Please see attached error message.

I am now getting this sufficiently frequently to find it a pain.

It is associated with Commands being recognised but not dictation  - although Dragon is not in Samurai mode. That is, dictation is just not being recognised. It is not that dictation is being recognised as a command.

Please, Nuance, take note.

And preferably tell me how to eliminate this difficulty......

Thank you.

Ed 

-------------------------

DNS 12 Pro, Windows 7 Professional, SP1, i7-2700K 3.50 Ghz Sandybridge, 16Gb DDR3 PC3-160000C9 2000Mhz dual channel RAM, SpeechMike 5276 and Samson Airline 77

When you run into this error, try saving your user profile again. NaturallySpeaking may have been prevented from flushing out the contents of the tb folder (temporary backup) from the previous attempt but will usually be able to accomplish the task on a 2nd attempt. If the problem persists, you may have to reboot the computer and manually delete the contents of the tb folder and if by some chance that solution doesn't work, you might have to consider moving your user profile to an area of your computer where you have full administrator rights; such as your desktop.

-------------------------

Click KB 2012 REV D to Download a 30 Day Evaluation of KnowBrainer 2012 

 

 

 

Ed,

The error to which Lunis is referring usually shows up as follows:



That's not the error that you're getting. The error that you're getting usually means that you either have something like Windows Explorer open and are accessing the user folder, or an application is accessing your user folder/files actively. When this occurs, Windows generally reflects the error that you're getting because this was, in the past way back, called a filesharing error. That is, Windows prevent you from writing to any folder or collection of files that are being actively accessed from some other source.

This is not all that uncommon and it isn't caused by DNS because DNS doesn't read or write files, it requests that from Windows, which then executes the read/write operation. Remember that no application performs actions that are specifically designated to Windows itself as part of the operating system controls. When these are involved, an application requests Windows to performs these functions. However, to prevent inadvertent overwriting of files that are actively being accessed, Windows prompt you with this error even though it says Dragon NaturallySpeaking in the titlebar. That is, this is a Windows "filesharing" error.

Sometimes this is caused by having multiple applications open that are actively being hooked by DNS. Sometimes it occurs because you have, for example, multiple word documents open. This is very common in Microsoft Word 2003 because of the way that Microsoft Word is set up by default when you open multiple documents. In Microsoft Word 2003 each document spawns a different copy of WINWORD.exe, which means that if you're working in one document and you try to do something that requires access to your user files, the other copy actively interferes. These are the only explanations, but it's hard to determine specifically what is accessing your user profile folders and files.

Further, this can also be caused when Dragon loses its connection to its own command/dictation function or an application to which DNS is actively hooked fails to shutdown properly. I could go on and on but the bottom line is that something somewhere is controlling access to your user files/folders and windows is picking it up and passing that information on to Dragon, which passes it on to you in the form of that error message.

The only way that you can test it is to close down everything except the activation that you're working in and try it again. The other option is to save any documents that you're working on, close all applications, shut down Dragon, and relaunch it. The only thing that you need to do is to take it one step at a time so that you can see if you can identify the offending application.

Chuck Runquist
Technical Project Manager
VoiceTeach LLC
Home of VoicePower®: We don't make Dragon NaturallySpeaking, we make it better!

"In theory, there is no difference between theory and practice. But in practice, there is." - Yogi Berra

-------------------------

Thanks Chuck. The one which is causing the trouble here is (if I am not mistaken), this one:-

Further, this can also be caused when Dragon loses its connection to its own command/dictation function

Dragon has lost connection to its own dictation function - but not its command function. That would fit the facts of the case.

Is that possible?

And if it is, what can I do about it?

I entirely accept that filesharing issues are nothing to do with Dragon - but losing its connection to its dictation function surely IS!

Ed 

-------------------------

DNS 12 Pro, Windows 7 Professional, SP1, i7-2700K 3.50 Ghz Sandybridge, 16Gb DDR3 PC3-160000C9 2000Mhz dual channel RAM, SpeechMike 5276 and Samson Airline 77

Ed,

I think that many users assume that natspeak.exe is Dragon. Natspeak.exe is Dragon's control program (linking loader). Dragon itself consists of the recognizer (MREC.dll). The purpose of natspeak.exe is to identify and link to applications and desktop shortcuts, provide the appropriate links for MREC.dll to open and active (i.e., in focus) applications. If natspeak.exe loses its link to a particular application, it doesn't matter whether it's commands or dictation, or both, either or both can fail. Remember, Dragon is what is called a Modal RECognizer that's what MREC stands for. When you are dictating in normal mode, DNS checks for commands first and, if it doesn't find a command, it assumes dictation and displays the text.

However, before you execute the suggestion below, make sure that you close all open applications and save your work (data). Then do the following.

When this happens, and it doesn't matter what the problem is, go to the Profile menu on the DragonBar, select or click on "Open Recent User Profile". If you still have command control, you can simply say "Open Recent User Profile". This will simply restart Dragon with your most recent or current user profile. Restarting Dragon in this way usually resolves this problem. The only exception is that if everything is working properly in, for instance, DragonPad and/or notepad, but you have lost dictation in Outlook or Microsoft Word, then the probability is that that is caused by either the NatSpeak Outlook AddIn or the NatSpeak Word AddIn having been ejected.

I find that this occurs for me in all versions of DNS 11-11.5 from time to time. It's not a regular occurrence and it should occur very rarely, but it does occur. BUG? Possibly. However, I've had this occur as far back as DNS 9-9.5, so it's not anything particularly new, and certainly not unique to DNS 11-11.5.

If it's occurring too frequently, try running a Repair of DNS.

Chuck Runquist
Technical Project Manager
VoiceTeach LLC
Home of VoicePower®: We don't make speech recognition, We make it better!

"Better a diamond with a flaw than a pebble without one." - Chinese Proverb

-------------------------

Chuck,

Many thanks. Yes, I reckon most people who saw something called  natspeak.exe would think that was the program! It would be something of a KnowBrainer!! Interesting to have it explained. Thank you.

Thanks for the work rounds. Frankly, I just reboot.

Point is, of course, I ought not to need to have to.

So, Nuance, if Chuck has been telling you about this since v.9.5, how come you haven't fixed it for him?

Note for non-UK readers. In the UK there is a very long running show on TV called 'Jim'll Fix It', where children write in and ask e.g. to play the drums with a military band - or whatever - and get a badge saying 'Jim Fixed It For Me'.

So, Nuance, do the decent thing - Fix It For Chuck. And if I can hang on to his coat tails, well, that would be a bonus!

Ed 

-------------------------

DNS 12 Pro, Windows 7 Professional, SP1, i7-2700K 3.50 Ghz Sandybridge, 16Gb DDR3 PC3-160000C9 2000Mhz dual channel RAM, SpeechMike 5276 and Samson Airline 77

Ed

Chuck is correct in terms of how Windows handles its file management so it is true to say that Windows is telling Dragon that it can't access this particular user profile folders. However the reason that Windows is saying this (much more often with version 11 and illegitimately),if you look deeper, is because another Dragon process (there are many threads running simultaneously) is holding access to the user files and therefore Windows is doing what it should. So Dragon needs to release the hold on the user files from this other process.  It is possibly something like a filesystemwatcher thread within Dragon, which runs for all sorts of reasons, that is not releasing access to the folders after it legitimately marks them as being accessed with Windows Explorer outwith Dragon itself. When you then close Windows Explorer the Dragon filesystemwatcher thread (or along these lines) is still seen by Windows as accessing the user file folders.

To get this problem on many systems all you have to do with version 11 is open the user files directory, let's say the current directory for the user with Windows Explorer, and then close it again and then try to save your user files. Obviously it would give you this error if Windows Explorer still had the user file folders open but even after you have closed Windows Explorer the error still shows.

If you try exactly the same thing with version 10.1 you will very rarely get this problem, hence why this problem is being reported to Nuance tenfold with version 11.

Lindsay

-------------------------

www.pcbyvoice.com
www.pcbyvoice.co.uk

Lindsay,

Many thanks for this - the water is now WELL over my head! But I get the general drift: fact is, Nuance will no doubt fix it one day.

Let's hope it's tomorrow!

Thanks,

Ed 

-------------------------

DNS 12 Pro, Windows 7 Professional, SP1, i7-2700K 3.50 Ghz Sandybridge, 16Gb DDR3 PC3-160000C9 2000Mhz dual channel RAM, SpeechMike 5276 and Samson Airline 77

Ed,

if I were you, I wouldn't trust him. He's been up there in Aberdeen the whole week, and I bet he's been having a little too much of that stuff that they keep a bottle of in the house just in case the horse gets sick.

Rüdiger

 

-------------------------

Well, it's past the point where we can make any changes in the code, but we can still make changes to the Easter Egg!

Guilty as charged on the alcohol consumption, try one of these lock me type programs and you will see that Dragon is preventing Dragon accessing the files, or rather Dragon is preventing Windows preventing Dragon preventing Windows preventing Dragon accessing the files.  (Only if you're really bored)

http://www.autohotkey.com/forum/topic20866.html

Lindsay

-------------------------

www.pcbyvoice.com
www.pcbyvoice.co.uk

Yeah, but the real culprit still being Windows for not acting like it should.

Rüdiger

 

-------------------------

Well, it's past the point where we can make any changes in the code, but we can still make changes to the Easter Egg!

Nope the real problem being DNS not programming around the way Windows handles file management.  When you close Windows Explorer which is accessing the user profile Windows would let go if Dragon did on time. Everyone else has to program round it or else the loop never ends, unlike this discussion. Nice red rectangle by the way, however I hope Dawei will make a guest appearance from time to time.

Lindsay

-------------------------

www.pcbyvoice.com
www.pcbyvoice.co.uk

Dawei will keep popping in every now and then, as long as this place exists, but then the way Windows handles file management might induce it has been programmed by a bunch of morons.

DaWei

 

-------------------------

Well, it's past the point where we can make any changes in the code, but we can still make changes to the Easter Egg!

Incidentally, Dragon cannot do this, it needs to keep a hold on it. Do you know why?

 

-------------------------

Well, it's past the point where we can make any changes in the code, but we can still make changes to the Easter Egg!

Dragon doesn't need to "keep a hold on it" to the exclusion of itself accessing the user profile, if it did it would never be able to save a user profile, update an .ini file, update other files associated with the vocabulary, acoustic model, language model, commands file and numerous other things it does on the fly with any user profile. It does most of this fine except saving the user profile once you open Windows Explorer on the user files and then access is blocked by itself to itself whether you then close Windows Explorer or leave it open. It doesn't do it with 10.1 but does with 11. It's a fault with Dragon and nothing to do with Windows, Dragon is a program that runs on Windows, Windows doesn't run on Dragon.

Make sure you don't give me the wrong answer to the wrong question.

Lindsay

-------------------------

www.pcbyvoice.com
www.pcbyvoice.co.uk

That's my man.

 

-------------------------

Well, it's past the point where we can make any changes in the code, but we can still make changes to the Easter Egg!