|
|
54 of 54 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Good product, but requires time & patience for good results, 1 Mar 2005
I have used Viavoice now for several months as I am an audio-typist and wanted something that would relieve the wrist, arm and shoulder strain. IBM's claims for this product are more or less true (and no, I don't work for IBM!), but you will need to spend a fair amount of time training the programme. Training involves reading into the microphone, then going back amending mis-spelled words using their Correction Window. Since using this product I have progressed from a 256mb RAM computer to 512mb RAM upgrade, and without a doubt I have seen increased levels of efficiency in the operation of the programme after the upgrade. I was pulling my hair out often with the 256mb computer, because there was multiple crashing during use. But the increased processing speed means that it's all working more smoothly, and hardly any crashes. I also got a top level Plantronics noise-cancelling headset with microphone, which I feel has helped alot in reducing interference from background noise. Of course, the ideal would be to have completely silent surroundings, but I've found my new headset has helped cancel out noises from nearby printer, fax, telephone ringing and background voices, and works much better than the headset included with the s/w. There are some quirks with the programme: I usually press the Enter key twice to create the next paragraph, then continue dictating, but have found that if I don't pause for a couple of seconds after pressing Enter, the text can end up on the previous line. I also haven't worked out how to get round dictating numbered paragraphs: if I manually type "1.", then tab across, the next dictated words do not automatically have an initial capital. Any suggestions on how I can get round this would be much appreciated! I type at about 80-90wpm, so of course this programme can never replace the speed and accuracy of diy, but it certainly comes as a welcome break to bashing at the keyboard all day long. And the twinges, aches and pains I used to feel in my wrists, arms, shoulders seem to have completely disappeared. So, thumbs-up to IBM!! If only I could voice-command the hoover, dishwasher and house-cleaning in general, then my life would be complete!!!
|
