I used the dictation feature but would like to know how to retrieve the dictation. Will it be typed?

What do you mean by "retrieve the dictation"?

Normally, dictation is accessed within an application like TextEdit or Pages. If the computer has dictated your speech, then the words will be in the current document.

If you don't have a text document with the words in it, then it sounds like OS X wasn't using Dictation.

TextEdit is a simple word processor: you will find it in Applications folder. (Finder windows will have a sidebar listing useful folders, including the Applications folder. Otherwise, it is available from the Go menu.

Pages is another word processor with many more features: if it is not in the Applications folder, then you will need to download it from the Mac App Store (Apple menu > App Store). It should be free for new Macs.

Welcome to the world of Mac. Some ‘light’ reading to help the transition. I don’t recommend trying to get through all of this at once.

Eric Root, thank you for posting that list. Don't want to hijack the thread, but I've switched this month to Mac from PC so it has been very helpful. Thank you.

You are welcome.