How do I superscript dates
Submitted by paulmf on Mon, 06/23/2008 - 13:36.
Is there an existing command or a text macro that I can create for the ending of a date to be raised higher on the line than the initial part of the date. For example July 21st. I want the letters st to be raised to be near the top of the number 21. I believe the term is superscript.
Assistance would be appreciated.
This needs to be done in Dragon NaturallySpeaking version 9 preferred
Not Easily and DNS Preferred
Keep in mind that DNS Preferred lacks any real
macro capabilities so this type of specialty work may not be possible unless
you upgrade to NaturallySpeaking
Pro 9.5 (which is currently on sale) or purchase a third-party command
utility such as KnowBrainer
2007. If you're using Microsoft Word, NaturallySpeaking does have some
super-script commands such as “super-script <1-9>”. Example: If you say “super-script
2” you will get “²” but this would be a pain in the butt because you would have
to follow that up by saying“no-space super-script one” to make that “²¹” and if
you need to add an “st” it would take forever in Preferred. DNS Preferred is
great for dictation but when you start getting into professional areas, it simply
falls short of the mark because of its lack of command capability.
Lunis
Orcutt - Developer of KnowBrainer
&
Host of the
http://www.TheVoiceRecognitionStore.com
A Nuance Gold Certified Endorsed Dragon
NaturallySpeaking Vendor/Trainer
ALWAYS Ask If Your Speech Recognition Vendor Is
Nuance Certified
Just to amplify Lunis'
Just to amplify Lunis' comments: "Superscript" and similar formatting commands are application-specific, so they usually require some sort of custom script except, as he noted, in the case of MS Word.
Bruce
Superscript dates
If it is the 'st' only of 21st you wish you have in superscript and you are dictating into Word:
Tools-autocorrect-autoformat. Check, 'ordinals with superscript.'
Then again, I am probably missing something here.
the ability to easily use lists in text commands
your request is simple enough that I believe it can be fully accomplished in Preferred's scripting capabilities. I'm going to get you started with the basic example. If you're still interested I'll help you make it fully to what I expect is needed if you still need me. Below looks like a lot of text, but I did it in a handful of seconds.
step one: open Microsoft Word. you need to create some raised characters there, and copy them. Any. Copy at least two characters, this is going to be a little messy (temporarily).
step two: create a new Dragon text command. In there paste this. It doesn't matter what it was, it can be gibberish, we're going to destroy this gibberish and replace it with something else. (in step 3).
Step three: place the cursor in between those superscript characters. type this: <<super>>. What we want is that text to be formatted, and Dragon itself does not provide this capability directly. However it does let us paste it in, so let's use it.
Step four: click the Name Editor button. type this: <super>. Yes, only one set of chevron's this time. This is how Dragon works. Just trust me. You'll see super appear just directly underneath. Now click that. Then click the button called Edit...
step five: write the following in exactly. pressing enter each time is important, and that \ is also important. however the order isn't. I just wrote it this way for ease. Dragon will change the order (to alphabetical) later when it saves it. Don't worry about it.
st\first
nd\second
rd\third
th\fourth
th\fifth
step six: there are no more steps to do. You've done everything. so let's finish up. Click OK button. Click another button just like it. Don't save yet. Now take a look. This is what your command should look like. Oh wait, no picture uploading here. Well it shouldn't be necessary. Just notice the following:
you've just condensed a list of words into that position. When you speak the command name, something from that list will be put in that place (without the double chevrons, that is). Also note the command name, at the top, it's been filled in for you. It's using the same structure also. So super should be everywhere. It's all the same one thing.
so what do you say to trigger your command? well, you can say five different things. You can say first, second, third, fourth, or fifth. They respectively print out st, nd, rd, th, th. So in a way, you have a 5-in-1 command now. You can make this much bigger if you want. to be clear, you do not say super to trigger this. this is just the name of the list. It's name means nothing. not when triggering the command by speaking anyways.
you may save and try it now in Word. Because of course this will only work in programs that have superscript abilities anyways, like Word.
as Larry Allen says in his book, "one of the most significant, but underplayed, advances in Release 8 is the ability to easily use lists in text and graphics commands. This hides most of the complexity of using lists in commands." This is where I got the idea from. I would never have known this was possible without his book. And I made a big fat website about NaturallySpeaking also.
edit: by the way you could've removed those gibberish characters a long time ago.
the ability to easily use lists in text commands
Ian,
A somewhat creative approach to the problem. However , it won't work consistently , if it works at all , and is extremely awkward to dictate.
First of all , if and when it works , as you point out , it only works in those text Windows and applications that support "AutoFormat" , such as Microsoft Word and Corel WordPerfect.
Second , one of the drawbacks of speech recognition , and particularly Dragon NaturallySpeaking , is that they don't hook the built-in autoformatting if you just continue to dictate. In actuality , the same occurs when typing unless the entry is followed by a space.
For example , if you dictate the following: Brad - today is dad's 21st anniversary. That is most likely what you get exactly as it's shown here. The problem is that autoformatting is not engaged when you're dictating because spacing between words is automatic. In order to engage autoformatting in these applications , you have to manually add a space after the entries.
If you dictate the above sentence in the following manner: Brad (space) hypen (space) today is dad's 21st (space) anniversary. You will engage the autoformatting and the "-" will be transformed into an "-" , and the "St." after 21 will be superscripted. Take a look at the Auto Correct dialog from Microsoft Word for the supported formats for special characters and symbols.
Note also that when you're working in text windows other than those such as WordPerfect or Microsoft Word, the ability to superscript these types of entries is dependent upon the font that you're using. That is, whether the font supports superscripting or not. For example, your script won't work in DragonPad, Notepad, or WordPad. In addition, Select-and-Say has nothing whatsoever to do with this.
Nevertheless, creating this type of script is a lot of time and effort that ends up being little more than spinning your wheels.
Chuck Runquist
Former Dragon NaturallySpeaking SDK & Senior Technical Solutions PM for DNS
"Facts do not cease to exist because they are ignored." -- Aldous Huxley
I guess so. I mean I agree
I guess so. I mean I agree with everything you say. Mostly.
Except why would it not work consistently? It has to, otherwise there would be no point to formatted text and graphics commands. I expect nothing less than perfectly consistent format deployment every time. It's what paulmf asked for. In some ways this could be more effective for Paul. I wouldn't necessarily say this is spinning wheels. it adds functionality that Dragon doesn't have out of the box.
Is it just me, or does
Is it just me, or does anyone else notice that this macro doesn't actually do what its claimed it will do? At least not with MS Office Word 2003, DNS 9.5, and my interpretation of the instructions.
It does insert either super- or subscript suffixes, but not the numbers to which the super/subscript is supposed to be appended. IOW, I say "ninth", and it gives superscripted "th". (Actually, it gives superscripted "stht", which leads to the next paragraph:)
There is an omission, say step 3b: Delete the two copied superscript characters after you've pasted <> between them. Otherwise, as noted above, the dictated superscript gets copied between the two copied superscript characters.
Also note that if it actually worked as suggested, you would need an entry line in the list for every number you want superscripted, e.g., thirty-one numbers for a full month.
Confused yet? I am.
Maybe you could make this work (and perhaps even explain it) as a tour de force, but it would be far easier to use a scripting tool, like DNS Pro or Vocola or UniMacro, or KnowBrainer, or VoicePower, etc.
Interesting effort, maybe worth more time as a challenge, but really a case of a goal beyond the tool -- maybe an initial entry in a kind of ultra-scripting category
Bruce
Chuck, There are problems
Chuck,
There are problems with this approach, but maybe not the ones you enumerate.
First, any script has a frame of reference -- usually either global or a specific application (or part of an application). If its useful to the user, then what difference does it make whether its global or local -- just so long as it works and is useful!
Secondly, any script requires a pause before uttering it, so why would that be fault of this one?!
As I suggest, the main problem seems to be that it doesn't work, which is sort of a big drag after you've gone through all the labor
Bruce