32-bit Talking Web Browser for Windows
TRENTON, NEW JERSEY, U.S.A., 1998 APR 21 (NB) -- By Sami Menefee, Newsbytes.
The Productivity Works has announced an upgrade of its pwWebSpeak talking
Internet browser. The new version, with 32-bit technology for Windows 95, NT
and 98, translates Hypertext Markup Language (HTML) into audio output with a
simplified, size-and-color adjustable visible text.

A spokesperson said the original software was designed primarily for the
visually impaired, because the visual orientation of World Wide Web sites
"shut out millions of people with ocular disabilities from using cyberspace."

In its upgraded state, said the spokesperson, the program is also useful for
home, work, school, library or any public Internet access point because it
lets users "navigate through a document based on content, links to other
sites and paragraphs," rather than scrolling through complicated screen
graphics.

The pwWebSpeak/32 reads Web sites by page, word or character. It provides a
spell checker and includes several new features, not in the original program,
like support for HTML 4.0, the HTML standard and user-definable audio style
sheets, downloading and file transfer protocol (FTP), RealAudio 5.0,
RealMedia 4.01 (and up) and compatibility with pwEMail and pwMedia SMIL
multimedia player.

To run on Windows 95, the program requires a 133 Pentium 133 with 16
megabytes (MB) RAM and 5 MB of hard drive storage space. To run on Windows
NT, the program needs a Pentium 200 with 32 MB RAM and 5 MB of free hard
drive space. A 32-bit sound card is also required, plus connection to an
Internet service provider (ISP).

It is available from the firm or its international reseller network for a
suggested retail price (SRP) of $150, the spokesperson said.

For more about the program visit the Productivity Works Web site at
http://www.prodworks.com .

Reported by Newsbytes News Network: http://www.newsbytes.com .

(19980421/Press & Reader Contact: Open City Communications, 212-714-3575, E-
mail [log in to unmask] /WIRES ONLINE, PC/)
Voice Commands Available Via Microsoft's Home Page
REDMOND, WASHINGTON, U.S.A., 1998 APR 24 (NB) -- By Patrick McKenna,
Newsbytes. Speaking in natural language to a computer provides users
with continuous dictation products, but Lernout & Hauspie
[NASDAQ:LHSPF] claims the same core technology is the basis for a new
evolution of computer applications. The company's Voice Commands
product is being promoted on Microsoft Corp.'s [NASDAQ:MSFT] home page.

"People have heard so much about the success and availability of
continuous speech dictation products that they don't realize this same
technology is going to be gradually integrated into many of today's
standard applications," said Lernout & Hauspie (L&H) spokesperson
Audrey Pobre.

Voice Commands is the first L&H general consumer and office
professional speech product in the new category of applications. The
$19.95 software allows users to format a Microsoft Word document by
using natural voice commands.

"Simply put, you can format a Word document faster by word than you
can with a keyboard and mouse," said L&H product manager John Joseph.
"In our tests users would tell us they wanted to put another column in
a table, but they didn't know how to do it. With Voice Commands you
simply say, `add column to table.' You don't have to spend time
searching through features and trying to figure out keystrokes."

The new wave of applications enhanced with continuous speech or natural
speech recognition do not generally require a user to "teach" their
computers how to recognize a particular voice. "There is no voice
training required with Voice Commands," added Joseph.

Indicating a strong interest in speech technology, Microsoft invested
$45 million in L&H last year. Bill Gates, Microsoft's co-founder and
chief executive officer, has repeatedly acknowledged voice recognition
as one of a number of technologies which will become standard in
tomorrow's computers.

His acknowledgement will become a reality in the next version of
Windows NT version 5.0. A Microsoft spokesperson said, "Windows NT
will ship text-to-speech features based on Lernout and Hauspie's speech
engine."

Text-to-speech means a computer is able to "speak" or "read" to a user.
Implementations will most likely involve reading messages, making
announcements and issuing warnings and advice. In his speeches, Gates
has said the industry is several years away from an operating system
completely navigated by voice.

In the meantime, applications such as Voice Commands from L&H will
continue to evolve. They require less memory and fewer resources than a
full continuous voice dictation program. Under the name Kurzweil Voice
Commands, the L&H product is available for downloading as a free sixty-
day trial.

Reported by Newsbytes News Network: http://www.newsbytes.com .

(19980422/Press Contact: Audrey Pobre, L&H, tel 781-203-5431;
/WIRES PC, ONLINE/)
Continuous Dictation Software Ships For $50
BURLINGTON, MASSACHUSETTS, U.S.A., 1998 APR 29 (NB) -- By Patrick McKenna,
Newsbytes. Voice recognition expert, Lernout & Hauspie [NSADAQ:LHSPF], says
it is time to talk to your computer with natural, everyday terminology.
Company officials claim their $50 continuous dictation product opens voice
dictation to a wide spectrum of computer users at home, in small office/home
offices and inside America's largest corporations.

The company has announced Voice Xpress and Voice Xpress Plus to compete with
continuous dictation products from IBM and Dragon Systems. The goal at L&H is
to challenge their competitors on performance and price and offer voice
dictation as an affordable mass market product to anyone creating documents
on a computer, says the company.

"There are two major differences between Voice Xpress and our competitors'
products," began Koen Bouwers, president of L&H dictation division. "All of
us offer continuous speech, but Voice Xpress provides users natural language
command and control. Secondly, we have priced Voice Xpress aggressively and
expect it will challenge our competitors to meet new price points."

Natural language command and control provides users with a tool to navigate a
document during or after dictation. It means a user does not have to learn
specific commands to accomplish a certain task. "With Voice Xpress, you can
say, `make the font bigger,' or `increase the font by two points,' or 'change
the font to 12,'" continued Bouwers. "Without natural language, you have to
learn a specific command such as `set font to 20.' If you do not remember
those words, the software will not respond."

"Continuous speech dictation products which employ natural language
technology are much easier for users to learn and operate, permitting tasks
to be processed in a more familiar and productive way," said Amy D. Wohl,
president of Wohl Associates, a computer industry consulting firm in
Narberth, Pennsylvania.

Eighteen months ago, the first continuous speech dictation products were
priced at $700. Prior to today's L&H announcement, continuous speech products
sold for as low as $79. Today, Voice Xpress and Voice Xpress Plus are priced
at $49 and $99, respectively, and ship with a noise- canceling microphone.

Voice Xpress and the Plus version may be different in price and performance
from their competitors products, but are similar in that they require voice
training sessions and provide a "95 percent or greater" accuracy after
training. L&H claims both versions allow a trained user to dictate at rates
up to 140 words per minute.

In a final feature, L&H included text-to-speech technology. During dictation
or after, users can command Voice Xpress to read, in a computerized voice,
the dictated text.

The less expensive Voice Xpress allows users to dictate within the Voice
Xpress application and then paste the finished content to any standard word
processor. The same functionality is also part of the Plus product, but the
more expensive version allows users to dictate directly into Microsoft Word.
In addition, Voice Xpress Plus provides users with more natural language
command control functionality. "Xpress Plus allows you to format an entire
Word document using natural voice commands," added Bouwers.

He claims the company's aggressive pricing opens speech dictation to "anyone
who is creating documents on his or her computer. From the general computer
user at home who wants to create e-mails or faxes or any document, to the
corporate user who requires an efficient professional tool, Voice Xpress and
Voice Xpress Plus offer an affordable breakthrough technology."

Both versions are expected to appear at Office Depot stores this week and at
other retailers such as CompUSA, Computer City, and Staples, next week.

Talking to a computer is resource intensive. The technological advances in
Voice Xpress require users to have a Windows 95/NT 4.0-based computer powered
by a 166 megahertz (MHz) Pentium with MMX and 40 megabytes (MB) of RAM. An
additional 8MB of RAM is needed when using L&H Voice Xpress Plus for
dictation directly into Microsoft Word. NT users must have 48MB of RAM for
any installation. Both products require 130MB hard disk space, a VGA or
better monitor, and a 16-bit Creative Labs or other Windows- compatible sound
card.

Reported by Newsbytes News Network: http://www.newsbytes.com .

(19980429/Press Contact: Audrey Pobre, Lernout & Hauspie, 781-203-5341/WIRES
PC/L&H/PHOTO)



Bud Kennedy
email: [log in to unmask]