At 10:06 AM 2/2/07, you wrote:
> >> Voice recognition is getting more and more accurate by the day, but it is
> >> important to realize that (1) it's still a very tough problem to solve and
> >> (2) there are parallel efforts attacking the problem. The parallel tracks
> >> are handling (1) an unlimited domain for a single speaker and (2)
> >> a limited domain for any speaker.
>To add onto Dave's synopsis (I did a bit of looking into this about 25
>years, along with vision systems for robots), what Gil is looking for is
>actually quite reasonably these days. The tales of woe are generally
>from folks who have expectations beyond the current realm of technology.
>
>For a single person to train a system with a distinct vocab ("SQL" is a
>language, not the followup to a hit movie), particularly with someone
>who knows what they're doing and has the discipline to adapt a bit
>(which fits Gil to a 't'), voice recog is definitely a reasonable
>vehicle right now.
>
>One gets into trouble if one won't exercise a little discipline
>(speaking too fast, background noise, slurring words, using slang, etc.)
>And even then, with just a single speaker, systems will learn to adapt,
>and translate "y'wl" to the more proper "you-all".
Whil's right. There are people with very significant disabilities who rely
on this software to do their jobs. It works well enough for them to earn a
living.
Another aspect of all this is the fact that most people work best with one
particular communication channel. Just because a person can compose text or
code quickly and well at a keyboard does not mean they'll immediately be
able to do so orally--with or without extremely responsive voice
recognition software. Each mode requires a very different form of
concentration and thought. It will take a lot of practice to become good at
composing in a different mode--but that's not the software's fault.
So it becomes a question of--do I cope with the imperfections in the
assistive technology and take the time necessary to minimize them? Or do I
give up doing the work I love? When push comes to shove, the vast majority
of people faced with this situation do the former.
You (Gil) may want to give the folks at the Center for Disability Rights in
Rochester a call. They will probably be able to connect you to folks who
will have insight not only into speech recognition software but into other
adaptations to address your situation.
And I wish you great good luck. You can do this.
Ken Dibble
www.stic-cil.org
_______________________________________________
Post Messages to: ProFox@leafe.com
Subscription Maintenance: http://leafe.com/mailman/listinfo/profox
OT-free version of this list: http://leafe.com/mailman/listinfo/profoxtech
** All postings, unless explicitly stated otherwise, are the opinions of the
author, and do not constitute legal or medical advice. This statement is added
to the messages for those lawyers who are too stupid to see the obvious.
