Special Edition Using Microsoft® Office XP

Using Speech Recognition to Enter Text

Speech recognition is still in its infancy, and Office's implementation only underscores that fact. Speech recognition can be a godsend to those who are physically challenged; however, text input using dictation rates as little more than a novelty to serious Office users. Voice Command mode doesn't fare much better.

Before you even attempt speech recognition, make sure you have the following:

• A PC running at 300MHz or faster (Microsoft's recommendation). In tests run for this book, corn grew faster than dictation on a 500MHz machine.

• At least 96MB of memory.

• A high-quality microphone that comfortably sits within an inch of your mouth.

Start using speech recognition by choosing Tools, Speech. You will go through ...