Speech Recognition only good for business?

I see big bucks being spent for speech-to-text uses in business
(billions) - but I question if speech recognition has valid use
for us "hobby" users.

Anyone here use Dragon NaturallySpeaking for trivial uses?

If so, what can it do better than simply banging on a keyboard?

Mark-

In theory, it can allow you to dictate letters, memos, all kinds of things
instead of typing them manually.
I haven't seen many programs that run by voice command, but I am sure there
are some out there.

--
A Professional Amateur...If anyone knew it all, none of would be here!

Change Alpha to Numeric to reply

"Mark Conrad" <> wrote in message
news:210520081435214085% ...
>
> I see big bucks being spent for speech-to-text uses in business
> (billions) - but I question if speech recognition has valid use
> for us "hobby" users.
>
> Anyone here use Dragon NaturallySpeaking for trivial uses?
>
> If so, what can it do better than simply banging on a keyboard?
>
> Mark-

Mark Conrad wrote:
> I see big bucks being spent for speech-to-text uses in business
> (billions) - but I question if speech recognition has valid use
> for us "hobby" users.
>
> Anyone here use Dragon NaturallySpeaking for trivial uses?
>
> If so, what can it do better than simply banging on a keyboard?
>
> Mark-

I really like speech recognition. I use it to reduce strain on my hands
and arms as I have tendinitis, and it's also my favorite way to interact
with my tablet PCs over typing or using the pen. Plus it's extremely
portable - when walking around with a tablet PC, it is much easier than
using a pen or keyboard/mouse.

--
"Fair use is not merely a nice concept--it is a federal law based on
free speech rights under the First Amendment and is a cornerstone of the
creativity and innovation that is a hallmark of this country. Consumer
rights in the digital age are not frivolous."
- Maura Corbett

In article <39A54FFD-2383-4D78-9417->, Not Me
<> wrote:

> In theory, it can allow you to dictate letters, memos, all kinds of things
> instead of typing them manually.

Yes, but theory differs from practice. (later in this post)

I ran a speed test using Dragon, a timed one-minute test.

I managed to speak 336 words in that one minute. Dragon converted
that rapid speech to text, without any errors.

People normally talk at 100wpm to 225wpm in everyday speech.

Skilled "fast talkers" can speak at over 600wpm.

<http://www.worldrecordsacademy.org/a...g_female_world
_record_set_by_Fran_Capo_70895.htm>


Heck, some guy even runs a school to teach people how to
"fast listen" to understand and comprehend those fast talkers.

I did not write down that guys website, but a Google search
might turn it up.


Anyhow, back to the "gotchas" that prevent a person from
actually utilizing these high speeds, for their own use.

Dragon only has a "average" rated accuracy of 99%

That means that I _could_ have had four mistakes in my
336wpm speed test, which could have taken another minute
to correct the mistakes.

THAT would have dropped my average speed down to a paltry
168wpm - - - terrible.


Technical speech, such as "doctor talk", is lucky to be spoken
at a speed of 100wpm, due to the long techical terms, such as
the following little gem that I spoke into Dragon:

X-Linked agammaglobulinemia (Bruton's agammaglobulinemia)
is a hereditary immunodeficiency disorder due to an
abnormality in the X chromosome and resulting in few are
no B lymphocytes and very low levels of antibodies.



That is the raw text, with one mistake at the end of the 3rd line.

i.e. - "in few are" should be "in few or"


On another related note -
I almost broke my tongue getting Dragon to transcribe this word:

"pneumonoultramicroscopicsilicovolcanoconiosis "

Dragon (medical version) got it right however, without even
breaking a sweat.

Pneumonoultramicroscopicsilicovolcanoconiosis is a malady
caused by breathing the fine silica dust from an erupting volcano.



> A Professional Amateur...If anyone knew it all, none of would be here!

I like that.<g>

Same here, I know nothing about medical crapola, no medical
background or training whatever, just do it as a hobby.

Medical record keeping using Speech Recognition software is
a multi-billion dollar industry, because medical records
HAVE to be kept, for various reasons.

Speech recognition on personal computers is a whole different
matter, which is why I am having such a hard time justifying
using SR at all on my personal computer.

Oh sure, PC/Windows users "keep records", but we are used to
just typing those records in, to save the 200 bucks we would
otherwise have to pay for the "Preferred" Dragon software.

The $99 "Standard" version is useless IMO, missing too much.

Actually I run the $900 "Pro" version here, lotsa time saving
features compared to the $200 "Preferred" version.

Nuance is trying to get $1,400 for the "Medical" version from
their website, a real ripoff. Medical version is just a "Pro"
version with a bigger medical vocabulary.

Poor Mac guys do not have any decent SR software at all.

Mark-

In article <g12f7a$rl7$>, The poster formerly known as 'The
Poster Formerly Known as Nina DiBoy' <> wrote:

> Mark Conrad wrote:
> > I see big bucks being spent for speech-to-text uses in business
> > (billions) - but I question if speech recognition has valid use
> > for us "hobby" users.
> >
> > Anyone here use Dragon NaturallySpeaking for trivial uses?
> >
> > If so, what can it do better than simply banging on a keyboard?
> >
> > Mark-
>
> I really like speech recognition. I use it to reduce strain on my hands
> and arms as I have tendinitis, and it's also my favorite way to interact
> with my tablet PCs over typing or using the pen. Plus it's extremely
> portable - when walking around with a tablet PC, it is much easier than
> using a pen or keyboard/mouse.

I like speech recognition also, just trying to find more uses for it.

There area a lot of pros and cons connected with SR.
(I got tired of writing "speech recognition", so am using SR)

Imagine someone blabbering to their computer in a library.<g>


On the other hand, I suspect I have lost millions of dollars by trying
to remember important phone numbers, or bits of information that
I _thought_ I could remember - - - or just info' that I thought was
useless at the time, only to regret not writing it down when later
I found that "useless" info to be absolutely critical.

Memory is fleeting, especially short-term memory.

Do not put your creative ideas into text immediately, you may
bitterly regret it later.

(assuming that occassionally you produce a brilliant idea)


Down side is that sooner or later you will have to sort and
classify all your "brilliant" ideas, a terrible chore.

Excuse all this rambling.

Mark-

Mark Conrad wrote:
> I see big bucks being spent for speech-to-text uses in business
> (billions) - but I question if speech recognition has valid use
> for us "hobby" users.
>
> Anyone here use Dragon NaturallySpeaking for trivial uses?
>
> If so, what can it do better than simply banging on a keyboard?
>
> Mark-


My problem with the Vista version is that despite several hours of
"Training" it still makes embarrassing errors. By the time I have
dictated a business letter, corrected the errors and proof read it twice
I could have typed it twice. On one occasion the dog barked and somehow
deleted and closed an entire document.

Charlie Tame wrote:
>
> I could have typed it twice. On one occasion the dog barked and somehow
> deleted and closed an entire document.

ROTFLMAO!! Sorry.....<ahem> not funny probably at the time....but the
vision I had of your "What the $*%# happened there??!!!!" expression set
me laughing. :-)

In article <e5Ybvu$>, Charlie Tame
<> wrote:

> My problem with the Vista version is that despite several hours of
> "Training" it still makes embarrassing errors. By the time I have
> dictated a business letter, corrected the errors and proof read it twice
> I could have typed it twice. On one occasion the dog barked and somehow
> deleted and closed an entire document.

Yeah, Dragon seems to be the only serious speech app' that is worth
a damn, and they KNOW it. However even the lowest priced versions of
Dragon suck.

The $200 version ("Preferred") is barely usable, but you have
a fairly steep learning curve, learning what you can get by with
as regards microphones, training the program, correcting mistakes,
creating macros to save time, etc., etc.

$900 "Pro" version is VERY usable, however then you are in the
same boat as I am, trying to figure out how to justify that large
of an expenditure of money for a mere hobby.

All the doctors I know refuse to use anything except Dragon "Pro"
or Dragon "Medical". (medical costs $1,400 nowadays)

They get their money back in a months time, from the savings
by not having to use outside medical transcription services.

Mark-

Mark Conrad wrote:
> In article <e5Ybvu$>, Charlie Tame
> <> wrote:
>
>> My problem with the Vista version is that despite several hours of
>> "Training" it still makes embarrassing errors. By the time I have
>> dictated a business letter, corrected the errors and proof read it twice
>> I could have typed it twice. On one occasion the dog barked and somehow
>> deleted and closed an entire document.

LOL, that's Vista for you!

>
> Yeah, Dragon seems to be the only serious speech app' that is worth
> a damn, and they KNOW it. However even the lowest priced versions of
> Dragon suck.
>
> The $200 version ("Preferred") is barely usable, but you have
> a fairly steep learning curve, learning what you can get by with
> as regards microphones, training the program, correcting mistakes,
> creating macros to save time, etc., etc.
>
> $900 "Pro" version is VERY usable, however then you are in the
> same boat as I am, trying to figure out how to justify that large
> of an expenditure of money for a mere hobby.
>
> All the doctors I know refuse to use anything except Dragon "Pro"
> or Dragon "Medical". (medical costs $1,400 nowadays)
>
> They get their money back in a months time, from the savings
> by not having to use outside medical transcription services.
>
> Mark-

I'm sure Dragon is a much better product than the MS speech recognition
stuff, but I find the SR tools that come with XP tablet edition
imperfect but passible for my personal uses. YMMV.


--
"Fair use is not merely a nice concept--it is a federal law based on
free speech rights under the First Amendment and is a cornerstone of the
creativity and innovation that is a hallmark of this country. Consumer
rights in the digital age are not frivolous."
- Maura Corbett

DRM and unintended consequences:
http://blogs.techrepublic.com.com/se...35&tag=nl.e101

propman wrote:
> Charlie Tame wrote:
>>
>> I could have typed it twice. On one occasion the dog barked and
>> somehow deleted and closed an entire document.
>
> ROTFLMAO!! Sorry.....<ahem> not funny probably at the time....but the
> vision I had of your "What the $*%# happened there??!!!!" expression set
> me laughing. :-)
>
>
>
>

Well she is a miniature pinscher and has a pretty loud high pitched bark.

I am sitting there after educating the machine as instructed for several
hours, and had set about creating some informative documents for work. I
was not having much luck anyway, I think my English accent does not
help, and the dog sees a squirrel outside. YAP YAP YAP and Vista goes
through about 3 dialogs in seconds... do you want to close this document
, save this document - whatever - faster then I could read it.

I am sure it would have looked hilarious, fortunately I was only
"Experimenting" so the dig is still alive

In fact she can repeat this on command...

Now if I could just teach her to hold a pen, who needs Vista ???