Dragon NaturallySpeaking Premium 11 [Old Version]

Though Ive had the product since January Im unable to actually give it a review as my efforts at installation and activation have been unsuccessful.Reaching the customer service department at Nuance by phone has been an exercise in futility,and even their email is set up to say youre message wasnt sent because of an error,but not what the error was. I havent given up on it,though,and have hope of putting it to good use when I get it working. On a more positive note,I am able to give Amazon a review,and its a good one.You guys are the best.Many companies run well,but few are as well run,taking care of business not only with attention to detail,but with courtesy,honesty and goodwill as well.It is a genuine pleasure doing business with you.If America were as well run as Amazon,Id have a lot more faith in our future. Sincerely,mover1414,Palm Springs,California

I use this amazing program on a Gateway 11.6 screen netbook when at work, and a Dell Latitude D630 laptop at home, both with Vista operating system, and it works well on both. I dictate progress notes for my caseload, observation reports, and complete my daily detailed log in a Word Table, all on Word 2000 (hey, I still have it, it still works, its free and no Ribbon clutter or confusion...). But it is still a work in progress. No matter what people say, there is a steep learning curve. It took me a long time, with no help from Help (I figured out it on my own, but you can read the description of how to say individual letters in the Vocabulary Editor), to learn how to dictate client initials such as BW, or XR, (one way is to say: Capital B capital W all run together), without getting such things Bee W, and XAre. New line is what I have to say when I want New Paragraph, because the latter inserts an unwanted blank line. Big mistake to follow Dragons suggestion to have Dragon scan all my existing Word documents--now the Vocabulary lists oddities such as A-Possible when, in the past, I did a one-time list that showed A-Possible Case, B-Current Case, etc. It (or my systems) seems to be very fussy about microphones--a USB microphone did not transmit sound back on the laptop, and really screwed up the netbook to the point I had revert back in time on the computer to before where I installed the microphone, and now have 4 different user profiles. You cant delete User Profiles without help from Dragon tech support, and I have not bothered. A Plantronics headset works well on the Dell, and a CyberAcoustics works well on the Gateway, but not the other way around--again, I am going with the flow and not tinkering to find out why. Oh--did I mention the supplied headset broke the first time I put it in my rolling cart, it was so flimsy? The others are holding up fine, but because my systems or Dragon or both together are so fussy, I bought spares of each. The paperwork part of my job is dreadful--probably yours is, too. And it gets worse each year as the taxpayers want more documentation of what we do, until there will be no time left to do anyting but document documenting. This has really helped me because it is fun, convenient, and interesting. It has not, however, saved any time yet--I purchased this in December 2010. That is because of the steep learning curve of the program. Setting up your system and figuring out what settings you like is a major time hit (do you want a beep every time there is a recognition--I do, but maybe you wont, etc., etc.) Finally, like other reviewers have said, you really do have to think about what you say first. Otherwise, it types your stumbles--no second chances to correct things until it finishes typing what you said. Furthermore, the program is so cognitively sophisticated, it figures out what words you mean from context, thus from listening to and making deductions from what comes AFTER the word. So a whole phrase, or whole sentence, helps speed its processing. Leaving Dragon loaded with the Microphone Off, and the netbook in Sleep mode, I can readily stop and dictate something when I have a few minutes. Otherwise, it takes Dragon, not to mention Vista, a long time to load from scratch. I am glad I bought this program. I have shown it to others, who are impressed, but no takers yet--money and time hit, I think. And unlike others, I could not figure out how to dictate this review using Dragon. I wish the price would stop bouncing around--its a lot cheaper now than when I bought it at $146, then it was $189, now only $130?

This is my first experience with voice recognition software and overall I like this product. I describe it as comprehensively helpful because it does allow me to get a lot of text into a document or program in very little time. I bought it to enable my thought/creative processes, and Im satisfied with my increase in production. I will also say that it is technically fickle because despite the fact that I have a high-end Plantronics headset, robust computer, and no vocal accent, it still makes some pretty silly errors. I didnt think it would take so long to adapt to my voice, given its version 11, but I guess there are a lot of bells & whistles I havent tried yet that will ultimately make it a great tool.

I am envious of the reviewers who had no trouble with installation. I believed, since I have a new, clean Windows 7 64 bit system, that I too would have such an experience. Outside of the fact that everything Ive ordered recently from Amazon seems to have some delay in shipment, I am extremely frustrated with this product. I used Dragon 9 on my old laptop to dictate my patient notes. While not flawless, it saved me several hours a night on charts. Upon purchase of a newer laptop, I could not (nor could anyone else) get Dragon 9 to work. After reading the reviews here and elsewhere, I ordered Version 11 Premium. 6 hours later I am still unable to install the product due to various Errors (many of which appear to be searching for a file on my C drive). My IT savvy friends are unable to install the product. Nuance Customer Service tells me there must be some other program preventing the install. Perhaps that may be true, but its hardly service to tell me theres a problem and not offer a solution. I am also not pleased that the software arrived without a manual - when I pay nearly $200 for a product I expect something more than a trifold card with quick and dirty instructions on it. The box does not even appear to be a standard manufacturers. I have faith that the seller will right things for me, but I suspect this will mean returning the item (and yes, I am aware that Windows 7 comes with its own VR software, but it doesnt work well either Ive learned).

First of all Im writing this review with Dragon. Right out-of-the-box with a little training I was getting far more accurate text than when I type. Not sure how to measure but mistakes are few and far between. When I first considered purchasing Dragon I was concerned with the several negative reviews. I was encouraged however with a response from Nuance indicating that they would refund the purchase. I went to the link and saved it just in case. Sometimes I do notice that it becomes very slow. Keeping an eye on my task manager I find that some other program like Carbonite is running at the same time. So I can simply kill that program and continue. I keep my CPU monitor open so that I can keep track of any conflicting programs that might be running. So my experience has been very positive and consequently I recommend it without reserve. Incidentally, I first installed it on XP and then upgraded Windows 7. Dragon performed well with both operating systems.

I installed this today and after a few hours, tons of searching for a solution online, and plenty of messing with my computer settings, I am throwing the towel in. I continually get an error message that the Sound Level is Too Low and I cannot even get past the profile setup wizard due to this error. The headphones included with the software are either junk, or the software itself has an error with Windows 7. A user forum I was reading mentioned that if you call Nuance with this problem they will spend plenty of time making sure you checked all the obvious solutions, then they apologize and tell you they have a software glitch they are working on. I havent subjected myself to this process, and I dont plan on it, either. No product should require this much work just to get it to function adequately. Well, a glitch working with Windows 7 is a big deal. I am computer savvy, I can build a PC from parts, I can install software, I can change system settings in Control Panel, and I can troubleshoot simple problems better than most computer users. I checked every single listed solution I was able to try, and I simply cannot get this software to run properly. If this is a known bug, as it seems to be, then this product should not be sold as compliant with Windows 7. I am returning this, there is no way I plan on spending even more time and effort getting this to work. I checked the microphone function with the Windows Sound Recorder, and while it is a bit low, it records just fine. So, either the issue is the included headset (hopefully Nuance is not hair-brained enough to send out a faulty headset that will make their software look like garbage) -or- the problem is that their software is buggy and doesnt run properly on my new, clean, non-buggy computer.

great product, no complaints works well for what i am after. dictation works much better than transcriptions (more accurate), so be prepared to do more proof reading and rewriting when transcribing audio, but it does the job. one tip is to specify shipping address that is open after you get off work. i work mon to fri 8 to 5. they ship from 8 to 7 pm.

If you lose your CD you are done for. I am told by thier online store (they issue the dowload version for replacement) also general customer support ..that they offer no download for those who do not buy directly from them. I consider lack download service to ALL customers stealing in 2013. They wanted me to buy another CD. I am not kidding. Ive got the Amazon reciept in front of me. I dont like it but have to use it. I am forced to download an unaltered .ISO (illegal? hahaha!) to install it. I need it because I am a developemntally disabled adult who has trouble communicating day to day and staying on track. My mother is in an terrible situation requiring me to write Adult Protactive Services in Oklahoma; a conservative Right To Work state with social service job-soakers. Ive got to fight for my mother by writing officals and authorities. Thanks Nuance?? I will PIRATE your softwares from now on if I have to make the crack myself and there is no better help available.

This is definitely an improvement over earlier versions. We got a high quality microphone that made a difference in using this. It just needs some time for system to understand an individuals speech. Recommended

Dragon Naturally Speaking Premium 11 is a good product, but it is not for the faint of heart and it is not for damsels who distress. I bought this product for my girlfriend because she wanted to consider typing more e-mails and possibly journalizing but had no familiarity with the keyboard. Fortunately I am computer savvy so I was able to set it up for her and show her the basics of operation. Set up would have been extremely difficult of the non-savvy person. After loading, one needs to learn to master the Dragon. This includes their training practicing but it includes a lot more afterwards. It takes a long time to learn that one can just speak into the microphone which was included, but one would not necessarily want to. Because of the lag between what is said and what the Dragon types, it get the speaker all out of timing if they watch the screen while talking. And after one or more paragraphs, one can someimes forget how they phrased it originally when trying to decode the words of the Dragon. And the paragraphs will need to be decoded. I found out that the best way to work is sentence by sentence rather than paragraph by paragraph. Speak a sentence, and then turn off the dictation. Wait a minute and then see what the Dragon types. Then you should correct it before turning on the dictation and going on to the next sentence. It makes for a long and laborious process but it is better than trying to decode an entire paragraph. It takes some time with any sophisticated program to learn their ideosyncracies. And that is true with Dragon. It has its ideosyncracies (like how it begins each transcription with your first word) but they can be learned with perseverance. One needs to be prepared to persevere. If one trains the Dragon in a constant improvement mode, then over time it does get better.