MacSpeech Dictate 1.5.5 Review

MacSpeech Dictate Version 1.5.5

has only been out a week and I've bought it. the earlier versions of Dictate weren't getting very good reviews. But now they've done a deal with Dragon Naturally Speaking the voice-recognition software that runs on Windows PC and they claim it's a lot better than the old Dictate for the Mac. It's also been updated for use with Mac OSX Snow Leopard - which I also bought at the same time to run on my iMac.

MacSpeech Dictate 1.5.5 adds a contextual menu for the Available Commands window, providing options to Edit, Execute, and Copy Description to Clipboard, and is also a maintenance release that fixes other reported issues.

MacSpeech Dictate requires Intel-based Macintosh hardware and requires Mac OS X 10.5.6 Leopard through Mac OS X 10.6 Snow Leopard. You can upgrade version 1.5 for $54.95 or pay for the Full Install at US$199

99% Accuracy?

Macspeech Dictate is claiming a 99% accuracy. I don't believe that for a minute. But we shall see. One of the first things I had to do was to read some text to get Dictate used to my Australian accent - and I ticked that option when I set it up. Not that I have a broad "Crocodile Dundee" Aussie accent - but it's there.

Why have I bought this voice recognition software? Two reasons. Main one is that I developed Carpal Tunnel Syndrome in my hands and wrists some time back and it's greatly aggravated by repetitive tasks like typing. And I'm a copywriter - sometimes spending 12 hours a day at the keyboard.

Second reason is that in my copywriting I strive to get natural-sounding copy. I want it to read just like I'm talking to you. So I find I can do this rather well by dictating. And I can dictate faster than what I can type (with two fingers).

So let's give this MacSpeech Dictate a whirl. Here we go. I'm going to dictate a few paras of one of my short stories. So here's exactly as Macspeech transcribed it -

Fast words in Fiji.
It all started with an ad I saw in the Sydney morning Herald classifieds one weekend. Travel writers wanted for new Pacific rim magazine. Opportunity for immediate all-expenses-paid assignment.

I didn't know what a pacific rim wants. Thought maybe it was something to do with gay travel. But the all-expenses-paid part rang my bell. But it sounded too good to be true.

I dialed the phone number and had a long conversation with a bloke in Balmain. Called himself Mike Ivey. This has to be a joke I thought. Mike Ozzy -- Mike Cozzi. But no, this bloke said it was no joke. He really was Mike Ozzy. I found that later they had in fact changed his name by deed poll.

Anyway, I was intrigued, so after work one day I went out to this geezer's gas. He lived in a strange looking paid by the harbor. He called it a sustainable tourism lodge. The goal of the backpackers. Several nubile young women and sarongs of making cups of tea and toast in the communal kitchen. My cozy seem to be the head honcho of the big coon or something by the way of flirting with him. I got the impression of some kind of swingers club going down. But whatever regional bells.

We went into his office a spare bedroom and he here bashed me for an hour or so about his project. Most of what he said was gobbledygook but the key words were press card, all expenses paid, free, trip, Fiji. I'll believe it when I said I thought.

Some weeks and Barnett all but forgotten about this bloat any means wanted to come over and help him stuff envelopes RAM. Rambles on about CG looking good needy get these magazines off to the international members of the worldwide world of Wally's waiting on accreditation vanity also a possibility... Kenneth Colón is a good made... feasted on chicken closing date balls moving... Trekkies case of vampire blood... everything is really good... great things are happening... yada yada yada...

Seems like I've yet attended some dodgy tourism conference in the subcontinent had managed to get on the piece for the bunch of Third World representatives all riding the gravy train. Now that know how he managed this. He didn't seem to have any credentials aside from a loudmouth, a big set of Kalyani's and a bad 70s haircut. Perhaps that's all you need these fellow seminarians seem to figure some kind of tourism King and they were falling all over themselves with office. For the Ozzy came home from deepest darkest Africa with a swag of open-ended invitations to go to various tube of countries and advise them on e tourism opportunities. And the first cab off the rank was poor old bloody Fiji -- pre-two days.

Hilarious.

My cozy seem to be the head honcho of the big coon or something by the way of flirting with him. I got the impression of some kind of swingers club going down. But whatever regional bells.

As you'll see when you read the original copy below, there are quite a number of mistakes. And the 99% accuracy claim is bollocks. But it's not bad. Maybe the more I use it the better it will get - as in getting used to my accent.

Here's the original text.

It all started with an ad. I saw in “The Sydney Morning Herald” Classifieds one weekend.

“Travel Writers Wanted for New Pacific Rim Magazine. Opportunity for immediate all-expenses paid assignment” .

I didn’t know what a “Pacific Rim” was. Thought maybe it was something to do with gay travel. But the “all-expenses paid” part rang my bells. It sounded too good to be true.

I dialled the phone number and had a long conversation with a basketweaver in Balmain. Called himself Mike Aussie. This has to be a joke I thought. ”Mike Aussie - My Cossie”. But no, this bloke said it was no joke. He really was Mike Aussie. I found out later that he had in fact changed his name by Deed Poll.

Anyway, I was intrigued, so after work one day I went out to this geezer’s gaff. He lived in a strange-looking pad by the harbour. He called it a “sustainable tourism lodge”. I’d call it a backpackers. Several nubile young women in sarongs were making cups of tea and toast in the communal kitchen. Mike Aussie seemed to be the Head Honcho or the Big Kahuna or something by the way they were flirting with him. I got the impression there was some sort of swingers club going down. But whatever rings your bells.

We went into his “office” (a spare bedroom) and he ear-bashed me for an hour or so about his project. Most of what he said was gobbledegook but the keywords were “Press Card”, “All-Expenses Paid”, “Free”, “ Trip”, “Fiji”. I’ll believe it when I see it, I thought.

Some weeks went by and I’d all but forgotten this bloke. Then he rings. Wants me to come over and help him stuff envelopes. Rambles on about “Fiji looking good...Need to get these magazines off to the international members of the Worldwide World of Wallys...Waiting on accreditation...Zambia also a possibility...Kenneth Kauanda’s a good mate...Feasted on chicken-claws and goats balls with him...Drank his toast with vampire blood...Everything is really good...Great things are happening”...Yada yada yada .......

Seems Mike Aussie had attended some dodgey Tourism conference in the Subcontinent and had managed to get on the piss with a bunch of Third World representatives all riding the gravy-train. Now I don’t know how he managed this. He didn’t seem to have any credentials aside from a loud mouth, a big set of cojones and a bad Seventies haircut. Perhaps that’s all you need. But his fellow seminarians seemed to think he was some kind of “Tourism King” and they were falling all over themselves with offers. So the Aussie came home from Deepest Darkest Africa with a swag of open-ended invitations to go to various two-bob countries and advise them on “Eco-Tourism Opportunities”. The first cab off the rank was poor bloody Fiji – pre Coup days.

Not a bad start. And there were a few things that impressed me. For instance - Dictate managed to put the hyphens in "all-expenses-paid". And it understood and correctly spelled "gobbledygook" and "yada yada yada". But there's still room for improvement with MacSpeech Dictate.