From Spitting to Speaking
43 years using a wheelchair, where has that time gone? After my accident in the former Yugoslavia which left me with a C 4 injury and a life expectancy of 16 years. I thought this ain't me.
Sadly, I had entered the education system and came out the other end at 15 the same way as I went in, couldn't read or write and surrounded by academic people doctors, physios, OTs, nurses, you know the score.
It took me about 2 years to get my act together, build the deltoids and biceps up which are still not terribly exciting today. Anyway, they gave me the opportunity to be able to write just a few words using a felt tip pen secured between my index finger and thumb with a rubber band. Spit on the desk, stop the paper moving and begin to write as far as your triceps will allow, generally only halfway across a page of A4 and with large written words. I then graduated to a typewriter using 6 inches sawn from the cleaners mop handle with a short dowel in the end, all secured by a piece of clean knicker elastic.
Time to get ologies!
I always thought only clever kids got ologies, but thought I'd give it a bash and tried O-level English. At that stage I'd never written a word in my life and worked on the theory that if you threw enough mud at the wall some would be bound to stick. One year later I got me an ology, Grade 1, thought the Joint Matriculation Board had made a mistake and wrote to them explaining that I thought they'd made a mistake. They wrote back explaining that they had checked the paper and that I did in fact get a Grade 1. Okay, time to test them, did another ology this time in biology using the same method; and another Grade 1! Moved on to do more O-levels then A's and then studied law.
Four letter word WORK
Not easy and took a long time, initially did some English teaching and gave regular talks on spinal injuries. Eventually, secured employment in the transport sector where I have been for the last 20 years working my way up the greasy ladder. It was here that I first came across voice activation, (thanks to Access to Work who paid for the computer and all the necessary software) in those days Dragon Dictate was less the Dragon and more the snake although very good at the time, its performance resembled that of a donkey, none the less now I would never have been able to hold down a full-time job without this technology. Now Dragon operates at helicopter level and these days I dictate at a constant 70 words per minute. If I know my subject, I can get up to 90 words a minute plus if I pull my finger out and that's all day. This script is an example of what can be achieved by using voice activation e.g. Dragon Dictate. Gone are the days of spitting on the desk now I just speak.
Dragon Dictate
It's the start of my workday. I turn on my computer's microphone (wake up) and quickly dictate an e-mail message to send out on the Internet. Then I switch to a spreadsheet and check relevant numbers for analysis. Next, I work in Microsoft Word to begin writing up reports etc - without ever touching a keyboard or mouse.
It could be the start of your revolutionary life. Today.
With Dragon Dictate for Windows software, you can work with your PC entirely by voice or by combining voice with a keyboard and a mouse. Dictate any text or numbers into your favourite application. You can immediately "see what you say" right in that application. Move around your document, format paragraphs, and even move your mouse by voice. Activate pull-down menus and dialog boxes by voice. You can "see what you say" right on your screen to initiate commands.
How it works
Well in my case not without a degree of patience and a lot of effort. Fortunately, I am able to put the microphone headset on my head with the microphone just half an inch away from the corner of my mouth. This is really important for good speech recognition; if you have a bad session best not to save your voice files. These days you can get microphones that hang around your neck, or fix to the desk, best to get in touch with Abilitynet. They are the bees knees and will advise you of your needs and will always give continued support.
I came to computers as a new boy when introduced to Dragon Dictate and to this day 20 years on I haven't got a clue what the keys F4 or Alt Gr or any of the others are meant to do. Keys are not necessary with Dragon Dictate which listens to what you say. (A high quality microphone is provided.) Your speech is analysed after a training session which lasts about one or two minutes. Dragon Dictate guides you to read a choice of short stories to get you kick-started using both an "acoustic model" and a "language model." Basically you speak, as you normally would except when giving the computer a command. Commands are always two words spoken together as if they are only one, such as "new paragraph, new line, insert date". If you just want to say the individual words "new" and "line" then you say them separately, maintaining your normal speech flow. It takes a little getting used to, but it is soon cracked, the more you speak the better the voice recognition and it even understands a Scouser.
In no time at all Dragon predicts word usage to find an even better match and is designed so that Dragon Dictate can distinguish between words that sound alike, such as "to", "two", "too", and "2".
If Dragon Dictate gets a word wrong you just say "correct that" (command) and you are given a menu of sound alike words to choose from, then just say choose 1, 2 or whatever the correct number is and Dictate will automatically swap the right word for the wrong one. Dragon Dictate automatically remembers the spelling, acoustics and language usage.
Voice macros allow you to create short phrases that will automatically expand into paragraphs or commands. You can even teach it to swear! But be careful because occasionally Dragon Dictate thinks you have said one word and prints another. In short you may inadvertently drop a bollock (Latin for making a mistake)
Within Your Document
Dragon Dictate immediately converts your speech into text within your existing Windows Application. There is no need to dictate into a "speech window" or to limit your use to a few pre-approved applications.
In addition to dictation, Dragon Dictate enables you to edit and format text within your application. You can make changes and corrections right away or later, entirely by voice.
You'll see the results right before your eyes. Just say the words. You can even save yourself a few bob and make your own cards. The image below is an example of one I sent out recently.
Remember the TV adverts sometime back "it's good to talk"
No problems only solutions, keep a dream in your pocket and the lamp of your learning burning bright.
T'ra
David Finnegan