Windows Speech Recognition
Encyclopedia
Windows Speech Recognition is a speech recognition
application included in Windows Vista
and more recently, Windows 7.
Windows Speech Recognition allows the user to control the computer by giving specific voice commands
. The program can also be used for the dictation
of text so that the user can control their Vista or Windows 7 computer.
Applications that do not present obvious "commands" can still be controlled by asking the system to overlay numbers on top of interface elements; the number can subsequently be spoken to activate that function. Programs needing mouse clicks in arbitrary locations can also be controlled through speech; when asked to do so, a "mousegrid" of nine zones is displayed, with numbers inside each. The user speaks the number, and another grid of nine zones is placed inside the chosen zone. This continues until the interface element to be clicked is within the chosen zone.
Windows Speech Recognition has a fairly high recognition accuracy and provides a set of commands that assists in dictation. A brief speech-driven tutorial is included to help familiarize a user with speech recognition commands. Training could also be completed to improve the accuracy of speech recognition.
Currently, the application supports several languages, including English (U.S. and British), Spanish, German, French, Japanese and Chinese (traditional and simplified).
from Carnegie Mellon University to lead its speech efforts. Microsoft has been involved in research on speech recognition and text to speech. The company's research eventually led to the development of the Speech API
(SAPI).
Speech recognition technology has been used in some of Microsoft's products, including Microsoft Dictation (a research prototype that ran on Windows 9x
). It was also included in Office
XP, Office 2003, Microsoft Plus! for Windows XP, Windows XP Tablet PC Edition, and Windows Mobile
(as Microsoft Voice Command
). However, prior to Windows Vista, speech recognition was not mainstream. In response, Windows Speech Recognition was bundled with Windows Vista and released in 2006, making the operating system the first mainstream version of Microsoft Windows to offer fully integrated support for speech recognition.
in the volume control feature, which caused the application to pick up extra noise that affected its performance.
The software bug was fixed by Microsoft prior to the release of Vista to the general public.
version 5.3 (included in Windows Vista) to function. The application also utilizes Microsoft Speech Recognizer 8.0 for Windows as its speech profile engine.
Microsoft has officially recognized the vulnerability, but estimates it does not present a serious threat, because even if a hacker does successfully exploit the flaw, they would not be able to perform any functions limited by the access rights of the user, which likely include administrative tasks. Also, in Windows 7, this concern is addressed by a user configurable option to enable or disable voice activation of speech recognition.
Speech recognition
Speech recognition converts spoken words to text. The term "voice recognition" is sometimes used to refer to recognition systems that must be trained to a particular speaker—as is the case for most desktop recognition software...
application included in Windows Vista
Windows Vista
Windows Vista is an operating system released in several variations developed by Microsoft for use on personal computers, including home and business desktops, laptops, tablet PCs, and media center PCs...
and more recently, Windows 7.
Features
Hands-free computing
Hands-free computing is a term used to describe a configuration of computers so that they can be used by persons without the use of the hands interfacing with commonly used human interface devices such as the mouse and keyboard. Hands-free computing is important because it is useful to both able...
. The program can also be used for the dictation
Transcription (linguistics)
Transcription in the linguistic sense is the systematic representation of language in written form. The source can either be utterances or preexisting text in another writing system, although some linguists only consider the former as transcription.Transcription should not be confused with...
of text so that the user can control their Vista or Windows 7 computer.
Applications that do not present obvious "commands" can still be controlled by asking the system to overlay numbers on top of interface elements; the number can subsequently be spoken to activate that function. Programs needing mouse clicks in arbitrary locations can also be controlled through speech; when asked to do so, a "mousegrid" of nine zones is displayed, with numbers inside each. The user speaks the number, and another grid of nine zones is placed inside the chosen zone. This continues until the interface element to be clicked is within the chosen zone.
Windows Speech Recognition has a fairly high recognition accuracy and provides a set of commands that assists in dictation. A brief speech-driven tutorial is included to help familiarize a user with speech recognition commands. Training could also be completed to improve the accuracy of speech recognition.
Currently, the application supports several languages, including English (U.S. and British), Spanish, German, French, Japanese and Chinese (traditional and simplified).
History
In 1993, Microsoft hired Xuedong HuangXuedong Huang
Xuedong David Huang is the key person behind Microsoft's spoken language and search technologies. He is currently a Distinguished Engineer and Architect in Microsoft's online services division for Bing.-Education:In 1978, Huang entered Hunan University without finishing his high school. He...
from Carnegie Mellon University to lead its speech efforts. Microsoft has been involved in research on speech recognition and text to speech. The company's research eventually led to the development of the Speech API
Speech Application Programming Interface
The Speech Application Programming Interface or SAPI is an API developed by Microsoft to allow the use of speech recognition and speech synthesis within Windows applications. To date, a number of versions of the API have been released, which have shipped either as part of a Speech SDK, or as part...
(SAPI).
Speech recognition technology has been used in some of Microsoft's products, including Microsoft Dictation (a research prototype that ran on Windows 9x
Windows 9x
Windows 9x is a generic term referring to a series of Microsoft Windows computer operating systems produced since 1995, which were based on the original and later modified Windows 95 kernel...
). It was also included in Office
Microsoft Office
Microsoft Office is a non-free commercial office suite of inter-related desktop applications, servers and services for the Microsoft Windows and Mac OS X operating systems, introduced by Microsoft in August 1, 1989. Initially a marketing term for a bundled set of applications, the first version of...
XP, Office 2003, Microsoft Plus! for Windows XP, Windows XP Tablet PC Edition, and Windows Mobile
Windows Mobile
Windows Mobile is a mobile operating system developed by Microsoft that was used in smartphones and Pocket PCs, but by 2011 was rarely supplied on new phones. The last version is "Windows Mobile 6.5.5"; it is superseded by Windows Phone, which does not run Windows Mobile software.Windows Mobile is...
(as Microsoft Voice Command
Microsoft Voice Command
Microsoft Voice Command is an application which can control Windows Mobile devices by voice. The first version was announced in November 2003. The latest version is 1.6, for the United Kingdom, United States, France, and Germany and is a free upgrade for users of previous versions.As of May 20,...
). However, prior to Windows Vista, speech recognition was not mainstream. In response, Windows Speech Recognition was bundled with Windows Vista and released in 2006, making the operating system the first mainstream version of Microsoft Windows to offer fully integrated support for speech recognition.
Notable incident
The use of Windows Speech Recognition during a demonstration of Windows Vista at a Microsoft Financial Analyst Meeting on July 27, 2006, resulted in a well-publicized and embarrassing incident. The software failed to function correctly initially, resulting in an unintended output of "Dear aunt, let's set so double the killer delete select all". A developer with Vista's speech recognition team later explained that Windows Speech Recognition's failure to function properly during the demonstration was the result of a bugSoftware bug
A software bug is the common term used to describe an error, flaw, mistake, failure, or fault in a computer program or system that produces an incorrect or unexpected result, or causes it to behave in unintended ways. Most bugs arise from mistakes and errors made by people in either a program's...
in the volume control feature, which caused the application to pick up extra noise that affected its performance.
The software bug was fixed by Microsoft prior to the release of Vista to the general public.
Technical details
Windows Speech Recognition relies on Microsoft SAPISpeech Application Programming Interface
The Speech Application Programming Interface or SAPI is an API developed by Microsoft to allow the use of speech recognition and speech synthesis within Windows applications. To date, a number of versions of the API have been released, which have shipped either as part of a Speech SDK, or as part...
version 5.3 (included in Windows Vista) to function. The application also utilizes Microsoft Speech Recognizer 8.0 for Windows as its speech profile engine.
Security issue
In 2007, reports surfaced that Windows Speech Recognition could be used to remotely access and/or control a user's computer. Theoretically, playing a pre-recorded message containing Windows Speech Recognition commands could allow one to execute tasks on another computer remotely. This issue was one of the first Vista vulnerabilities to surface after the release of the operating system to the general public.Microsoft has officially recognized the vulnerability, but estimates it does not present a serious threat, because even if a hacker does successfully exploit the flaw, they would not be able to perform any functions limited by the access rights of the user, which likely include administrative tasks. Also, in Windows 7, this concern is addressed by a user configurable option to enable or disable voice activation of speech recognition.
See also
- List of speech recognition software
- Speech recognitionSpeech recognitionSpeech recognition converts spoken words to text. The term "voice recognition" is sometimes used to refer to recognition systems that must be trained to a particular speaker—as is the case for most desktop recognition software...
- Windows VistaWindows VistaWindows Vista is an operating system released in several variations developed by Microsoft for use on personal computers, including home and business desktops, laptops, tablet PCs, and media center PCs...
- Technical features new to Windows VistaTechnical features new to Windows VistaWindows Vista has many significant new features compared with previous Microsoft Windows versions, covering most aspects of the operating system....
External links
- Windows Vista: Features Explained: Windows Speech Recognition
- Quick and Easy Steps on how to use Speech Recognition with Windows Vista.
- YouTube - Windows Vista Speech Recognition - video of unsuccessful Windows Speech Recognition demonstration.
- Enhance Windows Speech Recognition by Using Macros - improve your Windows Speech Recognition experience by using macros.
- Vista Speech for Medical Transcription - A company specializing in the use of Vista Speech for Medical Transcriptions with free technical support, video demonstrations and a step by step guide.
- Microsoft Windows Vista - Speech Recognition Features Make the Upgrade Windows Speech Recognition review at BrightHub.com
- Windows Speech Recognition review at TopTenReviews.com
- Speech Saver A utility to automatically turn off speech recognition in Windows Vista.