No one is perfect – not even Dragon.  In the same way that we might not hear a word correctly when speaking with someone, Dragon also can misrecognize words from time to time.  (Have you noticed, though, that Dragon *never* misspells a word?)  When a misrecognition happens, the best thing that you can do is to correct it.  This way, Dragon will learn that it made a mistake, and will be less likely to make the same mistake again.  How cool is that?!

When you make a correction, it can be tempting to simply use the keyboard to delete the text and type in the correct word or phrase. Similarly, the “Scratch that” command makes it fast and easy to delete the transcription of the previous utterance, or string of dictated text. However, this might actually be keeping you from achieving even higher levels of accuracy with Dragon.  Why?  Because simply deleting the text doesn’t allow Dragon to “learn” from the misrecognition.  Instead of simply deleting or “scratching” text that is incorrectly transcribed by Dragon, a better choice is to select the misrecognized text (manually or by voice) and perform the correction (again, either manually or by voice) so that Dragon can learn from the error.

Another cool thing to note is that correction with Dragon can be performed in different ways, and at different times, giving you the option to make your corrections in the way that is most efficient and intuitive for you:

• You can make a correction immediately after a misrecognition, or you can wait until you’ve finished your paragraph, or your idea, or even your whole document, before correcting Dragon’s errors.
• You can perform Correction entirely by voice, entirely by mouse, entirely by keyboard (by default, the Correction hotkey is the numeric minus), or in a combination.
• Dragon can present you with its list of alternative recognitions in two ways: the Correction menu (by default), and the Spell dialog box (where you can spell and type)
• Dragon has a “Double-click to Correct” option: if enabled, when you double-click a word, Dragon’s correction interface comes up for that word.
• A third-party can perform Correction for you – particularly useful for very busy/heavy Dragon users, very young people who use Dragon, or folks with health issues.
• If your edition of Dragon supports it, you can defer Correction: when you close your document, let Dragon save the associated audio file (same filename as the document but with extension .DRA)

You can make a correction in Dragon with a simple, direct voice command.  You simply say “Correct XYZ,” where XYZ is the misrecognized word/phrase on the screen.  A list of alternative transcriptions will be presented to you in a Correction menu and you can choose the correct option either manually (down arrow, or mouse) or by voice. If the desired transcription is not among the menu choices, say “Spell That”, which opens the Spell dialog.

You can also have your command go directly to the Spell box: to set this, open the Correction tab of the Options dialog, and check the box marked “’Correct’ Commands Bring Up Spell Dialog.”  With this option set, saying “Correct XYZ” opens the Spell dialog box. You can then indicate the word or phrase you intended; there are many ways to do so, including spelling out characters or selecting a choice from the list.

Note:
1. If no Spell Box choice is quite correct but one is close, you can quickly modify it: click it once or say “Select” and its number (for instance “Select 5”), which brings it to the top line, where you can edit it by hand or by voice.
2. In the top line, you can dictate commands (such as “Move Left 2 Words” and “All Caps That”) as well as characters, but not words.
3. If you choose to spell out in the Spell box, here are a few quick tips:

• To spell a capital letter, just say “Cap” followed by the letter
• You can use alternate pronunciations to spell letters: “Alpha,” “Letter Alpha,” “Letter A”…
• To insert a space, say "Spacebar"

Here are some additional correction tips to keep in mind:

Tip #1 – When you give the “Correct XYZ” command, be sure to use the word(s) that have actually been transcribed, not the words you had intended.

Tip #2 – If several consecutive words are incorrect, correct them together.  For instance, if ‘B40’ were recognized as ‘Before tea’ you would say “Correct before tea.”

Tip #3 – You can have Playback occur automatically when you perform a Correction. On the Correction tab of the Options dialog, check Automatic Playback on Correction. This is particularly helpful as you first learn to use Dragon, as it lets you verify that the audio was clear (if in fact you hadn’t spoken clearly, or you changed your mind, just cancel out of the Spell box and re--dictate the word(s)).  You may want to turn it off after you’ve had enough practice.

For more detailed information about the various correction techniques available in Dragon, please have a look at the Correction sections of our recently-updated User Workbook (which includes new content).   Note – this link will open a PDF document in a new window.