I Speak Dragon to Improve my Creativity

Patricia C.
Arthritis, exaccerbated by a serious car accident, made writing and typing very painful. "You must use Dragon", said my tutor. I felt like God: I spoke and it was. My words danced on the screen, creating whole worlds, characters and philosophies. I wrote books and articles with Dragon. "You won't be able to manage poetry", said my tutor. "All that difficult spacing." "Oh yes she will", said Dragon. and I did!! God spoke And light separated from darkness as a world was created. Dragon heard the call: "Wake up!" He was very tired. He pictured her on her swivel chair, Like god sitting on his throne. She spoke and the words Leaping, Tumbling, Scurrying Like leaves in the wind, Fromed sentences, Made paragraphs, Worlds created from HER word. WORDS, WORLDS, WORDS! She exulted in her divine power, Delighting as her words took on life. But Dragon was tired. Even God rested. Creation was over for today. So with a flick of his tail, He sent catapulting through the ether A large, round and very final full stop.

Chesney B.
I've used Dragon since version 4. I gave up for a few years because this version was so poor. I regained interest with version 8 and was delighted with version 9. I find Dragon useful for my fiction writing, especially for dialogue. My characters' dialogue comes across more naturally and lively. I find that a big benefit of digital dictation using Dragon is that I can talk into my dictaphone virtually anywhere and at any time.

John C
I saw an advertisement in PC World for Dragon NaturallySpeaking and I thought this would help me enormously for writing letters and any other paper work which I need to do, I found it reasonably successful and was able to make quite a lot of use of the software, I decided to pass new versions came on the market I wouldn upgrade every time and as you know I am now using version 9 which is brilliant particularly since you have done the vocabulary and analysis and update I still have a few problems that not enough for any serious complaint. This means a great deal to me as I am a carer for my wife who has Parkinson and I do a great deal of voluntary work as a consultant on behalf of usesers in the social services and the national health service so I write many reports some extending to 10 or 12 page is and without Dragon I could not possibly do this as I am 83 years old and like most people my age my hands shake rather a lot I serve on many committees dealing with carers and disabled people and I'm a trustee of the charitable organization with a million a year turnover so I am able to recommend Dragon NaturallySpeaking and explain how it can help people who are disabled as well as their carers, Dragon NaturallySpeaking is an absolute godsend to people who cannot use their hands to write or type as this gives them the opportunity to still keep in touch with their friends and relatives and also to be independent to do a great deal of their own paperwork.

I have spent many many hours teaching people how to use your system and guiding them until they are able to use it to their own satisfaction. I am in the process at the moment of trying to persuade the social services direct payment department to make grants towards the purchase of the software for Dragon NaturallySpeaking to anyone who has a disability which makes it difficult for them to write and keeping communication with their relatives and friends, I think I am slowly but surely convincing them that this would add a great deal to the quality of life of these particular people. This software has made all the difference in the world to my quality of life as it allows me to keep up my social life through the printed word whereas I am now unable to go out and join my friends in different activities. With the very best wishes EJ Crowter Jones.

Tanvir S.
It was four years ago that I started work on my Doctorate Thesis. My topic entailed research into diverse fields coupled with extensive travel. That wasn't an issue. I loved it. The biggest challenge was my total lack of knowledge of computer operations. Supportive as my husband is, he did sit with me and do the initial typing work for me, but that just couldn't suffice. The quality of research I wanted to do, required that I should be able to type my thoughts and my information at all times without any binding. I needed to be free, for myself, for my mind to go into uninterrupted thought, for me to be creative. Then my husband introduced me to Dragon Naturally Speaking. He said he used it extensively in his office for all secret work (He was the Head of Economic Intelligence).He is a computer geek, yet he said that Dragon considerably improved his productivity. He promised that this software would give me the freedom I needed.

I learnt from him that unlike other softwares of its class, this one did not have to be trained for so long. In fact I began using it in about 25 minutes. Dragon understood my language and my Indian accent well. Over a period of time I learnt all the commands. I would sit in my library chamber, record my thoughts and portions of my thesis in the digital voice recorder. I would come home, connect it to my PC and the entire recording would be transcribed. That was true freedom! Today, I have received my Doctorate. My thesis has been recommended for publication as a book in the very best university of the world. Many people have contributed to this effort. I acknowledge them all. I also acknowledge the unknown people who wrote a piece of code called Dragon Naturally Speaking. Thanks for giving me freedom of expression.

Kevin G.
I am a retired Commercial Director who came to computers late in his career. I did try some other voice recognition software but it was never very accurate, so gave up. I bought the 'dragon' software because I do so much now on my PC and I just never seem to have time to get everything done.I now use the Dragon to write my reports , as I judge dogs at Championship and other levels, it says so much time.I have just completed a chapter of about 8,000 words for a book about the dogs that we breed. It was a joy and I would have submitted more but they needed to edit down to 8,000 words.I enjoy my creative writing and poetry, so I get so much instant gratification to see the written and completed work in such a short time.I have continued to upgrade my accuracy by reading the training chapters. I find the accuracy is now unbelievable.Oh I forgot to mention I am now retired and at 56 years young have so much to document that I doubt I could complete it without the 'dragon'.

I am more than halfway througha book about my breed of dogs and my experiences of 36 years of ownership. I have just started a new book documenting memories of my life story.I continue to write short stories for our club newsletters and have to say that the 'dragon' has removed the hard work and replaced it with even greater enthusiasm, that I might complete everything that I wish to commit to paper.The 'dragon'does it for me, I now use it everyday.

Graeme B.
I regularly travel abroad for holidays and business. A postcard home will not do when attempting to enlighten my extended family and friends of the day's movements and events, places visited and restaurants enjoyed. Emails home, as dictated and transcribed onto my laptop at the end of each day with the use of Dragon Naturally Speaking, enable me to maintain contact and diarise events so that they can be referred to later. The speed and supreme voice recognition of Dragon Naturally Speaking enables me to do this quickly and enjoyably, leaving me time to get back to the holiday to experience other things that I will dictate later!

Amanda L.
For a number of years now I have been using the highly acclaimed software Dragon Naturally Speaking to improve my creativity as I am aspiring author. The everyday task of physically writing my ideas down on paper can become quite tiring for me, as I have Cerebral Palsy and this generally affects my hand control, as I can not write very fast. Dragon Naturally Speaking has enabled me to create the world's in which my character's live much more quickly and because I am able to dictate what my characters look like, their images and descriptions are much more dimensional and real. This is very important when you are a writer, because you have to remember that the reader cannot physically see your characters so you have to physically describe them and Dragon Naturally Speaking is absolutely fantastic for this as you can say exactly what is inside your head. In many respects it is like having an invisible writer at your side, which is always very reliant.

Because your words and ideas appear on the screen it is very easy to make changes if you are not happy with something. When I used to write manually I used a lot of Tippex to correct my mistakes with Dragon this is not necessary as you can say scratch that. Most importantly when you have finished dictating a piece of writing that you are happy with, Dragon will read it back to you. This is a great tool and an asset for any writer, as you get a distinct impression of what your story sounds like as it were being read aloud from a book. This is a very exciting because your characters and story come to life instantaneously and they sound very credible and real. In many respects you can imagine yourself in the story with them and like any good story you don't want to end. Therefore, when I sum up my thoughts about Dragon Naturally Speaking in a nutshell, it has improved and inspired my creativity no end.

Now I can focus on what I really want to write and it is a vital piece of now software that I have learned never to be without. I would recommend Dragon Naturally Speaking to anyone with or without a disability, as it will really enhance your quality of life. Most importantly, Dragon has given me a power of speech that I never thought I had. Dragon Naturally Speaking will enrich your meaning and interpretation of the English Language beyond your comprehension.

Susie H.
I've written a novel, and my protagonist uses Dragon the way I do: Catherine couldn’t stand to have an inspiration and not write it down. At home in London, she wrote lists, reminders to herself, notes on coming events, excerpts for on-going books, things she must remember to tell somebody. She’d jot them down on various pieces of paper, backs of petrol receipts, next to the crossword in the newspaper, or in the blank pages at the back of her pocket agenda, and back at her office she’d record them into her voice activation software.

Anxious for bed, she nevertheless took the time to plug in her laptop and check Internet access. Google came up with no problem. Of course, everything addressed to the .is domain was being checked by someone-- at Ben Gurion probably- but she reminded herself she was entirely above board. She plugged in a headset and checked her Skype connection—if that works, then Dragon will work too—and dialled her mother in Nashville, Tennessee--‘Hi, Mama, I’m calling you from JeRUsalem. Can you BeLIEVE it?’ Catherine couldn’t stand to have an inspiration and not write it down. At home in London, she wrote lists, reminders to herself, notes on coming events, excerpts for on-going books, things she must remember to tell somebody. She’d jot them down on various pieces of paper, backs of petrol receipts, next to the crossword in the newspaper, or in the blank pages at the back of her pocket agenda, and back at her office she’d record them into her voice activation software.

Catherine adjusted the reception of BBC World Service on her laptop. She was going to spend a few minutes before breakfast recording her interviews of the previous day, and figured she’d listen to the news while getting out the headphone and tapes. It was a useful method. She’d trained the voice activation software to recognise her own Southern accent, so she would listen to her interview tape from one ear and repeat into the Dragon microphone the interviewee’s words in her own voice.

Piled atop her dimly lit desk were 19 small tapes from her Dictaphone, and that was only from 3 interviews, Dr Freedman, her advisor and Dr Gaster. On the borrowed laptop, she tapped into gotomypc.co.uk and set her home files again to download. No Skype. No Dragon. She wouldn’t have a phone to call home, and she’d have to buy more tapes and transcribe them all when she got back to London. She sighed. That was a lot of work, and she’d have to be doing it just when she needed to be getting stuck in to actually writing the book. This is not going to work, she thought, firing off an email to her lodger Becky:

Hi, Becks, Hope you’re OK and remembering to water my plants. Spot of bother, I’m under suspicion by Mossad as a terrorist and they’ve seized my laptop. Only joking. But seriously, they really have seized my laptop. And I’m finding I can’t get my work done without Dragon. Could you do me a big big favour and send me the software? It’s on the third shelf I think above my desk in a pile of CDs. Could you send it to me special delivery? I’ll gratefully pay you back.

Ronald S.
I have used your product to enter 2 manuscripts for 2 eventual books, both by one of the two leading Mediums in the U.K. Whilst progressing through the latest one I found that at one stage what was appearing on the screen was what I can only describe as weird and wonderful words, entirely unrelated to the text I was clearly dictating! Even the Medium couldn't understand it - she has 2 Spirit Guides, and what they usually communicate to her didn't fit what was appearing on the screen! The phenomenon has never happened again, thank goodness!!!

Christopher C. -
I use it to do reviews on my website (www.spiritsreview.com)so I can keep my hands free and get my immediate impressions down of different spirits-something that would be utterly impossible if I had to constantly switch from sampling to typing. Dragon has also has kept the equipment costs down as the keyboard and mouse can stay out of harms way.We lost more than one wireless keyboard to spillage.

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