[MV] Where are we now?

[Chuck Rogers]

Sacha (and everyone else):

It's not an either or decision. We have a lot of history for picking 
the hard stuff to do first (the "high-hanging fruit" if you will), but 
we also listen carefully to our customers. A lot of the minor 
enhancements in 1.6.5 were due to some direct input from one of our 
more active users (who is also active on this list, but I won't point 
him out without his permission), Another major enhancement (for us at 
least) in 1.6.5 is the ability to have more than 256 commands in a 
command set. This was necessary because of some of the larger sets you 
will see us coming out with soon. In 1.6 we introduced the ability to 
manipulate the Correction interface by voice mostly because of user 
feedback.

Speaking of Correction, we are constantly looking for ways to enhance 
and make it easier, but please understand that the Operating System 
imposes some serious limitations on what we can do. A lot of people 
would like to see a SpeakPad-like interface for dictation and 
correction. Try as I might to understand why, I just can't. It is still 
six of one and half a dozen of the other to me. Here's why:

In a SpeakPad interface, you have to dictate into an application 
controlled by the application, then Correct, then paste where you want 
the text to be. This is very straight forward, but it means a lot of 
going back-and-forth. Dictate, Correct, Copy, Paste - or - Dictate, 
Correct, Dictate, Correct, Copy, Paste - or - Dictate, Dictate, 
Dictate, Correct, Copy, Paste (depending on how you prefer to use the 
program).

In iListen it has always seemed a lot easier: Dictate, Correct, press 
done - or- Dictate, Correct, Press Done, Dictate, Correct, Press Done - 
or - Dictate, Dictate, Dictate, Correct, Press Done. This is because we 
allow you to bring up the correction interface, make your corrections, 
and then you are done (except for that admittedly annoying last step we 
now require, which is "Commit Corrections").

Before I get tons of mail on the subject, we are talking about 
methodology here. The rest is interface. And I think that now that we 
have Correction working with your voice, we can go further and make it 
look better. How will it look? (I could tell you, but then I'd have 
to...) Actually, we have a lot of ideas - how about increasing screen 
real estate by allowing you to see choices in a pop-down menu when you 
click on a word or phrase? Can we do it? Beats me - I'm not the 
programmer! But I do want you to know we think about these things - and 
we think about them a lot. And we consider carefully each and every 
user's comments, even if they are not feasible for some reason.

Unfortunately, we have to pick our battles carefully unless someone 
comes out of the woodwork offering to bankroll a faster R&D process. 
Everything we do is funded by sales, not bankers or investors. That's 
why every sale is so precious to us.


Best Regards,

Chuck Rogers, Chief Evangelist
MacSpeech, Inc.


On Nov 8, 2004, at 7:03 PM, Sacha Brostoff wrote:

> How are you guys going to choose what to enhance?  Low hanging fruit 
> vs.
> highest productivity gains?