Speech recognition software?

Randall_Oelerich

Randall_Oelerich

Veteran
I am thinking of buying and trying out Dragon Naturally Speaking 10.1 (just released, now works with Vista 64 bit which i have; prior versions of Dragon did not). What intrigues me is it can work with bluetooth earpieces, like one i bought for my cell phone but have never used-- i wonder if it could be interested daydreaming on my sofa and dictating scenes, story beats, dialog, etc. and being able to cut the umbilical to my laptop. At least for free flowing ideas, etc. Save keyboarding for the stage after that. A wild crazy idea, just considering it. Curious if anybody has done this?
 
You'll have very little luck with that kind of mic. I tried first with a Jabra BT mic and it was useless. Even with a recommended wireless mic (RevoLabs X-Tag) I have nowhere near as much accuracy with DNS10 than I did with 9 and a USB mic. The mic does work but it's obviously not picking up well enough to get accuracy.

Cheers,
 
I wish there as a trial download of the software, it is really really odd that you can not try it out first before committing, considering the necessary hardware investment also.

I guess one could go the other route-- dictate (even while out in the wilderness) story beats into a digital recorder (I have a Zoom H4 recorder, extremely high end portable digital recorder), then jack that into a laptop or PC and let Dragon convert it into text. I actually kind of like that idea now that I think about it.


simonclivehughes said:
You'll have very little luck with that kind of mic. I tried first with a Jabra BT mic and it was useless. Even with a recommended wireless mic (RevoLabs X-Tag) I have nowhere near as much accuracy with DNS10 than I did with 9 and a USB mic. The mic does work but it's obviously not picking up well enough to get accuracy.

Cheers,
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There are no trial versions available? that does surprise me, I thought I'd seem some over the years - my experience with speech recognition is that it depends very much on the way the user speaks (and thinks), as well as how good the microphone (and sometimes even your room acoustics) are - it takes a week or so to get used to 'dictation', after which some people love it and others refuse to ever use it again.
 
at various times i've tried out SR and let me tell you: don't. the learning curve is huge and then it's totally unreliable after that. among other things, the dream of hitting the couch while speaking your genius is just that, a dream. because if one thing goes wrong, then everything after that goes from bad to worse ... just like in a movie!
then again, i do have a semi recent version of the software that i'd be happy to send you for the price o' shipping!
 
I too had a foray into Dragon NaturallySpeaking. It was interesting, and amusing for a few days, but it just wasn't as reliable as I would've liked. Plus, you have to focus so hard on proper enunciation that a certain amount of thought flow is lost. Now, maybe if you record yourself onto a personal recorder like the H4 and then run that through Dragon... that might be worthwhile. I'm not sure how accurate it will be. But at least you'll have a pristine audio recording as a back-up, as opposed to real-time dictation.

Linter is exactly right too. Usually one missed word snowballs into a bunch. Again, it was fun, but I wouldn't seriously recommend it. Why not just use a personal recorder to note down your thoughts and then transcribe them later? I carry a pocket-sized recorder with me all the time. Much faster than writing in my notepad, doesn't require light to see, etc.
 
Greetings,

I am a noob screen writer and I have some info. I work at Best Buy part time and we sell the Dragon software as well as Sony and other small, hand held recorders which many are now Dragon compatible. Like Randy, I too for some months now after talking to customers who use the digital recorder and the software and say there is a learning curve--for the software. The software will learn your voice patterns and in turn greater transfer accuracy. So, when I give it a try, I will let you know. I had one customer who said his kid didn't write a single paper through college--his kid was dyslexic or something but it worked and he said very well--he bought the upgrade. I think a digital recorder in the pocket is a great idea--after you record, you plug it in and the software dictates the voice data file--now if it works well, that is seriously cool.
 
I use the latest Dragon software, but only when breaking a story, collecting research, character details, etc. Not while writing the script.
 
Last week I gave a 24-hour turn around FULL SCRIPT analysis by going scene by scene, typed that whole sucker out and it wore me out. It was very detailed.

I decided to reinstall my Dragon Naturally Speaking which my son had given me as a gift and now I'm finishing up doing a 2nd FULL SCRIPT analysis by going scene by scene and I cannot tell the the huge difference it makes.

I LOVE this software. I used it to chat on Facebook, Yahoo messenger, type letters on MS Word, if it's a windows program you can use it.

Yes there is a learning curve, but you just need to learn to pronounce things clearly in the rhythm of your own voice (not monotone).

The software just gets better and better.
 
Charlie, what version (10?) and flavor (basic, premium, other) of Dragon are you using? I am on the verge of buying 10, then upgrading to 10.1, wondering if the basic version will suffice.

EDIT: I just ordered 10.0 standard, will give it a try. Only $48 through Amazon. Worth a look I figure. I will need to download the 1GB 10.1 upgrade once I get it.
 
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We should buy stock in amazon, they have nowhere to go but up. Seems like a one stop shopping location. I can seeing buying groceries there eventually, airline and travel tickets. They sure have a lot of my money from over the years!
 
DNS can be a great program. I've been using it on and off since version 5 and it does take some getting used to. You need to be especially diligent about your enunciation and what mic you are using. It is, however, heuristic in that it learns from your speech patterns. The more you use it, the better the accuracy gets. Just remember to carefully proof read what it transcribes.

Cheers,
 
Randall_Oelerich said:
Charli you made my decision to buy Dragon and also the Sony ICD-MX20 digital recorder to go with it so I can dictate digitally and then have Dragon transcribe it.
ps: Kyle, yet more $ off to the land of Zon!
~randall
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Man, you and Kyle's love of Amazon. It's like a torrid love triangle! Interesting note: did you know Amazon didn't turn a net profit until about ten years into its operation?

And tell us how well Dragon does with your dictation when you get it up and running.
 
Eximious said:
Man, you and Kyle's love of Amazon. It's like a torrid love triangle!
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LOL.

Eximious said:
Interesting note: did you know Amazon didn't turn a net profit until about ten years into its operation?
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Sounds about right. Also sounds about how my screenwriting career will go too-- I figure about ten years to sell a feature. But I am willing to give it a try!

Eximious said:
And tell us how well Dragon does with your dictation when you get it up and running.
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Will do!
 
My 3 cent perspective: I love gadgets. They're a blast to toy around with but these gadgets get in the way of writing; at least for me it does. The more gadget/crap in front of me, the harder it is to focus on the real work. For me, gadgets are a sneaky form of procrastination in which I first must solve the gadget before I go about writing. Of course the gadgets take forever to master and so the art must wait, and wait, and wait. I learned a while ago it's basis is fear: fear of writing. Art often is a fearful adventure for me. I think writing makes all of us nervous because we want to produce something that resonates deeply, and we want everyone around us to be estatic and thrilled. Even pro screenwriters go through this. Gadgets soothe the fear for the moment but after a while once again we see the empty page and our internal dragon reappears to chase us away.

I like pencil & paper. It's portable, cheap and reliable. I also use lots of Post-Its. That's my high tech gadgetry up until I'm ready for the 1st draft. At this point my hard core gadgeting (computer work) starts with the rough/vomit draft using FD or Celtix, and then onward to the rewrites.
 
True. The best writing time I had was at a local Caribou Coffee shop *before* they got free wifi. The internet wifi availability is a huge distraction, temptation. I think I could spit out a first draft if I just rented a remote beach hut somewhere that did not have internet or phone, just electricity for the laptop.

But that said, I have to drive 4 hours to visit my mother a few times a year, and I am thinking those 8 hrs of driving each trip could become productive if I could dictate scenes while driving the highway. Or dictate while out for a walk to burn some calories, sorely needed when sedentary much of the day writing and also earning my living with my day job also at the laptop.
 
Guys,

You will not regret buying the software, as a matter of fact everything I'm typing now is through Dragon NaturallySpeaking software.

The interesting thing as after not having used to software for such a long time I still remember the commands and that is saying something about this product in how easy it is to use and to remember how to use it.

I have an older version of the software I no longer have the box I don't even have the manual I just kept a quick study guide and that's pretty much all I need.

So enjoyed the software and your wrists will love you forever and I swear you be able to use it on all of your Windows programs.

Okay so I used it on facebook chat the other day and not all of the words came out right but each time you close to program it takes what you did that day and remembers it so trusts me it will get easy urine easier in time.
 
I teach all by internet, so that on top of writing scripts, and emails, and dvxuser, i think i need something like dragon to drop the workload on my carpal tunnel and all that; oh yeah, and gaming, hehe, gotta save some tendon stress for gaming, so i am looking forward to dragon, at least giving it a try!
 
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