Dictation: Your advice, please
Thread poster: philgoddard
philgoddard
philgoddard
United States
German to English
+ ...
Oct 24, 2020

I haven't been using dictation for the last couple of years, but I'd like to start doing so again. I have two questions.

1. I see that Word now has a Dictate facility, but the quality is pretty poor. Will it get better as it learns to recognise my speech?

2. I have a CD of Naturally Speaking 11.0, which was pretty good. Would it be worth investing in the latest version? Would I notice a significant increase in accuracy?

Thanks!


 
Adam Dickinson
Adam Dickinson  Identity Verified
Canada
Local time: 06:23
Member (2016)
Spanish to English
+ ...
Give the Word dictation a miss Oct 24, 2020

Prior to getting Naturally Speaking, I tried my luck with the Word dictation function for a few longer documents. I noticed a moderate improvement over time in recognizing my voice, but the level of quality remained quite low - both in terms of mistakes as well as complete crashes. Word dictation to Naturally Speaking 15 was like night and day (not that NS *doesn't* crash, mind you), but as it was the first time I had used Naturally Speaking, I can't say how it holds up against version 11.

Paula Darwish
neilmac
 
Christopher Schröder
Christopher Schröder
United Kingdom
Member (2011)
Swedish to English
+ ...
No difference Oct 24, 2020

I don’t think Dragon has improved its accuracy notably over the years. It definitely needs less training now, but it’s always been 99.999% accurate for me as long as I talk proper, like.

I think it’s like Trados: all they’ve done over the past 15 years is add features you don’t need.


neilmac
 
Michael Beijer
Michael Beijer  Identity Verified
United Kingdom
Local time: 10:23
Member (2009)
Dutch to English
+ ...
newer versions of Dragon work better with desktop mics than previously Oct 24, 2020

Chris S wrote:

I don’t think Dragon has improved its accuracy notably over the years. It definitely needs less training now, but it’s always been 99.999% accurate for me as long as I talk proper, like.

I think it’s like Trados: all they’ve done over the past 15 years is add features you don’t need.


While there is a certain element of truth to your statement, and Nuance basically hasn't added much (plus I hate the company, but that's another story), between the version Phil mentioned and the latest version, there have been some relatively major improvements in terms of being able to use a desktop mic and still get really good quality. In the past, really good dictation quality usually depended on using a headphone type mic. However, these days you can get away with using a (decent) desktop mic, which is SO much more comfortable to work with, iyam. At some point, they added something called their "Far Field Speech model" (designed specifically for microphones that are farther away from one's face). In the beginning, you had to select this manually when setting up a profile (after first selecting Advanced), but I think that too has been improved in the very latest versions. As far as I can remember, since the new neural engine was implemented, the program does all this automatically now (selecting the best underlying model or whatever). Anyway, for the price, I would say yes, definitely get the latest version.

Michael


Dan Lucas
 
Dan Lucas
Dan Lucas  Identity Verified
United Kingdom
Local time: 10:23
Member (2014)
Japanese to English
Try with the mike you have to hand, then think about investing in a better one Oct 25, 2020

Michael Beijer wrote:
However, these days you can get away with using a (decent) desktop mic, which is SO much more comfortable to work with

I have been working with a desktop mike for a few months and find it somehow liberating compared to wired (tied to desk) and wireless (battery concerns) headset mikes. Recognition seems to be no better or worse than that of headsets.

I agree with Michael that the latest version of Dragon is what you should be using. Version 15.6 should be out soon. Suggest you buy from knowbrainer.com (it's just a download) as they are knowledgeable and provide decent support.

I find Dragon's recognition a bit inconsistent and occasionally downright infuriating, but when I have to type for any length of time I remember why I use it - the discomfort in my hands and wrists comes back with a vengeance. So I work with it.

Dan


neilmac
 
Paula Darwish
Paula Darwish  Identity Verified
United Kingdom
Local time: 10:23
Member (2013)
Turkish to English
+ ...
Thoroughly recommend dragon over word dictation Oct 25, 2020

I thoroughly recommend Dragon over word dictation. I have version 15 professional and have not had any other versions so I can't really compare. But in comparison to word dictation, Dragon is much faster and more accurate, especially as it has a custom learning function. I am not sure if Word dictation learns from your voice in the same way. The ability to train Dragon for certain words is crucially important as a translator. The only downside I have found with my version of Dragon is that you ... See more
I thoroughly recommend Dragon over word dictation. I have version 15 professional and have not had any other versions so I can't really compare. But in comparison to word dictation, Dragon is much faster and more accurate, especially as it has a custom learning function. I am not sure if Word dictation learns from your voice in the same way. The ability to train Dragon for certain words is crucially important as a translator. The only downside I have found with my version of Dragon is that you need a lot of RAM if you are using it at the same time as translation software, otherwise it crashes.Collapse


Christopher Schröder
Adam Dickinson
 
neilmac
neilmac
Spain
Local time: 11:23
Spanish to English
+ ...
Dragon 15 Oct 25, 2020

I've been using different versions of Dragon for several years. Earlier this year I had an issue with the old version (Premium, 11) installed on my main PC, and I wasn't getting much response from the support, so I purchased the Home version 15 which has worked fine since then.

I recently bought a new laptop as well, and my tech guy installed Dragon version 12, which turned out to be incompatible with Windows 10 or Office 2016, so I called the support line and was surprised to find
... See more
I've been using different versions of Dragon for several years. Earlier this year I had an issue with the old version (Premium, 11) installed on my main PC, and I wasn't getting much response from the support, so I purchased the Home version 15 which has worked fine since then.

I recently bought a new laptop as well, and my tech guy installed Dragon version 12, which turned out to be incompatible with Windows 10 or Office 2016, so I called the support line and was surprised to find they answered it right away. I asked if I could install the same version as I have in my main PC (Home 15) and the laptop, and they said yes, no problem, and that it might take a day or so. However, within half an hour they had sent me a link to download the version for my laptop and a copy of my registration details. I was pleasantly surprised because the last few times I had tried Dragon support I got nowhere and ended up turning to Know-brainer.

So, despite their bad reputation, the company seems to be getting its act together - or maybe was just lucky, who knows? Warts and all, it's still better than the Microsoft version, although even that is better than nothing.




[Edited at 2020-10-25 20:37 GMT]
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James McVay
James McVay  Identity Verified
United States
Local time: 06:23
Russian to English
+ ...
Longtime Dragon user Oct 28, 2020

I've been using Dragon speech recognition products for at least 10 years now. I'm currently using Dragon Professional Individual 15.3. My CAT tool of choice is memoQ, which is very compatible with Dragon. I'm using the SpeechWare 3-in-1 desktop microphone, which is very accurate.

I definitely advise investing in the current professional version of Dragon. As a professional yourself, you should avoid the Home version. And has someone else mentioned, you should buy from Knowbrainer
... See more
I've been using Dragon speech recognition products for at least 10 years now. I'm currently using Dragon Professional Individual 15.3. My CAT tool of choice is memoQ, which is very compatible with Dragon. I'm using the SpeechWare 3-in-1 desktop microphone, which is very accurate.

I definitely advise investing in the current professional version of Dragon. As a professional yourself, you should avoid the Home version. And has someone else mentioned, you should buy from Knowbrainer.com. Their support is far superior to Nuance's.

The professional version of Dragon gives you the ability to develop your own voice-activated macros that you can use not only to control your computer, but also to control your CAT Tool. They can be a great timesaver — especially when you combine several steps in one macro.
Collapse


Christopher Schröder
 
neilmac
neilmac
Spain
Local time: 11:23
Spanish to English
+ ...
Horses for courses Oct 29, 2020

Unlike James, I have no problem using the Home version. It is cheaper, and so far less buggy than the more expensive "professional" versions. I suppose it depends on your needs. For example, all that stuff about macros is beyond me. However, I manage to get all my work done without needing to know stuff like that 99% of the time.

[Edited at 2020-10-29 08:29 GMT]


 
Christopher Schröder
Christopher Schröder
United Kingdom
Member (2011)
Swedish to English
+ ...
Home vs Pro Oct 29, 2020

neilmac wrote:

Unlike James, I have no problem using the Home version. It is cheaper, and so far less buggy than the more expensive "professional" versions. I suppose it depends on your needs. For example, all that stuff about macros is beyond me. However, I manage to get all my work done without needing to know stuff like that 99% of the time.

[Edited at 2020-10-29 08:29 GMT]


Funnily enough, I’ve just shelled out £200 to upgrade to Pro after all these years solely so that I can dictate “next” to take me to the next segment in Wordfast rather than use a mouse or keyboard shortcut.

I expect this to save me literally seconds every day.


neilmac
 
Paula Darwish
Paula Darwish  Identity Verified
United Kingdom
Local time: 10:23
Member (2013)
Turkish to English
+ ...
dragon - translation software - RAM burnout Oct 29, 2020

I think a lot of the problems with using Dragon are to do with the amount of RAM it uses. I always had problems with freezing/ crashing when using Dragon with various versions of word and MemoQ. However, having upgraded to a faster RAM, I have had no problems and it works extremely fast. If you want to get into voice recognition I think investing in a computer with large RAM is important.

Christopher Schröder
 
neilmac
neilmac
Spain
Local time: 11:23
Spanish to English
+ ...
Drives me potty Oct 31, 2020

Chris S wrote:

Funnily enough, I’ve just shelled out £200 to upgrade to Pro after all these years solely so that I can dictate “next” to take me to the next segment in Wordfast rather than use a mouse or keyboard shortcut.

I expect this to save me literally seconds every day.


Haha, yes, I eventually gave up trying to get it to write "next" at the start of a line... WTF is that about?


Christopher Schröder
 
Michael Beijer
Michael Beijer  Identity Verified
United Kingdom
Local time: 10:23
Member (2009)
Dutch to English
+ ...
Try this: Aug 27, 2021

https://www.proz.com/forum/speech_recognition/352802-how_to_dictate_into_any_text_field_on_windows_for_free_with_voicenotebookcom.html

works a treat (in any language)


 
Post removed: This post was hidden by a moderator or staff member because it was not in line with site rule
Michael Beijer
Michael Beijer  Identity Verified
United Kingdom
Local time: 10:23
Member (2009)
Dutch to English
+ ...
I now (highly) recommend VoiceMacro! May 6, 2022

PS: I no longer recommend VoiceNotebook (as a Dragon replacement), but am now using VoiceMacro. This amazing little tool, which is free, is extremely powerful and will allow you to do almost anything via voice commands/scripts, and it can even do a decent job at dictating flowing text.

https://www.voicemacro.net/

Here is an extremely good (albeit rather technical) thread about it: https://knowbrainer.com/forums/forum/messageview.cfm?catid=25&threadid=35898&enterthread=y

VoiceMacro

Michael


 


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Dictation: Your advice, please






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