Using a digital recorder with Dragon

This article was written by Cheryl Dobbs, an Independent ICT/SEN Consultant and member of the British Dyslexia Association New Technologies Committee, giving her perspective on using speech recogntion software and digital recorders to help with studying.

My reasons for using Dragon NaturallySpeaking with a digital recorder are slightly different from others who purchase speech recognition software. Having returned to part time study I wanted to try to speed up and vary the text input which was going to be required for note taking and assignment writing. Although my typing was fairly accurate and fast, I was increasingly aware of the amount of time I was spending every day staring at a computer screen and the impact on my body on using a computer keyboard and mouse despite all the best attempts with regular posture checks. I was also aware that my occasional flashes (albeit brief!) of inspiration usually occurred at inconvenient moments and not necessarily when I was anywhere near my computer.

The not insignificant cost of purchasing the necessary software and hardware had delayed my “experiment” and although I had read and felt assured that speech recognition technology had improved vastly over the past few years since my earlier attempts, it did not always suit all users. I am also aware that my expressive style seems to “flow” from my typing rather than my speech.

I ensured that my computer was able to cope with the specifications demanded by Dragon NaturallySpeaking and this was the first item to be set up and used. It was relatively easy to do so but would recommend building an allowance for training into your budget so that you can set up the software to your specific needs, learn to use the commands quickly and other useful tips and practices rather than some of the initial hit and miss practices of my early attempts withouttraining. Purchasing a good headphone set, such as those made by Andrea Voice Products, is also strongly recommended.

The Olympus DS-40 was chosen as a good digital recorder for ease of use and for its memory capacity; 512Mb. It is light, compact and fits easily into the palm of one hand and therefore easy to carry around in a bag or pocket. I would also recommend purchasing a protective wallet. There is an option to purchase the recorder with other useful equipment (battery charger and additional microphone for recording lectures) which includes a case which is robust and roomy enough for both the recorder and additional microphones. It is certainly well padded and more than adequate for school or college use. However it may be worth seeking an alternative if you are looking for something more compact.

The controls on the voice recorder are very easy to use and not too small - certainly slightly larger than many found on mobile phones. The system powers up very quickly and the main controls for play/stop/record/pause etc respond very easily to the touch. The recorder is set up with seven folders in total; five which could be used for different subjects/assignments  plus separate folders for both audible and music files, so it is relatively easy to both file and, more importantly, find your recordings again. An ear piece (included) can also be attached.

The DS-40 recorder comes with a comprehensive handbook but I would have found it useful to have an index to the contents in order to locate the key functions that I specifically needed. However, it was very easy to set up and use right from the start.

The recorder downloads easily to the computer via USB cable (included). The files can be stored within the software provided (DSS Player) before running them through Dragon for transcription.

This is where the combination of the Dragon NaturallySpeaking software and the recorder surpassed my expectations. There was no further training required to use the recorder with Dragon Naturally Speaking beyond that which had taken place when it was initially set up. Although I had been using the program with reasonable accuracy when using the voice recorder not only was I now able to dictate my text where and when I wanted but discovered that I was able to complete a piece of writing faster and with greater accuracy with significantly less need to correct poorly dictated or new words.

The reason? I was not being distracted by watching the text appearing on the screen when using Dragon Naturally Speaking directly and checking to see if it was “correct” or to enter punctuation. Unwittingly, I had regularly paused my speech which reduced not only my output but my ideas. More significant however was the realisation that despite my best attempts to use discrete speech I was actually better with the digital recorder as I spoke normally! When I needed to ‘pause’ to collect my thoughts I just pressed pause on the recorder. This meant that Dragon was able to function with greater efficiency.

I also became aware that quite frequently where the text still needed to be corrected I had a tendency to slur certain words or miss the endings of some. This seemed to be caused either through poor pronunciation e.g. when tired or when I was “thinking”. What seemed to work best for me was to write and to add the punctuation through editing once the text had been transcribed onto the screen. The irony was that this technique of “just getting some ideas down” is a technique I have been using for many years with reluctant writers’ and was, for once, practising what I preached!

In summary I have been more than pleased with the financial outlay and the learning curve to use both Dragon and the Olympus DS-40 recorder. Neither has proved difficult to learn to use and they seem to work well together for my purposes. I tend to alternate between days of typing only and using the recorder with Dragon depending on my mood and inspiration. However, I don’t need to be at the computer to work.

The recorder remains in my handbag. It has proved not only useful for study but for all kinds of other uses. Now I don’t spend time scrabbling in the bag for a pen and paper to write something down but for the recorder!

Written by Cheryl Dobbs, Independent ICT/SEN Consultant and member of the British Dyslexia Association New Technologies Committee, April 2007.