Voice Recognition Software

JamiSaint

Hey there,

Can anyone help me out? I'm a student so have to make notes and write essays so want to invest in a voice recognition program. The two I can find so far are IBM Via Voice and Dragon Naturally Speaking. Has anyone used either or any other programs?

Thanks!

Jamie

andyrew_2

:j
I have just purchased and installed Dragon Naturally Speaking 7.3 off E-Bay and used it for the first time last night to help my wife type out an essay for college.

I used this software previously and and did some checking about whether it was still the best and it is. It isn't perfect but I dictated about 11 pages in about 30 minutes but I then had to make any corrections which took about another 1/2 to 3/4 of an hour which is still quicker than I can type and correct as well.

You have to spend about 30 minutes training it first but it trains itself as you use it after that. Very useful and I picked it up for just £26 plus postage & packing. Make sure you get the preferred version.

Worth the money but make sure your PC is fairly fast, plenty of memory and a microphone. If you have lots to type it is quick!!

JamiSaint

Thanks guys, one final question: is the preferred version of Dragon that much better than the standard version? It costs £40 more.

Thanks! :j

DVB_3

http://www.scansoft.com/naturallyspeaking/matrix/

I would answer "yes". In my opinion, the ability to dictate "off-line" and have it all recognised in bulk is worth a lot, not to mention other enhancements.

wealthsaver

JamiSaint wrote:

Can anyone help me out? I'm a student so have to make notes and write essays so want to invest in a voice recognition program. The two I can find so far are IBM Via Voice and Dragon Naturally Speaking. Has anyone used either or any other programs?

What subject are you a student in? I can think of some instances where the standard dictionarys included with the personal or basic versions of such software may struggle with terminology used in some subjects.

A few years ago when I worked in the IT support at a hospital, one of the medical staff was evaluating the performance of such software and found that a lot of the medical lingo was not recognised. Additional dictionaries could be purchased but at extra cost.