DragonCapture

Important Notes:

After downloading and installing, registering by email is required.
The license for DragonCapture is single-activation, registered per machine.

Get the free 30 day trial per the download links below.

Turn it into a permanent version by purchasing and entering a permanent license key, or remove it from the computer by uninstalling it via the control panel.

Permanent Version: $49.99   Order a Permanent License Key

Tutorial Videos on YouTube

Tutorial 1: Getting Started with DragonCapture
All the basic information you will need to start a trial and have a look.

Tutorial 2: DragonCapture – Basics & Main Options
All the revelant information you will need to get the most out of it

Current Documentation
User Guide
Voice Commands Guide

Update to Version 1.0.3800 – DragonCapture 16 (03/05/2023)

 

Update to Version 1.0.3699 – DragonCapture 15 (03/04/2023)

  • This version is required to be used with DPI/DPG/DLG 15.
  • Same things inside, but moved to more current IDE’s (dev and installer), thus more stable.
  • Added the “Enable DragonCapture” utility, available via shortcut on the desktop.
  • Get the installer here
    https://rwilke.de/Downloads/DragonCapture_15_1.0.3699.0.msi

 

Update to Version 1.0.3698 (09/05/2020)

  • Just a few minor UI fixes relative to the activation and updating dialogs …

 

Update to Version 1.0.3697 (08/30/2020)

  • “Remove This” command added to undo the last utterance in the target application as well as updating the dictation object (hidden document), thus keeping formatting aligned.
  • A few minor fixes.

 

Update to Version 1.0.3695 – Beta Pre-Release (05/03/2020)

The existing functionality has been preserved, but the current beta includes many new features and options:

  • A major redesign of the UI, specifically the menus and box font facilities, see the updated screenshot above.
  • An internal rewrite of the command implementation with additional options to enable/disable individual groups of commands.
  •  Enhanced documentation as PDF downloads.
  •  A new “Check for Updates” feature, both manually and automatically.
  • A general overhaul of the “Edit Box” and related functionalities.
  •  And then some more …

Since some of the new features have been tested only on a relatively small basis so far, and since the current version isn’t yet to be considered as stable, it is published as beta explicitly, and provided per this link for the time being:

DragonCapture_1.0.3695_beta

It is also advised to check for updates regularly, as new ones may be published later on, and posted about here also.

Specifically considering the previously broken “Edit Box” functionality, which has now been fixed, hopefully, this new release may be of particular interest to those who had been disappointed with it.

If a new trial activation is required, it can always be issued manually. Just contact me about it.

Feedback will be welcome!

 

Update to Version 1.0.368:

This is just a minor update from the previous version, also catering for the typing mode which had been in use initially, now referred to as “No Flags” and available under TypeMode 6 which is also the default from now on.

 

 

Update to Version 1.0.367:

What’s new?

(1 ) Enhanced TypeMode facilities allowing for adjusting the typing speed according to your liking,  or your needs. There are five different speed settings, reaching from maximum (TypeMode 5) to minimum (TypeMode 1), and an additional special TypeMode 0 which emulates the SendSystemKeys behavior to be used in particular situations where all else fails, although being really slow.
Switching the TypeMode can be achieved either through the UI (Options) or simply on-the-fly using voice commands, as in “TypeMode 5”, “TypeMode 4”,…
The current TypeMode will also be displayed now near the bottom of the DragonCapture box, have a look at the screenshot above.
To assist the user in adusting the TypeMode according to his or her needs, two more voice commands have been added, demonstrating the results instanty: “Type Alphabet” and “Paste Alphabet”.

(2) A new method has been integrated in the program code providing the user with full control over Dragon’s NaturalText behavior (the ability to also dictate into non-friendly applications, to some extent at least) at all times.
In recent Dragon versions a tendency to drop that ability randomly has occurred, and been reported publicly ever so often. This far, the workaround was to manually edit the option file “nsuser.ini” under ” C:\Users\%username%\AppData\Roaming\Nuance\NaturallySpeaking15″, to bring back NaturalText; until it is dropped again…
With DragonCapture on board, this situation will be safe and set without exception from now on. The simple rule is:
When the DragonCapture box is showing, NaturalText will be disabled, and when the DragonCapture box is hidden, NaturalText will be enabled (unless you have “Allow AutoPaste went hidden” checked), thus providing you with the best of both worlds, without requiring your ongoing intervention.
DragonCapture will also make sure to leave NaturalText enabled when shutting down.

(3) The previous way of taking the machine fingerprint during activation has been replaced for something more robust, thus making it immune to such scenarios as a Windows 10 reset for instance.
New users will take advantage of the new algorithm immediately, but also existing activations will be updated silently when the new version is first run. It is therefore strongly recommended to upgrade as soon as possible.

(4) Starting with this version, future upgrades will no longer prompt the user about releasing or not releasing the license which had been invoked by the uninstall routine started automatically during the upgrade. So this is just one more step towards simplicity and ease of use.

(5) And finally, a minor novelty to most users, but then an important one to some…
When switching the user profile, the DragonCapture command interface will also be terminated and restarted automatically. This has been added to resolve an issue which occurred for multilingual users of Dragon, when the DragonCapture command capability was lost if the changing the user profile also involved changing the language.

 

 

 

Update to Version 1.0.362:

Release Note 1:

Integral Parts of the code have been revamped, such as the installer and the activation module specifically, so as to make it (even) more robust.

As a consequence, this version is not backwards compatible with any version prior to 1.0.359. Therefore, if you run any version prior to this, you will need to uninstall it first, but the installer will detect that and prompt you accordingly also. Do note that your activation is automatically preserved, if you run a trial, and can optionally be preserved if you already activated permanently during uninstall. If you have any trouble with your activation or could use another trial, please contact me.

If you already run 1.0.359 or higher, the current and any future updates can be installed as upgrades again (no need to uninstall first for that matter).

Release Note 2:

A notification icon to display in the notification area (also and more often, although mistakenly, referred to as tray icon) has been added. The icon comes in three different shapes/colours: green for when the box is visible, red for when the box is invisible, and blue for when the box is invisible but AutoPaste is activated and allowed, and the icon also be used to control the box in some ways, to display the options et cetera, although it serves more as an indicator, quite naturally.

Along with that, you can now opt to launch the box in hidden mode, which has been requested by one user specifically and which will be indicated by a notification message.

Keep in mind please that in order to display the icon permanently, it needs to be promoted from the notification area to the taskbar.

Release Note 3:

First and foremost, and specifically following recent user requests, the overall workflow, when in “normal” (non-AutoPaste) mode has been modified and added to, which is probably most important now. Up until recently, both the box contents and the internal dictation buffer have been reset to zero whenever switching applications, thus always starting the next utterance without a space and a capital letter when switching windows; just like at the beginning of a new paragraph, but also clearing the box, thus not allowing continuous dictation in this situation.

This particular behaviour is now restricted to AutoPaste mode only, first because it only seems to make sense really when running in AutoPaste, but then also to allow for the end-user to switch back-and-forth between windows, but go on with their dictation at the same time. One particular use case scenario where this is required, for instance, would be for a physician taking notes while browsing through different charts, PDF files, graphics et cetera.

Therefore, the current behaviour now, if AutoPaste is deactivated, is to add to the DragonCapture box until the contents of the box is transferred to the target application by using the voice command “Paste Box”.

Also, as another consequence, when not using AutoPaste, is that the user will have to take care of resetting the dictation buffer to zero himself by using the voice command “Clear Box”, whenever starting in a “new paragraph situation” is desired, or else the follow-up dictation will be treated as continuing the previous one; and of course, the user will be responsible for hitting the actual target application they wish the text to go into himself.

To that end, AutoPaste mode has now been rendered to even more resemble a “quick and dirty vocal keyboard” input method, which isn’t meant to be used for any dictation longer than maybe just a couple of lines of text. On the other hand, normal (non-AutoPaste) mode has been moved to more resemble the classical dictation box, however providing the additional hidden mode or out-of-focus dictation amenities coming with the Dragon Medical dictation box.

 

 

Update to Version 1.0.358:

Two more changes as of now,

– A minor one: A bug has been fixed where “New Line” and “New Paragraph” tended to produce double line-feeds in the target application, when running in TypeMode;

– A major one: The module keeping track of keyboard focus change , so as to reset the internal dictation buffer and thus force cap/no-space accordingly when switching edit fields, has been enhanced, although not yet fully completed. The research will go on.

Any  previous versions higher than the initial one (1.0.33) can handle the update as an upgrade (no need to uninstall first).

As always, updating is strongly advised.

 

Update to Version 1.0.356:

– A few glitches in the overall workflow, specifically with regards to “Paste Box” not working properly all the time, have been fixed.

– When switching back and forth between AutoPaste and normal mode, the internal dictation buffer will not be reset any longer; thus, the continuity of the dictation buffer will not be interrupted any longer when switching modes.

– The window has the “Topmost Style” by default now, therefore it will be “Always on Top” from now on.

People running version 1.0.355 already may install this update as an upgrade, no need to uninstall first, for that matter.

We are currently in the middle of doing some videos to demonstrate the basic handling of this utility, which will hopefully help in conveying the underlying concepts more clearly than trying to explain them. (Because the concept is totally different than the native dictation box.)

 

Update to Version 1.0.355:

As of 10/03/2019, an update is provided, specifically accounting for the feedback from the user base which we received since publishing it three weeks ago.

The current changes include:

  • The installer has been updated now to handling the error when registering DragonCapture with Dragon fails by means of rolling back the entire install. If and when you encounter this error, it will be most likely because you haven’t installed Dragon in the default directories, and you should contact the manufacturer to resolve it.
  • DragonCapture (the underlying dictation object) will now be deactivated whenever you hide the box by saying “Hide Box”. Thus, hiding the box will be equivalent to shutting down DragonCapture through the menu, but this will only be temporary, as DragonCapture will be reactivated when bringing up the box again by saying “Show Box”.
  • In addition to the above, the contents of the box will not be altered (cleared) by hiding the box as it was previously, but will be restored to its state prior to hiding it when bringing up the box again, by saying “Show Box”.
  • An exception to the above is when running in AutoPaste mode. In AutoPaste mode, you can additionally opt for “Allow AutoPaste when hidden”, which, when activated, keeps the dictation object running and going on in the background even while the box is hidden, thus making no change to the activation state of the dictation box as well as treating the contents of the box just as if the box is shown.
  • To that end, another option has been added to the UI which allows for controlling the behaviour of the dictation object when the box is hidden, as per the screen above.
  • Finally, the overall rendering of the UI has been modified to cater for all kinds of DPI and screen size settings, by calculating the metrics involved in creating the box dynamically, and therefore should be rendered appropriately on just any kind of screen.
  • Additionally, the overall design of the box has been modified accounting for all the changes mentioned above as you can see in the screenshot at the top of this page.

To those who are already running the previous version of DragonCapture, do note that the installer now provided is an upgrade install which means that you won’t have to uninstall the previous version 1st before running the update.

By the same token, already existing activations (both trial and permanent activations) will persist after running the upgrade. Do note however, as previously already, prior to running the install you will need to shut down Dragon as it would otherwise interfere with the install, but you will prompted to do so accordingly anyway.

If anyone running a trial already, which may come to an end by the end of the week, wants to go on evaluating it in order to check out the upgrade after their trial expires, please feel free to contact me as I could provide you with a dedicated extended trial key on demand.

 

The New Frontier of the Dictation Box

DragonCapture has been designed to assist you in dictating into non–Select-and-Say applications, but unlike the classical Dictation Box, it provides an out of focus box which captures your dictation while you are in the target application.

The entire workflow is fully automated and requires only minimal user interaction. DragonCapture is loaded by Dragon automatically, whenever Dragon is launched or a user profile is loaded, running along with Dragon and ready to be used.

When you start dictating, and if you are in a non-compatible application, DragonCapture will automatically redirect your dication to its box, and format it appropriately, as long as you keep dictating.

When finished, just say “Paste Box” to transfer the contents of the box to your current location (caret position). The box will be cleared, but not closed, so you may just continue using it, until you say “Hide Box”. – “Show Box” will bring it up again then.

This is why it is also referred to as the “Remote & Continuous Dictation Box”. Saying “Paste Box with Space” will prepend a space, but this isn’t always required, as DragonCapture may already handle it, so watch out for this.

If a mistake has been made, say “undo that” – “Restore Box” and start again.

If you want to edit the contents of the box prior to transferring it, you need to activate the box first by saying “Edit Box”. Before pasting it over to the target application, you will need to switch back to it, however.

That’s because “Paste Box” cannot be used inside the box, as DragonCapture wouldn’t know where to paste it. (To some extent, you can even remote edit the box, but be warned that you may get undefined behavior when doing so.)

Additionally, a copy of the box contents will always be in the clipboard whenever the box is cleared, either by executing “Paste Box” or by clearing it at will by saying “Clear Box”. Therefore, the previous contents of the box can easily be retrieved by saying “Restore Box” at any time, or pasted just anywhere by calling the clipboard directly.

With “AutoPaste” switched on, every utterance will be transferred instantly whenever you pause (at the end or your utterance), and with no further interaction required. Some of the features described above are obviously not available in this mode, though.

Lastly, when invoking “TypeMode”, transferring the text will not be facilitated by cutting and pasting, but by simulating keystrokes instead.

And finally, if you want to terminate DragonCapture during the Dragon session, say “Shut Down DragonCapture”, or use the menu. To start it again, the user profile must be reloaded or Dragon must be restarted.