dragon naturally speaking software review

#Dragon naturally speaking software review windows#

If it creates frustration, distress or anger, or causes families to feel they too have to part with valuable household funds to buy a home version of the program, think again.If it meets your students' needs and offers them independence and the ability to communicate electronically with freedom and confidence - go for it!.Make sure it is a better option than what your students are currently using, and that it is worth the price tag.The bottom line with using the Dragon speech recognition system in a Special Education setting is this: Students need to be able to cope physically and cognitively with spending a fair amount of time using a computer and interacting closely with the technology.In addition, having a student speaking aloud can be distracting to other students in a classroom situation. There will be students who may not enjoy speaking their text out loud.

It takes time to ‘teach’ the program your voice style, and to help it recognize how you say certain words, which can be a frustrating experience for some students.

Keep this in mind when recommending the program for students with cognitive deficits.

The initial tasks to set up the program for a new user are quite complex, and students need to be able to read a lengthy passage of set text out loud, with few reading errors.

Students need to be able to deal with a certain amount of frustration, text errors, revisions of their work, and some downright comedic problems as they become competent Dragon users.

Some older computers may struggle to cope with the Dragon software.

Make sure your computer is up to the job.

The user speaks into the microphone and the text appearsĪs with most technology, and particularly with a speech recognition system, there are a few items to be aware of:.

The Dragon toolbar appears and the Dragon is told to ‘wake up’.

Other versions include a Home Edition for 99.99, which does not integrate with.

#Dragon naturally speaking software review windows#

The computer has the Dragon program loaded onto it For this review, I tried out Dragon NaturallySpeaking 12 Premium for Windows PCs, available for 199.99.The user wears a headset fitted with a microphone.The software program is simple in principle: This can be especially true in a special education setting, when touch typing or even basic keyboarding, has been difficult for a student to master. It is a life changing experience for some computer users, as it may be the first time they are able to independently create text in Word, communicate via email, write letters, enter search terms into Google or create a PowerPoint slide, or do the thousand other tasks that have somehow become a part of the student day. The speech recognition system, Dragon Naturally Speaking, provides a system for a computer user to ‘speak’ to their computer and in doing so, create text on the screen.