5.0

CHAPTER 2
Using Dragon NaturallySpeaking Successfully
Dragon NaturallySpeaking User’s Guide
13
Speak naturally and continuously, but
pronounce each word clearly
When you talk to another person, you can mumble and run your words
together and still be understood most of the time. For example, if you
say, “Innit cold?” a person will probably understand that you’re asking,
“Isn’t it cold?”
But Dragon NaturallySpeaking has trouble interpreting mumbled or
slurred speech. The computer recognizes speech most accurately when
it can hear each word distinctly.
To understand what it means to speak both clearly and naturally, listen to
the way newscasters read the news. If you copy this style when you use
Dragon NaturallySpeaking, you should see an improvement in how well
the program recognizes what you say.
Make it a habit to say each word clearly when you talk to the computer.
Avoid leaving out words and making extra
sounds (like “um”)
In conversation with another person, it’s okay if you leave out a word
here and there. People are good at filling in the blanks in a sentence.
Unfortunately, the computer is not very good at this. If you leave out
words, Dragon NaturallySpeaking also leaves them out.
Another thing people do well is ignore all those “ums” and “ers” that
show up in conversation. But the computer has no way of knowing which
words are unimportant, so it simply transcribes everything you say.
Make it a habit to avoid leaving out words or making extra sounds. It
may help to compose your thoughts before you speak.
Speak at your normal pace—don’t slow down
When another person is having trouble understanding you, speaking
more slowly usually helps. So it’s not surprising that people often slow
down and begin sounding out each syllable when Dragon
NaturallySpeaking makes mistakes.
It doesn’t help, however, to speak at an unnatural pace when you’re
talking to a computer. This is because the program listens for predictable
UG5.bk Page 13 Friday, August 4, 2000 2:26 PM