Gene,
I have a MIC ll from nuance, and although it was quite pricey, one feature I love is the little red light that turns on when in dictation mode. I rest it on my desk surface, and use the + button on the far right of my keyboard to turn the dictaphone on and off. The little red light has saved my bacon more often than not reminding me to turn off dictation mode or else sometimes you will get unwarranted voice commands that are hard to figure out, if you talk without realizing the dictation mode is on.
