FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
ABOUT DRAGON NATURALLY SPEAKING
Q: What are the hardware requirements for running Dragon NaturallySpeaking?
A: This is one of the most frequent questions we encounter, and requires a slippery answer. The general answer we give is that, if your computer was purchased new within the last three years, you're probably okay. We like to see a Pentium 4 processor, though we have clients still on Pentium III technology. We have some clients who still run with 256MB of RAM, also. But for general office and clinical use, we like to see a Pentium 4 (or Pentium M) processor with 512MB of RAM. When we configure a PC for business use, we install 1 GB of RAM. Though Windows will technically never run out of RAM due to virtual memory logic, when it runs out of physical RAM, it turns to empty space on the hard disk to use for RAM. This slows the computer down, and results in lag times in processing words, switching application, and saving files.
Q: Does NaturallySpeaking come with a microphone?
A: Yes and no. Yes, there is a microphone. But if you read the fine print on the package, ScanSoft says that, in addition to the hardware requirements listed above, you need an "industry standard sound adapter". This does not mean an integrated sound chip set that is found on most desktop PC's and all notebook PC's. This gets a little fuzzy, but, in order for Dragon to process speech, it needs to have a digital signal that approximates your voice. The microphone that ScanSoft supplies with the software does an adequate job at voice capture, but then the sound is digitized by the sound chips on your computer. And it's a noisy world down there. The digitizing logic "hears" not only your voice, but a bunch of static caused by spinning hard disks, fans, and CD-drives. This is why, in nearly all cases, we recommend an additional expenditure of a high-quality USB based microphone. We offer several, with the most popular being the Philips SpeechMike Pro (handheld) and the Sennheiser PC155 (headset), which can be found in our online store: http://www.vector-computers.com/oscommerce/index.php