Features
Dragon NaturallySpeaking 10 comes in several different versions -- including Professional, Legal, Standard, Preferred, and Professional. The difference in different versions has to do with the vocabularies they employ and the different applications they will work with. I will be reviewing the Professional version, which is the most fully featured version of all.

The professional version is able to interface with most Windows applications including Microsoft Word, Outlook e-mail, and many more applications. The software also allows you to streamline complex or repetitive document creation tasks, allowing you to insert complete blocks of text by simply stating a command. I found this particular useful for e-mails where I could bind signatures to voice commands to sign e-mails.

The Professional version is also designed to be network ready for use in an office environment. It also supports automatic dictation when used with any Nuance-certified handheld device. In these instances, you can record your voice to something like a tape recorder and when you sync the recorder to your PC, your voice dictation will be automatically transcribed. That would be particularly useful for recording meetings, where you can simply have the meeting automatically transcribed afterwards from a voice recording.

People who suffer from repetitive stress injuries like carpal tunnel syndrome will get relief from Dragon NaturallySpeaking 10 as well disabled workers -- the software is section 508 certified. The software also has multiple shortcuts for e-mail and calendar functions, as well as shortcuts for Web searching and shortcuts for desktop search.

The professional version comes bundled with a headset featuring a quality microphone. A versions is also available that includes a Bluetooth wireless headset that allows you move around the office as you dictate.

Nuance says the software requires at least 1 GB of hard drive space and 2 GB for localized non-English versions. Supported operating systems are Windows only. If you're like and me spend lots of time working in Microsoft Word, NaturallySpeaking 10 is a real timesaver. Nuance says the average person types 40 words per minute they can speak in the neighborhood of 260 words per minute. Nuance has a typing test on its website that I took that showed I can type 58 words per minute with an 87% accuracy rating. I can get documents completed much faster using Dragon NaturallySpeaking 10 that I can by typing along.

In Use
I especially like with Word that I can do most any formatting or anything else I can do with normal Word commands simply by using voice commands with no need to hit the keyboard. I can sit back, relax, and speak what I want the software to write, in fact, I'm using the software to write this very review.

I'm from Texas, and like most Southerners tend to have a thicker accent than some users. I would say the software correctly recognizes my speech 98% of the time. In addition, its accuracy gets much better the more I use it.

For instance, in my profession I use many technical terms, which the first time mentioned the software does not often recognize. If I say a word the software does not recognize or puts to the page incorrectly, I can simply say "select that" and the software automatically highlight the last word or sentence spoken. Once the word is highlighted, I can either spell it correctly or choose the correct spelling from the list provided. Typically, once I correct the word the first time the software will do it correctly from then on.

However, I did find a couple particularly strange words Dragon NaturallySpeaking 10 had a very hard time rendering correctly even after I corrected the spelling. For instance when talking about a new Dell laptop called the E6400, no matter what I did the software wanted to put a period after the E like it was an initial. Simply saying the word "period" can also throw the software for loop. It will often insert punctuation rather than the word.

One nice feature is the Dragon NaturallySpeaking rarely misspells word, it may use the wrong word, but it will be spelled correctly most often. Another thing to note is I found that the automatic punctuation feature did not work to my expectations. This may have more to do with the method I used for dictation -- with frequent pauses -- than any error of the software. Still is an issue nonetheless. I ended up turning off the automatic punctuation feature and simply speaking my punctuation where needed.

According to Nuance the longer I use the software the more accurate it will become, and in my testing, I can see that is an accurate statement. Overall, I have found Dragon NaturallySpeaking 10 to be a very good application making my work much faster than typing, even when taking into account the errors and issues I have found with technical terms I use in my daily work.

I admit I'm not totally ready to give up my keyboard, for some applications -- like the content management systems on our website -- voice commands don't work well. Another issue for some users will be the price -- the professional version I'm testing sells for over $800. However, the standard version sells for only $99 and offers much the same functionality.