iDictate – Digital Voice Blog

Olympus have released an update to their DSS Player software for Mac to version 7.3.0 – don’t get too excited, it is mainly just a compatibility update. Included in this update are:

• DSS Pro files that were encrypted in High Encryption mode (using 256-bit encryption keys) can now be decrypted and played back. (They cannot be encrypted.)
• Downloading and playback of WAV files is supported. Index marks and comments can now be acquired and edited.
• MP3 index marks are supported. MP3 index marks can now be acquired and edited.
• The new foot switch RS-31 and also DR-1200/2100/2200/2300 are supported.

With this version your Mac will now be fully compatible with the new(ish) DirectRec II hand held USB microphones which were released early last year, I know a few people have been hanging on this. The Olympus DirectRec II are USB connected microphones (DR-2100,DR-2200,DR-2300) that allow dictation directly to your Mac.

Also included in this update is compatibility with the very latest range of professional digital dictaphones released just a couple of weeks ago in Australia along with the new Olympus RS-31 four pedal USB foot control. The RS-31 is most commonly used with the Olympus transcription module but can also be used with the Olympus DS-7000 via the dock for hands free digital dictation, quite often commonly used in the medical sector.

Click here to download Mac DSS Player update to v7.3.0 or from the Olympus Australia website

Slowly but surely the Mac version of DSS Player is coming up to speed against its more mature Windows counterpart – called DSS Player v7 Plus on Mac and DSS Player Pro v5 Dictation Module on Windows. However the Mac DSS software is still lacking a couple of keys features that Windows users enjoy, one key feature is auto email of dictation audio files. Most Mac users will simply puff out their chests as they huff that they are quite capable of sending an email without software doing it for them, still it is a handy feature, especially if you have multiple audio files, and a feature that people often ask about and look for.

I was prompted to write this blog post as a couple of hits recently had people looking at how you actually send an audio file from DSS Player v7 Plus, this is when I noticed that it is not entirely obvious in the software – there is no email button or file option. In true Mac fashion emailing a file or files is intuitive – you simply drag and drop from DSS Player Pro into your mail client or into your browser if you use Gmail via the web interface, that’s it. If you are one of those people who like to select the file from disk the quickest way to locate your dictation file and folder is to double tap (or right click if you have set this) on the audio file name in the right window pain in DSS Player Plus, select Property then expand out the File Path to open a Finder window showing your file location. All of these are covered below in detail: More

Olympus voice are an innovative bunch, they don’t tend to sit on their hands doing not a lot, they keep refining and evolving their range of digital voice recorders. It is not uncommon to see digital voice recorder models come and go in the space of a single year. As such we often find customers coming back after years of use to replace their digital note taker or dictaphone only to find that their old model voice recorder has been replaced by a newer model.

In an attempt to make finding the current equivalent voice recorder to replace your old trusty Olympus digital voice recorder a little easier I have compiled a list of old models and their latest equivalents. This list covers PCM music recorders, interview/meeting/focus group recorders, budget recorders, the Pro range of digital dictaphones and finally Olympus digital transcription kits. More

A couple of customers recently have had some minor issues using their Olympus DS-5000/DS-5000iD/DS-3400 digital dictaphone on their Mac running Lion (OS X 10.7). The problem experienced was that the device was not automatically recognised by the software when the digital voice recorder was docked or the USB cable attached.

The problem seemed to stem from release 7.2.6 of the Olympus DSS Player Plus software which was built and shipped pre the Lion release. Olympus have now released a patch to version 7.2.8 which makes DSS Player Pro for Mac now fully Lion compatible.

The patch can be downloaded from Olympus directly – click here to download the latest Olympus Voice software updates and patches

When you buy your shiny new Olympus DS-5000, DS-5000iD (and also the DS-3400) digital dictaphone it comes with software for both Mac and Windows, in fact you get one licence for each operating system. Windows users get to install DSS Player Pro v5 Dictation Module and Mac users get DSS Player Version 7 Plus (at release 7.2.4 at the time of writing this). Both the Windows and the Mac software are similar in that they both let you play the audio files recorded on your digital dictaphone, both let you edit your audio and both let you convert your DSS Pro audio files (.ds2) to other formats.

On the Mac however, unlike the Windows software, the ability to automatically send your dictation somewhere (email to your typist, drop onto a network drive for your typing pool etc) is missing. On the Mac audio files need to be manually sent to your typist or transcription service, unless you use Dropbox. More

The legal and medical industries have to be one of the biggest demographics for the use of voice recording technology and they have been for years. Doctors and consultants use dictaphones to dictate medical patient notes and letters. Lawyers use voice recorders to dictate legal case notes.

Traditionally your standard medical or legal practice would consist of an analogue tape dictaphone used by the person dictating. They would record their dictation on tapes which are then handed to the typing pool for the transcriptionists to transcribe using a tape transcription machine, foot pedal and headset. Not much has changed now that things are digital. The dictator still requires a device to dictate into, the typist still requires audio to listen to and transcribe. The fundamental difference is we now use digital recordings instead of taped recordings for dictation and transcription and our computers to act as the transcription kit.

How are digital dictaphones better than tape dictaphones? More

Olympus Imaging who this year took over the distribution of Olympus voice products in Australia have recently allocated Gold and Platinum status to a select few Olympus resellers Australia wide. This restricts the number of resellers able to sell the Pro range of digital dictation and transcription products and software; the DS-5000, DS-3400 recorders and the AS-5000 transcription kit and AS-5002 transcription module software. We at Dictate Australia are proud to have become a Gold Olympus partner.

What does this mean this to the resellers. Well not much has changed for most of us, we are required to keep a healthy stock of all Pro line recorders and we are all required to be trained in the Pro recorders and software, all of which we already are. We also have more direct access to our own personal Olympus representative who can assist us and you in making sure you get the right solution for your business. Your business could be a one person shop with outsourced transcription or a large hospital or legal practice with offices around the country, both Dictate Australia and Olympus will be there to help you plan for your needs.

As we are based on the NSW Central Coast, our office is in Erina, we are able to offer demo’s of the Olympus products in our office, just call to arrange a time. If you are in Sydney we can arrange to come to you for a demo and a chat, of course this is all obligation free and there is no hard sell (I am personally not a fan of hard sell as I will buy anything if subjected to it – I currently own several time shares in Spain and frequently change my phone/internet/gas/electric provider when they come knocking at my door ), this is just an opportunity for you to have a hands on look and feel and a chat about how the recorders and transcription kits work.

As we are a national reseller for Olympus those of you outside Sydney don’t lose out either. We are available as always by phone for advice and information at any time, if you have a question about any aspect of dictation or transcription just give us a call. We can also support you remotely using our direct connect support software can connect to your PC or Mac and help you with any issues. We run both Windows (XP, Vista, 7) and Mac in the office.

MacSpeech Scribe just released by MacSpeech lets Mac users record their voice to a digital voice recorder and then have MacSpeech Scribe transcribe it for them. The only certified digital recording devices for MacSpeech Scribe are the iPhone, iPod Touch (2G+ plus a mic) and some of the Olympus digital voice recorders.

Two of the Olympus digital voice recorders certified for use with MacSpeech Scribe are the Olympus DS-3400 and DS-5000, both from the Professional series of digital dictaphones from Olympus, these are serious digital dictaphones. They both come with DSS Player Version 7 Plus for Mac which simplifies the task of getting the audio off the recorder. The software lets you also setup users on the recorder, set noise cancelation levels, playback and edit your recorded dictation and direct record using your digital dictaphone as a high quality mic.

Out of the box both the DS-3400 and DS-5000 will record in DSS Pro digital audio format, these files have a suffix of .ds2 – files of this format can not be loaded into MacSpeech Scribe so some file conversion needs to take place, this is where DSS Player Version 7 Plus can help. On a Mac it is not possible to set the DS-3400/DS-5000 to record in .aif format by default.

For file conversion you have two options. 1. you can manually convert each file 2. you can set DSS Player Plus to automatically convert audio every time your DS-3400/DS-5000 is connected. Both are very simple:

Manually Convert DS-3400/DS-5000 Audio To .aif Format

To manually convert .ds2 audio files to .aif on a Mac using DSS Player Version 7 Plus simply right-click on the .ds2 file you want to convert and select Convert to AIFF File, your converted file will be placed in the same download folder tray as the original file. If you want to save the .aif file to an alternative location simply highlight the audio file to be converted and click the Convert to AIFF File icon .

Automatically Convert DS-3400/DS-5000 Audio When The Recorder Is Docked

If you prefer to convert every audio file during download to your Mac when your digital dictaphone is connected then open the DSS Player Preferences and click the Download tab. Here you can tick “Convert to AIFF file during download” which will have the desired affect. Your .aif files will appear in the download tray folder configured and are then ready to be loaded into MacSpeech Scribe.