Voice Recognition Software

[Brian G]

Does anybody know much about this subject? Had any experience with it? If there's something out there that works and is compatble with my reporting system (Borealis) I would love to take a look at it. Typing is NOT my favorite part of this job, nor a particular strength of mine in general. If I could hold down a button, talk, and watch the words appear on the screen, I would be a happy camper.

Brian G.

Yeah, I'm Lazy...What's Your Point? []

[Terence McCann]

Hey Brian:

Played around with it a few years back. It would get hung up on certain words so you would have to annunciate them very clearly and repeat yourself on numerous occasions - finger, f i n g e r, F I N G E R

Got to be a huge pain in the a@@. Found both index fingers were faster.

Perhaps the software has gotten better but I wouldn't waste my money.

[Gerry Beaumont]

Hi Brian,

This response is being dictated straight into this forum, using Dragon NaturallySpeaking 6.0 professional, this program is compatible with all Windows-based applications, and I use it for everything from writing reports, messageboard imputs and instant messaging.

Not only does the convert my voice into the text that you're reading now but also I can voice command the computer in some of its functions.

Like yourself I am a lousy typist, and also think much better when I'm not having to concentrate on using the right keys all of the time !! The software does have some limitations and does take some time to train to your voice and your speech patterns, the new version of NaturallySpeaking is supposedly 15 percent more accurate than the version I'm currently using, so I can see a software upgrade in my near future.

The software costs around $200 and comes with a headset to using you on your computer, I would throw this away immediately and by a higher quality microphone I personally use a headset manufactured by Labtec.

Regards

Gerry

BTW I had to go back and manually correct this post in three areas, if I were using the software with an application like Microsoft Word and spellcheck and grammar check would've automatically corrected at least one of the mistakes the software made in this post

[Jim Morrison]

Gerry also uses a special filter that converts his British voice into American sounding text. When he says: "lift", it actually prints "elevator". "Bangers and Mash Home Inspections" translates to "Encoga Property Management".

Quite brilliant!

[DonTx]

It's scary to think what it might turn Brian's Southern drawl into.

"I had jowls and grits fer dinner"

Translated

"I had growls and #@its after dinner"

Be afraid, very afraid.

Donald

[Brian G]

Originally posted by encoga1

The software costs around $200 and comes with a headset to using you on your computer, I would throw this away immediately and by a higher quality microphone I personally use a headset manufactured by Labtec.

Very, Very Interesting! I'd pay that for something that works, and it sounds like it's not bad. I assume I'll have to make minor corrections in the text here and there, no biggie. I'll Google the Dragon around later and see what I come up with.

Good show, Gerry! Spot on!

Brian G.

English on Dad's Side (Way Back)

[Brian G]

Originally posted by Donald Lawson

It's scary to think what it might turn Brian's Southern drawl into.

"I had jowls and grits fer dinner"

Translated

"I had growls and #@its after dinner"

Be afraid, very afraid.

Hey no problem, I'll just get one of those special filters Jim was talking about. Then when I say:

"I ain't seen nuthin' wrong wif' the floor 'n stuff innat' crawl space.", it'll write:

"No defects were observed regarding the bearing structure, framing, or subfloor during the inspection of the crawl areas."

See, no problem. [] Besides, I can remove the drawl when I need to. I've been a great mimic since I was a kid (I wanted to be Rich Little). Give me 10 minutes with Gerry and I'll sound like his brother

Brian G.

Man of 1000 Voices, Until My Adam's Apple Showed Up [:-apple]

[allspec33351]

Brain

Think about the logistic of voice recognition. If you do your reports on site it can get hairy with sellers, buyers and agents listening.

If you do go with voice recognition get a usb mic.

Oh and speak softly.

Captain

[mcramer]

A here’s what you’re more likely to get a period this footstep just doesn’t really work for a well as he’s been a while lot of time training at

Obviously as needed spend quite a bit more time training the software in order for it to work properly

I think you’d be far better off learning how to type faster

While that last sentence actually came out OK

[Brian G]

Originally posted by mcramer

I think you’d be far better off learning how to type faster

Maybe, but I think it's worth a shot. I found it for $134 in the new 7 Preferred version. You can supposedly dictate into recorders or hand-helds and download back at the PC. It'll even read it back to you. IF I could get it (and me) properly trained, I can imagine some significant time & labor savings in combination with a hand-held. If not, I will have bought $134 worth of wisdom...wouldn't be the first time. Did I mention that I'm lazy? It's like I keep telling my wife, you gotta try new things once in a while... [:-eyebrows]

Oh Captain, My Captain,

I never have a client or a realtor at the inspection, only the occasional seller. They can fuss if they want to, but it wouldn't be smart. I'm that goofy guy who makes a second trip to walk the client through with the finished report and photos in hand. The realtors are almost never at that one either.

Eat your heart out. []

Brian G.

Cutting Edge Inspector (Bad, Lazy Typist)

[kurt]

The software works; it requires training.

The downside is training oneself to speak properly; most people have a big disconnect between the way the talk & the way they write. It's real easy to have rambling reports when one dictates; a little harder if one is typing.

[Gerry Beaumont]

Hi to all,

Kurt has hit the nail on the head:

The downside is training oneself to speak properly

To be able to use this software effectively you first need to know how to speak English, which seems to be something that you guys have lost the knack of in the last 250 years since you kicked us out[]

Jim, are we gonna play nice here ??

Regards

Gerry

[Jim Morrison]

Originally posted by encoga1

Jim, are we gonna play nice here ??

Regards

Gerry

Absolutely. Playful, good natured kidding is encouraged around here. I dish a little, I take a little. It's all in fun.

Life's too short,

[mcramer]

Why don't you just send me the $134.00. I won't even charge you any tax.

My previous post was all voice recognition.

[Brian G]

Originally posted by mcramer

Why don't you just send me the $134.00. I won't even charge you any tax.

Hah! You never answered my post about borrowing your house for a weekend or two (with a stocked bar and fridge), but send you the money? I'll give you the $134 for the two weekends with the stocked bar and fridge, how's that?

My previous post was all voice recognition.

I figured, but whose software, and how old is it? I'm still looking into Dragon, but so far all I'm finding is praise. At the 7th generation, with multiple successful versions for medical, legal, and various languages, I have an idea these people might have most of the bugs out. Hell, I have to proof-read and make corrections now, that won't be new. If I can get 95% of the text on the page without typing a letter, I'm interested.

If you're saying the odds are that it won't be a mainstay of my operation in the long run, I agree. But if it did work out, and I got the right combination of tools to go with it, it might be fantastic. I'll gamble $134 on that.

At the least, it sounds like a helluva toy. I'll use it when I write my acceptance speech for the first Nobel prize for home inspection. []

Brian G.

I Want to Thank All of the Little People, Who Helped Make This All Possible [:-tophat]

[Brian G]

Well, the plot thickens. I found a batch of customer reviews last night (rather than editorial ones) and they were much more varied and detailed. Some directly contradicted others on the exact same points, all agreed on a few things.

All said:

Forget about customer support, since Softscan took over Dragon, it's gone.

Dump the microphone that comes with it (as Gerry noted), it sucks. You must also learn to position it properly, or it has problems picking-up the nuances of your speech patterns.

The command mode (navigating the internet, etc. by voice command) still needs a lot of work.

If you're upgrading from much earlier versions, you can't take any of your established work with you.

Most agreed:

It's a significant improvement over previous versions in most ways, particularly accuracy.

If you stop and correct as you go, the new version "remembers" those and adapts to you. Over time, it gets very tight on your speech patterns (one southerner in there, no problems).

As noted, you must practice with it to gain any real proficiency. Some said as little as a few hours to get rolling just fine, other said longer.

It installed with few or no problems. There were notable exceptions here, which may have to do with the computer / software of the user. If you're in that group, the lack of support is murder.

If you want to use recorders or hand-helds, you must use one of the models rated and approved by Dragon, or all bets are off. It may work with others, it may not.

A Few Said:

It crashes every 2 minutes, literally. Again, this seems to be related the system it's being installed on. Apparently you need a significant amount of ram and a fast processor to run this stuff. If you don't have those, figure in the cost of upgrading when you consider the software ($134 may become a lot more).

That's all I can recall at the minute. I'm gonna dig some more and talk to my computer geek cousin before I decide anything.

This is Brian G. reporting from the internet wasteland, TIJ Network. Back to you Mike...

[monte]

If you have XP ( Home 0r Professional) installed on your computer, try it for voice recognition that is built in to the program . But training any program to the way you speak, is the key. For me, I never seem to pronoun a word the same every time.