I have DNS medical 10 on my work computer and DNS 9 medical on my home computer.  I have lots of commands on my work computer I would like to import into my DNS 9 version at home.  When I try to import the commands.bat file at home, it says "commands.dat is not a valid MyCommands file".  Are you not able to import to an earlier version?

Thanks,

John

Unless anyone else comes up with a different bit of information, the basic answer to your question is "no". Backwards compability with regards to user profiles, vocabularies, and commands doesn't seem to be a concern, as with many other pieces of software, and why should it?

If you have a legal copy of version 10 on one of your computers, you might as well install it on another one, and I definitely would do so in your case.

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!

John,

Basically, Rüdiger is correct. The any MyCmds.dat regardless of name containing exported custom commands is not backward-compatible because of differences in the structure of the Command Browser between DNS 9 and DNS 10.

However, there is one thing that you can try. Try the following:

1.  Export your custom commands again making sure that you do not export any of the DNS custom commands. That is, any of the Dragon spell commands etc. This may take a little bit of work.

2.  Once you have selected the appropriate commands, instead of saving them in DAT file format, try saving them in XML format. Then try importing them into DNS 9. If I'm correct, the XML format might work. XML is XML. The only reason why it won't work would be if the command structure itself was changed. However, I don't think that will be a problem because the XML format only contains the commands in XML format, which is a standard regardless of DNS versions. You may find that some commands may not be backward-compatible, but on the whole most should be. My thinking is that only the dat files are problematic. Will just have to wait and see. Unfortunately, I don't have a current version of DNS 9 installed on any of my systems. So, I can't test it.

Let us know if this works.

Chuck Runquist
GEMCCON - The Choice of Intelligence
Speech Recognition Consulting and Training

Nothing in the world can take the place of persistence.  Talent, will not.  Nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with talent.  Genius, will not.  Unrewarded genius is almost a proverb.  Education, will not.  The world is full of educated derelicts.  Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent.  The slogan "Press on" has solved and always will solve the problems of the human race.  - Calvin Coolidge

Chuck,

you were absolutely right. When exporting custom commands in XML format, you can import them even backwards. I've just tried this with an Advanced Scripting sample command, created thrice in 10.1 (10 SP1), 10.0, and 9.5, and I could import in into any other version, backwards, and upwards of course.

Basically, the data in the headers of the command are all the same, MyCommands version 2.0, and you cannot export across languages, of course. When importing across versions, you are prompted to let the XML DTD (Document Type Definition) be checked, and you may get an occasional warning message. But once imported, you can execute the command.

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!

Rüdiger,

Thanks for testing.

There is one minor caveat.  Exporting and importing Advanced Scripting commands in XML format, now that we know it works, can have some problems.  In ordered for the XML formats to be imported, and I suspect exported as well, the user has to make sure that they have the most current updates for MSXML 4.0 at minimum.

The error message that you get if you don't have the most current updates installed makes it look as though the XML command format is invalid.  However, that's because the user doesn't have the most current updates for MSXML 4.0 (XML DTD (Document Type Definition) can't be executed – fails with an error message).  I went through this with one of my clients a while ago until we discovered that this was the problem.  In most cases user shouldn't have a problem because DNS 9-9.5 and DNS 10 will not function properly and, in some cases, not even install properly if MSXML 4.0 is not properly installed or updated.  I believe there's a technote on it, but I'm not going to go looking for it right now.  Perhaps if you or someone else finds it, they can post a link for it.

Chuck Runquist
GEMCCON - The Choice of Intelligence
Speech Recognition Consulting and Training

If computers get too powerful, we can organize them into a committee - that will do them in. - Bradley's Bromide

Chuck,

here's the link you asked for, I hope so at least, as found in the Nuance knowledge base refering to MSXML 4.0 SP2:

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyID=3144b72b-b4f2-46da-b4b6-c5d7485f2b42&DisplayLang=en

However, I'm wondering if this the reason for the message you get when importing the commands in XML format, since on my Vista OS, I have this one installed, and still I got it there, and not only on Windows XP on my virtual machines I use for testing.

Here's a screenshot of the message, in German though, but knowing you can read it, I'm sure you can identify it.

And I'm uncertain as to whether this is really an error message, or just an info. Anyway, exporting/importing commands this way back and forth works without a glitch.

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!

Rüdiger,

Thank you for the link. Appreciate your effort.

I think the message in your screen capture is just a warning. If I remember correctly, when I saw that warning last it was indicating what I think was primarily a syntax error or an unresolved reference. Like you, I don't recall there being any impact on any of the commands in that XML export.

The user that I was working with previously didn't get this message. They got a completely different one that was obviously crash. That is, the error message simply said that the MyCmds.xml file was either corrupt or invalid. The entire process aborted at that point.

I think we should remember this set of threads in this post for future reference. I've saved it in my KnowBrainer bookmarks.

Chuck Runquist
Owner, GEMCCON - The Choice of Intelligence
Speech Recognition Consulting and Training

"Kindness is the language which the deaf can hear and the blind can see." -- Mark Twain

It did work.  I had to format some of the text again, but since I had over 50 procedure templates, that is a minor inconvenience versus reentering them again.

 Thanks,

John