Voice dictation has finally made its way to Google Docs! You can find it in the tools menu under “voice typing.” And hereis the official documentation from Google.
I’m using it to write this right now. The accuracy is quite good, certainly better than when I first experimented with Google’s technology a few years ago. I’m guessing it’s comparable to Dragon at this point, at least for non-specialized vocabulary. (Though it does seem to make different kinds of mistakes, which I’m guessing is a result of being trained on different types of data.)
However, it lacks full voice control of the user interface. Especially notable is the fact that you cannot make corrections to recognized text by voice. (Though alternate recognitions are available from an on-screen menu, you have to click with the mouse.)
For me, these user interface limitations mean that Dragon will continue to be my tool of choice for the foreseeable future. However, I will certainly keep this new tool in mind for when I am away from my desktop computer.
And I LOVE seeing competition in the speech recognition arena! We now have Nuance, Google, & Microsoft working on these problems, plus a free/open-source project from Carnegie Melon. Competition drives innovation, and I can’t wait to see some more innovation!
I’d like to pass on some cool information about proofreading. Credit to author and screenwriter, Martin Johnson and the site Almost an Author.
Martin Johnson survived a severe car accident with a (T.B.I.) Truamatic brain injury which left him legally blind and partially paralyzed on the left side. He is an award-winning Christian screenwriter who has…
