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Update the Natlink/DNS engine back-end documentation page
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drmfinlay committed Sep 30, 2023
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Natlink and DNS engine back-end
============================================================================

Dragonfly uses Natlink to communicate with Dragon. The latest versions of
Natlink are available from `SourceForge
The Dragonfly library may be used with Nuance's Dragon NaturallySpeaking
(DNS) speech recognition software for Microsoft Windows. Dragonfly
interacts with DNS through another piece of software called Natlink.

This is the engine of choice on Microsoft Windows.


Requirements and Installation
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

There are three requirements for using Dragonfly's Natlink/DNS engine
back-end: Dragon NaturallySpeaking for Windows, Natlink and a 32-bit Python
installation.

Dragon NaturallySpeaking, or simply Dragon, is available for purchase from
Nuance Communications, Inc. For the latest version, see
`www.nuance.com/dragon.html <https://www.nuance.com/dragon.html>`__.
Natlink and Dragonfly support Dragon versions up to 16, the latest. The
*Individual* editions of *Dragon* are recommended, although other editions
such as *Home* will also work. Editions of Dragon for macOS are not
compatible with Natlink or Dragonfly.

Natlink is available for download from GitHub and SourceForge. The required
version depends on which version of Python is installed. If you are using
Python 2, please download and install one of the older versions of Natlink,
available from the project's `SourceForge page
<https://sourceforge.net/projects/natlink/files/natlink/natlink4.2/>`__.
All versions in the 4.X range should work with Dragonfly. Please see the
`Natlink install instructions
If you are using Python 3, please download and install one of the newer
versions of Natlink, available from the project's `GitHub releases page
<https://github.com/dictation-toolbox/natlink/releases>`__.

Please see the `Natlink install instructions
<https://qh.antenna.nl/unimacro/installation/index.html>`__ on
*qh.antenna.nl* for how to install Natlink on your machine and configure it.
*qh.antenna.nl* for how to install Natlink on your machine and configure
it.

Dragonfly and Natlink support Dragon versions up to 15 (latest). The
*Individual* editions of *Dragon* are recommended, although other editions
such as *Home* will also work.
A 32-bit Python installation is required to use this engine back-end. This
is because Natlink does not work with 64-bit Python. This limitation is
unlikely to be overcome.

Python version 2.7 (32-bit) is required to use this engine back-end. This
is because, at the time of writing (September '22), Natlink does not have
stable support for Python version 3. Dragonfly will continue to retain
support for Python version 2.7 regardless, since it is not difficult.

Post-install Use
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Once Natlink is up and running, Dragonfly command-modules can be
treated as any other Natlink macro files. Natlink automatically
Expand All @@ -39,6 +66,9 @@ Don't forget to turn the microphone off and on again after placing new
command-modules in the Natlink directory, because otherwise Natlink does
not immediately see the new file.

The Natlink/DNS engine may also be used via the :ref:`command-line interface
<RefCLI>`.


Engine Configuration
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
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