"Nuance Unveils Dragon NaturallySpeaking 13 – Enabling More Accurate, Natural and Intuitive Interaction with the PC."

Nuance has just announced a new release of their award winning software, Dragon NaturallySpeaking 13. Their press release is below.

Dragon 13 Boosts Productivity with Built-in Microphone Support, New Modern Interface and Expanded Voice Capabilities for Popular Web Applications

Burlington, Mass. – July 22, 2014 –Nuance Communications, Inc. (NASDAQ: NUAN) today announced Dragon NaturallySpeaking 13 – the fastest and most accurate speech recognition software available for the PC. Dragon transforms the PC experience by turning your voice into text and actionable commands much faster than most people can type. By making navigation and text-entry tasks dramatically faster and easier, Dragon NaturallySpeaking 13 allows you to reach your full potential by helping you get more done on your computer.

Dragon 13 offers a complete voice solution by touching on virtually every aspect of the PC experience – making it easy to navigate, command and control your PC by voice, and supporting fast, accurate dictation for both local applications, such as Microsoft Word, and web applications, including email and social media. And, by leveraging the latest advancements in Nuance speech recognition science and technology, Dragon 13 is faster and more accurate than ever before.

Dragon 13 has significantly enhanced out-of-the-box accuracy, and continues to get smarter as it automatically adapts to your personal writing style and preferences by learning the words and phrases that you use the most. Composing and editing documents, sending emails, searching the Web, updating popular social media sites like Facebook or Twitter – Dragon enables you to use your computer in a comfortable, ergonomic way so that you can use your voice to get more done faster than you would using a keyboard and mouse alone. With the help of Dragon, users are able to continue pushing the boundaries of productivity gains and ease of use with the PC.

Dragon 13 offers support for many microphone options, including, for the first time, microphones built-in to many of the latest laptops, offering greater freedom and flexibility – no headset required. Dragon 13 automatically detects which microphones are available to use, so you simply select your preference and start talking.

Dragon 13 now also supports voice commands and Full Text Control (using your voice to perform direct dictation, text selection or correction and cursor movement within text) in popular web applications such as Gmail, Outlook.com and Yahoo! Mail in Chrome, Firefox and Internet Explorer. For example, simply tell your computer to “Open Internet Explorer,” and from there, use your voice to navigate to Facebook, scroll through your news feed and select photos and links. Or, use your voice to open Gmail, address and compose a message, insert a personal signature and send your note – no typing or clicking required.

Dragon 13 also features a contemporary, intuitive interface and helpful tutorials that make using Dragon easier than ever before. In just four simple steps, you can set up your Dragon profile to get started and experience the speed and accuracy of Dragon 13 right away. Boost your productivity even further by exploring advanced features with the easy-to-use Learning Center, which displays relevant help at your fingertips.

“Dragon NaturallySpeaking 13 offers increased accuracy, improved design and flexibility, and a robust web experience – and that adds up to a more intuitive and productive experience for customers,” said Peter Mahoney, Nuance’s chief marketing officer and general manager for Dragon. “Dragon continues to serve as a complete voice solution for the PC, capable of impressive performance across programs, browsers and applications. Both new and longtime users of Dragon will find their interactions with the PC completely transformed, as they use their voice to get more things done in a faster and more natural way.”

The English version of Dragon NaturallySpeaking 13 Premium will be available for shipping in August followed by the Professional and Legal versions shortly thereafter. Special upgrade pricing will be available for current Dragon NaturallySpeaking registered users. Additional language versions of Dragon NaturallySpeaking 13 Premium and Home will be available later this year.

Watch this space for further updates or contact us to learn more.

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"Which digital recorder to use - Expert Advice"

With a wide range of digital audio recorders to choose from for use with your favourite speech recognition application or paired with transcription software/kits for digital dictation workflow, how can you decide on the right one for your specific needs?

If you are a casual speech recognition user (using Dragon NaturallySpeaking) and want to add the ability to dictate audio whilst away from your PC and have Dragon type it  up for you (yes, Dragon can do this out of the box!) then the Olympus DM-650 or DM-670 are great entry level recorders. Both record in a high quality format that is compatible with  Dragon producing highly accurate transcribed text. They easily fit in your pocket and can store hours of audio before you need to download and erase recordings. They are supplied with Olympus Sonority software allowing you to download, via the supplied USB cable, recorded audio onto your PC. Many Access to Work end-users give great feedback for these models.

For the more professional users i.e. doctors or lawyers, the Olympus DS-3500 or DS-7000 offer more advanced functionality in terms of encrypted recordings & advanced ODMS software allowing you to manage audio recordings for both transcription by Dragon, saving to a network folder or sending onto a transcriptionist via e-mail for digital dictation. The Olympus DS-3500 is a push button device and the Olympus DS-7000 uses a slide switch to operate record, rewind, play functionality. Both devices offer the professional users excellent compatibility with Dragon NaturallySpeaking as well.

For professionals interested in digital dictation, both the Olympus DS-3500 and DS-7000 can be used in conjunction with the Olympus AS-7000 transcription kit. This comprises of a footswitch, headphone and the same ODMS software (supplied with the DS range of Olympus recorders) allowing you to dictate text, dock your recorder, have the audio files saved automatically to a network folder which are then immediately displayed on the transcriptionists’ PC ready for typing up and saving.

It’s also worth remembering that you can use your own smartphone to record you voice for playback and transcription. The Olympus Dictation Delivery Service (ODDS)  manages the transfer of dictations recorded with the Olympus Dictation app for iPhone and Android. In the event unexpected dictation is needed and you do not have your professional voice recorder with you, you can easily record and push the dictation into the organisation's system workflow to get it transcribed before you’re back in the office.

We hope this has given you a flavour of the exciting digital recorder technology enabling you to enhance speech recognition software productivity and integrate digital dictation workflow into you office.

For further information, pricing or to discuss your specific requirements, contact us on 01903 263007 or info@freedom-speech.co.uk.

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"IN YOUR SHOES WEEK"

The Vale School located in Findon, West Sussex is a co-education school for children 4 to 12 years of age. First opened in 1951 the school has grown dramatically over the years and in 2013 a major redevelopment program of the site was completed to upgrade the facilities.

The Vale Schools mission statement is ‘VALUING ALL LEARNING EQUALLY’ and encourages children to participate in the interests of the schools future by running a school council. The school prides themselves on teaching their pupils the life skills and education to play an active positive role in society.

In winter 2013 the school ran a week of workshops focused on raising disability awareness. The week was called ‘In Your Shoes’. The whole school took part including teachers and a charity called Enable Me was invited to provide workshops focused on disability during the week.

Enable Me, based in Littlehampton West Sussex, is a charity that has been working with disabled people and the local community to raise disability awareness and help improve the lives of disabled people.  Since 2005, they have provided workshops for children and other unique activities to provide children with the knowledge of disability through experiencing aspects of disability themselves. The workshops are run by a team of trained volunteers, the majority of whom are disabled.

Pupils at Vale School took part in workshops throughout the week. The children learnt how to paint with their feet and tidy up using their toes. They also worse SIM glasses to experience the effects of a visual impairment and learnt how to get around in a wheelchair.

The children engaged with the disabled volunteers from Enable Me and listened to their experiences. Their reaction was positive. Every child was interested and engaged.

 “I felt sad when i first met someone with a disability but that went away once i got to know them. My favourite activity was curling, it was so much fun and our group was the loudest.” – Zoey (Year 7)

The physical involvement in the workshops meant that the children had fun whilst learning about diversity, personal development and how it feels to be disabled.

“We got the chance to have races in wheelchairs. It was great fun! We also did some curling, which involves skimming a disc with wheels across the floor towards a target. I really enjoyed the In Your Shoes week. I learnt that you shouldn’t judge people by the way the look or speak. Thank you for organising such a thought provoking week.”- Rachel (Year 7)

A disability can occur at birth or later in life. It is an impairment which can be physical, mental, sensory, cognitive, emotional, development or a combination of these. There are over 10 million people disabled in the UK which is approximately 15% of the population. 700 thousand are children under the age of 18.

Vale School has ensured that pupils with a disability have full access to the schools facilities to ensure that the child’s access to education is not affected in any way. Working together with the individual and their family, Vale School ensure that the child feels 100% part of the schools community and that their individual needs are met. The school has wheelchair access throughout.

The results of the In Your Shoes week have been very positive for the children. Their engagement and response to the week has been brilliant.

“All the pupils have been so positive towards the whole experience and the week was a huge success. The children engaged well with all aspects of the week and were keen to ask lots of questions.” – Dianne Neale (Assistant Head Teacher)

“All my friends enjoyed the week and were all really positive about disabilities. I really enjoyed the week and wish it had lasted longer. I feel that all children should have a week to raise disability awareness as we all learnt so much” - Zoey (Year 7)

After the week of workshops, the pupils were tasked with written and drawing projects about the experiences.

The work which was created reflected that of a positive, joyful experience that was both educational and promoted diversity. It is clear that the week has had a positive impact on all the pupils.

“In your shoes week was fantastic! We met different people with different disabilities. On Tuesday we met Alison, who had no arms; she showed us how she managed her daily routine. Such as, putting socks on just with her feet, dusting, cooking and much more! Also, Alison gave us some challenges like to draw with our feet. It was extremely difficult!” – Rachel (Year 7)  

Enable Me ran a competition to create a their new company logo. Entries came flooding in and the results of the week shone through their work. After much deliberation, Morgan Woods was the overall winner. This was announced at an Enable Me event held at the Millennium Chamber, Littlehampton.

Our children of today are our future for tomorrow. By providing access to fantastic educational experiences such as the In Your Shoes week will help to break prejudice and create a society to be proud of.

Freedom of Speech is working with schools to raise disability awareness and to promote the use of Assistive Technology software for pupils with a disability. Breaking the barrier of the disability using Assistive Technology allows a child to flourish and achieve.

We are continuing to work with education establishments and have plans to run various disability focused events in the future.

If you would like to speak with us about Assistive Technology software and raising disability awareness, please get in touch with us.

Together we will provide our children with the right tools to succeed.

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"Which microphone to choose - Expert Advice"

With hundreds of microphones to choose from to use with your favourite speech recognition application (which is hopefully ‘Dragon NaturallySpeaking 12’), how can you decide on the right one for your specific needs?

It needs to suit your environment (whether you work in a quiet or busy office with a lot of background noise), the way you want to wear (or hold) it, whether it works with both your PC and telephone and whether a wired or wireless microphone solution best suits you.

A great entry level wired headset is the Andrea NC-181VM USB headset microphone. It works well in noisy environment by cancelling out background noise, is comfortable on the head and uses a built-in USB adapter to link to a PC.

For entry level wireless headsets, why not try the Plantronics SAVI W440 USB wireless headset. It links to a PC using a USB base unit (which also charges the headset whilst docked). It has excellent accuracy with Dragon and enables you to move around without being tethered to your computer!

If you prefer a hand-held microphone that you can pick up, dictate and put down again, we highly recommend the Olympus DR-1200 handheld USB microphone (compatible with all editions of Dragon NaturallySpeaking/Medical). The unit includes built in trackball mouse and a large microphone on/off button. If you are using Dragon Medical Practice Edition 2, then the Powermic II hand held USB microphone is the microphone of choice. Great accuracy, rugged construction, multiple programmable buttons and enhanced integration into the Dragon software.

If you want to use a headset for both Dragon and making phone calls, the wired preference is the GN Netcom 8050 telephone switch box with a Jabra 2100 headset. A single rocker button allows to switch between dictating to your PC and then talk on the telephone. Compatible with many analogue and digital phones, with good noise cancellation, it’s a great all-round multi-purpose device.

A great wireless telephone switch is the Plantronics SAVI W740 wireless splitter. Giving you the same functionality of the GN Netcom switch, the wireless headset is light, compatible and offers great accuracy with Dragon. A bonus is that it can operate the PC, a landline telephone and also a mobile phone all from the same headset!

We hope this has given you a flavour of the exciting technology enabling you to use speech recognition software productively. For further information, pricing or to discuss your specific requirements, contact us on 01903 263007 or info@freedom-speech.co.uk.

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"What can your Read & Write software do? Taming text-to-speech – Part 2"

Read & Write Gold 11 (by Texthelp) software is great! It’s a literacy software solution for the Desktop, Cloud, and iPad – it helps struggling readers and writers, students with learning disabilities, and English Language Learners access the support tools they need at school, work or home.

Read & Write ensures every learner has the tools necessary to reach their potential, build confidence and independence and succeed. It is perfect for all ages and abilities - schools, colleges, and universities choose Read & Write to provide powerful support features to their students while corporations and individuals choose it for use at home and in the workplace.

However, If you only use Read & Write to have your e-mails or letters read back to you, read on…you may find that this solution is much more powerful than you ever realised.

Pronunciation Tutor
This on-screen tutor helps you visually see how words, including their syllables, are pronounced. The Pronunciation Tutor can be particularly helpful to English Language Learners as it helps in the development of more accurate speech.
   
Simply click the Pronounce icon to show the Pronunciation Tutor. Words are pronounced and syllables displayed.

PDF Aloud
The PDF Aloud tool will read content on a PDF document with each word highlighted as it is spoken.

Simply click on the PDF Aloud icon to launch Adobe Reader. Open your PDF document. On the PDF Aloud toolbar, (located in the Extended/plugin in Adobe Reader X/XI) select ‘click & speak’.

Word Prediction
Read&Write Gold's Word Prediction tool is one of the best on the market. It will learn your writing style and predict the word you may want to use next. As you type, a list of suggested words appears in the Prediction Panel. Definitions of the word are also available and can be read aloud, helping to build your vocabulary and develop your writing skills. Use the Word Prediction feature to help you construct sentences with ease.

Simply click this the Prediction icon to open or close the word prediction window. Start typing and words will be predicted. Use the small arrow button to open options.

Hopefully this has given you an insight into even more powerful benefits of using this really productive application…watch this space for future instalments.

TextHelp Read & Write software is available from Freedom of Speech. We are both a TextHelp reseller and have TextHelp qualified trainers available to train you in your workplace or home. Contact us for pricing and availability.

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"Beta Campaign - Dragon NaturallySpeaking ‘Access to Work’ Edition"

Hello everyone!

Spring has finally arrived. What better way to celebrate the start of the warmer weather than some exciting news?

Our development specialists are in the process of creating the new version of Dragon NaturallySpeaking Access to Work edition. Told you the news was exciting!

Our current version of our Dragon NaturallySpeaking Access to Work edition includes voice commands for:

• Skype, Windows Live Messenger and Internet Explorer
• Read and Write Gold, Zoomtext, SparkSpace and Mind Manager
• Omnipage, PDF Convertor, PDF Reader and PaperPort Professional

It also includes our own ‘Say-It Your Way’  Technology allowing you to rename over 20 commonly used  built-in voice commands.

We want to ensure that future editions meet your specific needs and exceeds your expectations.

Therefore, we would like you to get in touch with us and tell us what software applications YOU would like Dragon NaturallySpeaking Access to Work edition to work with and other areas of your life you wish were ‘voice operated’.

What specific software applications do you want to control by voice?

What features of the current Dragon NaturallySpeaking
‘Access to Work’ edition would you like us to improve on or enhance?

The next version will be developed to include the suggestions made by the top 5 responses received before 1st September 2014 (suggestions will be judged by our development team) – the top 5 responses will also receive a free beta copy of the new ‘Access to Work’ version to test out before it goes on general release.

E-mail us:    info@freedomofspeech.co.uk
Facebook:   www.facebook.com/freedomofspeechltd
Twitter:       @UKFreedomSpeech (use the hash tag #dragonwishlist)
Phone us:    01903 263007

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"What can your Dragon do? Taming the Dragon – Part 2"

Dragon NaturallySpeaking Professional 12 software is great! It lets you dictate text and navigate documents on your PC…just by talking…without touching the keyboard or mouse! But did you know Dragon can automate a host of other really helpful tasks? If you only use Dragon to create e-mails or dictate letters, read on…you may find that Dragon is much more powerful than you ever realised.

Using a digital recorder
The next time you are away from your PC but need to record your thoughts, meeting notes or create letters, grab your digital recorder (the Olympus DM-650 is a great entry level recorder) and dictate away! Dragon NaturallySpeaking (Premium and above) allows you to download audio recordings (created on a compatible digital recorder) and, using the Transcribe button on Dragon’s Extras toolbar, turn this audio file into text on the screen and insert it into any application!

Operate your spreadsheets by voice
Many people find using a spreadsheet application, like MS Excel, daunting. Dragon NaturallySpeaking includes lots of voice commands to make inputting and calculating figures easy and intuitive. Enter text or numbers by simply dictating them and then say “Press Enter” to move down a line. At the bottom of a column of figures, say “Sum Column” to insert the formula to add up all the figures in that column. To move to a specific cell say “Go To Cell B3” (where B3 is the reference of the cell you want to go to). To select a range of cells, say “Select Cell A4 to Cell B9” (where A4 and B9 are the top left and bottom right cells that define that selection). Finally, “Insert a Chart” starts the Chart Wizard (based on the currently selected cells) – if you are happy with a standard bar chart, say “Click OK” and it appears in your spreadsheet!

Access Dragon help topics really easily
You’ve forgotten a Dragon command or want to be reminded how to carry out a process in Dragon. Using the command “Search Dragon Help for <phrase>" i.e. “Search Dragon Help for Dictation" opens the Dragon HELP file on that topic.

Hopefully this has given you a flavour of the more powerful voice commands available to you in this really productive application…watch this space for future instalments.

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