So, you can't go back to version 8 and try it on the new computer, right? That's a shame, because that would quickly clear up whether or not it was a Dragon 9 software problem or something related to the new computer.

I agree that some pretty horrible accuracy you are describing. I'm still wondering if there's something going on with the professional versions such as medical. It just seems to me like I read a lot more complaints on this for regarding medical. But that could be my imagination. Or just the fact that I don't read every one of the threads.

I'm dictating this into DragonPad on version 9 Preferred using this system:

Acer Aspire 5002WLMi

AMD Turion 64 ML-30 1.6 Ghz with 1MB L2 cache

100 GB HD 4200 RPM

1 GB RAM

Realtec AC97 internal sound card

Dragon supplied microphone from version 8

This microphone and soundcard proved basically unusable with version 8, but for me version 9 has been such an improvement that I am actually able to use this with reasonable results on my laptop. This has kept me from having to constantly transferred my USB pod RadioShack Sennheiser clone microphone from my desktop. Although I do plan later to upgrade the microphone and soundcard for this laptop. I am leaving all errors uncorrected in this document for demonstration purposes, even though at least 90 plus percent of my errors with version 9 I can directly relate to my poor enunciation.

I don't know anything about the medical versions, and of course they are all supposed to share the same basic speech engine. So I suppose accuracy should be the same in all of them.

I always dictate in DragonPad. I've always had much higher accuracy in DragonPad than in any other program. And it's simple enough for me to dictate several paragraphs and then copy and paste. The dedication box works great also, except it needs to copy to the clipboard for when the occasional "transfer" is missed. I've been getting around this by taking an extra step and copying to the clipboard what is in the dedication box before clicking "transfer". I realize many people will have to use this program within other programs, and I suppose then accuracy often becomes a problem.

Sometimes I think it is worthwhile to readjust microphone volume every time Dragon is started backup, or at the very least at the very first sign of accuracy problems.

A view trying to setting the accuracy versus speed adjuster all the way to the left for lowest accuracy and highest speed? I guess I'm starting to sound like a broken record about that, but I discovered back in version 8 -- just a couple of months before I upgraded to version 9 -- that that adjustment on my computer greatly increased both speed and accuracy. I think it works pretty much the same on my two computers in version 9. In fact, when I watched CPU usage in task manager while dictating in version 9, I notice that as I get further to the right tone this setting towards more accurate, I can see CPU usage starting to skyrocket towards 100%. When I use the lower accuracy settings, the CPU stays well down below 50%, even often times down below 20%. And that lack of stressing my slow CPU made the the reason I get better accuracy at that setting. Of course a lot of the people posting at this forum have extremely fast CPUs, and I would imagine the above would not be as much of a factor in those cases.

Here's something really wild. I have speed switch XP installed on this laptop, so that I can better monitor what the CPU is doing. Even though I have a 1.6 GHz processor -- already considered slow for DNS 9 usage -- I currently have speed switch set for max battery which means it is (supposedly -- this is the claim anyway) only allowing the CPU to operate at 800 MHz. When I had to set this way my computer operates a whole lot cooler. Even so, watching the CPU usage is still not going over 50% or maybe occasionally very briefly getting up in the high 60% range. So from what I have read, it would be almost impossible for Dragon version 9 to operate at 800 MHz processor speed. Yet I am dictating this under exactly those conditions -- if switch speed XP actually has the processor speed turned out like he claims. I have no way of knowing. Although when I turn it back up to 1600 MHz, the percentage of CPU usage does obviously drop down to well below 20%. Even while dictating that last sentence as fast as I could possibly speak. Again, unless I catch myself clearly misspeaking, I am leaving all errors uncorrected for demonstration purposes. And I am dictating at 800 MHz. Also, for the most part, I am speaking very rapidly. And I think you can see that the errors are not all that bad. I can guarantee you that there would have been many more errors in this document had I been dictating into version 8.

Now, if I only knew why you and others were having a lot more trouble and a lot lower accuracy with much faster and much more powerful computers? I have thrown in a couple of suggestions up above, but they are at best wild guesses. I wish some of the experts could figure out what is going on with the problems that people are having. Because honestly it makes me afraid to upgrade my computer! LOL! I was afraid to even try DNS 9 on my slow computers. Now I'm kind of afraid to get a newer faster computer in order to use DNS 9. How ridiculous is that?

Good luck with your search for the cure. You should get some more answers soon from far more knowledgeable people. If I can think of any other ideas that might possibly help, I'll post them back to you.

Bill

PS: I don't know why the font seems to be a bit large after I've pasted this over here from DragonPad.  The font when I dictated seems normal, and when I paste to other programs the font remains unchanged.  Maybe it's just me, but it seems a bit large and almost like it is bold font.  I'd change it if I can figure out how.  (This last part was not dictated in DragonPad, but was dictated in the Knowbrainer forum response window.)