This year, we hosted our fourth annual "I Speak Dragon!" story contest, and we asked YOU to tell us how you use Dragon NaturallySpeaking or MacSpeech Dictate.  We were inundated with responses from hundreds upon hundreds of people - students, lawyers, teachers, bloggers, pastors, moms, dads, grandparents and more - and all of them had unique stories to share.  If you haven't had a chance to see any of this year's stories, I would encourage you to check out http://ispeakdragon.nuance.com and read through some of the amazing tales from folks who use Dragon.

It was extremely difficult for our panel of judges to choose just three winners from all of the wonderful stories that you shared.  But here they are...the winners of the 2010 "I Speak Dragon!" contest:

Most Creative

“Dragon NaturallySpeaking: a matchmaker?”

After a few strange experiences with blurred vision and numbness, Evan Upchurch was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis.  Evan was concerned with how the diagnosis would affect his productivity at work, and he was also somewhat isolated, unaware of anyone else with MS with whom he could talk.

As time passed, Evan’s hands developed a severe tremor, and his group administrator at work suggested that he try Dragon NaturallySpeaking.  When he asked why she recommended Dragon, she told him that a co-worker had been using Dragon and was extremely pleased with its performance.  Evan connected with this mystery co-worker and was surprised to learn that she too had been diagnosed with MS and that she had turned to Dragon to save her career.  

The two forged a friendship starting that day that ultimately blossomed into a relationship.  In fact, May marked the couple’s five-year wedding anniversary.  “Dragon NaturallySpeaking and multiple sclerosis served as our extremely unlikely matchmakers, and the luckiest break I’ve ever had,” said Evan.

To read Evan’s full story, please visit: http://community.nuance.com/groups/i-speak-dragon/forum/t/1565.aspx

Most Productive

“Three Million Words and Counting”

This past June, Time Magazine named Joe Romm’s website, ClimateProgress.org, one of the 25 “best blogs of 2010” and one of the “top five blogs Time writers read daily.”  “That would never have happened without Dragon NaturallySpeaking,” says Joe.

Over a decade ago, Joe injured his right hand, which made typing for any length of time painful.  To allow him to continue writing, Joe quickly found Dragon. Joe has since dictated a number of books – The Hype about Hydrogen and Hell and High Water – and he has even credited Dragon in his books, noting: “…it’s the best product yet…Dragon NaturallySpeaking arrived just in time to enable me to double my productivity on this book.”

When Joe started the ClimateProgress.org blog for the Center for American Progress Action Fund, his writing became much more frequent.  Dragon came to the rescue again, supporting Joe through a few thousand blog posts over the past four years.  All together, Joe figures that he has dictated at least three million words with Dragon. 

Joe now uses Dragon on his home PC and MacSpeech Dictate on his Mac laptop to allow for fast and easy on-the-road blogging.  Using speech recognition has changed Joe’s writing style and has even made his blog posts more conversational, a quality which he says contributes to his blog’s immense popularity. 

“For me, Dragon NaturallySpeaking is an indispensable product.”  says Joe.

To read Joe’s full story, please visit: http://community.nuance.com/groups/i-speak-dragon/forum/t/4223.aspx

Most Life-Changing

“Disabled but still able to”

An event took place in 1997 that changed Nancy Blose’s life.  A 34-year old mother of two young children, Nancy was involved in a catastrophic car accident that left her instantly paralyzed and unable to do so many of the activities that she had previously taken for granted.  Shortly after the accident, Nancy found Dragon NaturallySpeaking, and she set out to capture her thoughts and her words as quickly and as openly as possible. 

“There is permanency with written words and I had many thoughts that I wanted preserved,” said Nancy. “My first priority was to write letters to my children, then ages six and eight, to be opened on their 16^th birthdays. The letters were my assurance in case of my early demise to once again tell my children how much I love them and to pass on motherly pearls of wisdom.” 

As Nancy continued to use Dragon over the years, she also dictated a book about her accident and her survival, and even communicated with her children’s teachers via emails as they progressed through school.  Today she is able to send personalized greeting cards – created online by voice with Dragon – and also keep in touch with her children who are now in college. 

To read Nancy’s full story, please visit: http://community.nuance.com/groups/i-speak-dragon/forum/t/1635.aspx

The full press release announcing the winners is included below.

Congratulations to all of our winners!  And to those of you who entered but who did not win this year, THANK YOU for sharing your stories with us.  Get your voices ready for next year's contest!

Thank you,

Erica Hill

******

Nuance Announces Winners of Fourth Annual “I Speak Dragon!” Story Contest

Hundreds of People Share Their Success Stories; Winning Entries Submitted by Author, Software Company Employee and Mom of Two Detail Their Experiences of Using Dragon NaturallySpeaking and MacSpeech Dictate

BURLINGTON, Mass., – September 2, 2010 – Nuance Communications, Inc., today announced the winners of its “I Speak Dragon!” contest, which encouraged users of Nuance’s Dragon  NaturallySpeaking and MacSpeech Dictate software to come forward and share their personal stories about how Dragon has enhanced and transformed their lives.

Proof positive of Dragon’s popularity and impact, hundreds of stories were submitted this summer, including a record breaking number of video entries.  People from all walks of life, including students, authors, teachers, comedians, grandparents, doctors, lawyers, and police officers, among many others, submitted incredible stories of improved productivity, creativity, and innovation made possible by Dragon NaturallySpeaking and MacSpeech Dictate.

Three winning entries were selected by a panel of judges from the hundreds of exceptional stories received across all three different categories, and Nuance is pleased to announce the following winners:

Most Creative

“Dragon NaturallySpeaking: a matchmaker?”

After a few strange experiences with blurred vision and numbness, Evan Upchurch was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis.  Evan was concerned with how the diagnosis would affect his productivity at work, and he was also somewhat isolated, unaware of anyone else with MS with whom he could talk.

As time passed, Evan’s hands developed a severe tremor, and his group administrator at work suggested that he try Dragon NaturallySpeaking.  When he asked why she recommended Dragon, she told him that a co-worker had been using Dragon and was extremely pleased with its performance.  Evan connected with this mystery co-worker and was surprised to learn that she too had been diagnosed with MS and that she had turned to Dragon to save her career.  

The two forged a friendship starting that day that ultimately blossomed into a relationship.  In fact, May marked the couple’s five-year wedding anniversary.  “Dragon NaturallySpeaking and multiple sclerosis served as our extremely unlikely matchmakers, and the luckiest break I’ve ever had,” said Evan.

To read Evan’s full story, please visit: http://community.nuance.com/groups/i-speak-dragon/forum/t/1565.aspx

Most Productive

“Three Million Words and Counting”

This past June, Time Magazine named Joe Romm’s website, ClimateProgress.org, one of the 25 “best blogs of 2010” and one of the “top five blogs Time writers read daily.”  “That would never have happened without Dragon NaturallySpeaking,” says Joe.

Over a decade ago, Joe injured his right hand, which made typing for any length of time painful.  To allow him to continue writing, Joe quickly found Dragon. Joe has since dictated a number of books – The Hype about Hydrogen and Hell and High Water – and he has even credited Dragon in his books, noting: “…it’s the best product yet…Dragon NaturallySpeaking arrived just in time to enable me to double my productivity on this book.”

When Joe started the ClimateProgress.org blog for the Center for American Progress Action Fund, his writing became much more frequent.  Dragon came to the rescue again, supporting Joe through a few thousand blog posts over the past four years.  All together, Joe figures that he has dictated at least three million words with Dragon. 

Joe now uses Dragon on his home PC and MacSpeech Dictate on his Mac laptop to allow for fast and easy on-the-road blogging.  Using speech recognition has changed Joe’s writing style and has even made his blog posts more conversational, a quality which he says contributes to his blog’s immense popularity. 

“For me, Dragon NaturallySpeaking is an indispensable product.”  says Joe.

To read Joe’s full story, please visit: http://community.nuance.com/groups/i-speak-dragon/forum/t/4223.aspx

Most Life-Changing

“Disabled but still able to”

An event took place in 1997 that changed Nancy Blose’s life.  A 34-year old mother of two young children, Nancy was involved in a catastrophic car accident that left her instantly paralyzed and unable to do so many of the activities that she had previously taken for granted.  Shortly after the accident, Nancy found Dragon NaturallySpeaking, and she set out to capture her thoughts and her words as quickly and as openly as possible. 

“There is permanency with written words and I had many thoughts that I wanted preserved,” said Nancy. “My first priority was to write letters to my children, then ages six and eight, to be opened on their 16^th birthdays. The letters were my assurance in case of my early demise to once again tell my children how much I love them and to pass on motherly pearls of wisdom.”

As Nancy continued to use Dragon over the years, she also dictated a book about her accident and her survival, and even communicated with her children’s teachers via emails as they progressed through school.  Today she is able to send personalized greeting cards – created online by voice with Dragon – and also keep in touch with her children who are now in college. 

To read Nancy’s full story, please visit: http://community.nuance.com/groups/i-speak-dragon/forum/t/1635.aspx

The above winners will each receive an Apple iPad and choice of either one copy of Dragon NaturallySpeaking Professional or one copy of MacSpeech Dictate as well as the right to receive any upgrade to the Software specified by the winner that Nuance creates, in its discretion, in the ordinary course of its business during the three year period running from the end of the Promotion Period.

To read other exciting contest entries that demonstrate some of the unique ways that people everywhere are using Dragon NaturallySpeaking and MacSpeech Dictate, please visit: http://ispeakdragon.nuance.com/

About Nuance Communications, Inc.

Nuance is a leading provider of speech, imaging and customer interaction solutions for businesses and consumers around the world. Its technologies, applications and services make the user experience more compelling by transforming the way people interact with information and how they create, share and use documents. Every day, millions of users and thousands of businesses experience Nuance’s proven applications and professional services. For more information, please visit: www.nuance.com.

Trademark reference: Nuance, Dragon, Dragon NaturallySpeaking, and the Nuance logo are registered trademarks or trademarks of Nuance Communications, Inc. or its affiliates in the United States and/or other countries. All other company names or product names referenced herein may be the property of their respective owners.

Apple, Inc. was in no way affiliated with or a sponsor of this Contest.