this post is that I’m using speech recognition while I’m in the post area of my WordPress blog.  If I can manage to get this to work properly it will speed up my everyday posting immeasurably. Also, I’m able to use different words and have spelling automatically checked as I go. Normally typing my posts I have to refer to a dictionary or thesaurus to make sure my spelling and grammar is correct. I did the smart thing when I first installed Dragon Naturally Speaking. I did some training.

There is a function with nuance’s Dragon Naturally Speaking software that allows you to read passages from select documents, all the while your voice is being listened to and learned. Some of my peers who publish frequently are now using Dragon Naturally Speaking for all their documentation and/or publishing. I’ve been told that in time Dragon Naturally Speaking becomes more and more accurate, making your daily tasks of publishing much faster and easier. So this time I’m going to stick with it until I can post with great speed and efficiency.

So far I can say I’m extremely impressed and I’ll keep going with this process. Just the mere fact that I don’t have to consult a dictionary or thesaurus is enough reason to stay on course with Dragon Naturally Speaking. The fact that I can use Dragon Naturally Speaking in my posts is very beneficial as well, as I don’t have to copy and paste my document into the WordPress posting area and inevitably have to edit and format.

What’s also amazing is that when I want to save my posts for later editing I simply say the words, “Save and continue editing”. A red arrow appears on the Save and continue editing button, and the WordPress function takes place. I would actually say the word “publish” to see if my WordPress blog carries out that function using Dragon Naturally Speaking, but I won’t for now because I don’t want that to happen.  (I have a thing about not publishing or post until as completely finished, for fear that re-posting multiple times will result in multiple pings, and henceforth creating the appearance that my blog is spamming block servers around the globe.)

I’m noticing now, as I’m further along in this post, that my speed is increasing and my editing frequency is decreasing. This is exciting because I can see a time when my publishing will be lightning fast. I’m still using the keyboard for my fixes and edits, but I noticed with the Dragon Naturally Speaking orientation, I will have to use the keyboard less and less. They give you an option to do all of your formatting and editing by voice command as well. Once you master all of the their voice commands you will be well on your way to high-speed publishing.

Using Dragon Naturally Speaking does not have to be an expensive proposition. You can purchase different level products depending on your planned usage. Right now I’m using the Standard Edition of Dragon Naturally Speaking which is only $99 US, but if all goes well, I’ll upgrade to the professional edition. I suggest visiting the Nuance web site for more information regarding pricing. I’m not an affiliate for Nuance or Dragon Naturally Speaking, so this post is not made in an effort to collect a tidy commission for your purchase. You will see other posts on this blog where I choose to use an affiliate link and collect commissions for purchases, but that is not the case here today.

A little warning to all other publishers using WordPress and Dragon Naturally Speaking; make sure you use the Save and continue editing button frequently so you don’t lose any of your work. This goes for any kind of editor in any kind of application online or off-line. When using speech recognition software there are times when you can say a word that can be mistaken by the software as a command, and can result in losing your immediate work. This is something I will learn as I go along using Dragon Naturally Speaking.

One thing I should add before finishing this post; it’s important to use a quality microphone when dictating. The accuracy of speech recognition is greatly improved when using a decent microphone. You don’t need to by an expensive microphone to get quality. Many of the average, consumer level, PC microphones will do the job. Just don’t go to the cheapest quality microphone and expect to get accurate results.

PS – when I said the word “publish” into the microphone, Dragon Naturally Speaking sent the command forth, and WordPress published this post without a hitch.

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This entry was posted on Saturday, July 1st, 2006 at 7:46 pm and is filed under Software & Tools. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.