|
|
|
|
|
Employment - No Hands?
No Problem! See the article about
Renee Griffith, CEO and others at Zephyr-TEC in the current issue of
Ability Magazine. Visit Ability Magazine's web site to order your
copy! |
|
|
|
For speech
recognition or digital
dictation,
handheld microphones
have a lot to
offer.
Handheld microphones
have come a long way over the last 10 years and gained tremendous
popularity among users of speech recognition, like Dragon NaturallySpeaking, and digital dictation
software, like WinScribe.
They are very popular with
professionals who dictate to their PCs, particularly in the medical
and legal professions. They are lightweight (3 oz. for one brand),
durable, programmable, ergonomically designed, and come with a
variety of controls (slide switch, buttons). Most have a built-in
trackball or an interface to control the mouse on the PC.
There are two main manufacturers of handheld microphones,
Philips in Austria and Grundig in
Germany. The SpeechMike™
made by Philips is the most well known in the US
and has several new models that have just come out. The DigtaPro™
series of handhelds, made by Grundig, is very popular and well known
in Europe and Grundig has recently started a campaign to make the
US aware of its sleek and
competitive line of handheld microphones.
The Philips
SpeechMike™
Series
- SpeechMike Classic
USB with slide switch available with two different slide switch
configurations (Philips or International)
- SpeechMike Pro USB
with buttons to operate record, play,
etc.
- Built-in laser
trackball for control of PC Mouse (both
models)
- SpeechMike Barcode
available with either a slide switch (no trackball) or buttons
(with trackball) and a built-in barcode
reader
- See the complete
comparison chart of the Philips line of products at www.zephyr-tec.com/pdfs/philipscompare.pdf.
The Grundig DigtaPro™
Series
- Sleek, lightweight
design (3 oz) that is very appealing and
functional
- DigtaPro Classic USB
model has a slide switch available with two different
configurations (April 2006) and no
trackball
- DigtaPro USB model
is identical to the Classic with the added feature of the Track
Point (trackball) control offering infinite and variable control
of PC mouse
- “International”
version of both models is expected in April and will have the more
traditional US slide controls of record/stop/play/rewind with the
programmable buttons used for other functions
- For more on
Grundig’s microphones, go to
www.zephyr-tec.com/pdfs/DigtaPro840.pdf and www.zephyr-tec.com/pdfs/DigtaProMic840Classic.pdf
The most appealing
feature of handheld microphones is the very fact that they are
“handheld” versus having to wear a headset/microphone or dictate to
a boom microphone. The handheld stays at your desk, available
whenever you want to dictate. Handhelds are lightweight enough (3 to
6.75 oz) to take along for dictation to a laptop or tablet PC for
convenient, mobile, location-based dictation.
Another poplar
feature of handhelds is that they allow for one-handed control of
both dictation and the PC, including software programs running on
the PC. Philips uses a laser trackball and Grundig uses a pressure
variable “joystick” called a Track Point. PC control devices are
controlled by your right or left thumb. Both Philips and Grundig
advertise that their handheld microphones can be used by either
right-hand- or left-hand-dominant individuals.
Pricing ranges
from $259 for non-barcode handheld microphones up to $1100 for those
with barcode readers.
Be sure you consider the following when
investigating your options:
- Do you want a
slide switch
interface for record, stop, play, and
rewind as your primary control interface?
- Or would you prefer
a
button control interface where you will
press buttons to record, stop, play, and rewind?
- Do you want
a
PC mouse control device built into your
handheld microphone?
- Do you want
programmable
buttons for compatibility with other
applications?
- Do you plan on, or
do you currently use bar code
scanning technology? If so, both
Philips and Grundig have bar code solutions available with their
handhelds.
There’s a lot to think about and we hope this
article helped clarify some points. With the many features
available on handheld microphones, it can be confusing. Let us
help you make the right choice. If you are thinking of purchasing
a handheld microphone, please contact us with your questions
toll-free at 877-493-7497, info@zephyr-tec.com or visit
our website at www.zephyr-tec.com.
GRUNDIG HANDHELD
MICROPHONES AND BARCODE
READERS
PHILIPS HANDHELD
MICROPHONES AND BARCODE
READERS
|
|
|
|
Transcription AID is a
great new product for small office settings where other employees
can perform NaturallySpeaking dictation corrections. For example,
for doctors or lawyers whose time is limited and in high demand,
this product removes the burden of correcting NaturallySpeaking
misrecognitions from the person dictating. With Transcription AID,
foot pedals are used to control the playback of the dictation so the
corrections can be made by hand while still improving the author’s
voice profile.
Here is how it
works:
Transcription AID
installs on the PC of the person making the corrections—we will call
this person the “correctionist.” The software controls foot pedals
which play, rewind, or fast forward the dictation’s audio file while
highlighting the words on the screen for the correctionist. When the
correctionist hears the playback play something that does not match
the text Transcription AID has displayed, the correctionist hits the
rewind pedal which launches the Spell Box. From the Spell Box, the
correctionist can click the correct word or manually type it in.
Once the correctionist clicks “Okay,” the text is changed in the
document and the improvement is made to the voice profile.
Transcription AID also
works with audio files from most of the major digital recording
devices. We tested it with the Olympus DS 4000. After completing the
dictation, the dictator places the entire recorder into a cradle
which hot syncs with the computer and downloads the audio file to
the computer. The software can be set up to either automatically
email the (encrypted) audio file to the correctionist, OR to save it
to a networked location the correctionist monitors for new jobs.
This
transcription solution is ideal for a small office with one or two
authors dictating and one or two correctionists. Importantly for
medical providers, it provides a HIPPA-compliant
solution. Transcription AID works well
for people who work in different locations over a network, as the
compressed audio file can be downloaded in one office and saved to
another. If you would like to see a demonstration of
NaturallySpeaking, Transcription AID, or the Olympus DS 4000,
contact Zephyr-TEC for an online live
demonstration. |
|
|
|
In Salado, Texas a surgeon was using Dragon
NaturallySpeaking Version 6. The surgeon averaged at least 1.5 to 2
hours of dictation per day – from original dictation to standard
paragraphs. He was correcting his own misrecognitions and was
wondering what improvements had been incorporated into DNS Version
8.
Needless to say
Version 8 immediately got the doctor’s attention. The doctor had
become quite busy and was looking to save time on transcription so
he could spend more time with patients.
With that in mind, he
investigated the Transcription AID solution. The doctor stopped
correcting his own misrecognitions and had his assistant, using
Transcription AID with the foot pedal, complete his transcription,
proofing corrections and bringing his dictation to final signature
stage, all while updating his voice files for improved dictation
accuracy.
From experience, the
doctor knew that not having to correct his own misrecognitions, even
when they were minimal, would save him time and certainly save more
of his time as he got busier in the future. However, he also wanted
his assistant to be reassured that Transcription AID was truly easy
to use.
The doctor had
Transcription AID installed and had a copy of his Dragon profile and
speech files installed on his assistant’s computer. After a few
introductory training sessions, the assistant stated and states
today that Transcription AID is not only easy to use, it is
definitely much easier compared to traditional and less
technologically advanced transcription methods. The combination of
Dragon NaturallySpeaking Medical and Transcription AID makes both of
their jobs easier and more efficient, saving not only time, but
money as well.
Both the doctor and
his assistant are quite happy with Transcription AID and the doctor
has freed up some valuable time. Today, the assistant spends about
15 to 20 minutes helping with and finishing off the doctor’s
dictation.
Authored by T.
Bolick
Zephyr-TEC NOTE: This
solution is also perfect for lawyers and professionals who dictate
with Dragon! |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Specify User File
Backup
Location
Dragon
NaturallySpeaking automatically backs up your user files every five
saves (you can configure this frequency in the options). However,
you can specify where these backup copies should be made. You do
this through the Administrative Settings choice on the Tools menu,
BUT you must have closed all users first (NaturallySpeaking menu
> Close User). When no users are open, you can select
Administrative Settings on the Tools menu; at the bottom of that
screen, you see Backup Location for Speech Files. Click the Change
button to specify a different location. Now the automatic backups
will go to the new location. (Note: Because you have to close your
user profile, you can't do this by
voice.)
|
|
|
