FYI this should be somewhat less necessary on newer Bragi OS versions as the left-sided Dash is now named ending in an “X”. Still not as intuitive as I’d want but at least not identical! You may want to consider upgrading the Dash’s OS if you haven’t already.
]]>Although the accuracy seems to have gotten better now as of 2016 (provided you use a good headset), I still find myself spending a huge amount of excess time fixing all of the problems it creates along the way. One of the most notable issues I’ve found is how it will crash at least once EVERY TIME I USE IT. And another is how it will randomly start to delete the work you have just done, paragraph by paragraph, and there’s no way to stop it. It’s like a runaway freight train… you just have to ride it out and go back and hope you have a history to return to (ie. via the Mac’s TextEdit tool, or undo/redo if using Microsoft Word). Nothing like dictating a ton load of personal information only to have it zapped by a buggy computer program! Every time this happens I want to grab the phone and call Nuance with an earful of ranting profanity, but where can I even call? Free tech support seems to be pretty much non-existent.
Okay, in regard to tech support, at first glance it looks like Nuance now provides you with a wealth of support options on their site… user guides, demo videos, training, FAQ, support forums (where it will take you two weeks to get an answer from someone who doesn’t even know the answer most likely),… even white papers! Ooh… but to call tech support and hopefully get an answer right away it will cost you… big time. Essentially $10 to $20 (depending if it’s from a web ticket or phone call) if you’re past the 90 day warranty period, and then just Monday thru Friday til 8pm Eastern time of course.
And I think one of the most frustrating issues is– that we’re stuck with using Nuance’s product… or nothing. Now I know Apple has some form of dictation built in to the OS and iOS, but a networked dictation solution– in my opinion– just plain sucks. For anyone who’s had to use dictation via siri or within notes, text, etc in the midst of a busy work day can attest, it all comes down to network congestion. I’ll be in the midst of dictating notes from a client visit via my phone and notepad, and then the networked dictation will crap out in the middle of it, leaving me with having to use my index finger to type out the next 10 paragraphs or so. And I’m no whiz with typing on the phone– certainly not with my thumbs either. Even with a stylus it’s brutal on the hands and the eyes. I can imagine the same situation would happen on the desktop Mac, though at least I could resort to my usual “modified hunt & peck” method of typing on my keyboard.
So hopefully there will eventually be someone who comes forward into the ring and knocks Nuance off its pedestal.
Nuance now seems to be putting the majority of its efforts into their web-based subscription dictation solution “Dragon Anywhere,” and essentially leaving the rest of us behind. And considering the other big companies who have switched to subscription-based models, soon we may have no choice but to fork over their monthly fee (forever) if we want to use Nuance’s products on the Mac or PC.
Nuance has essentially monopolized the voice dictation business, and really needs a major competitor right now. It’s the only way we’re ever going to get a better product and better customer service, because both companies will be battling it out for our business. Until then we are at the mercy of Nuance and Apple’s very limited (and very frustrating) alternative.
]]>On top of this they don’t support dictating in Firefox (really?) and they support is horrible.
It’s frustrating. There is obviously a market but nobody’s on it except an old outdated dinosaur developer.
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