# Does anyone use the Dictation tool in Scrivener?



## Mark Philipson (Mar 9, 2013)

I chose to insert Dictation from the File Menu in Scrivener. I wasn't sure what the results would be. I was pleasantly surprised when the words I spoke were transcribed right at the cursor. I think I'll be using this tool extensively.


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## DarkScribe (Aug 30, 2012)

Mark Philipson said:


> I chose to insert Dictation from the File Menu in Scrivener. I wasn't sure what the results would be. I was pleasantly surprised when the words I spoke were transcribed right at the cursor. I think I'll be using this tool extensively.


Scrivener doesn't have a dictation "tool".

It can use Nuance Software's products, or the Mac Dictation, but it has no tool of its own. I use it with Nuance Naturally Speaking on my PC and with the Apple version on my Mac.


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## Mark Philipson (Mar 9, 2013)

I thought it was an on board tool. I stand corrected.


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## Gina Black (Mar 15, 2011)

It has Start Speaking and Stop Speaking under the Edit/Speech menu. I've tried it. The conversion from text to speech happens somewhere else so it tkes a bit. I think Scrivener is taking advantage of a built-in functionality of OSX.


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## JRHenderson (Dec 4, 2011)

Mark, are you using a Windows machine? I seem to recall that one of the recent versions of Windows (7?) shipped with speech-to-text software built-in. That might be what you're seeing on the File menu in Scrivener.



Gina Black said:


> It has Start Speaking and Stop Speaking under the Edit/Speech menu. I've tried it. The conversion from text to speech happens somewhere else so it tkes a bit. I think Scrivener is taking advantage of a built-in functionality of OSX.


Hi Gina. I think that Mark is referring to "speech-to-text" where the computer types what you say, rather than "text-to-speech" where the computer speaks what you've typed. But it's easy to get them mixed up!


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## Carradee (Aug 21, 2010)

Mac OS 10.8 also has speech-to-text software built-in.


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## JRHenderson (Dec 4, 2011)

Carradee said:


> Mac OS 10.8 also has speech-to-text software built-in.


Thank you Carradee, I didn't know that. I've been putting off upgrading OS X because my old copy of MacSpeech Dictate won't work on any version other than 10.5 or 10.6. But it sounds like 10.8 solves that problem for me...

*heads to Apple website for more info*


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## Carradee (Aug 21, 2010)

JRHenderson said:


> Thank you Carradee, I didn't know that. I've been putting off upgrading OS X because my old copy of MacSpeech Dictate won't work on any version other than 10.5 or 10.6. But it sounds like 10.8 solves that problem for me...
> 
> *heads to Apple website for more info*


In the interests of full disclosure, I understand that 10.8 is sandboxed (which can evidently be turned off in system preferences). I'm on 10.7, myself.


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## Gina Black (Mar 15, 2011)

JRHenderson said:


> Hi Gina. I think that Mark is referring to "speech-to-text" where the computer types what you say, rather than "text-to-speech" where the computer speaks what you've typed. But it's easy to get them mixed up!


It also has Dictation under the same Edit menu, a couple of spaces down and it does what I said it did (except you are right, I was referring to the wrong part of the menu).


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## Mark Philipson (Mar 9, 2013)

JRHenderson said:


> Mark, are you using a Windows machine? I seem to recall that one of the recent versions of Windows (7?) shipped with speech-to-text software built-in. That might be what you're seeing on the File menu in Scrivener.


I'm on a Mac OS 10.8 and I'm digging the speech-to-text gizmo.


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## DarkScribe (Aug 30, 2012)

Carradee said:


> Mac OS 10.8 also has speech-to-text software built-in.


No it doesn't. It needs an internet connection as the conversion is done on Apple servers, not on your machine. It also has limits with regard to the amount of text it can handle in one hit.


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## Carradee (Aug 21, 2010)

DarkScribe said:


> No it doesn't. It needs an internet connection as the conversion is done on Apple servers, not on your machine. It also has limits with regard to the amount of text it can handle in one hit.


Sorry. "Cloudware" would've been a better term.


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## DarkScribe (Aug 30, 2012)

Carradee said:


> Sorry. "Cloudware" would've been a better term.


Yes, yet one more in a long line of strings attached to your system by the vendors. It is also very basic - nothing like Nuance software. I tried it and found it frustrating - nearly unusable for real work. Even Apple suggest that it is fine for things like Social Media updates, but not for serious writing.


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## Sophrosyne (Mar 27, 2011)

OMG. I had no idea. I love it! I'm going to teach my daughter how to use it, so she can start writing her stories herself. Woo-hoo! Thank you for posting this!


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## Cherise (May 13, 2012)

I have both Windows 7 and Mac OS 10.8. 

Windows 7's version of speech to text works better. I do have to use it in Notepad and then paste, as it won't work in Open Office.


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## Jay Walken (Feb 7, 2013)

Amazing!


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## SawyerPentecost (Jul 11, 2013)

I'm going to be trying this out on a chapter tonight. Macbook Air with 10.8.


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## valeriec80 (Feb 24, 2011)

DarkScribe said:


> Scrivener doesn't have a dictation "tool".
> 
> It can use Nuance Software's products, or the Mac Dictation, but it has no tool of its own. I use it with Nuance Naturally Speaking on my PC and with the Apple version on my Mac.


How did you get the Nuance program to integrate with Scrivener on your PC? Is it in the menus like others are saying?


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## Cherise (May 13, 2012)

valeriec80 said:


> How did you get the Nuance program to integrate with Scrivener on your PC? Is it in the menus like others are saying?


I think they are on Macs, rather than PCs.

(Bumping for people who don't realize this is available.)

I quit trying to dictate fiction. Having to dictate the punctuation ruins the whole flow for me, and I'm too uptight to just leave out the punctuation for now.


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## valeriec80 (Feb 24, 2011)

Still wondering if anyone out there knows how to dictate directly into Scrivener for PC.

I have Dragon 12 and I can only dictate into the Dragon Pad and copy-paste, or use the dictation box and transfer (which I like less.). When I try to dictate directly into Scrivener, I just get a message saying it's not supported. I assumed that was the be-all, end-all. Person who specifically mentioned PCs, can you confirm that you are dictating directly into Scrivener on a PC?? If so, how? Thanks.


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## Kevin Lee Swaim (May 30, 2014)

I just figured this out. In options, there is a checkbox that says use dragon pad for unknown Applications. Unselect that and save your profile.


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