AutoHotkey Community

[Q]

Hi,

The professional version of Dragon Naturally speaking (DNS) is the only version that offers linking macros with proper voice command phrases.
I mean launching macros with meaningful spoken phrases like "go to my project folder 1", not just hot key presses like "Press Alt Alpha".

But Boo Hoo Woo it's like around 400 to 500 pritish pounds
The preferred edition is however a fraction the cost at around 70 pounds. With the preferred edition you can only however paste text and graphics, there is no macro support.

Whey hey, I have however figured out how using Autohotkey to provide free and fast macro support for the Preferred edition and I have tried it on version 9.5 on vista (NOTE my method won't work for the standard edition).

Basically it relies on scrapping the results box and then firing off the respective macro. So in tools options view of DNS you need to set the results box so that it is always displayed.

Instructions:-

1) In tools options view of DNS you need to set the results box so that it is always displayed.

2)For each macro you want to set up. In the DNS command browser enter a new text command with the name as the phrase you want to launch your macro with and enter the ¬ character only in the content box.
You have to enter the ¬ character as DNS will not let you save it with no characters in it. The ¬ will be sucked out by the secound script on running the macro.

3) After DNS is running run the following two scrips. Note there are just two macro examples in the first script named "click top left" and "click some where else", you will want to add more. Be sure in step 2) above to have added in the commands "click top left" and "click some where else".
The label that will be jumped to run the macro in the first script is shown in a tool tip at the top of the screen. The secound script monitors for the ¬ character and strips this out.

4) If it fails to work try reloading the first script when the DNS results box is showing.

5) This does work well and is quick but please post any improvements here or better Ideas to link autohotkey to the non-professional versions of dragon naturally speaking.

6) Please let me know here how you get on

Note: at time of writting (correct me if I am wrong) I think that DNS does not run on the 64bit vista version just on the 32bit one. Most computers sold with vista however use the 32bit version even if the underlying chips are 64bit.

SCRIPT 1:-

[porky]

Q,

Your ideas are exactly what I'm looking for. I am a new dragon preferred user and am immediately frustrated by the lack of support for some of the more basic navigation. I have been looking at the know Brainer software to supplement Dragon but even this is $200!

I'll spend sometime this weekend trying your suggestions; have you had any other interest or progress.

Regards,

Porky

[Guest]

I tried to do something like this myself -nice job! AHK is my weapon of choice (I also have to say that many of the voice rec communities are much more contentious than this forum), but you guys should also keep Vocola (which interfaces with a Python module) in mind - very similar capabilities to Knowbrainer (but free!), very easy to build macros. I was able to do most of what I needed with it. Unimacro is also free and uses Python, and is much more powerful, but also much more complicated.

[KnowBrainer]

[EdScriptNewbie]

THANKS for creating this.

I have a zillion hotkeys, hotstrings etc in my AutoHotKey.ini. I don't want to copy the ones I need into SCRIPT 1 b/c I'm always improving them.
1. What do I put in SCRIPT 1 to call a hotkey or hotstring from AutoHotKey.ini? It's always on, but somehow DNS Preferred blocks it.

Also, yes, I too wish for a DNS forum with the helpful participants, kindly tone and easy searching of this superlative forum, but the ones I've tried seem more consistent with Nuance's far-less-than-helpful tone, plus contentious as mentioned.
2. Can anyone point to a good DNS forum?

THANKS AGAIN
_________________
...Ed

[Hasso]

I only know a good one in German, maybe it's useful for someone: http://forum.oasa-speech.de/viewforum.php?f=3.
_________________
Hasso

Programmers don't die, they GOSUB without RETURN

[Volante]

I put together a simple script to use Dragon Naturally Speaking to drive voice commands using a simple input Dialog box that auto executes after four seconds.

I have tied this function to my mouse-wheel button or to a "press tilde" command, if working with no mouse. The script can then be edited to basically match any text generated by voice as a command. Since the dialog box is user activated, it can be controlled from any context, and you can determine in advance whether you want the command to execute in the current application or be more explicit about executing specific actions.

[Kmarvin]

Nice work-arounds for DNS preffered's lack off support for real commands or even text substitutions that send keystrokes. When I was stumped by this issue, I found Natpython & Vocola here: http://speechwiki.org/NL/HomePage.html. These, respectively, use the NatLink utility of DNS to accept python scripts and convert DNS (v3) scripting language to python.

Keystroke commands are easy to write and they CAN call hotstrings/hotkeys in autohotkey. Vocola also supports variables, captured words and alternatives. Moreover, the DNS script command AppBringUp can pass parameters to autohotkey.

I select tools in a toolbar (which DNS8 does not support) with the following code:

Icon_finder.ahk

[Kmarvin]

Sorry the following link is more useful for natpython and vocola as the project has been picked up by new people!http://www.speechcomputing.com/forum/52
_________________
Keith

[EdScriptNewbie]

Keith, thanks for posting what appears to be some very interesting work. I use DNS (preferred) a lot, and I use ahk, but I haven't been able to make them get along. I know nothing of python, etc, so your post is Way over my head, technology-wise. if I were going to just try something out along these lines, where might I start? Thanks. ...Ed
_________________
...Ed

[nekto]

http://www.speechcomputing.com/node/1773

Here is a script that make Vocola to execute hotkeys when you say code phrase. So I guess something as simple as

[EdScriptNewbie]

so simple. thanks!
_________________
...Ed

[nekto]

My pleasure

Just in case installer is here: http://sourceforge.net/projects/natlink/

Download section, first you install second package (pythonfornatlink), after that you should install first one (natlink).

Vocola files you need to modify: http://vocola.net/UsingVocola.html
Or simply locate and edit "in_vocola.vcl".

Good Luck!

[Q]

Hi there,

Thanks for the info about natlink and vocola, does the latest verison 3.5 work with all versions of DNS? I mean DNS Versions 8, 9 and 10?

The example above gives a way to press hotkeys to run AHK.

Is there a vocola command to run a file so you could simply just run the .AHK file?

[Kmarvin]

Hi,
The command you want in vocola (DNS scripting language) is:

speak this phrase = AppBringUp(script name,"C:\my scripts\script.ahk",n,WorkingDir);

where "script name" is what you want DNS to know your script as while it is running (so DNS can "Switch to ..." it by name), the path to your script and its name calls ahk and runs the script. (My previous post had autohotkey explicitly in the second parameter along with the script path and name as a command line parameter. That was more complicated than necessary.)

Parameters n and WorkingDir can just be omitted; n is a single digit -- 1 = normal active, 2= minimized active, 3= maximized active, 4 = normal inactive, 6 = minimized inactive; "WorkingDir" sets a new working directory.

The present version Vocola/NatPython (3.5) works with DNS8.1. Reports on the speechcomputing forum noted previously indicate it also works w/ DNS9.5, but some problems were noted with DNS10.

I had a little bit of a go with Q's code. The following modified code id's the results box only once, eliminating the continiuous loops. It also Sends keystrokes (with modifier keys) to the active window. So in DNS Command Editor write a custom command with content ":::!f" and it will click the file menu when said (no new ahk subroutine required). Define "move results box" with content ":::" and it will put the results box at the top of the screen. Define your own commands as before but use ::: as content (::: can be said). (Note that DNS "Dictation Box" also uses the clipboard, so starting with ::: will cause modifier keystrokes to be sent as modifiers). Hope you don't mind Q, but your code makes low overhead for simple commands.