Dragon Naturally Speaking 9 and Parallels?

Hi,
I realize this has been discussed before, and I read through the old posts, but it has been awhile since these posts were made and maybe Parallels has changed since then. My question is: how well does Dragon Naturally Speaking 9 work with the latest Parallels Desktop? I am not planning on using it to dictate into Mac Apps, just straight into MS Word on XP. Also, any recommended hardware for this setup? We're basing a large purchasing decision on the answer here so any help at all is much appreciated Once again, sorry for posting an old topic but I figured the software may be different today.

Thanks!
-Noah

 

I tried it with the included mic plugged into the mic jack on my Mac Bpok Pro and it did not work.

 

Can you be a little more specific - ie, in what way(s) did it not work? And what did it do instead of working?

I'm asking because there may be some slight Preference modifications o some Windows settings changes that need to be done for it to work correctly.

 

It will not recognise the mic at all.

 

Have you tried processing a file that was previously recorded?

The problem may be with Parallels recognizing a mike at all for any purpose so, thinking in that way, have you tried any Mac native recording programs to see if THAT functionality can be established?

 

It does work

I use a sony usb recorder which has worked in 1970. I have also been able to use a usb microphone which also allows dictation into dragon pad.

Mac Pro 2.66

Jon

 

Were there any special configuration settings that you needed?

 

drval-- it worked without any special configuration settings. You just need to make sure that the input in mac sound preferences is set to the usb mike before turning on parallels. Then, in parallels, use the default audio settings.

Occasionally, you may have a little trouble getting it to work, but I have found that if you have your usb mike set up on the mac side first and then boot into parallels that it should work.

Jon

 

I am also using it successfully under 3120RC1. I am using it with a USB mic through the mac sound system (i.e. the VM is not talking to the USB hardware.)

I have not yet tried using the enhanced USB features to talk to the mic... I figure that if it isn't borken, why mess with it.

If you do a search, I posted detaied directions on how to get it working a while back.

 

parallels and / or the MAc OS does not see the line in
jack socket by the power supply when i plug in the head set supplied with Naturally Speaking 7

line out worked on the headphone

what spec of USB microphone please ?

thanks

Hugh W

 

Make sure that the sound in Mac OS is set so that the microphone is working on the Mac side... then make sure that the sound card is enabled in the VM.

The supplied mic should work fine with DNS9 and Parallels.

 

Just to clarify

First of all, thanks everyone for replying on this thread. So just to clarify: it should work - it is safe for me to get a Mac, XP, Parallels, and DNS9? Sorry to repeat the question but I just want to make sure I'm spending money on the right stuff.

Thanks again all!
-Noah

 

thanks

going to try that if it works i will not come back to this thread
(no news is good news)

possibly a faukty microphone


I tried the headphone as a microphone and that gave a better reading
in system preferences >> speech >> on > line in >> calibration

Hugh W

 

Don't forget that the Mac expects amplified mic input, a normal Windows type mic in the mic port won't work.

Having said that, a USB adapter like iMic works very well for Dragon 9 and my Windows type mic.

 

Yes, I would feel comfortable knowing that the configuration works. In fact, I also use a Sony USB handheld recorder to do some dictating and then plug in via usb--this solution also works just fine.

 

Dragon / Parallels/ and Time Lag?

I'm wondering if anyone is experiencing any time lags beyond the normal and customary with Dragon in Parallels. (All voice-recognition software has some time lag.) I am exploring whether to invest in a duo core machine just to be able to use Dragon. The alternative is iListen with my current configuration (G4 PB, 1.67GhZ, 1GB RAM).

Also, on this last note, are there any suggestions about a) optimal RAM and b) minimal requirements for computing power? Would a 1.63 GHz MacMini suffice to drive Dragon/Parallels? A 1.83GHz? Or do I need to think in terms of an iMac (ie a duo dual core)? (I'm not yet ready to spring for a bigger machine.)

Many thanks.

 

re i Listen

For anyone used to using Dragon Nat speak, iListen will probably be disappointing. I have followed all of the training advice and spoke to a very helpful tech guy on the phone for 1 hour but the bottom line is, it's just not as good (especially when it comes to editing).

 

Dragon9 works fine on Duo 2 Core MacBook

I get excellent results and found it had amazing performance. Do as the others have recommended... From elsewhere on this site...

0) Make sure your Parallels instillation has the VM tools installed, and a sound card that is enabled.
1) Set the USB device as the input in Mac OS. Set the input volume in MacOS.
2) Launch Parallels
3) In the VM, select the "Mic in" as the input. The VM will not know anything about a USB headset. This is normal.
4) Use the microphone

 

problem with starting up naturally under parallels

i've been futilely trying to get Naturally Speaking to work under Parallels. no matter how i set everything up (i've tried a usb mic and also the mic jack) i get an error from naturally speaking saying "the sound system does not support the requested waveform-audio format. There may be something wrong with the sound system or the sound system drivers, or there may be a device conflict."

Anybody have any idea what's going on? I don't have any other apps running that might interfere with the sound input. Help!

 

Unfortunately, it is true that the mic has to be set up on the Mac side before it will work on the virtual machine.

In addition, you have to go to the Mac's sound pane to make any changes to the input volume. Changing audio-in on the pc side has no effect. Without any mic control on the pc side, Dragon NatSpeaking cannot do its initial mic calibration. You have to do this manually by going back and forth between the mac and pc, and hope for the best.

Parallels is a great product, but the usb mic-in doesn't work yet. You shouldn't have to go to the Mac side to change the input volume in an applicaiton like Parallels.

I think users should be told explicitly there is an issue here. I've wasted hours trying to get the mic-in to work properly, thinking it was some problem with my setup. The user guide is vague on this, at best.

Don't think you can plug in your usb mic, select it in the usb input devices, and then use it as a full fledged mic on the pc side (with its own audio in entry and sound slider). The sound you get this way has a distorting hum that makes it useless in Dragon NatSpeak. Try setting up your mic this way and recording your voice using Windows sound recorder and you'll see that it sounds pretty bad.

Once this works properly, it will be possible to have one mic on the mac side and another on the pc side. Hopefully, Parallels is aware this is a serious problem and is close to resolving it.

In my experience setting up and controlling everything from the mac side doesn't work all that well as a workaround. The sound seems ok in the sound recorder, but Dragon doesn't like the input much. Sometimes it does but then changes its mind later on. Pogue is probably right that there is a timing problem here. He's also right that Dragon works very well in BootCamp.

My guess is that there are a fair number of people who've turned to Parallels in order to use Dragon. I wish someone at Parallels who understands how usb mics work will state clearly whether there is a problem here or not? If not, then how do we get things to work. If there is a problem, when can we expect it be resolved?