Nuance Dragon Dragon NaturallySpeaking Home 13 (Old Version)

I have only been using this for one day, but I must say that so far I find it incredibly functional and easy to use. My microphone is Sennheiser PC 25-S. I am speaking naturally, without having to awkwardly enunciate all my words, and the accuracy is really high, 90% or more. Whats great, too, is that telling it to correct is easy. The user interface is helpful, and prompts you in straightforward intuitive ways. I look forward to working with this more, especially as the program is learning my speech patterns and vocabulary. I purchased this after reading a lot of user reviews, and after trying to use the built in Windows speech recognition (which totally sucked! even though I was using the same quality Sennheiser microphone and spoke clearly and slowly-- accuracy rate at best was 40 to 50%-- very frustrating). One thing that was a hitch, though, was that the program did not install properly from the CD disc onto my Windows 7 Pro 64 bit desktop. But a quick call to Nuances tech support solved the problem. They walked me through discovering that, in my case, it was a .dll error, the solution to which was to uninstall, then download a new installer online which they sent me a link to. That installation went smoothly and I was immediately able to work through dictation! Whew, I am so glad! This is an important first step for me to heal from the bad tendinosis I have in both arms from too much typing and mousing!

Dragon Naturally Speaking Home Review I bought this one because it was the cheapest, but didnt consider the add-ons 1. Headphones ( the ones with two prongs and mic) 2. special connection jack 3. second special connection jack since the first one didnt fit my computer. It takes an hour to upload. I also had to watch Youtube videos to install the voice recognition mike and software, which I did. Ran through the tutorial, which shows you many things you can do--only to find out my version didnt do it. I went to the Chrome store and added a dictation box, since the software is made to work with Internet Explorer. On the introduction, I could choose from Southern American, Spanish Accented English, British English, and Standard. I chose standard, but soon found out certain words with U, OUR, or OU the the software had no clue what I was saying. I did talk slowly, ennunciate, and in full sentences. It also has an issue with homonyms. It spelled dawn as Dawn and Don. I could not use quote marks because my version didnt support it. I have read online that I can go into Microsoft office and tweak a few things, so I might try that. The home version is good for writing emails and searching the web. These were never things I had issues with. In the end, it made more work for me.

Love this program. Exactly what I needed and expected. Installed onto my 8.1 Windows without any fuss or hick ups. Runs smoothly.Though I use my Logitech Wireless, It did come with a pretty sturdy wired headset of its own. Good to know if I ever need a back up its there. Fast and precise. Mainly bought for score to make essays and reports a breeze and yet Im able to instantly note any random thought, spontaneous idea, or random rhyme that may come to mind. Hides almost unnoticed at the top of your screen and blooms out when you need it. If you want a hands free service for school, business or just pleasure then this is what you need. Favorite Perk: All around fast program.

So far so good. Ive been using the Windows Speech Recognition program that was built into Windows 7 (my current OS) but comparing Dragon to the Windows program is like comparing a Lexus to a Model T. They both do pretty much the same thing but Dragon does it FAR better. Some of the advantages of Dragon: It is intuitive, whereas the Windows program doesnt seem to be, at least not nearly as much. For instance, when dictating (for example) the weather was fair today Dragon anticipates the meaning based on the context and will print fair rather than fare, a problem that was chronic with the Windows program with many similar-sounding words. It learns: the more you use it the better it gets. Ive had mine for only a few weeks and it is already much better at transcribing what I say. The commands seem to be designed for speed. For example with the Windows program if you want to capitalize a word or phrase you need to speak the phrase, then go back and highlight the word/words you want capitalized and say capitalize. With Dragon, just saying cap before the word will capitalize the word. Other commands make equal sense. Some of the commands in Dragon are similar to the ones in the Windows program (and can work interchangeably) but with the ones that are different the Dragon versions seem much speedier. The Text Box. With the Windows program there were applications that wouldnt accept dictation, in which case youd need to open MS Word, speak your text and after it was written, cut-and-paste it into the document in your other application. With Dragon, it instantly recognizes when it cannot type into an application and will bring up a text box that allows you to dictate your text. When finished just use the transfer command and Dragon posts it into your document. Problems? The instructions with the program tend to over-complicate things, but if youve used the windows program there is enough similarity so that once youve loaded Dragon you can use it immediately. However there are enough differences so that unless you really read the instructions and understand Dragon, you wont get nearly the speed out of it that it is capable of delivering. Also, I ordered the package deal with earphones and Dragon for Dummies--but if you do this please note that at least with the package I got, the Dragon for Dummies included was for Version 12, not Version 13 (which was the version of Dragon that I got) and there seemed to be enough differences so that the book, while helpful, is not the resource that it could be if it were based on the current version. Also note that the dragon software itself comes with a set of earphones (which I didnt know), so now I have two sets of earphones for the program, neither of which I use because of the analog connections (I have a USB set that is far superior to either of the two included with my order). All in all, a very good bang for your buck and light-years ahead of the program I was using. Just be sure what is in the package you are ordering.

I have used Dragon since version 8. It had been pretty hit and miss back in those days. Version 13 is pretty tight. I very rarely swear at it like I did in the old days. : ) I am a writer and it makes it a breeze to do the rough draft of stories. Intricate editing not so much. But for me that is a huge time saver. One big improvement is getting a new headset. WARNING. Just because you think a headset is good doesnt mean that it is good for Dragon. There is a great company to help with finding it because Nuance is no help here. I have had great experiences with KnowBrainer.com. They help handicapped people use Dragon to enhance their lives. KnowBrainer has a list of headset microphones that work the best with Dragon. For example I bought a set of Sennheiser headsets which are normally a great brand. Well they werent very good for Dragon. One down side is Nuance is not the best with support. Dragon software has been sold a few times. And sadly support has not improved with the new companies. I will say that it has been rare that I have needed support.

I live with a disability that prevents me from using your standard keyboard with relative ease. Dragon NaturallySpeaking has been a bit of a lifesaver, for me. Granted, there are some issues with the way it understands me (even after Ive trained the program, twice). However, as far as speech to text goes, this program is the best! I also think that the fact that Im using a web cam microphone might be why Im having some of the issues that I have. The software does come with its own microphone headset, I just dont use it because it keeps me tethered to the computer. If anybody can recommend a good wireless microphone headset (or microphone) that I can wear with my bowler hat, Id be appreciative!

It really is worth buying

I am a Computer Tech and I use this for emails and creating detailed Trouble Tickets. Mostly this is pretty good, but sometimes it misunderstands me. As I said, I am a PC Tech. I can be doing Tickets for clients and say Installed a Printer. Instead of the typed message, Windows opens the New Printer Wizard. Once I said Rebooted the PC and DNS almost rebooted my PC. Ive tried turning off the Commands portion, but that does restrict the functionality of the PC. BTW, it does not type curse words. You still have to delete the gibberish, but at least it is not profane. :)

I am writing this review using DSN 13. I had a very hard time downloading the software onto Windows 8.1. Thus the reason why I am giving it four stars. When I tried to install I kept getting a message saying the installation was interrupted and unable to finish. I searched on the Internet for fix actions and found one that worked for me. Create a guest account on your computer and install DSN 13 to that guest account, it took it a little while to start the download but it worked on the guest account and Im able to use it on my primary account. This is the link I found the fix action in http://nuance-community.custhelp.com/posts/c5c9614e18 hopefully this will work for some of you that are having a hard time downloading the software. Also on a side note I never had any previous Dragon software before this. The software itself I give 5 stars! I have had no issues with it after the install.

I have been using Dragon Naturally Speaking for years. Over the years, most cell phones, iPhones and Androids have automatically come with constantly improving voice to text apps, but not Windows. Dragon soft has a learn period that cell phones dont seem to need, but Dragon soft has a much greater features list. For straight up composition, Naturally Speaking performs well, allowing you dictate a document with very few errors. In a direct test against Kindle, I found that the supplied Kindle app actually performed better fewer errors, provided you dictated with enunciated with sharp clear speech. That is the first place where Naturally Speaking differs from cell phone speech apps. Naturally Speaking learns your voice, slur and mumble patterns, and allows you to dictate in patterns that are not clear, sharp dictation. Secondly, Naturally Speaking uses quick voice activated boo-boo and editing commands: erase that, highlight that, and sentence removal commands. Personally, I still prefer to get it right the first time, so I cant help but try to enunciate well the first time. The ONLY reason that I dont give it 5 stars is that there are SO MANY commands, that sometimes (OK, rarely) you accidentally hit a command in normal dictation. It can be a little overwhelming. Nevertheless, I dont know what I would do without this program.