I am writing this with the new app Dragon Dictate for Macintosh. This is going surprisingly well.
My long-term readers will be aware that I have had many problems in this area. And there are still a few. For example, when I wrote “long-term readers”, Dragon Dictate wrote "long-term weakness”. Pretty funny, I think. Of course I have some training to do and yet, but already I can correct most of the mistakes with speech instead of using the keyboard. This is definitely a step up.
I tried first with a couple of different headset,s but none of them worked. I heard the sound recorded from the first one, and it sounded like I was speaking from under 2 I'm doints [20 blankets]. I cannot believe how bad that sound was, and I can't blame the program for not being able to work with it.
I am now using the blue Snowball, ambiguously microphone. That should have bene [been] a big USB microphone.
There are also some issues wiht some of Ms. tidings, I mean but missed five things, I mean I'm Ms. tidings of, I mean some misprints. And the computer little confusing. I meant it can be a little confusing.
So I guess instead of sayign “surprisingly well”, I should say “reasonably well”. And I don't know wh go to end of document areu can't spell saying unto symptom to a
I guess I will try to dictate into
Dragon Dictate's own notepad
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Perhaps Dragon Dictate's own notepad is more precise. I'm not sure why this should be, but it might be, so I'm trying it.
An issue issue is that I can't even sigh or make any other noises without Dragon Dictate typing in some kind of word.
But I think it's going better than the multiple of different machines apps and solutions and microphones I have tried in the past.
If I get it going really well, you will hear about it.
Update 28 Oct:
Well, it did not continue to go so well for me as it did right in the beginning. It still bogs down at a level where I have to stop and do corrections all the time. Sigh.
Bugger, Dragons 50% off offer is over now isn't it?
ReplyDeleteSo...you've trained it to your voice, already? I had one good search w/Google's Voice Search...followed by a "bugger" of an attempt to do a memo using same on my Samsung Intercept. I had high hopes. :-( (gotta go find the voice train and hope for better results)
ReplyDeleteI've done the most basic training with it, but I'll do more, because while it's the best I've tried yet, it's not great.
ReplyDeleteEolake said...
ReplyDelete"...while it's the best I've tried yet, it's not great."
Yeah...so we read. :-(
It is really annoying that this company does not offer any demo of their products. Their videos and literature tell us of a 90% or 99% recognition, but that is obviously not the case. Still, it might be worth the investment for someone like me who has carpal tunnel and RSI.
ReplyDeleteI constantly clear my throat when I speak,I wonder if Dragon will type it as hrrrmph or something.
ReplyDeleteIt will guess at words. I can't move or sigh without something appearing.
ReplyDeleteIt's really successful for some people, David Pogue is one of them.
For those without carpal tunnel or RSI, isn't typing still faster? I mean, how fast can someone speak?
ReplyDeleteYeah, they are selling it to able bodied persons also.
ReplyDeleteI still believe the UK edition would work better with my accent, but being in the US I have to buy the US edition.
Besides, I'm well shafted, I speak American vocabulary with a mixed accent.
Dave, you're probably right if one is a very good touch-typist.
ReplyDeleteBut for me there's a certain low-level stress that goes along with typing, even though I'm half decent at it (about 55 words a minute or so).
Also, typing less might aid to avoid the neck incident I had a couple years ago. And my wrists have sometimes recently been sort of sore on the underside, so I'm being a bit over-careful.
Apart from all that machine dictation just seems so fun.
I average 85 wpm, but that's still a long way off the world record of a little over 200. I find long periods of typing hurt but only on a standard keyboard. I use one like this which helps a lot.
ReplyDeleteA friend of mine likes dictation software (and is a Mac user too) mainly because he has some kind of arthritis or something which makes typing painful. He can only manage about 30 wpm and can't type for very long at a time even at that speed.
I can see the coolness factor. I'd feel a bit like I was on Star Trek The Next Generation.
I might try it at some point but at the moment typing is faster for me. I'll wait until they work out more of the bugs. Considering the progress made even in the last ten years it shouldn't be that long till they've got it down.
I tried one of those bent keyboards last year. Didn't seem to do much for me, and I actually just gave it to charity with several others, a couple days ago.
ReplyDeleteI've been told they aren't that popular, but they've really worked well for me. Now I find that regular keyboards feel really cramped.
ReplyDeleteMy keyboard is not only split, but fully adjustable and well worth the price.
ReplyDeleteI have a co-worker who loves his concave keyboard.
I might have to try one of those fully adjustable boards. I don't know about a concave one, though. Do you have a link to some info on that?
ReplyDeleteJust got Nuances Dragon 11 with the plantronics BT earpiece. I can't believe the accuracy compared with 5 years ago.
ReplyDeleteI can now set up a UK accent with US Vocab. The first day was great. My wife commented that it didn't come up with any of the really funny typos that it did before. Mind you I had a p5 in those days, and now I've a core DUO. I think that helped.
Good to hear, thanks.
ReplyDeleteWell, it did not continue to go so well for me as it did right in the beginning. It still bogs down at a level where I have to stop and do corrections all the time. Sigh.
http://www.kinesis-ergo.com/support/advantage_usb.pdf
ReplyDeleteConcave keyboard link - Sorry I got busy, and had to find the answer again.
I've tried it and had issued with the "p;/" column, it's designed for a stricter adherence to the home keys.
So I was just updating my film blog, and decided to dictate it. I couldn't believe it when I mentioned Kurosawa and Dragon got it right first time!
ReplyDelete