11.5

 Some computers, after you connect a microphone, automatically

bring up a small window associated with this “audio system

event”. (The window may be hidden behind other windows.)

Before closing this window, verify that what is highlighted on it is

the Microphone item (and not the Line In item).

 Some computers offer several places to plug in your microphone,

for instance, on the back and on the front. If you get poor results

with one, consider the other(s).

Creating your Profile

Before you start Dragon, connect your microphone (see above) and, if you wish, test it by making a sample

recording in Windows Sound Recorder.

Step 1: Launch Dragon (you can double-click its desktop icon or pick it from the Windows Start menu). If

Dragon has never been used before on this computer, the Profile Creation Wizard will then open

automatically. Otherwise, choose New User Profile in the DragonBar’s Profile menu, then click New.

Step 2: Answer the questions presented by the wizard’s screens. This includes giving your profile a name. (No

need to overthink this. You may want the name to reflect the date of creation, for instance MJones-

Oct2011). Answering the age question is optional but we recommend it since it may help obtain higher

accuracy. Dragon 11 contains an acoustic model for “young voices” (pre-puberty, typically up to the

age of 13).

The wizard will ask you to specify the “region” where you live. Dragon will use that information to

choose your profile’s underlying Auto-Formatting and vocabulary. This will affect, for instance,

whether Dragon uses the spelling “colour” instead of “color”, as well as how it writes currencies or

units such as lbs, $, USD, AUD (ISO currency codes). Note that, once your profile is created, you will be

free to customize it, including modifying Auto-Formatting Options and Word Properties, as described

further in this workbook and in the Help. For example, Canadian users may wish to give the word

“color” the alternate written form “colour”. (Dragon has no special Vocabulary for Canada. Picking

“Canada” here results in the same spellings as picking “United States.”)