Nuance Names the Winners of Its I Speak Dragon Contest
Nuance Communications today announced the winners of its "I Speak Dragon!" contest, which encouraged users of Nuance's Dragon NaturallySpeaking and Dragon Dictate software to share their personal stories about how Dragon has enhanced and transformed their lives.
Proof positive of Dragon's popularity and impact, hundreds of stories were submitted this summer, including a record-breaking number of video entries. People from all walks of life, including students, authors, teachers, comedians, grandparents, doctors, lawyers, and police officers, among many others, submitted incredible stories of improved productivity, creativity, and innovation made possible by Dragon NaturallySpeaking, Dragon Dictate and Nuance's Dragon Mobile Apps.
Three winning entries were selected by a panel of judges from the hundreds of exceptional stories received across all three categories, and Nuance is pleased to announce the following winners:
"I Speak and Hear Dragon"
In January of 2011, just after New Year's, Paul Czech felt weak and ached all over, and so he went to his bedroom for a mid-day nap. When he awoke, he was in the hospital. Paul's wife went to check in on him and found him unresponsive and convulsing. The doctors diagnosed him with bacterial meningitis.
By early February, Paul was conscious on a regular basis, but a new problem surfaced: he had lost his hearing in both ears. Family and friends would visit and communicate with Paul using a clipboard, writing down everything they had to say. He could see that his visitors would get tired of writing and soon they stopped and just talked among themselves.
That's when Paul remembered the Dragon Dictation app on his iPhone that he had downloaded many months prior to his illness and hearing loss. Paul and his wife began communicating with it immediately and he could instantly see a level of stress disappear. His family and friends soon began using the app to communicate with Paul as well.
Now, almost six months later, Paul is adapting to his life as a hearing-impaired individual. Paul is an attorney, active board member of community organizations, and lecturer, all of which he has been able to continue doing by implementing Dragon software into his activities. He now uses Dragon with his office staff and clients in his private law practice.
"As it turns out, they're the ones that speak Dragon and I'm the one who gladly hears it," Czech said.
To read Paul's full story, please visit: http://community.nuance.com/groups/i-speak-dragon2011/forum/t/4433.aspx
"I Work with Words"
Some time ago, someone asked Mark Hopper what "professing" was all about. He replied, "I read, talk and listen a lot." Not only is Mark a consumer of words, he is a producer of words: he is a lecturer, grader, writer, colleague, and counselor.
Words are Mark's primary means of information exchange, and he found that he needed a more efficient way of managing them because the volume of work had become overwhelming. A year ago, Mark came across an ad for Dragon NaturallySpeaking, something he had heard his school's special education students using. After reading through the ad he began thinking maybe this could help him.
By the end of the spring semester, Mark had begun putting Dragon to work drafting lecture notes, grading papers and exams, taking notes while reading research, and communicating with students and colleagues. Dragon has made a significant impact on his productivity, so much so that he has already begun planning for future uses of speech recognition, including lecture capture, blog post development, video captioning, and more.
"I can whole-heartedly say that Dragon NaturallySpeaking has allowed me to become a more efficient and effective professor," Hopper said.
To read Mark’s full story, please visit: http://community.nuance.com/groups/i-speak-dragon2011/forum/t/4679.aspx
"Christopher Smit, Dragon Dictate Competition Video"
Dr. Christopher Smit has had to overcome many obstacles in his life, but has also experienced many triumphs: he married the perfect woman, adopted the perfect little boy, and became a college professor and author, just to name a few. As associate professor of communication at Calvin College, Dr. Smit says words are everything. In fact, they are his way to transcend muscular dystrophy.
When it became difficult to type and create due to restricted use of his hands, Dr. Smit didn't slow down. "Apple computers and Dragon Dictate helped me transcend the body that doesn't work so good," he says. "My words are now moving faster than ever before."
To hear and see Christopher's full story, please visit: http://community.nuance.com/groups/i-speak-dragon2011/forum/t/4619.aspx or view the video directly at http://smitwork.com/dragon-dictate-film.
The above winners will each receive a Samsung Galaxy Tab, their choice of either one copy of Dragon NaturallySpeaking Professional or one copy of Dragon Dictate as well as the right to receive any upgrade to the Software specified by the winner that Nuance creates, in its discretion, in the ordinary course of its business during the three-year period running from the end of the promotion period.
To read other contest entries that demonstrate some of the unique ways people everywhere are using Dragon NaturallySpeaking and Dragon Dictate, please visit: http://ispeakdragon.nuance.com/
Related Articles
Developments in assistive technologies are removing barriers for many.
10 Sep 2012