So there I was, on my early morning commute down to Sydney on the train, checking my email in between games of FlightControl when BAM! this graphic jumped out at me from an email:

MacSpeech Dictate Upgrade to Version 1.5 Announced

Being a reseller for MacSpeech Dictate since its release back in February 2008 I thought I might have, you know, been told it was coming. So as a reseller and user of MacSpeech Dictate I was just a little surprised. MacSpeech Dictate is the worlds leading voice recognition software for Mac OS X. Launched at MacWorld in 2008 it won Best In Show that year.

Here is what we know from the MacSpeech press release:

• Upto 20% more accurate transcription.
• New vocabulary editor.
• New accents added – some American accents and also European.
• Compatibilty enhancements, e.g. with Microsoft Word for Mac.
• Added 100 websites for use with the Jump To command.
• Some user interface tweeks.

Still no deferred transcription via a digital voice recorder, yeah yeah standard answer … “it’s coming soon” I hope.

MacSpeech Dictate 1.5 Release Notes

So that all sounds great, essentially for us Aussie users we will benefit from the improved accuracy and also the vocabulary editor which will let you train Dictate for unusual words and abbreviations that you may often use, for me its “Puffufel Valve”.

Of note, this upgrade is only compatible with those of us running Leopard. If your MacSpeech Dictate is on Tiger you should either upgrade your OS or just stick with MacSpeech Dictate version 1.3 (although you will still receive your free upgrade pack if you registered after 1st April as I will mention below).

Here are some common questions we received in the office today about the upgrade announcement:

Q: I just bought MacSpeech Dictate last week, will I still have to pay for the upgrade?

A: From what I have read and heard the answer is no. Anyone who registered (not bought) their licenced copy of MacSpeech Dictate on or after the 1st April 2009 will receive a free upgrade to version 1.5

Q: Can I just pay for the upgrade now and download the upgrade?

A: No, the upgrade will only be available as physical media. Just like your original MacSpeech Dictate you will receive a CD and a DVD. My understanding is that this is no minor upgrade to the original software but in effect a whole new version.

Q: How much will the MacSpeech Dictate version 1.5 upgrade pack cost?

A: No confirmed pricing so this is just a guess, I would say it will be approximately AU$79 incl. GST and then a small shipping cost on top of that. As I said, its a guess so don’t hold me to it.

Q: I want to buy MacSpeech Dictate, when will you be selling version 1.5 boxed.

A: There is no firm date for us in Australia as yet. I managed to grab a few minutes with the guys at the MacSpeech distributor in Sydney today, MacSense, for chat. They estimate version 1.5 boxed available around 1st June but this is a very rough estimate. They will work as hard as they always do you get us the software as quickly as they can.

Q: I can’t wait for MacSpeech Dictate version 1.5 to come, I need it now, what do I do.

A: Simply buy MacSpeech Dictate version 1.3 as it is still available. By registering your licence you will get the free upgrade to version 1.5 when it arrives in Australia.

Q: MacSpeech have announced that the upgrade is available now, where can I get it in Australia?

A: Yes it is available but only in the USA. We will need to wait until MacSense, the Australian MacSpeech distributor, receive their upgrade disks. It is estimated that these upgrade disks should be available within a couple of weeks.

Q: Will you be selling the upgrade?

A: No, Dictate Australia will not be stocking the MacSpeech Dictate version 1.5 upgrade disks. We will advise everybody to go direct to the distributor for upgrades, MacSense in Sydney.

Most of the questions we received today have been covered, please leave a comment if you have further questions. Keep an eye on this blog for updates.

Tweet This Post Delicious

Welcome to the start of what I hope will be a long and interesting voyage through the world of digital voice, be it recorded on a dictaphone or notetaker or recognised by your PC or Mac.

The digital voice recorder world in Australia has long been dominated by Olympus Voice and closely shadowed by Philips Dictation with the likes of Sony and Panasonic tagging along for the ride. Currently there is a resurgence in sales of digital voice recorders and dictaphones as die hard analogue users find they can no longer replace their antiquated tape recorders with something that whirs and clicks and the younger generation are finding out that they no longer need to stay awake during lectures, they can just record it for later reference.

We are also seeing digital voice recorders appearing in the non traditional work place environments. We recently sent a trial recorder over to the rescue crew at Perth airport where they plan to have recorders around the neck of rescuers during an emergency so they can analyse what happens during a rescue situation. Financial advisers use them to record client adviser meetings to cover themselves for compliance and for a record of what was actually recommended to clients in case a review needs to be made some years down the track. Lecturers place them on the lecturn and make the audio available via websites and podcasts to people who missed or couldn’t make their lecture. There is a wide and varied reason for using a digital voice recorder or dictaphone in your life or business.

Voice recognition has also advanced in recent years. Now we have speech recognition software for Windows (Dragon NaturallySpeaking) and also for Mac (MacSpeech Dictate). They both share the same highly successful Dragon voice recognition engine from Nuance whose accuracy is astounding. Again appealing to a wide and varied audience from the home student talking their essays, professionals dictating letters, notes and emails and also the physically disabled who can now control their entire PC using the power of voice.

In this blog we plan to bring you the latest news from the digital voice world, reviews and demos of products and handy hints and tips to help you get the most out of whatever digital voice product you use.

Tweet This Post Delicious