Using Windows 7 Speech Recognition Software

If you have been considering using voice recognition software, you might want to try the built-in speech recognition software that comes with Microsoft Windows 7. Not only is this software free, it is also quite handy. For example, this article was written almost entirely by speaking to the computer. There was little typing involved other than for correcting a few minor voice-to-text typos.

First, you must have Windows 7 on your computer. By default, speech recognition is not turned on. You must go in and enable the speech recognition software. Do this by going to the Start button and entering "speech recognition" into the Windows search bar. You'll soon see Windows Speech Recognition listed in the program list. Click on the link to Windows Speech Recognition and the speech recognition tutorial will begin.

It's important to follow this tutorial because you'll need to learn the commands to use with the software. Likewise, the software will need to learn your speech patterns. The tutorial features information as well as at step-by-step simulations. For example, you will see a series of screens prompting you to say specific commands. When you say the commands, the software will follow them as directed. This is an excellent way to learn how to use the speech recognition software.

Once you have completed the tutorial, you can begin using the speech recognition software. You can use Windows Speech Recognition to convert speech to text in your documents such as in Microsoft Word. You can also use Windows Speech Recognition to control your computer.

Using Windows Speech Recognition to Type Text as You Speak

To use the speech recognition utility to convert your words into text as you speak, simply open your word processor and make sure that the speech recognition utility is listening for your voice. It is best to use a headphone with a microphone, but your built-in computer microphone will also work. Make sure that you are working in a quiet environment. Otherwise the speech recognition software may pick up the sounds of other people speaking and enter their words into your document.

Once the speech recognition icon indicates that it is listening to you, place the cursor in the document and begin speaking in a clear, deliberate voice. You will need to specify punctuation marks by saying the name of the mark such as "period" or "comma." This takes a bit of getting used to, but after awhile you'll find it easier. When you are speaking, the words do not appear immediately one word after the other. Rather they appear all at once when you pause briefly.

Using Windows Speech Recognition to Control the Computer

Not only does Windows Speech Recognition convert your speech to text, it also can be used to control your computer. For example, the bold header above was made bold using voice commands. In this example, the command was "select 'using Windows speech recognition to control the computer'" which instructed Word to highlight the text. Once highlighted the command was "bold."

You can easily switch to different documents or programs using voice commands such as "switch to Excel." Other common commands include: scroll up (or down, right, left), new paragraph, click, and double-click. You can even use the speech recognition utility to get help with a computer task. For example, if you say, "How do I update Windows?" the utility opens Windows Help and Support and displays a list of Help topics covering how to update Windows.

It's relatively easy to use Windows Speech Recognition, especially after following the tutorial and learning that commands. The speech recognition software does get confused periodically, requiring extra careful proofreading once you have spoken your words and converted them to text. If you are a slow typist or if your hands are injured and you cannot type, the ability to convert your speech to text is amazing.