Monday, April 11, 2005

SOMETHING NEW HAS BEEN ADDED

Just call me Mr. Technology.

I’ve just configured the voice recognition software on my computer. At this point I don’t know whether it’s going to save time or simply turn into a giant pain in the ass, but if I can get the hang of it, this may just be the tool that will enable me to pump out Yet More Meaningless Drivel. [Yes, that’s Blog d’Elisson: More Drivel, All The Time™!]

I’m not a particularly good typist, having learned my craft from those great Keyboard Mavens, Messrs. Hunt & Peckham. However, my lack of expertise gives me time to think and compose as I type. Yapping into a mike and having words simply appear on the page is a mite bizarre, and it does have an impact on the thought process.

Years ago, I learned to dictate memoranda and telexes in my job at the Great Corporate Salt Mine. I found dictation to be good mental exercise, but ultimately more of an effort than simply banging out the words on the keyboard. And like other kinds of exercise, the dictation muscles atrophy when not used. I’ll need to play with it a while before I get comfortable talking into a stupid-ass microphone again.

I’ll give it a try, but if I find that it has a negative effect on my ability to express myself naturally, that’s when the microphone goes back in the closet.

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