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I've just got DNS the medical edition. Can someone tell me how I can integrate that with AC, or does it do it automatically? Thanks in advance.

Works pretty much out of the box. Get the cursor into the box you want to dictate in on the screen and start talking!

There IS a bug, and occasionally Dragon will hit the inch/cm button for height and attempt to put your dictation in there. Annoying but not fatal, and I suspect the bug is on Amazing Chart's end, but haven't had time to dig into it yet. (It has to do with Dragon's ability to change focus, and the tab number of the button, etc, in Visual Basic)

The short answer is it works fine - I'm using it here on a daily basis.

Regards,

V.

Ditto to what Vinny said. I just have the cheapo version and it does fine. It does sometimes have problems with homonyms which is where I think the "bug" Vinny referred to comes in to play. The same thing happens to me with the "inch/cm" button and only happens on the dictated words "and" or "in". I think DNS is interpreting those words as "inch" and using it as a command which then moves the cursor to that box. It can be annoying, but not fatal. Overall way better than typing for those of us who just hunt and peck!

Thanks for all the replies. I'm looking forward to giving it a shot this week. I used the original about 10 years ago, and am anxious to see if it has improved much over that period of time.

Does anyone use any other type of microphone other than what comes in the box. I've been looking at some of the desk types just so I don't have to take my headset on and off between patients.

I have solved Vinny's "inch bug" (well, technically it's a workaround, but it's a solution for me).

In the Dragon Command Bar, go under "Tools", then "Options", then click on the "Commands" tab, then check "require 'click' to select menus & controls".

Now if you want to voice-navigate to that "inch/cm" box, you have to say "click in" instead of just "in".

The "down side" of this (if you want to call it that), is that you have to say 'click' before any other program commands you want to use (i.e. say "click save" if you want to save, say "click print" when you're ready to print, etc.). However, I prefer having to take that extra step, rather than having DNS operate program controls unpredictably.

Regarding the microphone, I use the "Logitech Premium Stereo Headset with Noise-Canceling Microphone" with a USB connector which cost $20 at Wal-Mart. It is uncomfortable on my ears, but the sound quality is so much better (and the accuracy is so much better), I am sticking with it until I can come up with a better one. Many people say that the headset which comes with the program should be placed in a drawer for an emergency back-up only.

I have been using Dragon NaturallySpeaking Medical 9.5 for months now and I am very happy with it. I am still finding my rhythm, as far as what kind of items I like to make AmazingCharts templates for and what kind of things I want to dictate. There is a balance between time-savings and accuracy. I also don't like my notes all seeming too mass-produced and impersonal.

Here are some links and forums related to DNS in general, and microphones in particular. Cruise through these and you will find some good tips.

http://www.voicerecognition.com/board/index.php?
http://www.emicrophones.com/articles/index.asp
http://www.knowbrainer.com/PubForum/index.cfm
http://www.pcspeak.com/hints/#hints

Thanks for the "solution" to the inch problem Brian! I agree that the in box microphone should be put away. I am using the Plantronics DSP 500 as a headset. Kind of pricey but gets good reception for voice, fairly comfortable and has great sound for music/games/whatever (love these dual purpose devices!). DNS needs the volume of your voice at a fairly constant level, so I think the headset makes more sense than a desktop mic.

Brian,

THanks! I'm going to play with this tomorrow. I'm using the headset that came in the box..all the way from China.. and so far it's ok. Going to shop for something better soon though.

V.

I sometimes use DNS Professional. The problem I have is with my desk computer at the office (it works well at home). It's a Dell Optiplex and there is something that seems to be interfering with DNS. Sometimes the program will work flawlessly; other times...I'm ready to throw it out the window - it's accuracy drops to the basement or it just freezes. Some of the typos that I don't catch are horrendous - I'm glad I do have a disclaimer on the bottom of each note...nevertheless, it's embarrassing.

Like Brain, I hate to have my notes sound canned, besides no one fits a template perfectly.

Anyone who cares to peruse the links above will find out everything you ever wanted to know about microphones and speech recognition.

The linked forums in particular contain tight-jawed, barely civil discussions of the pros and cons of all the microphones on the market these days.

Barbara: I had to work at getting my accuracy to a level I was satisfied with. If you're not satisfied with your results, the problem may lie with any of the following:

1. The program you're using. I started with Preferred, but had to switch to Medical to get the vocabulary right. These programs are designed to deal in probabilities. When you say a phrase, they guess what you probably meant, and the non-medical versions rate medical phrases as lower-probability phrases. It shouldn't cost too much for you to upgrade from Professional to Medical. Alternately, you can buy third-party medical vocabularies and add them to Professional or Preferred versions.

2. Your voice. There are some tips in the above articles about speaking correctly for the program.

3. Your microphone or your sound card may stink. You can do a playback or a quick audio check and see what your input actually *sounds* like. I had to switch mics. You may need a better sound card, or in the case of a laptop, you may need an external sound card to protect it from the electronic interference inside the laptop. I have found that, on playback, I could hear electronic interference that affected my accuracy when my computer shared a plug with a box fan.

4. There is a whole process of personalizing the program, from inputting old emails and notes to increase the probability that your personal words get picked, to personally training the program by reading their little essays. You can even get a free custom voice analysis by Nuance these days, which helps some people.

I don't know where you are as a DNS user. I found this to be a good starting essay to read:
http://www.emicrophones.com/docdetails.asp?documentid=38
It is full of good tips, warnings and links.

Hope this helps.

I agree with Dr. Cotner. In addition, if you like your home profile, copy the profile and shove it into your business desktop. This may help with the recognition problem. I use Dell computers and find the same issues between the computers. I use the same microphone, same program version with medical vocabulary (except I use Via Voice), same hardware. The only difference was that I need to copy my voice profiles so that they work identically. Hope that's helpful.