 It seems there is software for just about anything these days to help you write, punctuate, spell ... it can almost compose a book for you.
Where's the fun in that? Actually, it's very fun. Yesterday I installed a voice recognition programme called Dragon. Ah, you've heard of it ? I also got a good headset with a very astute microphone that can pick up all the subtle nuances of my extraordinary speech and fabulous words. Actually my speech and words pale in comparison to the Dragon. What a wonder of tehcnology it is and what jolly good fun! It's like having a little companion inside your computer, one that does what you tell it (I do like giving orders, I admit), comes up with quirky mis-spellings when it doesn't hear you properly, and best of all, you can train it to better recognise what you are saying. There are very few things that I can boss around, even Betsy the cat makes a point of ignoring everything I ask her to do ("get down off the clean bedspread", "go outside", "eat your dinner"), so it's quite nice to have a silent subservient that does what I tell it, mostly. It is a work in progress. Dragon and I are shaking each other down. It's learning my way of speaking, and I'm learning its techno approach to dictation and editing. It takes a while but we're going OK. Why did I get this software? I usually resist these sorts of things, having been brought up in the old writing school of scribbling by hand or onto the computer and then editing and re-writing that way. Anything that might help me with that has usually been met with a scoff and a nose-in-the-air comment like 'There is absolutely no way I'd ever pay good money for any writing software!' I'm getting old and therefore more practical. Typing for hours excites my arthritis so I have surrendered, given in to technological advancement, and I've done it quietly so that my friends don't now turn to me and say, 'But hey you said you'd never ever ...' So shhh, don't tell them, we'll never hear the end of it - but I'll tell you on the quiet here, think about getting yourself a Dragon of your own. It's a worthy investment. It's fun having a little dragon-pet in the computer. It works really well, and does not breathe fire and bellow. Maybe that's what will come next - a Dragon that will belch flames at you if you don't complete your word count target for the day.
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