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Finally--
       Real Spoken Words   Return to Views Directory Page
Appeared originally in Words of Mouth, Fall 1999
All my years of talking about the Spoken Word were kind of a ruse, because what I was really doing was sitting at a typewriter or computer and doing the same thing that journalists and novelists and poets do, rather than really create spoken words.  I was hunting and pecking, when, to really capture the flow and character of spoken English, I should have been dictating.

Now, finally, I am dictating.  This is the first Web article I've written using Dragon NaturallySpeaking Preferred®, a voice recognition software program that I am just learning to use.  Look, Mom, no hands!  I speak into a small microphone strapped to my face and my words appear automagically on the computer screen.  What I'm finding is that I'm able to let my ideas flow without interruption and, most importantly, without editing.  There is no stopping to wonder whether what I've written is correct or whether I should go back and change a word of phrase.

Some might say that this kind of technology is just another manifestation of the root of what is wrong with writing today.  That there's no care taken.  People simply say what's on their minds, without attention to form or style and without consideration for the audience.  In my case, I think the opposite is true.  After more than 30 years of writing, I feel I have developed a clean, clear, fairly flexible style, but sometimes the mechanics of writing hobble the natural flow of imagination.  What I'm looking to do with voice recognition technology is to separate creativity from mechanics, at least in the formative stages of projects.

What you are reading here is not what came directly from my mouth.  I went back and, using both voice commands and the keyboard, corrected slips and tightened loose spots to bring everything closer to the standards of my hunting-and-pecking.

Old habits are difficult to break.

Note: Before purchasing Dragon NaturallySpeaking Preferred®, I did some research on voice recognition programs.    There are several on the market.  This is among the more expensive ones, but it seems to offer the best assortment of features, and it certainly does work well.    For more information about this product you can visit the Dragon Web Site at www.dragonsys.com or read PC Magazine's review of the more popular voice recognition various products at www.zdnet.com.

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