This summer has been great not because of the warm weather, swimming, and outdoor activities that I have done. I had a great opportunity to take two summer classes on technology. I have learned so much in particular in my assistive technology class. The most exciting software that I had a chance to operate was Dragon Naturally Speaking. Until this summer I was unaware about this software program. Taking college courses requires typing several pages of research papers and projects. Our hands get tired and our elbows can never seem to get comfortable as we work at our desk. With my current school schedule, word documents, spreadsheets, email, and resumes has surrounded my current life. With Dragon Naturally Speaking you never have to pick up a finger to type. Why? This is because it allows you to type by speaking. This software is run by the sound of your voice. This includes opening files and working on the internet. Dragon is speech recognition software created by Nuance Communications. I couldn’t believe it when I saw it with my own two eyes. I simply put on the headset that comes with it and began speaking into the microphone as the words appeared one by one. With this great innovation, operating a computer can be done in half the time. Even better, this serves as a great assistive technology device for students with disabilities. Students with limited fine motor skills can now use their speech as the software recognizes the individual’s voice. According to Dragonnuance.com this software recognizes your voice with up to 99% accuracy. Training is easy and gets better with repetitive use of the program. It can be used with a PC or a Mac. According to Dragonnaunce.com, Dragon NaturallySpeaking 10.1 is compatible with Windows 7 and has earned the Windows 7 logo certification for compatibility. Dragon offers several editions which can be purchased for home users and business purposes. There are special editions for lawyers and doctor’s called Dragon Legal and Dragon Medical. That’s the great thing about this software is that it helps accommodate a diversity of users. According to Dragonnuance.com, each edition comes with a noise-canceling headset. The higher editions come with wireless headsets. Dragon Naturally speaking can be use with a variety of operating systems such as Windows 2000, Windows Vista, and Windows XP. You must have an internet connection in order to activate the software. I recommend that teachers who work with students with disabilities try this program. More time can be spent on assisting students with the quality of a paper or story than the quantity. Teachers and other professionals have the opportunity to send emails, create newsletters, grade books, etc. Hopefully this information has inspired you so that try Dragon Naturally Speaking’s creative speech recognition software.
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