My personal take is that you can't just look at these as dictation
programs.  Dictation is just a single step.  It is the first, and very
important, step in natural language processing.  Combine that with some
natural language programming and what do you have?  StarTrek.

Once you get speech recognition to the point where a person can speak as
naturally to a computer as they can to another person you have made a huge
step toward illiminating a visual interface for many things.

We are learning many things from dictation skemes.  It is astounding to
see the advances in this field over the last few years.  I for one, look
forward to the day when the keyboard is just one way I will use to access
my computer.



Dan

-----
Blue Skies
Dan Rossi
(412) 201-3634
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On Mon, 17 Aug 1998, Bill Pasco wrote:

> Dear List Members,
>
> I am just curious.  Why is there so much attention given to dictation
> programs?  I could understand it if the computer user had limited use of
> hands or arms, but typing seems so much more efficient.
>
> For my part, I find it much easier to think and compose while typing, and
> getting every thought expressed just right, than I do when talking.  I
> used to dictate letters and such all the time before the coming of the
> word processor and speech output.
>
> I can see where verbal system commands could be useful, particularly in a
> graphic environment, but why not, instead of verbal dictation, a command
> driven overlay to directly access the elements of the graphic interface.
>  It seems that a verbal command is essentially the same thing.
>
> I am honestly interested in various perspectives on this.  Let's here the
> whys of dictation programs.
>
> Bill Pasco
>
>
>
>
>
>