Dragon takes some getting used to… it’s not a product you can simply attach to your work. It requires some getting used to and training if you’re wanting to get the most of your product in the shortest time possible. Our trainers are able to you working with the software from Day 1 and over the course of a few hours of training, which we can do remotely at your convenience, you’ll soon be flying through documents, reports and emails faster than ever before.
While the idea of having your words automatically transcribed makes enough sense and clicks as soon as you see it in action, there are certain rhythms to using the software that require a bit more spit and polish. It’s enough of a hurdle to get used to having a microphone indiscriminately interpreting your words into text. Dragon doesn’t understand English, so it’s more attuned to patterns in speech and performs much better when used in a uniform manner.
It used to be called Dragon Dictate when the software required clear enunciation and responded better to more staggered word-for-word dictation. Somewhere along the line, the product was renamed Dragon NaturallySpeaking by ScanSoft, putting more emphasis on the idea of speaking with a natural rhythm, tone and speed. This was important because Dragon was better equipped to decipher soundwaves when coupled together. Giving context allowed it to get a better semblance of the in-between words. Speaking in phrases rather than one word at a time worked so much better.
This is how Dragon is best suited for use today, having dropped the NaturallySpeaking part to just be Dragon now that the penny has dropped! One tip about using it is that the software works in what we call utterances. This just means phrases separated by pauses. If I said… “this is the story”, paused and then said “of Dragon NaturallySpeaking” that would count as two utterances. This may not seem like a big deal but can be an absolute timesaver when you realise the power you have over these utterances.
Commands like “Scratch That” or “Cap That” can be issued after an utterance to delete or capitalise the phrase respectively. Most voice commands that end with “That” can actually be performed on the last utterance without having to select it. Another protip for using Dragon and utterances is that if you can remember where you paused, you can delete back multiple times by saying “Scratch That x Times” where ‘x’ is the number of the utterances.