A Dragon Naturally Speaking question...

1226 Views 10 Replies 7 Participants Last post by Tracie, May 9, 2015

Tracie

Discussion Starter · May 6, 2015

So, I now have my dragon. I've followed all the instructions for training it and it seems to work well when I wear the headset and talk/write that way, but what I'd really like to do is use a voice recorder as I commute and transcribe it later. I've tried that as well and my final product looks like gibberish. I did follow the directions to train it to transcribe voice recordings, and I've visited a few sites (including Nuance) to read up on tips, but I would really like to hear from users I trust (on kboards) on how to best utilize the voice recorder option. Do I need to say the commands on the recorder like I do when I'm speaking? Will it work the same way? (it didn't seem to when I tried simple commands, like NEW PARAGRAPH and TAB.)

Thanks for any help you can offer. I really want to be more productive with my writing and use my work commute to do that.

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Lucas

· #2 · May 6, 2015

What kind of dragon? There's the dragon premium mobile, 300$ (Google it). Sadly, I don't have anything to say in synergestic use of a recorder and dragon. Haven't tried it yet.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

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Elizabeth Ann West

· #3 · May 6, 2015

I've never used new paragraph or tab. I say "New Line" and you have to make sure you pause. There's a rhythm to get down when you speak into the recorder. Also, if you have a ton of background noise, it will be gibberish.

I have a second-hand professional recorder, but it works great. I once tried to dictate while emptying the dishwasher and it was a hot mess. I just noticed my recorder has a feature I've never tried called noise cancelling, I'll have to try that.

But yes, you do say the commands when you dictate and have it transcribe, and as long as you have a beat between the story and the command, like you would on a head set, it will do that.

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Marcus Richardson

· #4 · May 6, 2015

When I use my digital recorder, I only say punctuation and use "new line". It looks ugly in DragonPad after transcribing, but when I copy and paste into Scrivener, I make sure to select "paste and match style", and it comes out just fine.

I did the recommended training on the recorder and have done little else other than to add words (character names, etc.) into the vocabulary file.

Transcribing commands never worked for me, so I dont even try and I get along just fine

In fact I would say (no pun intended) for me the commands are the weakest part of Dragon. I just spew out raw text and make it pretty in Scrivener. For me, it's way faster that way.

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Victoria LK

· #5 · May 6, 2015

Marcus Richardson said:
When I use my digital recorder, I only say punctuation and use "new line". It looks ugly in DragonPad after transcribing, but when I copy and paste into Scrivener, I make sure to select "paste and match style", and it comes out just fine.

I did the recommended training on the recorder and have done little else other than to add words (character names, etc.) into the vocabulary file.

Transcribing commands never worked for me, so I dont even try and I get along just fine In fact I would say (no pun intended) for me the commands are the weakest part of Dragon. I just spew out raw text and make it pretty in Scrivener. For me, it's way faster that way.

I thought I was cheating by doing this, glad to know I'm not the only one!

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Tracie

Discussion Starter · #6 · May 6, 2015

Thank you all for the hints. Elizabeth, you inspired me to purchase dragon and try to be more productive. I'm still having trouble talking out my story, but I'm not going to give up. I want to be successful at it. I just get stuck because I'm used to stopping and thinking about what I want to write next. I've learned to pause the recorder and do the same thing, it's just going slow.

Marcus, I didn't know about the Scrivner cheat. I use Scrivner too and I'll give it a try.

Any more tips would be appreciated.

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Elizabeth Ann West

· #7 · May 6, 2015

You don't have to pause the recorder. And try closing your eyes and try listening to music so you can't hear yourself talk. See if that makes it easier.

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Marcus Richardson

· #8 · May 7, 2015

I also walk while I dictate. I'm one of those people that just think better when I walk and talk (be it on the phone or with Dragon). I listen to music too....either on the Pandora app for Roku or on my phone (I plug the Mic cord from my Dragon headphones into my recorder and the speaker cord into my phone). However, my ears hurt after dictating for a while--the OEM headset is just too small for my head, so I hang it around my neck instead and just adjust the Mic to still be in the proper position. I look ridiculous like this, but hey, the dog doesn't care and as long as I'm selling books, neither does my wife!

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Michael Deed

· #9 · May 8, 2015

If you don’t do it already I would recommend a wireless mike with Dragon. You can then both sit down and walk around which keeps your energy levels up. I lift my monitor up on a wooden stool when I walk around so it easier to see.

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Nancy Warren

· #10 · May 8, 2015

Maybe try the digital recorder when you're not driving, in a quiet place to see if that helps. I have become a real fan of the digital recorder. As I've become more comfortable, I find dictating, "comma, close quotes, he said, period, new line strangely helps. I think it gives that tiny bit of time to think through the next line. I'm using Dragon Dictate for the Mac and while I love it am tempted to buy a PC and Naturally Speaking because so many people swear it's that much better.

Any thoughts?

I started using Dragon because of a torn rotator cuff and frozen shoulder OUCH. But I think I'll continue with it. I love the process, except my throat gets sore after a while and my voice goes. It's always some damn thing!!

Nancy

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Tracie

Discussion Starter · #11 · May 9, 2015

I think I realized part of my problem is I have a slight southern accent (when I speak "I" into my recorder it transcribes as "a") and I am training my dragon for an American accent (I have DNS 12). I'm going to retrain it this weekend for the American southern accent and see if it helps. BTW, it follows my commands fine from a recorder.

Thanks again for the suggestions.

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