Some Windows 7 add-ons for speech recognition

[boblamb]

Hi friends,

I have Repetitive Strain Injury, so I use speech recognition a lot. I think the speech recognition in Windows 7 is great, although I miss some things in it.
For those who also have RSI, or just want to use the voice, I found two add-ons that I think is pretty interesting.
The first add-on is the Windows Speech Recognition Macros, you can group several speech commands at once with it. The only drawback is clicking anywhere on the screen with your voice. Windows default "mouse grid" takes a lot commands to move and click. For this issue, I found another add-on for clicking anywhere that is pretty fast. It is a tiny add-on called Voice Finger (http://voicefinger.cozendey.com), and by the way I'm using it right now.
For those who are sick of the WSR "mouse grid", I think this is good news.

 

[TrainableMan]

I hit a dead link but I found it at:
http://www.download3k.com/Install-Voice-Finger.html

I have only played with the voice recognition software but I went ahead and got these to add to my testing.

 

[Fire cat]

Thanks for the infos.
I use a 100€ software called Natural Dragon 11. It is worth the money, as it is fast and reliable. It rarely makes mistakes, but it is really a speach-to-text software, even though it has the common voice commands.

Cheers,
Fire Cat

 

[MTM]

Has anyone tried the WSRToolkit?

MTM

 

[Mychael]

Curious as to how those voice programs work, is it like saying "open file" , "move to" sort of commands? What is your input device, webcam?

 

[TrainableMan]

I have headphones with a microphone boom, but if your webcam includes a mic (mine doesn't) that would work.

If you have a microphone then give it a try for yourself, Win 7 comes with it built in. Just type SPEECH in the Start Menu search and you should see "Windows Speech Recognition". It will run through some screens to make sure your mic is set up and then offer some lessons.

 

[Mychael]

If you have a microphone then give it a try for yourself, Win 7 comes with it built in. Just type SPEECH in the Start Menu search and you should see "Windows Speech Recognition". It will run through some screens to make sure your mic is set up and then offer some lessons.

I would, but I am still metaphorically speaking 'Windowless' or should that be 'Microsoftless' , still running Linux till I hear back from my Techy mate who took my drive away. Re: "stuck on endless boot cycle saga"

 

[TrainableMan]

I see, said the blind man peeing into the wind, it all comes back to me now!

 

[MTM]

Curious as to how those voice programs work, is it like saying "open file" , "move to" sort of commands? What is your input device, webcam?

WSR (Windows Speech Recognition) is able to command and control your computer and able to recognize your speech as text. It is fairly simple to use but best results require:

1. Good enunciation of each word. Speak like a news broadcaster
2. Speak in phrases because the system is not only listening for the sounds of each word, but comparing each word to the words around it for context clues. Think of the word to (two, too). How does the speech recognition software know which one to use in, "Two boys went to a doctor because they ate too much food." It knows by the context of surrounding words.
3. A good sound card or USB pod. Some sound cards built into computers are not well shielded and pickup electronic noise. This will distort the signal and make it difficult for the system to understand your words.
4. A good close talk microphone that eliminates background noise.

WSR understands commands very well. You can easily say, "Go to bottom," "Switch Application," etc. etc. There is a very powerful feature called, "Show Numbers." This willl enable you to navigate to any button, drop down list or link on a web page.

For more information on WSR, read, Getting Started with Windows Speech Recognition which has a link on the page.

Marty

 

[boblamb]

Basically, all speech software have two distinct uses. One is to command the computer, it is what the software I mentioned in the first post was all about.
The other main use is to dictate texts, which is a bit more difficult, both for the speech engine, and for the user to enunciate it clearly and correctly.
I also think that, for the heavy speech user, an USB headset is a must.

ps: depending on the software you are working, "show numbers" does not work all that great.

 

[Jeffreyobrien]

Awesome thread,
I am using all six of w7 speech recognition tools which gives me a really clear picture wise of whats happening on my computer,this is awesome information makes me feel I am only one of zillions using w7 with disabilities.I am so reliant on my computers to even know what time to what is coming on my emails etc.AV utilities have to be configured by someone with good eyesight which I have it checked once a week by my care giver & microsoft employee who sends me all my tech-net software,RC,& RTM's when released.

I do thank you for this informative thread it really helps any members and visitor's especially if they are un aware of the speech assistance given inside their O/S

regards
jeffreyobrien





http://www.msspeech-forum.com/

 

[TrainableMan]

Could you list the six? And links if they aren't in a normal install?

 

[respectableGary]

I'm disabled myself use Dragon NaturallySpeaking which is far more powerful speech recognition software (Windows voice recognition software is based on Dragon).

 

[Jeffreyobrien]

Could you list the six? And links if they aren't in a normal install?

I use w7 Ultimate when I type speech at start button your own advice my RTM w7 gives me SIX options ,List them you tell me I am vision impared I have more assistance to give & things to do & I also use dragon speaking software naturally speaking of course in my own voice cool too,as well a few others.

enjoy
regards
jeffreyobrien

 

[TrainableMan]

I think you read into my questions more than is there. I am not aware of 6 speech tools so I was interested in more. This is all I see and I haven't tried the macros I just got it from this thread.

 

[Jeffreyobrien]

without malice
QUOTE: I think you read into my questions more than is there.

Trainman,
firstly no I don't read into your questions more than is there,I doubt my computer reads into your questions more than is there,things like this are very hard for me,I couldn't work out how to show you a JPEG of my start button but I will get it,what my copy of w7 RTM Ultimate has when I type speech is:

Programs 2
Naturally speaking Dragon speech recognition.
windows speech recognition

Control Panel 6
speech recognition
change text to speech
start speech recognition
control without mouse & keyboard
set up Mic narrator & speech recognition
use audio description for all Video,DVD,

reply to w7 post thread/speech recognition
reply to w7 post thread/speech recognition

I will also say this,I don't come here to argue or say my information is best,most correct if anything I feel I try to help people obtain a better understanding of what is available on their computer,sure if I make a mistake then please tell me but don't ruin the meaning of these threads which is Knowledge,help,assistance,learning which I still Learn everyday I turn on my computers.

 

[TrainableMan]

Trainman,
firstly no I don't read into your questions more than is there,I doubt my computer reads into your questions more than is there

What I meant by this is I think you believe I am trying to be mean or challenge you in some way and this is not my intent.

I will also say this,I don't come here to argue or say my information is best

I have never doubted that you come here to share information and to learn (this too is my purpose). You provide a lot of good information and have excellent contacts which are very helpful and I'm glad you are here. Please understand I have great respect for you and the rest of the regulars here and if I ask a question or for clarification it is generally because I want to understand, not to be argumentative. Even though Aussies, Brits, and U.S. Americans speak English there are sometimes differences and so I may not even mean agreement or disagreement with your answer; I can think of one time in the past I was actually just asking you to reword it so I could be sure I understood things like what noun you meant when using a pronoun like "it".

I like you and respect you and if you ever think I am trying to argue just for the sake of arguing, please refer to the start of this sentence and know I am not. There are times I may ask any member for the source, either for more information or just to rectify it with the possible misinformation I was thinking.

Also I sometimes speak in short sentences and they may not carry all the information I think they do when they were inside my head. When I write paragraphs like this it may take me 30 minutes to try and get it right and then after I submit I would say 95% of the time I still go back to tweak the wording and edit typos.

----------------------------

From what you listed, except for Dragon Naturally Speaking, I think I have the same speech stuff available. When you said 6, I had thought you might have gotten some other tools via your techie subscriptions and I had thought I might pick up some other items to "play with."

Thank you Jeffrey. Sincerely, Brian

 

[MTM]

From what you listed, except for Dragon Naturally Speaking, I think I have the same speech stuff available. When you said 6, I had thought you might have gotten some other tools via your techie subscriptions and I had thought I might pick up some other items to "play with."

The WSRToolkit v2 has about 10 features you'd expect to find in a mature speech recognition software. Click the link to read about these and scroll down the page to see a screen shot of the main screen of the software. Among many other things, you can easily manage speech profiles, create voice macros to enter text and commands, improve accuracy and even transcribe .WAV files from a digital recorder. The software is reasonably prices at $19.99.

Marty Markoe
Microsoft MVP

 

[Jecs Duminy]

It maybe the software. You should try restarting speech recognition from the beginning and configure the microphone to the software. You could also try buying a better mic to see if that works. Try using it in a QUIET environment and speak in your natural voice. Hope this helps.

 

[MTM]

WSR Audio Signal problem

It maybe the software. You should try restarting speech recognition from the beginning and configure the microphone to the software. You could also try buying a better mic to see if that works. Try using it in a QUIET environment and speak in your natural voice. Hope this helps.

Just to add to your good advice, there has been an issue with the audio sub system in Windows 7 (and Vista). For some reason, even after running the Set up my microphone utility, the audio gets pegged to 100%. This means the audio signal is extremely high and will cause sounds in the background, even keyboard clicks, to be picked up as words. On my computers, we see series of the word home as in "home home home home etc."

Because of this, we built a Tune Microphone feature into the WSRToolkit v2. Here is what our web page says about this feature:
Tune Microphone - created because Windows Audio system poorly handles microphone input. You set a custom Volume Level and SNR (signal to noise ratio). Start with our suggestions and adjust until the microphone volume meter shows only 1 or 2 bars at the bottom. Must restart WSR for adjustments to take and you should not use WSR's Setup my microphone thereafter.

Marty Markoe, eMicrophones, Inc.
Microsoft MVP