$99.99 - Dragon Naturally Speaking 9

[Michael Larson]

Originally Posted by mboyett

I've mentioned this before but for those of you just wanting to try the technology and see how it works, if you are using Windows XP or Vista you very likely already have speech recognition on your computer. Just open the Control Panel and see if Speech is listed. If so, get a good headset w/ boom microphone, fire up the speech recognition engine and play around with it. I've done so and decided it is not something I want to try for use in inputting my observations into my reporting s/w but that's just me. If you like the process then you can 'upgrade' to DNS.

I tried the speech recognition on my Vista equipped Q1 and found it less than desirable.

Anyone have a comparison between the Nuance product and Windows speech recognition?

[Dominic J. Maricic]

No comment, I haven't personally used Dragon in years and have never used Windows built in. I do hear that both need lots of training to get used to your voice.

[relliott]

I bought Dragon 9 when it first came out and find it to be a valuble tool.

The older versions like Dom may have used , were no where near as good from what others have told me.

You can do your training on the fly as it makes mistakes by highlighting the word and repeating verbaly after you type in the correction.and it gets better by not repeating that the next time.better the more you use it.

Version 10 promises faster speed and accuracy.

It is a great product to have, even if not used all the time.

As far as typing speed goes I bet version 10 could beat Dom in a speed test , and spellcheck is not needed as the corrections are not due to mis-spells , but to mis-pronunciation..

I will more than likely buy the upgrade before the deadline of next month.

[Dominic J. Maricic]

Only if you can talk faster than 100+ words a minute

[relliott]

I have been told I do, and actualy Dragon grows accustomed to fast speech.

It seems to work better the faster you talk.

You should try the new version sometime , as you may find it much better than you remember, which is what some of the other oldtimers such as yourself have told me.

I like being able to concentate on content , rather than the mechanics of typing when in a hurry to pontificate.

As far as Mikes trial, I do not think the Q1 has enough power to handle Dragon as the harddrive and ram are low on most all the tablets I have looked at, which is but one reason I have avoided buying one.

[Dale Duffy]

Originally Posted by relliott

I have been told I do, and actualy Dragon grows accustomed to fast speech.

It seems to work better the faster you talk.

You have me sold Bob...if it works for me fine, if not, well big deal, $99.00 bucks, a tax deduction even if it didn't work out.

[Dominic J. Maricic]

I'd end up with 'ummm' and 'hmmmm' all over the programming code, wouldn't look pretty. Can I tell it to remove words that I say? hehe.

[relliott]

Actualy you can train it for shortcuts , like on the word program, but verbal.

For instance you could say carbon monoxide and have it print out a few paragraphs on carbon monoxide dangers.

I have never fully explored its true potential and find it to not be a constant companion , but another tool I am glad to have.

[David A. Andersen]

I use Dragon naturally speaking all the time (as you can see by the length of some of my posts here)!

Using Microsoft's voice dictation engine in no way compares to Dragon NaturallySpeaking. Actually, if it's on in the background there will be some conflicts and may slow down dragon.

About talking fast, Dragon recognizes phrases rather than individual words. Especially when you use the same type of phrases in your inspection reports over and over, accuracy drastically increases. The program continually upgrades itself on the way you talk. Dragon has drastically improved over the years. I used IBM for many years but found a drastic improvement when I switched to Dragon.

I don't like carrying around a computer when I'm doing my inspection. I have enough equipment as it is. However, I do use Dragon in the truck to generate on site deficiency list's for the client when requested.
One thing about voice-recognition is you have to speak reasonably the same way and under the same conditions. Dragon has improved on this over the years allowing considerable background noise without affecting the dictation.
If someone comes in the room when you're dictating and ask you something like; "are you ready for supper?" It magically appears in your inspection report! So, you have to be careful about what's going on in your environment when dictating.

I live a considerable distance from my inspection service area and can get a considerable amount of my inspection notes completed during a drivetime, saving a considerable amount of report writing time back at the office.
The nice thing about voice dictation is that you can customize your reports with extreme accuracy and make the report appear individually written (which it actually is) for that house. In comparison, "search and click" reporting reads mechanized and robotic.

I am awaiting version 10, which should arrive today. I will provide an update on this version.
I frequently upgrade as Dragon seems to make significant achievements on a biannual basis.

When using any voice dictation program within another program (such as home gauge) speed and accuracy seems to decline noticeably, mostly due to the particular program you are dictating into directly.

Dragon has two options for dictation within its program. One is " DragonPad " which is like dictating to something like Microsoft's Notepad. From here you can cut and paste paragraphs or the document in its entirety to place in another program. The second, is a "dictation pad". Wherever you leave your cursor in another program, is where the text you dictated will go when you close a dictation window. This greatly increases speed and accuracy (especially when making corrections or editing. Other programs don't like to listen to the computer commands from another program in some cases).

There are also other things that drastically increase accuracy that you need to learn. Proper adjustment of the volume of your microphone input is very important. Often your computer will readjust this volume level without your permission between times that you use the program. There is a modulation scale at the top of the Dragon toolbar that helps you out with this. There are also other options within Dragon that allow you to specifically just dictate words, dictate numbers, spell only, or voice computer commands. In the "normal" mode the computer will do all of these things automatically, but will slow things down because it must check to see if what you said is a computer command, an individually spelled word, a certain format for numbers (such as a telephone number, currency etc.).

Dictating to anything (including a voice recorder) takes practice. When I was a special agent, we had to dictate just about everything and send it to a typing pool for report generation. What you got back in the printed version was often drastically different than what you thought you said! So training the program is not the only training that you must do. One nice thing about voice dictation is that you don't have to think about typing or making typographical errors, you just have to think about composing your statements.

One other option that is totally useless so far, is dictating to a digital recorder and having the program "transcribe". Accuracy is not very good. I think the problem is that you speak differently to the voice recorder than you would to the computer program.

Remember, this thing is a computer. Input in = input out. As human beings, we overlook misspoken words and fill in the blanks with only a few words spoken. The computer does not have this luxury. They can only work with your voice input. When you say something incorrectly, that's what it prints.

However, I have knowingly said things incorrectly and the program corrected to what I meant, not what I said!

[Russell Spriggs]

Wal, there's a mouthful, Dave!

Having lived in Knoxville, I can say that some Tennesseeans would have to stop for lunch and dinner during that lengthy dictation!

Great info, though. And from Bob, too.

Thanks!

[Jeff Knight]

Over the many years when inspectors asked us about voice dictation...one of the first things I try to do is manage their expectations. It is not very easy for us normal humans to talk the same way we want our report to look like. We do not always speak grammatically correct which can be a big problem when trying to use voice dictation. It makes you spend a lot of time fixing grammar errors in your report. I would also be very careful in trying to be too unique for each inspection. If you run into the same problem every week in a lot of houses you do not want it to be worded different every time, yes...you want it to have different values for the location of the issue or the severity, but you do not want to word it completely different. I also now I can always select a sentence from a drop-down menu much quicker then anyone could say the same sentence and have it dictated. Now...voice NAVIGATION is a different story...and I think it is something that will be coming soon to the inspection market.

Jeff Knight
Knights Software
www.knightssoftware.com

[relliott]

Originally Posted by Jeff Knight

Over the many years when inspectors asked us about voice dictation...one of the first things I try to do is manage their expectations. It is not very easy for us normal humans to talk the same way we want our report to look like. We do not always speak grammatically correct which can be a big problem when trying to use voice dictation. It makes you spend a lot of time fixing grammar errors in your report. I would also be very careful in trying to be too unique for each inspection. If you run into the same problem every week in a lot of houses you do not want it to be worded different every time, yes...you want it to have different values for the location of the issue or the severity, but you do not want to word it completely different. I also now I can always select a sentence from a drop-down menu much quicker then anyone could say the same sentence and have it dictated. Now...voice NAVIGATION is a different story...and I think it is something that will be coming soon to the inspection market.

Jeff Knight
Knights Software
www.knightssoftware.com

As a practicing Home Inspector I must dis-agree on the voice dictation comment , though I understand what you are saying.

I have my canned comments all loaded up in my HIP software and often make use of them, but find that over a three hour period become freindly with my customer to the point where using robotic statements makes no sense.

Robotic type insertions such torn screens living room are replaced with my narrative of
Upon opening the window next the the Living rooms ventless fireplace I discovered a small tear which appears to have been caused by a nail I found sticking out of the left side window track.

I would suggest removing it and having the screen repaired or replaced.

As you may recall we found a few more of these nails sticking out of the bedroom window and found them rubbing against the screens in that room also.

I have my Introduction letter to begin with in which I explain certain facts pertaining to things discussed during the Inspection which simply can't be software stored .

Sure the first canned statement is easily stored , and I understand why yourself and Dominic included ,would want to push the speed and or portibility that your respective softwares offer.

I only use Dragon when doing reports as I am still a 6 finger typist and need the practice these forums afford me.

Personaly , I have recieved comments from clients on how easy and through my reports are.

By the time I search through 50 comments I can speak my mind on Dragon.

Is it for everyone? NO.

Not everyone has the ability to convey defects in unique language and the canned comments are a great help to have in front of me for ideas.

All in all I would not make a blanket statement on report style as there are many different ways of conveying information which should be matched to how the Inspector does business.

Some prefer PDA, Tablet, or going home and pounding out a word document.

Guys also still feel comfortable with checklists.

It is good to have options and though we all pick a side , there is no clear cut winner, and there are ways to master all styles.

Just my thoughts.

[Jeff Knight]

Robert,
Don't take this the wrong way.. but I would say that your inspection reports would be pretty unique in the home inspection world. I would picture your report as a recap of your inspection experience written in a narrative style format that would take the client along with you as you do your inspection to give them the personal touch that would make reading one of your reports a very pleasant experience instead of the dry type I always see.

Instead of saying something like...

"Evidence of rodents observed in kitchen cabinets. Suggest review by licensed pest control specialist for corrections as needed."

you might say instead....

"Upon opening the third cabinet door from the right during my inspection in the kitchen I was startled by the sound of four tiny feet scurrying in front of a Cheerios cereal box. As this critter attempted to run past me and jump over my shoulder I take a brutal swing with my trusty Surefire flashlight to try and erradicate the problem. Unfortunately the smaller mammal was faster then my lightning fast reaction swing and escaped unscathed. In my experience there are usually a family that comes with one of these pests and I would strongly suggest you call your local pest control company to see if they may try and smoke these guys out or at the very least set up some mouse traps to put an end to their free lunch."



Just kidding!! Couldn't help myself. I just thought if inspectors would be a little more light on their comments and not be so serious that everyone might lighten up during the home transaction process and that things may go more smoothly.

Jeff Knight
www.knightssoftware.com

[Linas I. Dapkus]

Don't forget several pics of the rodent making his getaway.

[Jeff Knight]

Linas,
You are right....Robert did say he takes a lot of pictures during the inspection process !!

Jeff