Blue Heron - 02/22/99
Between 120 and 140 is the entry speed for an "apprenticeship" as you put it. We call them Trainee Court Reporters but they're not common. They're signed on and must make 160 then 180 within a certain time frame (it varies from place to place) otherwise they lose their position.
A Court Reporter, however, enters the field fully qualified at 180 but is subsequently graded. With the increase of speed and experience so too the grade and the money. Different states in Australia have different classifications and the C'wealth is different again but here in NSW it's grades 1 - 4.
But that's the public service. Captioning in the private sector, for example, commands a minimum speed of 200 but this, too, varies according to the standard of competition. Private companies offer lucrative contracts demanding similar speeds so it really does depend on where you go.
This information is easily checkable. I obtained my information from the following sources:
1. Parliament of Victoria, Spring St, Melbourne.
2. Australian Caption Centre, Sydney
3. Hansard, Sydney, NSW
And, of course, you can visit the Australian Government online :)
Blue Heron - 02/25/99
As a trainee you are paid about a third of what the registered CRs get but you learn the ropes as you go along, get a feel for the place and get offered the opening positions first (before they're advertised).
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Kathy Dittmeier - 03/19/99
I had quite a bit of wrist and arm pain starting my second year of school. I only felt the pain when I was working on my steno machine, but it turns out it was my computer use that was the culprit. Even if you have a soft wrist rest, you're still compressing the wrist if you rest your palms, wrists or arms while typing. And if you're like most people, your computer keyboard is probably too high. Do you remember what those old wood typing tables used to look like? They had a lower portion for the machine to sit on, so you didn't have to reach up to type. Once I changed my keyboarding habits, it took a few months, and the pain subsided. If I type very much on a keyboard that is at desk level, the pain returns quickly.
Some people have also reported great relief by taking vitamin B6 supplements.
As far as how you're sitting at the machine, it's better if you sit stradling the machine, rather than with it off to one side. The machine should be at a height that allows your forearms to be somewhat parallel to the ground, and should be situated close enough that you're not having to reach for the machine. Try to sit up straight, rather than slouch. If you're not accustomed to sitting up straight all the time it will take some time to build up the muscles to do this without effort. It's interesting to observe small children who are just learning to sit (6 months to around two years) -- they naturally sit up straight. They're relaxed, they're comfortable, and they have a fairly straight back.
Don't rest your arms on your thighs. Don't hunch over the machine. (I sound like my mother!) Try to relax as you're writing. Sometimes we concentrate so hard on pressing the correct keys or getting the take that we tense up our hands and arms. (Ok, I used to tense up my whole body at times. I think if anyone had touched me during some of my early tests I would have sprung right out of my chair!)
If the pain persists, definitely see a doctor.
Eileen - 03/19/99
Though it could be a RSI/carpal tunnel problem, it also could be coming from your neck. Sometimes all a person needs to clear up pain and/or tingling in the hand and arm is a cervical chiropractic adjustment.
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Karla Wollin Boyer - 11/09/98
[W]e do not teach a "method" or "system." Our workshops are experiential, requiring closely guided participation. We have recently completed our 44th Speed Clinic, and no two of them have been the same. We work directly with each student and reporter--no matter that individual's theory or current skill level--based on our personal expertise and unique combined and separate experiences, and also on a fair amount of useful feedback from thousands of participants. You probably are aware that many shorthand teachers do not even write shorthand. Others have written shorthand but have never reported. And certainly none has reached the status of a National Speed Champion or World Speed Champion. It is not possible for ANY other individual to speak for the Boyers or to teach from a point of understanding of what our unique dual insights have been regarding imparting our discoveries and history.
I'm always amazed when I hear or read this particular question at issue, of why we don't sell something directly to schools or teachers. Participation in our workshops brings the answer to such an inquiry straight to the forefront. Additionally, our work product is proprietary and copyrighted, heightened development being ongoing, with confidentiality requirements prohibiting sharing or passing on our material in any form or by any method. In that sense, we do not fall under the usual allowance that permits individuals to pass along original material purchased from us or to share anything learned through experiencing our courses.
May this brief explanation give you a bit of a clearer picture of who we are and what we do.
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Kathy Dittmeier - 10/12/98
I'm going to quote Michael Yesner's (owner of a firm that contracts) definition of contracting: "Third-party contracting simply is an arrangement whereby a court reporting firm or consortium of firms agrees to work on behalf of a corporation, insurance company, law firm and other ultimate payers of legal expenses on an exclusive or partially exclusive basis in exhcange for economic benefits." JCR, October 1998
The dispute is over the issue of impartiality -- avoiding the appearance of conflict of interest. Is it a conflict of interest for the reporter to be under contract to the party representing one side of a lawsuit?
Those who participate in contracting say "no." They believe that the professionalism and integrity exercised by reporters and their agencies would keep a situation or appearance of partiality from developing. They also believe that direct contracting is no different than local situations where reporting companies work with large, exclusive clients.
Those who oppose contracting state that it is not the same situation at all because even in situations where there are exclusive relationships, the attorney/court reporter relationship can be severed at any time. The attorney is in control of the relationship at all times and can respond to quality and service problems rapidly (by dismissing the reporter and hiring another one). Our role is that of an officer before whom the deposition is taken, and by federal law, and in most places, state law, we must be impartial and neutral.
This is definitely an issue that has split the ranks. NCRA has adopted a position against contracting and is supporting measures on a state-by-state basis to adopt state laws about contracting. 16 states have passed, or have pending, legislation against contracting.
Someone else mentioned the HMOing of our profession. That term, to my understanding, relates to more than just the contracting issue. It also relates to the situation where two or more large court reporting agencies are consolidating, then buying more agencies. Most, if not all, of these larger agencies participate in contracting. The smaller, independent agencies are hard-pressed to compete with the larger agencies. Reporters who work for agencies that are bought out sometimes feel no choice but to continue to work for the newly-consolidated company, even if their rates are lowered. The introduction of large, nation-wide reporting agencies has changed the way many agencies do business.
These are interesting times we live in! If there's one constant in life, it's that life is always changing. We shouldn't expect things to never change, but we should try to keep up-to-date on what's going on and do our part to influence the outcome whenever necessary and possible. You can find quite a bit of information about contracting in the August-September and October 1998 issues of the Journal of Court Reporti
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Kathy Dittmeier - 10/01/98
A copyright is not something you apply for; it's something you automatically have the moment you create something original and put it on paper, tape, video or any other media. You're supposed to put the copyright symbol on anything you create (copyright (c) 1998 by Kathryn Dittmeier), and that helps to strengthen a case if it goes to court, but it is not a requirement (as of 1989). You can register copies of your work with the Copyright Office-- many people think THAT is what confers copyright status on a work. It is not. That only helps to establish a claim of original work if a case goes to court.
The Copyright Act gives the author of a work four exclusive rights: reproduction rights, distribution rights, the right to create adaptions, and performance and display rights. A copyright is a form of property and can be sold, licensed or transferred.
The exception to this is works that are in the public domain (not owned by anyone). These include government publications, works where the copyright has expired (published at least 75 years ago) and works published before 1964 that weren't copyright renewed, and works published prior to 1989 that didn't have a valid copyright notice. (Sound recordings can have a P with a circle instead of a c with a circle.)
Even with government publications you have to be a bit careful! I ordered some publications from the Government Printing Office, assuming they were all in the public domain. Some of the literature has a copyright from a third party on it, and a statement that it has been printed under license with the US government.
The tape you have, unless you created the content yourself, was created by someone else. The person who created the original material on that tape owns the copyright and has reproduction rights.
So, you can legally make copies if:
you possess papers stating that right has been sold, licensed or transferred to you;
it was published by the government and has no copyright;
it was published more than 75 years ago;
it was published before 1964 and the copyright was not renewed;
it was published before 1989 and didn't have a valid copyright notice on the original.
If you ever got sued for copyright infringement, you would need PROOF of one of these conditions (which means you should have proof now before you ever make a copy).
Now, you may not think this is such a big deal, but you are entering a profession where you make your living by selling your work product. Even though court reporters do not own a copyright in their transcripts, they earn a substantial portion of their income through the sale of copies. In fact, in many areas, part of the current pricing structure counts on the reporter getting paid for copies to keep the price on the original reasonable. How will you feel if attorneys copy your transcripts for each other?
In the past, I have been guilty of copying material myself, not even thinking about the effect on someone else -- only thinking about the savings to my wallet! But many years ago I was counseled wisely and given new perspective on all this. For me, the decision was easy. We don't even have copied videotapes in the house anymore (and we used to have MANY). Business-wise, it's a decision I haven't regretted once. And I'm sure if I ever get audited, I'll be especially happy. :)
Rachel Jaffe - 10/01/98
If anyone has their curiosity particularly piqued by this subject, here are a couple URLs that I found helpful when I first started looking at this topic:
10 Big Myths about Copyright Explained: http://www.templetons.com/brad//copymyths.html
U.S. Copyright Office Home Page (Library of Congress)
http://lcweb.loc.gov/copyright/
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Rachel S. - 11/13/98
"Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil" was a great film. The book was even better. BUT, in the movie, the court reporter used an old manual machine, and they have a very deliberate shot of her *shutting* the little paper drawer that catches your notes as they come out. Then she starts taking the case. The clock shows about two hours later, and here she sits with about 30 minutes worth of notes--piled on the floor!
Then there was some movie with Dana Carvey about him having amnesia. I just caught the end, and he's in court. The court reporter seems to be a real bimbo. At some point he wants to distract the lawyer, so he compliments the court reporter (during the Q/A) on her brooch. She takes her hands off the machine and starts gushing about her jewelry , totally disrupting the proceedings. Later the lawyer's wife stands up and accuses the c.r. of sleeping with the attorney, and she gets up and runs screaming out of the courtroom. Very professional.
Connie - 12/03/98
This one's cute [Babe--Pig in the City] -- As the "boss's wife" is explaining to the judge the circumstances for which she finds herself before him (rambling on at about 400 wpm), an intensely stressed older gentlemen is frantically pounding the keys of his steno machine as a cascading mound of paper accumulates on the floor. It made me smile.
Amanda - 11/16/98
Last week on the Simpsons when Homer went to court, there was a court reporter on there. Her eyes were as big as basketballs, and she was just sitting there like she was under a spell. I don't know if this was a new show or one that is in syndication, but it was neat to see one of us in "animated" form.
Rachel S. - 11/15/98
I caught a little bit of Saturday Night Live last night, and they had a courtroom skit. The premise was that one of the lawyers was talking in a way that you could not understand at all. ("Did you giggity bub the blubleuble? Do you snarp a plaffle froongy?") The witnesses didn't know how to answer the questions. One of the comedians was the C.R., and she didn't have the drawer out, the paper was falling to the floor, and she was using the tips of about three of her fingers to "type"--on the number bar! But she was really cute when she was finally asked to read back and she gave the requesting attorney this horrified look, looked at her notes and said, "Snarfle snub a deetee papa." Hey! She was writing phonetically! :=) But a real reporter would have stopped the guy and told him to take the @#$%% oatmeal out of his mouth and talk like a human. Or something like that.
Kim Sziva - 11/15/98
And who can forget the court reporter on the last episode of Seinfeld, because, let's face it, that's how we really look when we are writing. NOT. Just hope I never have to report a "low talker". Although, I know one day it will happen!
Has anyone seen that Demi Moore movie, of course now my memory fails me as to the name, where she seduces Michael Douglas? They show the court reporter's real time notes. I can't remember if they made any sense though.
Isn't it funny how only people like us can pick out these things?
Michelle - 11/14/98
Has anyone watched Science Court for kids? It's this really cute cartoon in which the croert has a speaking role. His name is Freddie and he can take down the trial in Spanish and read it back in French! Usually he plunks a few keys or falls asleep. Totally the most accurate portrayal I've ever seen, by golly! Really cute. When I grow up, I want to be just like Freddie (my luck, I probably will)
Carol Jochim - 11/14/98
Did anyone see the movie many years about about the Howard Hughes will? It's been so long ago, I can't remember the title for certain, though I think it was something like "Melvin & Howard." My husband was watching it, I wasn't paying much attention until I glanced at the screen and saw a court reporter writing. It's just habit for me to look at their hands to see if they're really writing--or how atrociously they're faking it
Jamie - 11/13/98
I think if you are talking about bad portrayals of court reporters, you can not forget the court reporter on the TV show Night Court. If you remember, the later seasons had a court reporter that was a real idiot. I dont think they ever showed her say an intelligent thing. It is horrible.
But, we should also comment on the good portrayals of court reporters. There was a movie I caught a few months ago on HBO called, The Buddy System. It starred Susan Sarandon. She was a single mother that finished court reporting school, but she just could not pass the certification. They actually show her in the testing situation taking the RPR. Now, I have never taken the RPR, so I am not sure about the authenticity of the scene, but I looked well done to me. Also the court reporter in "Philadelphia" was very convincing.
Rachel S. - 11/13/98
You mentioned Philadelphia. One of my teachers told us that they had used a real court reporter for that movie. She related a story that at one point the actors had strayed from the script, and for reasons of continuity they needed to know what they had said. The court reporter had really been taking down what was going on, so she was able to "read back" to the actors what they said.
Rachel J. - 11/14/98
I read a similar story (probably in the Jouranl, but I can't remember for sure) about a court reporter who was used in an Alfred Hitchcock film. They had shot a scene a few times, and then couldn't remember if a particular line had been said (something like that -- now *I* can't remember!). The movie was based on real life, and the court reporter in the movie was the same one as had done the actual trial, so, being a reporter, he had automatically been taking the proceedings down verbatim. He read back his report, and someone remarked that knowing what had actually been done saved them $10,000 in not having to reshoot. As I recall, the reporter asked Hitchcock if he'd like to hire him to save $10,000 on future projects. Hitchcock drily remarked that he thought not. (I thought it was a good effort, though -- sounds like the type of wacky idea I'd suggest! {grin})
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Carolyn Dockus - 10/18/98
If you currently own a manual writer and are merely wanting to accomodate your realtime needs as a student, you might want to check out www.procat.com and learn more about their switchplate attachments which will covert your manual writer into a realtime writer. The switchplate is installed inside your manual machine and a small black box with a display window rests on top of your machine. I have one installed on my steno-lectric and use it only on those occasions I want to run something through my student software or add words to my dictionary. When I am not using it, I remove the black box from the top of my machine because I will admit it's not the most glamorous-looking thing, but it works remarkably well and is affordable (under $300).
Please note that the switchplate attachment does have limitations but should suffice for student purposes.
Kathy Dittmeier - 03/06/99
Adding the switchplate to a manual machine gives you realtime capability, but does not change the touch of the machine. Part of the touch is related to how the paper is moved forward, and the switchplate doesn't modify that function.
Kathy Dittmeier - 02/09/99
Carmen,
First, if you know what CAT software you're leaning towards, check with your software vendor for any known problems they have with today's computers. For example, many software programs don't run properly with the AMD (Intel clone) processors.
Hard drive. The bigger, the better.
Memory. At least 32MB, and if you're able, 64MB. Ask if the memory on your computer can be expanded beyond that at a later date. (A "yes" answer is a good answer.)
Processor. Make sure it's an Intel, and go for speed (Pentium II if possible).
Monitor. Active matrix is better (can be seen well from more angles). More expensive, but easier on the eyes, and if you're going to work one-on-one with the deaf, easier for them to see as well. Look for brightness and contrast adjustments as well.
COM Ports. If you're going to realtime, you'll want at least two. One to plug your steno machine into the computer, the other to allow your realtime to go out to attorneys, judges, or a captioning software. The newer ports are called USB ports. These are different than COM Ports. You want COM ports.
Places to plug things in.
3.5" floppy drive
CDROM drive
On some computers, these two components are removable, and you can only have one or the other in at a time. If possible, purchase a computer that has access to both at all times. Some models have a CD drive that pops out and has a small round spindle in the middle to mount the CD on. Others have something more like a tray that you set the CD in. The tray is more stable, less likely to become unbalanced.
An ideal computer also has separate places to plug in a full size mouse, keyboard, and monitor. Some computers have one plug that you can use a keyboard or mouse in, but not both. Both is better.
A place to hook up an Iomega Zip drive, or Jaz drive (storage device) is good. Try to get one that doesn't have to be attached to the printer port since most CAT software uses a security device on the printer port and it can interfere.
Printer. The new color inkjets turn out very nice pictures, but take a long time to print out big jobs. A quality laser printer is a better choice for reporters. Look for paper tray size (if it only holds 50 sheets, you'll constantly be reloading), memory (more is better), and pages per minute. Also check out how much the toner cartridges cost, how many pages you should get from each cartridge, and whether or not the cartridge also contains the imaging roller. Cartridges with the imaging roller are a bit more expensive, but your print is crisp and sharp without much maintenance of the machine.
If your CAT software is DOS software, you'll want to make sure it will run on the operating system you have on your computer, and make sure the printer you purchase will print from DOS programs.
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Ardith Spies - 08/31/98
I'd like you to know about some success stories with Fon'iks writers and the Digitext theory. I've studied thoroughly all popular theories and am very pleased with this one. There is no other system that gives you unlimited translation because it is based on a word construction concept. That's why we have students writing this theory even in Spanish, for example. Once students have mastered the theory concepts, they can learn to write even proper names without making "dictionary entries." The manufacturer had some startup problems which now seem to be siginifantly diminished. All problems were eventually repaired. I've lost track of the number of students in our school who have jobs using their writers. The writer is well accepted in the corporate world because it connects directly into the company's system without having to load software separately. In fact, one major company would not allow any other writers for that reason. These students accelerate their training with these jobs. We have students progressing through school with fantastic realtime skills and many graduate in record time. The positive stories far outweigh the negative ones. It is important to note that many reporters are successful with a variety of theories and writers. It's up to the individual to go beyond "gloom and doom" stories and just do it, no matter what sytem you use.
Carol Jochim - 09/08/98
As the owner of the Digitext/Foniks "flagship school," you’re probably the person in the best position to keep us all updated on the resolution of the problems experienced with the Foniks Writer, the current status of the ErgoFoniks company, and what the future prospects are for the Digitext/Foniks technology.
There is one recurring theme in your messages which could mislead students who are not familiar with possible hardware/software configurations for realtime writing, and that is your statement that some companies object to having proprietary software loaded to their in-office computers and will therefore accept ONLY people using the FoniksWriter.
Students need to be aware that a "realtime system" includes: A realtime theory, a steno keyboard; a computer, and translation and editing software. That "realtime system" can be configured in two ways: (1) A one-piece system consisting of the FoniksWriter (with it’s "built-in" computer); or (2) A two-piece system consisting of a steno keyboard and laptop/notebook computer (loaded with the translation/editing software). Both configurations accomplish exactly the same thing, the primary difference being that with the two-piece configuration, the operator has a broad CHOICE of keyboards, computers, and software programs, can change those choices at any time, can replace individual components if needed without the expense of replacing the whole system, and can update individual components to keep abreast of the most current technology.
It’s true that some businesses might not allow proprietary software to be loaded on their in-house computers, but it’s of no consequence to them whether the operator uses a one-piece or two-piece equipment configuration.
Ardith Spies - 08/31/98
Yes, the company has had some problems. I'm not here to defend them. I don't know of any computer technology company without start-up challenges. I'm the director at a school where there are many, many success stories with the writer and the Digitext theory. We are graduating writers with greater realtime skills in a shorter period of time. Many have had work opportunities using the writer which accelerates their training. Most companies like the Fon'iks writer because connects directly into their networks without having to load software into their system. Yes, some students have had problems with writers, but I found the company does get the problem resolved and the incidents of problems are lessening dramatically.
Ardith Spies - 09/04/98
We have graduates using the Fon'iks writer. Some are just using WordPerfect or WORD to create their transcript and know how to create the box and 25 lines on the page. They have purchased condensed transcript software "off the shelf." Others write their documents into WORD and then save in RTF which then can be exported into a variety of editing software packages. WordPerfect is the easiest and far less expensive than the other options, but the CAT vendors editing software packages have a few more "bells and whistles" that you may wish to utilize.
Ardith Spies - 09/06/98
You implied that if you learn the ErgoFon'iks theory (by the way, it is Fon'iks logic based on the Digitext theory), that you aren't compatible with the steno machines and CAT software everyone else uses. Students who learn Digitext theory may use any steno machine; it's just that then they must build their own dictionary and continue to refine it during their reporting life. If they use a Fon'iks writer, save their document into Word, they then can use most CAT software editing packages by use of the RTF concept. Building your own dictionary isn't a bad idea; it is the best theory reinforcement tool I know. There are comprehensive Digitext dictionaries available, but they will never compare to the unlimited translation ability of the logic chip in the Fon'iks writer that works on a word construction concept making it possible to write any word, any proper name, even some foreign languages, without ever making a dictionary entry.
Be very cautious about saying that ErgoFon'iks schools require every new student to purchase a machine. I know several that don't. Students are given a choice. And the "over 60%.." statistic; does that come from some research or just the fact that in general that many drop before graduation? Also, there are re-marketing programs and trade-ins or upgrade programs available.
The job opportunities that are available to Fon'iks writers are a tremendous value to students. Since that writer can connect to any computer system without having to load any software on the company's system, it is a major "plus." One major employer will not employ anyone other than Fon'iks writers because of that universality. They had tried other CAT systems.
The next time you are in the Dallas area, call me and we can visit more about this issue. You could also meet some awesome realtime writers who attribute their success to this sytem.
Kathy Dittmeier - 09/08/98
The scenario you describe, using the Fon'iks writer, saving to RTF, then using a CAT system, has a few drawbacks. If the RTF file is generated using a word processor program, then when that file is imported to a CAT system, the reporter will be unable to take advantage of the majority of the features a CAT system has to offer. For instance, there will be no electronic steno notes associated with the file, so the reporter cannot easily refer to the steno notes if there is a question (unless the notes are printed out on the higher-priced thermal paper from the Fon'iks writer).
More importantly, the reporter will not be able to D-define or J-define words globally throughout the transcript. They will have to rely solely on English defines which act as a search and replace, much like a word processor.
The reporter won't be able to take advantage of any of the translation features offered by that CAT system, auto-includes, or in some cases, even the formatting features since it's an RTF from a word processor, not an RTF/CRE file from another CAT system.
I have to disagree that building your own dictionary is a good idea, especially if one already exists. Many working reporters don't fully understand *how* a translation dictionary works -- you don't just program in each and every word or phrase. You can do it that way, but it's not efficient, and doesn't allow the greatest flexibility for your writing. As you've pointed out, there are opportunities for our students to work while they learn -- those opportunities cannot be realized if a student doesn't have an adequate translation dictionary. I've built dictionaries from scratch; I've watched students and reporters build dictionaries from scratch, and in my experience, they're better off working with a tested, proofed, well-programmed dictionary that matches their theory.
The Fon'iks writer *does* have unparalleled translation ability -- you'll get no disagreement from me on that at all. But apart from that, the benefits you cite can all be realized with less expensive, upgradeable choices in theory, writers and software.
I'm glad to hear students at your school have a choice of writers. I've spoken with instructors at at least three ErgoFon'iks schools where the purchase of the writer is mandatory.
My "over 60%" statistic was being generous, based on the current NCRA statistics of the percentage of students who drop from court reporting programs. Perhaps ErgoFon'iks schools have lower percentages -- NCRA doesn't have stats on schools by theory.
Ardith, I know the Fon'iks writer is a successful tool for many students and reporters, and I appreciate you sharing your experiences with me, and the others on this forum. I just don't feel that it is the right tool for every student. The full ramifications of theory, writer and software choices should be explored so students and reporters can make their own choices. While I have the greatest respect for the accomplishments of your school and your students, on the Fon'iks writer, we'll have to agree to disagree.
Ardith Spies - 09/08/98
I should have been more specific about the RTF files. Fon'iks users have updated software that gives them the RTF/CRE capability. If somone does not have the update, they should call the company. With that they can have all the functions of CAT software. I suspect some of this misinformation is based on older products.
Carol Jochim - 08/04/98
I was glad to see your comments clarifying for students the situation re a Digitext/ErgoFoniks dictionary, and found the comments from others interesting--and somewhat surprising. As you know, I did at one time work as a consultant to Digitext, created their original training program, modified their "exceptions dictionary" to correct dozens of misspelled words it contained, and at one time functioned as their director of training. So I am well aware that requests to make a translation dictionary available which would truly support the Digitext theory on any other keyboard have always been rejected by Digitext.
The news that Stenograph can now offer a "starter" Digitext translation dictionary is surprising--and somewhat puzzling. The vast majority of all Digitext translation is done by a logics chip resident in the keyboard. The ONLY Digitext dictionary created by Digitext was their "exceptions dictionary" (approx. 45,000 entries) which was necessary to supplement the logic chip for translation of any word which didn't follow very specific rules of word construction-- plus hundreds of "personal" entries for Jerry Leffler to support his writing style (which can differ considerably from the theory being taught) and to cover his high-frequency misstrokes. I know that you have experienced, as I have, new graduates who opted to buy other than a Digitext keyboard and were shocked to realize that, because Digitext didn't make a tran dict available, NOTHING translated for them--and they had to build their entire dictionary from scratch.
I am aware that several years ago PCRI in Dallas attempted to develop a tran dict--but students and instructors commented that it was so full of errors that they preferred not to use it. So if Stenograph is making a Digitext dictionary available, the logical assumption would be that it must be the "exceptions dictionary" which a student has expanded on. But it cannot, unfortunately, fully support the Digitext theory without either being supplemented by the logics chip or a tremendous amount of dictionary development by the user.
And as you also know, I am VERY MUCH AGAINST the Digitext/ErgoFoniks philosophy of REQUIRING new students to purchase a $5,000 keyboard. (1) Statistics prove that ALL skills programs--including court reporting-- have significant dropouts. That means that in a very short time, hundreds or thousands of dropouts will find themselves saddled with a long-term financial burden for a keyboard they no longer have any use for but which they cannot resell to get out from under the debt. I am currently, in fact, attempting to help one student resolve that very problem. She opted to change career paths, has no further use for her keyboard. I asked why she couldn't sell it to an incoming student and her response was that when she attempted to do that, a school administrator just pointed to a stack of keyboards in the corner of the office--and she found herself at the end of a long line of students attempting to sell their machines. I'm trying to put her in touch with other Digitext/Foniks schools to see if she can find a purchaser. (2) Technology changes so rapidly, that the Foniks Writer could already be called behind current technology; by the time the student graduates it could easily be technologically obsolete; and by the time they finish paying for it, it could almost be an antique in terms of then-current technology. I think students are much better served by buying a student model Stentura and translation software, which can be updated upon graduation to a keyboard and software which is state-of-the-art AT THAT TIME, and without any financial loss on their initial investment. And if the student opts not to finish the program, they stand a much better chance of being able to resell their keyboard /software--or worst case scenario, have a much smaller financial obligation to finish paying off.
I'm also concerned about the continued lack of stability of the company itself. I personally would certainly not invest $5,000 in ANY piece of equipment unless and until a company had some track record of stability and I had some reasonable assurance that the company will continue to exist/go forward and be able to provide technological updates, maintenance, and support for the foreseeable future.
Nicole - 07/29/98
I am learning the Digitext (Foniks) theory, and I have a Stentura 400SRT/laptop combo and it works great for me. I got a Digitext starter dictionary disk with my student software from Stenograph, so you *can* use that theory with other software programs without building a dictionary from scratch. You do have to add things to your dictionary, but the starter disk comes with about 60,000 entries.
Most people in my school who have the Foniks Writers are very unsatisfied with them and are trying to get their money back or trying to sell them. Let me know if you have any further questions and I'll try to help if I can. Good luck!
Kathy Dittmeier - 08/01/98
Your statement that you got a Digitext dictionary from Stenograph really threw me for a loop since I try to stay on top of theory-related issues. I called Stenograph to find out more about this dictionary you received.
It is the most suitable thing available for a Digitext/ErgoFon'iks writer who is switching to a CAT system to use, but it isn't a dictionary that was created by Digitext or ErgoFon'iks. It is a personal dictionary from someone who learned Digitext, and is available as a convenience for those who purchase Stenograph CAT software and are stuck for a dictionary. It isn't something that is available via the catalog or even through the Sales department. Since no one at Stenograph writes Digitext theory, they're going forward on the assumption that the dictionary closely approximates the way a Digitext writer would stroke words.
This, of course, is a blessing for students who leave a Digitext/ErgoFon'iks school with no personal dictionary for a CAT system, and I'm glad Stenograph was able to accommodate you.
Patrick O'Kane - 09/05/98
Yes, you can use any software and have a dictionary that is the Digitext theory. It IS NOT just for the Fon'iks Writer. Bryan, a former student of mine, is using a Sentra8000 on the east coast: he is a freelance reporter, writes realtime for a deaf college student, and recently passed the initial test (in flying colors) for a national captioning company.
The Fon'iks Writer has the "utility keys" to allow you to double consonants in proper names (Mr. Foxx), and you may also use the utility keys instead of the asterisk. If you are using another system, you don't have the ability to use theses keys, but you do as so many do, you use the asterisk. And like the rest of the theories, you won't have the extra function to double consonants. I originally learned the Digitext theory and we had software, that is still on the market, that translated everything very nicely. And remember Bryan, a national captioning company wants him because of his ability to write such clean realtime.
The theory is great!!! Use whatever hardware and software you wish. The theory isn't anymore difficult than any other theory. When people say it's difficult, those are usually the people who are switching theories. And I'm sure it is more difficult for them, just as I would think learning Russian word be difficult. But do you think the people who grew up speaking Russian think it's all that difficult? No.
One other thought: Isn't it nice that there are choices.
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Kathy Dittmeier - 07/29/98
I wouldn't have any qualms about attending a non-NCRA-approved school at all. The NCRA Minimum Standards for approved schools are all good, but most schools, NCRA-approved and not, far exceed those standards.
The NCRA approval process is quite costly, and requires continued fees to participate. Many schools either cannot afford this, or feel the accreditation doesn't help them enroll more students.
There are many questions you can ask a prospective school to help you determine if it's a place you can get the education you want.
What theory do you teach? (only important if you're just starting)
How many hours of live instruction per week will you receive for speedbuilding classes?
For QA classes, does one person do all the reading or are there two people reading the parts for practice and for tests?
How often will you get to test?
Are there practice requirements for each class?
Is there a colloquy practice class? (more than 2 speakers)
What are the backgrounds of the teachers? (It's best to have court reporters teaching classes such as court procedures.)
What does the school use for practice material? (Some let you tape record the classes, have tapes you can duplicate for a small fee, etc.)
What percentage is required to pass a speed test?
Is there a practicum class where you actually get to role-play being court reporters?
How long is the internship? Do they place you with reporters for this? Does the internship require sitting in with more than one type of reporter/situation? (freelance, official, depositions, meetings, realtime, etc.)
When do you start using the computers for realtime? (the sooner, the better)
How much computer time is available?
What are the qualifications of the CAT instructor? (If you're going to pay someone to teach you CAT, you want to learn the program well.)
Does the school have a pre-built dictionary for your theory? (Computer-Compatible Stenograph Theory, 2nd and 3rd editions, StenEd, and Phoenix are all easily available as pre-built dictionaries.)
When will you be allowed to start working with this dictionary, and will you be allowed to add to it and make backup copies of it? (A few schools don't allow the students to copy the school dictionary until they graduate -- this isn't good.)
Does the school have mock RPR exams? (complete with typing the tests up in the required time period)
Does the school require you to type up tests in a minimum amount of time and according to standard formats? (If you live in a CSR state, there is usually a time limit for typing up the test -- it's great if the school follows the same time limit. Otherwise it can be a great shock to sit down at the CSR and realize that you got it all in your notes, but you're incapable of typing it up, proofreading and correcting it all in the time limit because you haven't practiced that. You also need TONS of practice for typing things up in the proper format. Every student should leave school having prepared many complete transcripts. This includes cover page(title/caption page), appearance page, stipulations, swearing in the witness, parentheticals in the transcript, a jurat if required in your state, index and certificate.
These are just a few of the questions you can ask to help you learn more about the program at a school.
Georgia - 02/21/99
We have Adult Schools -- part of the public school system -- that teach it in our state, which are much, much cheaper than the private schools. And, by the way, it doesn't matter if the school is approved by the NCRA. The individual states usually have their own criteria for approving court reporting programs, so all the schools in your state would have to abide by the same standards. (Some people think that if a school is not "blessed" by the National Court Reporters Association, it's not a bona fide program. Not true!)
The length of time it will take you also depends upon the state in which you reside. The requirements for achieving court reporter status vary from state to state. It may take two or three years in one place and ten in another. It just depends on how high the standards, what speed you have to reach. Additionally, I find it takes more time to learn computer-compatible writing skills.
I suggest that you contact a number of schools in your area and ask some of the high-speed students how long they've been in school and what speed they're writing. That would be the best indicator. There are always a handful that breeze through school in a couple of years, but most reporters take considerably longer to perfect their skills.
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Carol Jochim - 02/24/99
The reason "realtime" machine shorthand is so important to the future of the court reporting profession is that it gives us the "edge" over all other technologies. Being a "realtime writer" is important to YOU because: (1) You’ll have the biggest and best choice of jobs available; (2) You’ll be able to produce a final work product much faster, which means you can either produce more work and make more money--or have more free time for family, friends, and fun!
One of the main requirements for writing realtime is to write with as few conflicts as possible. If you’re writing an NCRA-approved theory--and haven’t made any unwise "detours" from your theory:)--the conflicts which are so high-frequency they could drive you bonkers have already been eliminated. But you may still have a few conflicts you’ll want to resolve in order to be as "realtime ready" as you’d like to be--and as your prospective employers would like you to be--especially for passing the CRR, being a CART provider, or doing captioning. If you’re a student, it’s much better to know about conflicts and to eliminate them NOW, rather than continuing to reinforce writing habits that will later need to be changed and/or trying to make changes in your writing at the same time you’re adjusting to a new career.
Homonym conflicts are a royal pain, but at least they’re very obvious. Conflicts in word boundaries can be difficult to anticipate and can sneak up on you when you’re not looking. What it boils down to is that, if you use the SAME stroke for (1) a word beginning AND a word ending; or (2) a word AND a word beginning and/or a word ending, conflicts are almost inevitable when writing machine shorthand.
Fortunately, some of the conflicts which may still exist even in today’s theories are pretty easy to eliminate. For example, some theories still use the same stroke for the word "come" and the word part "com-," creating conflicts such as compared/come paired, compressed/come pressed, commend/come mend, comprises/come prizes, compose/come pose, compound/come pound, comfort/come fort(ified), etc. Eliminating these come/com- conflicts can be as simple as changing the way you write "come." How about writing "come" by sound as either KPH- or KUPL? *IF* these options don’t create conflicts with anything else in your theory, they can eliminate the come/com- conflicts.
Do you use the same stroke for the "iest" ending and the "yest" beginning? Seems pretty harmless, doesn’t it? After all, "yesterday" is the only "common" English word which starts with "yest," so how many conflicts could there possibly be? LOTS!! Remember, CAT translation software keeps searching subsequent strokes until it no longer finds a match which creates a word. So if you write "I bought a new dress yesterday," when the CAT software gets to "dress" it will search to see if including the NEXT stroke creates a word--and if that stroke happens to be KWR*ES, yes, it does (dressiest)! And it will translate your sentence as "I bought a new dressiester day." Every "word" in your translation dictionary to which the "iest" ending can be added (dozens!) will "mistranslate" if it occurs before the word "yesterday." I say "mistranslate," but actually it’s translating exactly what you wrote, just not what you intended to write. This iest/yest- conflict is also very easy to eliminate: If you’re just starting to develop your translation dictionary, you could use KWR*S as your "iest" ending. If you already have a well-developed dictionary, rather than having to modify all the entries for words ending in "iest" it’s simpler to either use an arbitrary outline for "yesterday" (e.g., YERD) or if you prefer to stroke it out, make it an "exception" to the general guideline of carrying each stroke as far as possible through the sound, and break it into strokes as YES ter day..
Depending on what theory you’re writing and when you first learned the theory, you may still have conflicts between the words "let, full, less, ship" and the word endings "let, ful, less, ship." If so, omitting the vowel from these strokes to distinguish them as "word endings" works well--ALWAYS assuming you make certain the outlines aren’t already being used for some other purpose by your theory.
For example, conflicts such as bracelet/brace let, triplet/trip let, starlet/star let, etc., could be eliminated by defining HR-T and HR-TS in your dictionary as the suffixes "let" and "lets," respectively: "bracelet" = PWRAEUS/HR-T; "brace let" = PWRAEUS/HRET, "starlets" = STAR/HR-TS, "star lets" = STAR/HRETS. (Dictionary entries can be programmed to act as prefixes or suffixes which automatically attach to either the following or preceding stroke. The programming of entries to function as prefixes or suffixes varies from software program to software program. If this hasn’t already been covered thoroughly in your CAT classes, check with your software vendor regarding making entries for prefixes and suffixes.)
You can use this same principle to eliminate conflicts such as thoughtful/thought full, mindful/mind full, painful/pain full, etc., ("full" = TPUL; the suffix "ful" = TP-L); worthless/worth less, timeless/time less, helpless/help less, etc. ("less" = HRESZ; the suffix "less" = HR-SZ); leadership/leader ship, sponsorship/sponsor ship, membership/member ship, etc. ("ship" = SHEUP; the suffix "ship" = SH-P).
If you’re not writing for realtime translation, it’s pretty hard to tell where conflicts are "lurking." I’ve compiled a list of "Conflict-Finder Sentences" which demonstrate conflicts still found in some of today’s theories. You can write these simple little sentences as a "self-check" to find out what conflicts you may still need to deal with. It’s actually kind of fun to write the sentences and see some of the weird translations you get--UNLESS, of course, they’re being displayed on a computer screen for everyone in the deposition room, courtroom, or classroom to see; or worse yet, on television for the whole world to see. Then they’re just embarrassing :(
*IF* you do find conflicts remaining in your writing, take a few minutes and see if there’s something simple you can do to avoid them. For example, if you use the stroke TER as both a word ending (fil/ter, shel/ter, cop/ter, win/ter, etc.) AND a word beginning (terr/or, terr/if/ic, terr/ain, etc.) you have potential conflicts. But it’s certainly not a biggy. The most important thing is that you REALIZE there’s potential for conflict--and in this particular instance the conflict can be avoided simply by carrying your first stroke for "filter, shelter," etc., through the T and breaking the words into shorthand strokes as filt/er and shelt/er, etc.
Do you still have a conflict between "tell" and the "tele" word beginning (telephones/tell phones, television/tell vision, telemarketing/tell marketing, telegrams/tell grams, etc.)? How about using T*EL for your "tele" word beginning? What about "post" and "post-" (postdated/post dated, postgraduate/post graduate, postmarked/post marked, etc.)? You could use PO*ES for the word "post" and PO*S for the prefix "post."
These "Conflict-Finder Sentences" don’t represent "a list" of all possible conflicts. They’re just examples of the types of conflicts which can occur. They don’t cover every possible conflict or all the possible mistranslations which could result from each area of conflict. But I believe that by writing these very simple little sentences and actually SEEING how they translate makes it easier to learn to recognize potential conflicts and to understand how and why they occur--and to identify ways to avoid them.
I may have too many "Conflict-Finder Sentences" to include in this post, so I’ll just include as many as space permits. If you want to check out the whole list, you’re welcome to drop by http://www.phoenixtheory.com, and click on "Realtime" for a more complete list.
If you’re writing for realtime translation, first write the sentence, then check to see if it translated CORRECTLY or whether a conflict caused it to translate as something else (e.g., the possible translation shown in brackets). If you’re NOT writing for realtime translation, write the sentence, then write the translated version enclosed in the brackets. IF your steno strokes for both would be the same, you have a conflict you should think about getting rid of.
Have fun writing these little sentences. And may the steno gods be smiling on you and you find NO conflicts (in which case you’ll know you’ve jumped what is arguably the biggest hurdle to becoming a "realtime" writer).
cj
(NOTE: Some translation software has an optional feature which automatically makes some necessary spelling adjustments when attaching common endings such as: "ed, ing, s, er." Consequently, exact translation may vary, depending upon the CAT software being used.)
STENO NOTES FOR THIS SENTENCE [MAY TRANSLATE LIKE THIS!]
This music will rid dancers of their inhibitions. [This music will riddanceers of their inhibitions.]
Isn’t the park along this road somewhere? [Isn’t the parka long this road somewhere?]
Does that say lines 5 and 6? [Does that salines 5 and 6?]
He gave my husband letters of recommendation. [He gave my hustlers of recommendation.]
Give them a little leeway. [Give them a lily way.]
Put the tube away in the backpack. [Put the tuba way in the backpack.]
We knew mercury was poisonous. [We numeric
Does the construction satisfy fire codes? [Does the construction sapphire codes?]
They have a very low customer approval rating. [They have a very locust
Can’t erase it? [Can’t he race it?]
They haven’t been too regular lately. [They haven’t been too regulate lee.]
Have you finished the billing? [Have you finished the bilge?]
They’re talking about a national lottery. [They’re talking banal lottery.]
He will object long and loudly to that. [He will oblong and loudly to that.]
We’re behind on the rent again. [We’re behind on the roentgen.]
Will they seek retribution? [Will they secret
I think your lie lacks much conviction. [I think your lilacs much conviction.]
They won’t accept rate increase proposals. [They won’t separate increase proposals.]
He’s no more talented than she is. [He’s no mortal
We won’t stand for any tricks. [We won’t stand for nitrics.]
We sent national leaders a copy. [We sentinel leaders a copy.]
I recommend deeding it to your children. [I remedieding it to your children.]
Set the coffee to perk later. [Set the coffee to percolateer.]
When was the object seen for the first time? [When was the obscene for the first time?]
They’ve been mute lately on that subject. [They’ve been mutilate
This toy lets children be creative. [This toilets children be creative.]
They used to set letters in one at a time. [They used to settlers in one at a time.]
Did Russ sell his car? [Did Russell his car?]
I represent Asian shipping companies. [I representation shipping companies.]
Will that brace let your fingers move? [Will that bracelet your fingers move?]
That will help fulfill our quota. [That will helpful fill our quota.]
Is he veering a little to the right? [Severing a little to the right?]
The principal simply won’t allow it. [The principle plea won’t allow it.]
I haven’t noticed any traits that are a problem. [I haven’t noticed nitrates that are a problem.]
Was that object secured and marked as evidence? [Was that obscured and marked as evidence?]
That’s a significant national security issue. [That’s a signal security issue.]
That’s the scoop per former White House advisors. [That’s the scoop performer White House advisors.]
I ordered the ham per your request. [I ordered the hamper your request].
Charges of fraud lent a new twist to the story. [Charges of fraudulent a new twist to the story.]
How much did you pay per chance? [How much did you pay perchance?]
Someone whose vision is normal sees better. [Someone whose vision is normalcys better.]
How much stress per vertical pillar? [How much stress pervert
We ran some through the shredder. [We ransom through the shredder.]
You’ll note rising prices have slowed sales. [You’ll notarizing prices have slowed sales.]
We still have significant leeway. [We still have significantly way.]
That’s your duty per jury instructions. [That’s your duty perjury instructions.]
Is this real tortoise shell? [Is this realtor
I knew clear, concise answers were important. [I nuclear, concise answers were important.]
They won’t accept sissies. [They won’t sepsis
I missed six tee shots. [I missed sixty shots.]
Is he white or Asian? [Is he white oration?]
Why would a man shun his own brother? [Why would a mansion his own brother?]
You’re going to mar that table top. [You’re going to Martha table top.]
Was it a real torpedo? [Was it a realtor peed
Always seek receipts for payments made. [Always secrets for payments made.]
The ball lay just inside the 50-yard line. [The ballet just inside the 50-yard line.]
He injured his spine in a horrible accident. [He injured his spina horrible accident.]
We knew sensory stimulation might help. [We nuisance
I miss the ball lots of times. [I miss the ballots of times.]
Is this month’s bill lower? [Is this month’s billower?]
Were you scratched or bitten by the cat? [Were you scratched orbit
Why is the undercarriage of the car rotting? [Why is the undercarriage of the carroting?]
How come pairs aren’t kept together? [How compares aren’t kept together?]
We recommend deeds be recorded. [We remedieds be recorded.]
We’ll come mend the fence for you. [We’ll commend the fence for you.]
Stocks fell lower than expected. [Stocks fellower than expected.]
We had to get towed. [We had to ghettoed.]
How’d the guy who robbed the bar gain access? [How’d the guy who robbed the bargain access?]
We recognize rations are running short. [We recreations are running short.]
Do they sell bait? [Do they celibate?]
Just stick letters in the slots. [Just sticklers in the slots.]
Either pass or deal the cards. [Either pass ordeal the cards.]
We could have called a cab by now. [We could have called a cabby now.]
We need to add ducts here and here. [We need to adducts here and here.]
How much does one can sell for? [How much does one cancel for?]
I hope for your sake red is still available. [I hope for your sacred is still available.]
Even I can recognize tumble weeds. [Even I can rectum <-BL> weeds.]
Add just another ounce. [Adjust another ounce.]
They all either ran or began shooting. [They all either ran organ shooting.]
A big mist is lying over the valley. [A bigamist is lying over the valley.]
Do you prefer vodka or gin? [Do you prefer vodka origin?]
The twins were still born a week early. [The twins were stillborn a week early.]
A friend who has the book let me borrow it. [A friend who has the booklet me borrow it.]
They have every breed of cat listed. [They have every breed of catalysted.]
Isn’t handling natural gas tricky? [Isn’t handling natural gastric
Boy, can that guy dance! [Boy, can that guidance!]
I can’t accept rations meant for others. [I can’t separations meant for others.]
My tooth started to ache yesterday. [My tooth started to achiester day.]
They just act fed up with the whole thing. [They just Actifed up with the whole thing.]
I saw your pal at the game. [I saw your palate the game.]
I doubt fleeing will do much good. [I doubtfullying will do much good.]
Add ambivalence to his character flaws. [Adam
We can add here, here, and here. [We can adhere, here, and here.]
Slow down as you come around that corner. [Slow down succumb around that corner.]
We’ll add unique decorative accents. [We’ll adieu
We’ll add vents in each room.
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Rachel S. - 10/03/98
I teach piano lessons on the side and I often have to explain this to my students. You see, your fourth finger is the only one that is kind of "connected" to the two fingers that are next to it, the pinky and the middle finger. It is connected by muscle. You should look at a picture of the muscles of the hand and you will see what I mean. That means it is very difficult to move your fourth finger independently (without dragging your pinky and middle finger along for the ride). Also, it's hard to move your third finger or pinky without the fourth finger following. I didn't have this problem as much because I have played piano for nearly 20 years and my finger muscles are quite strong. What you need to do is try to strengthen that fourth finger.
One suggestion is to put your fingertips on a tabletop as if it is your machine, and practice just lifting your fourth finger and tapping it down again, over and over, without moving any of your other fingers.
Kathy Dittmeier - 10/04/98
Rachel's finger exercise is a good one -- I used to assign a variation on it, having my students pick up each finger, place it back down, working from thumb to pinkie, and then pinkie back to thumb.
Another one to try is the "spider crawl." You'll need something long and narrow like a piece of dowel, a small rod or the like. (You can start with a pencil, but it's better if you can find something longer.) Put your hand in front of you, palm facing you, thumb up. Grasp the dowel between your fingers, thumb on one side, the four fingers on the other. Now "walk" your fingers up and down the dowel rod. You might find you tire quickly at first, but if you do it every day (both hands!) you'll be able to move faster and faster up and down the rod because you'll gain more dexterity and strength.
Also, I don't know how your classes are structured, but if you're able, try to concentrate more on learning the theory principles and writing accurately, than on achieving speed. The speed will come as you become more familiar with your theory and comfortable with your keyboard.
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Paul Vukelich - 02/14/99
GlobalCAT consists of:
A lesson system to drill and teach you theory. (Lessons come from 3rd party theory providers like StenEd, StarTran, Bryan, RWG).
A full blown realtime translation system.
A full blown traditional translation system.
GlobalMagic which allows you to "Automate" your translated steno into Corel WP, MS-Word, Any Windows Window, or Any DOS Window.
Yes it is a bunch of stuff, but we decided that giving you everything is better than you having to go out and collect various parts which might not work with each other.
Again, the User's Guide gives step-by-step instructions and will save you much time.
[Note: GlobacCAT can be downloaded from http://www.globalcat32.com .]
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Steontype Institute in Jacksonville, FL
JaxSteno@aol.com
904-246-7466.
International Professions.
1-800-275-4409
National Professions
http://www.nationalprofessions.com/
CB Speedbuilders (rudimentary knowledge of steno keyboard required)
810-826-8640
Most students--even many reporters--don’t realize there are MANY theories for writing machine shorthand. "Theory" is the "language" of machine shorthand; and like most languages, it has evolved into many "dialects." All theories are fairly consistent in the key(s) used to designate vowels and consonants. They can differ dramatically in key combinations for some consonant combinations (i.e., -nk, -nj, -st, -sh, -th, -mp, -mb, kn-, etc.,), in shortcuts for multiple-syllable word endings (-ability, -ification, -ority, -iness, -arily, etc.), and MOST IMPORTANTLY in their method of--and degree of success in--eliminating conflicts.
As originally taught, machine shorthand didn’t distinguish between long- and short-vowel sounds. Can you even imagine the conflicts that created and how it impacted the integrity of the record? I.e., Did he buy a "kit" or a "kite"? Did "Tim" arrive or was it "time"? Was his name "Ross" or "Rose"? Was it a "seat" or a "set"? By the early ‘60s, state-of-the-art theories had incorporated long-/short-vowel distinction. ANY theory which had not incorporated long-/short-vowel distinction LONG before 1990 was so outdated and incapable of preparing students for employability, that it was guilty of gross negligence. An example: Several years ago the owner of a firm called me in a state of shock because he had just interviewed a new graduate for potential employment and discovered during the interview that the student had not learned long-
/short-vowel distinction--and was therefore virtually unemployable. I asked what advice he had given the young man. It was two-part: (1) You have to start over from scratch and learn long-/short-vowel distinction before anyone will be willing to hire you; (2) Sue the school for misrepresentation.
The next major evolution in writing theories began in the early ’70s with the realization that writing theories were so full of conflicts they didn’t support computer-aided translation (CAT). When theory authors/vendors failed to voluntarily make the necessary changes to support CAT, NCRA stepped in and in 1990 issued a mandate outlining specific areas of conflict that MUST be eliminated from any theory taught in an NCRA-approved school. Depending on who was quoting the numbers, between 28 and 32 theories were submitted to the NCRA Theory Task Force for review. Reviewing all the theories turned out to be a very long process and wasn't completed until 1996. But the final result was that of all the theories submitted, only 12 met their criteria and received the NCRA stamp of approval.
When you graduate, if your writing theory does not meet or exceed NCRA requirements, your prospects for employment today are limited. If you are thinking of enrolling in a program--particularly a home-study program--make CERTAIN the theory you’ll be learning is NCRA-approved. Not because there’s any "magic" to NCRA, but because it’s your only assurance that the theory is at least minimally computer-compatible--because that’s absolutely necessary to be employable in today’s market. So always ask what theory the school or home-study program teaches. And don’t rely on the assurance of the school that the theory is "computer-compatible." I’ve seen theories describe themselves as computer-compatible when the ONLY thing "computer-compatible" about the theory was the fact that they included that magic phrase in the name of the theory. Call NCRA and confirm that the theory is in fact NCRA approved.
Next, ask them how large the translation dictionary is which will be available to every student, free or at a nominal charge, upon graduation. If the dictionary contains less than 20-30,000 entries, look for other training options. If the school/training program says they don’t provide a translation dictionary "because everyone writes differently, so everyone has to create their own dictionary," that’s a cop-out. Yes, there can be many ways words of more than one syllable could be written based on the writing principles for that specific theory--but a well-designed, efficient dictionary will contain ALL those stroking options. For example, you may prefer to write "curtain" as KURT/-N, I may prefer KUR/T-N--but BOTH stroking options should be in the basic translation dictionary. Students should NOT be required to develop their own translation dictionary from scratch. First, it’s a VERY time consuming project which detracts from the time students have available to do what they SHOULD be doing--learning theory and building speed. Secondly, it’s unreasonable to expect students to have the complete grasp of machine shorthand and of the structure of English necessary to create an accurate, efficient dictionary--even experienced reporters have created translation dictionaries which were such disasters they were unusable. Third, the people who know--or should know--exactly where all the conflicts are between English and any specific machine shorthand theory, and how they must be avoided, are the CREATORS of the theory--not students just learning the theory.
And if a school claims that their theory is TOTALLY conflict free, keep on looking for other options. There is no such thing as a "100% conflict-free" theory for writing machine shorthand. We can come close. For example, I can say without reservation that the Phoenix translation dictionary of over 130,000 entries "has been electronically verified to be conflict-free." But you’ll never hear me say Phoenix Theory is 100% conflict-free because no one can support that claim about ANY theory.
If you’re going to spend two or more years of your life preparing for a career as a court reporter, for heaven’s sake make certain all your time, money, and hard work is going towards really preparing you to BECOME a court reporter and making you as employable as possible. Make CERTAIN the school or home-study program teaches an NCRA-approved theory; AND make certain that the day you graduate, you can walk out the door with a translation dictionary in your hot little hand that is sufficient to the job so you are "ready to go to work."
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Karla Wollin Boyer - 11/25/98
Anyone interested in participating in international shorthand competitions may want to someday contact Harry Foster, the NCRA INTERSTENO Representative, for information about the next meeting. It's not until July of 2001, in Hannover, Germany, which would give anyone excited about it ample time to skillbuild. INTERSTENO is the International Federation of Information Processing, formerly called the International Federation of Shorthand and Typewriting. I've won the overall World Championship in the Master Class four times, with the speed in the last minute reaching 282 wpm to 300 wpm and above on literary material, but you don't have to be anywhere near as speedy as I am to participate successfully at the congresses. There are several categories of competition that are inviting to young people and to writers who haven't yet reached extremely high speed and accuracy in shorthand abilities. Even the top category allows qualification and listed worldwide recognition at the third minute of ten minutes. Many European students have passed the third minute and a bit beyond. Category B is slower in every minute than Category A, and runs a total of only eight minutes. Grading for the shorthand competitions is entirely different from the American style, with a points-off system based on the severity of the "offense." All languages are graded together using a special formula for across-the-board fairness syllabically. Usually approximately 25 countries participate, with competitions in about 15 languages. There are also competitions in typewriting using a typewriter or computer. I could list here some of the languages and countries typically involved if anyone is interested out of curiosity. Participation at INTERSTENO events is really a wonderful way to meet new friends around the world. I've met interesting writers and teachers from India, Germany, England, Italy, France, Australia, Switzerland, Belgium, The Netherlands, Turkey, and more. Somehow everyone finds a way to communicate adequately in a helpful, entertaining, and remarkably enlightening manner.
Karla Wollin Boyer - 11/27/98
[S]cores are based both on transcript accuracy and speed of transcription. As far as penalties, a misplaced period is worth four points off, for example. A completely wrong word is also worth four points off. A singular for a plural or vice versa is worth only one point off. Repeated errors are not counted again. (That's pretty cool, huh!?!) Those who drop a group of words suffer three and two points off in some particular order I haven't committed to memory because I never drop, of course. (No, I'm not joking.)
Anyway, I forgot that I promised to list other languages and countries of the overall competitions. I'll just list a few more languages (in English), and you can probably figure out the countries in which they are spoken.
Turkish
Spanish
French
Dutch
Czechoslovakian
Hungarian
Austrian
Belgian
Portuguese
Slovene
Those who are really industrious might want to learn another language between now and July 2001--and then learn to write it in accurate shorthand!
Karla Wollin Boyer - 11/27/98
You don't need to take any qualifying exam. You should be a member of NCRA, however. In order to have a fulfilling experience, you would want to be writing at least 120 wpm accurately, I venture, to participate well in one of the junior-type categories. Usually the meetings are every two years, but now they've jumped to every three years for a couple of the congresses (their version of our conventions).
One of the most interesting competitions of INTERSTENO is the Multilingual. There are shorthand writers in this world who can do absolutely amazing things in many languages. In July in Lausanne, Switzerland, I chatted with the winner of the Multilingual. He is from Finland and is actually a musician who writes shorthand as a hobby. I'll list the languages (in which he qualified) in the mother tongue of the area in which the competitions took place so you can have some fun deciphering them:
Suedois
Allemand
Anglais
Danois
Estonien
Finnois
Interlingua
Italien
Latin
Neerlandais
Norvegien
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Kathy Dittmeier - 03/06/99
From the moment you first put your fingers on the keys, you are training them: where to go, the feeling of the positions, how much to lift them, how hard to push them, trying to balance strong fingers against weaker fingers: building muscle memory. Developing muscle memory and reinforcing it for months, then trying to change it later, is not an effective learning technique.
A great deal of the difference in feel comes from how the paper forwarding mechanism works. On a manual machine, as your fingers depress the keys, you are pushing the paper forward. When any one of the keys contact the paper, the paper stops moving forward and an imprint is made. So, if you have a lazy finger that comes down just a bit after all the rest, you'll never know. As long as another key is in contact with the paper, the paper is there, waiting for the imprint of any keys that are depressed slightly late. As you let your fingers up, the paper is not moving, and as long as all of the keys have cleared the paper (even just a miniscule amount), the paper will once again move forward (not as much as it should) when you push down , allowing you to make the next imprint. If all of the keys are not fully released, you'll notice the two strokes appear much closer together on the paper because the paper forwarding mechanism didn't have a full stroke in which to advance the paper.
There's one other thing that can happen with this, that you really won't realize is happening unless someone is watching you very closely or you're able to focus attention on your technique while stroking normally (something I've never been able to do effectively). If you have difficulty with some fingering combinations, or have a lazy finger, you could actually be depressing a key at the same time that the other keys are being released from the stroke and a second stroke is being executed. Example: You're stroking RAOEUDZ. You have problems with the -DZ combination, tending to hit the D key first. So you're pressing the stroke, the RAOEUD part of the stroke gets to the paper at the same time, stopping the paper, imprinting the stroke. You roll your finger down to the Z at the same time that you're starting to release RAOEU. The Z will imprint with the RAOEUD outline, but let's say the next stroke is the Q bank (STKPWHR). Because your left hand was on its way up when the right hand was rolling the Z, and because the STKPWHR is a totally left-handed stroke that is easy to execute, it's entirely possible that the STKPWHR is on its way down as you release the Z. Now, on a manual machine, if you release that Z just the slightest bit before the STKPWHR is struck, you'll see a separate (although close) outline on the paper. Not really a problem, right?
On an electronic machine, the paper is moved forward AFTER you stroke. As you push the keys down, you aren't pushing paper forward. This creates a different feel. Near the bottom of the stroke, there is an electronic contact that closes and opens for each key, causing the key to be recorded on the disk, or sent to the computer via cable. Each keystroke in an outline must close the contact to be recorded, and those contact points must all be released before the next stroke is made, or the two strokes will be "stacked." Taking our example from above, if the Z isn't released enough to open the contact point before the STKPWHR is stroked, the stroke is actually going to come out as STKPWHRAOEUDZ.
It is almost impossible to recognize these kinds of problems when writing on a manual machine. An electronic machine, combined with CAT or realtime, will show this kind of problem up immediately, and you can adjust your technique BEFORE you've ingrained a bad habit.
You *can* adjust the contacts on an electronic machine, but it still won't totally resolve the problem, especially if you only have the problem on some combinations involving a specific key, but when you stroke the specific key at other times, you stroke it normally.
Adding a switchplate to a manual machine does not give the same effect has having an electronic machine.
Now, all that said, there are many reporters who have successfully transitioned from a manual to an electronic machine with little or no problem. There are also many reporters who have transitioned after a somewhat uncomfortable period where they had to retrain their fingers. And there are still many reporters who have problems with stacked strokes all the time. They HATE it and complain about it all the time (and they usually blame the machine). It affects how much time they have to spend editing their work. It affects their realtime output. They're constantly adding new stacked stroke combinations to their dictionaries. And they have conflicts they have to deal with because some of the stacked combinations make other actual words. If you study their stacked strokes, you'll find that there is a pattern to most of them: a right-hand only stroke immediately followed by a left-hand only stroke; a left-hand only stroke immediately followed by a right-hand only stroke; a word with a combination they find difficult, followed by an easy-to-stroke word (usually executed with one hand); words with combinations that heavily utilize the weaker or shorter fingers (ring finger, pinky), followed by easy-to-execute strokes.
Key positioning is better learned by drill, practice, and realtime and/or immediate readback of the notes, rather than by excessively deliberate finger movement.
I vote for electronic machines and realtime from the start.
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Karla Wollin Boyer - 01/27/97
I am always baffled as to why any two students or any two reporters would want to write even nearly exactly the same way as each other. It is my position that each writer's theory should be personalized, customized to fit with his or her knowledge of language, with technical ease of fingering on an almost endless variety of outlines available on the modern keyboard, to fit with how that writer perceives sounds or strings language together or responds to the immediately previous outline written. It's also extremely helpful to allow several ways to write almost any given word, contrary to popular belief and contemporary teaching.
The most important thing for you to do is to broaden language skills so that you will be quicker to recognize where the traps exist, so you will know what could be a potential problem regarding conflicts or word boundaries or capitalization challenges now or in the future. Expand your repertoire of homophone-recognition skills. Learn a lot of vocabulary in many subjects.
I do not believe that any writer should follow strictly (exclusively) any named steno theory, be it realtime or general. When you begin stylizing to fit your own personality and needs, you will discover that you don't really need anybody else to tell you how to write ANYTHING on the shorthand machine.
Make it your life's project to develop your language skills to a level of tremendous expertise, to become creative and secure in your approach to personalizing your computer dictionary. Feel free to gather concepts from others, to own a variety of theory books to guide you as to how you want to write certain sounds and how you do NOT want to write them, and then create your own hybrid which is not exactly like that of any other shorthand writer.
It takes boldness, courage, a willingness not to follow the pack mindlessly, and pride in your own work product. Exercise your right of freedom on that issue. When you do such, you will discover that your need to borrow briefs and clutter up your mind and your dictionary with unnecessary phrasing will diminish as you increase your speed and accuracy while sharpening your abilities to participate with the best in language expression.
Take responsibility for creating your own personalized dictionary. It should be an ongoing process throughout the remainder of your career. I will never cease improving my own dictionary. Our language is not static, and neither should be your steno theory. Allow your mind to develop ideas peculiar to you only, and guard your right to pursue your own inventions without succumbing to stifling rules propounded by teachers or school administrators or other reporters. The intelligent captioner will be the first to acknowledge the need for straying from the "norm" and for developing a hybrid computer dictionary with delight.
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Carol Jochim (responding to Patrick O'Kane) - 10/12/98
Let’s see if I can explain the difference between Phoenix and Foniks in 5,000 words or less
"Shorthand" is supposed to be a shorter, simpler, FASTER way to write sounds and create representations for words. And other forms of shorthand--pen shorthand and speedwriting--do exactly that: they are written BY SOUND and they OMIT the "uh" and other indistinct vowel sounds. For some inexplicable reason, machine shorthand was created to require that shorthand strokes be conformed to VOWEL SPELLING.
First of all, requiring prior knowledge and conscious recall of spelling naturally retards the SPEED at which machine shorthand can be written. But more importantly, we have a language estimated at approx. 800,000 words of which the average adult can correctly spell less than 5%. It’s totally unreasonable to expect anyone to write shorthand at 200-plus words per minute and at the same time to be absolutely certain whether an unt sound is SPELLED with an E, A or O; whether an ubl sound is SPELLED with an I or E, etc., let alone even know/recall that heresy is SPELLED esy and clerisy is SPELLED isy, that genius is SPELLED ius and ingenious is SPELLED ious, etc., etc.
Shorthand was never intended to be a spelling bee or a test of memorization; it has never made good sense for ANY system of shorthand to require that an operator know how to SPELL a word before they can write it in shorthand. But before CAT, if you didn’t know how a word was spelled, at least you could just write the vowel SOUND you heard, knowing you could read it back or transcribe it. With CAT, where your shorthand strokes must EXACTLY match preprogrammed dictionary entries or, in the case of Foniks, preprogrammed increments of spelling in the translation logic, this spelling dependency has become a MAJOR handicap for machine shorthand writers and a major detractor from speed--both the speed with which shorthand can be learned and the speed with which it can be written.
The second major problem with theories which require strokes to be conformed to vowel spelling is that the theories themselves CREATE thousands of conflicts when writing English. When we go back to the original concept of shorthand and write by sound (as Phoenix Theory does), the majority of those conflicts DON’T EVEN EXIST. But other machine shorthand theories have spent over 20 years trying to eliminate conflicts. They’ve added literally dozens of "rules" to the theories in an effort to get rid of the conflicts which they’ve created--rules which make machine shorthand so unnecessarily complicated that training time has practically doubled. And the saddest part is that: (1) These theories still haven’t been successful in eliminating enough conflicts that they can reasonably call themselves "realtime" theories; and (2) Students become so frustrated with the "rules" that they abandon them in order to build speed; so when they finally graduate, they still have many of the conflicts their theory had attempted to eliminate--and they are not realtime writers.
Phoenix and Foniks are both true realtime theories: They are both virtually conflict free; they are both supported by extremely comprehensive realtime translation capability. The differences are:
Phoenix is written by SOUND and has two major rules to follow: (1) Write the SOUND you hear; (2) Medial and ending strokes: Eliminate the uh vowel sound and indistinct vowel sounds preceding final-side consonants. (e.g., legend = LEJ/-ND, brigand = BRIG/-ND, genius = JAOEN/Y-S, tedious = TAOED/Y-S,
freedom = FRE/D-M, tandem = TAN/D-M, etc.)
Foniks is written by VOWEL SPELLING, and the majority of multi-syllabic words are written by combining increments of spelling preprogrammed into the translation logic--so writers must know how the word parts are spelled and must understand how the translation logic functions in connecting those strokes. For example, they must understand the concept that there are four possible constructions of a syllable, that each of those four constructions can have three functions: Word/word part which translates with a space following it; "prefix" which will translate attached to the following stroke; "suffix" which will translate attached to the preceding stroke. And they must know how the translation logic will translate each of those 12 types of strokes. For example, they must know that a C/SV stroke acts as a prefix and attaches to what follows; if they want it to function as a word, they must include an asterisk. A SV/C stroke acts as a suffix and attaches to the previous stroke, UNLESS it’s a word, in which case it will translate as a word, EXCEPT for an, art, at, ox, us, up, etc., which are also word parts, and if strokes should act as suffixes, you must include an asterisk. If a word starts with an SV/C stroke, it has to have an asterisk in it--again with the exception of SV/C strokes which are words and don’t require an asterisk but may require a delete space stroke to function as a word beginning. A C/V/C stroke functions as a word--except for approximately 33 C/V/C strokes which have been predefined as word beginnings and which function as prefixes. If a word begins with a single vowel, the stroke must include a comma. Etc., etc., etc.
The Foniks theory is a brilliant theory--but its dependence on knowledge of spelling, of word structure, and on the functioning of the translation logic, make it unnecessarily difficult to learn and to write. And all too often, students become so bogged down in the rules, they ignore them in an attempt to build speed.
>>I guess that’s where I get lost in the Phoenix Theory, since many people don’t say the proper vowel sounds but rather the "uh" sound, how do you get around that without knowing some spelling?<<
In English, there is a huge difference between SPELLING and SOUND. The most-commonly-used vowel SOUND in spoken English is the schwa vowel sound--which, regardless of its spelling, is CORRECTLY pronounced "uh." What you characterize as "many people don’t say the proper vowel sound but rather the "uh" sound," is in fact people CORRECTLY pronouncing the correct vowel SOUND for spoken English.
>>"Away" is the same: pronounced AEU/way and UH/way.<<
"Away" is never CORRECTLY pronounced ay/way. The only correct pronunciation--in fact, the only common pronunciation--is uh/way. And in Phoenix it’s written by the correct sound: U/WAEU. If someone chose to stroke it AEU/WAEU, it would still translate correctly--but those strokes would NOT reflect correct--or even common-- pronunciation.
When we write shorthand, we’re not writing from sight; our input is auditory--the only thing we can do, especially if it’s a word we’ve never heard before, is write the SOUNDS we hear. The "uh" schwa vowel SOUND can be SPELLED with any vowel and many combinations of vowels. The whole point is, when verbalizing English, most people DO pronounce these vowel sounds CORRECTLY as "uh." And with a shorthand theory that allows writers to write the correct SOUND they HEAR, they don’t have to even be concerned about how it’s spelled. Therefore, they can write any word they can HEAR. With a theory which requires them to know how those "uh" vowel sounds are spelled, they can only write words if they know--and can instantly recall--the correct vowel spelling.
As for supercalifragilisticexpialidocious, every realtime translation dictionary has to have entries for the little spelling increments in language so words which wouldn’t reasonably be in the translation dictionary (proper names, unusual words, foreign words, etc.) can be written "constructively"--by increments of spelling. For example, my last name is not in the translation dictionary, but I can write it constructively in two strokes: JO/KHIM. On supercalifragilisticexpialidocious we write it the same way Foniks writes the majority of words--by piecing together increments of spelling.
Carol Jochim (responding to Patrick O'Kane) - 10/19/98
We ONLY omit the schwa vowel sounds ("uh" and the unstressed, indistinct "ih" and "eh") and we ONLY omit them from medial and ending strokes. This is a principal which is unique to Phoenix Theory and is protected by a U.S. Patent.
And the principle has to be applied as stated in order to accomplish what it was designed to do. When we write by SOUND, the vast majority of English words which end in a vowel/consonant sound are correctly pronounced with these specific vowel sounds. By omitting these vowel sounds from ONLY medial and ending strokes, we create an automatic distinction between beginning and ending strokes--which automatically eliminates the majority of those conflicts in word boundaries, so we don’t have to have all the rules pre-CAT theories do to eliminate these conflicts. For example, most words which end in "-or, -er, -ir, -ar, -ure" spellings are actually pronounced "ur." We stroke them: labor = LAIB/-R, quarter = KWART/-R, tartar = TART/-R, fixture = FIX/KH-R, nadir = NAID/-R. We don’t have to know the vowel spelling of the ending sound, and we’ve eliminated any conflict between those word endings/word beginnings. This vowel-omission principle also eliminates a lot of one word/two word conflicts: e.g., bracelet = BRAIS/L-T; brace let = BRAIS/LET; handful = HAND/F-L, hand full = HAND/FUL; tiresome = TAOIR/S-M, tire some = TAOIR/SM-; fireman = FAOI/M-N, fire man = FAOIR/MAN, careless = KAIR/L-SZ, care less = KAIR/LESZ, etc., etc. Digitext/Foniks also eliminates those conflicts; it just uses a different approach.
And this vowel-omission principle of Phoenix Theory also eliminates some other awkward one word/two word conflicts like carpeting = KAR/P-T/-G, car petting = KAR/PET/-G, celibate = SEL/B-T, sell bait = SEL/BAIT, futile = FAOU/T-L, few till = FAOU/TIL, gypsum = JIP/S-M, gyp some = JIP/SM-, etc.
But we DO still include "ih" and "eh" sounds which are DISTINCT. For example, admittance = AD/MIT/-NS, permissible = PUR/MIS/-BL, competitors = KUM/PET/T-RZ. By eliminating ONLY the schwa vowel sounds, we still have shorthand strokes which are very easy to read.
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Laura Christian - 07/29/98
I used to be in those single mom shoes as well and know what it's like to feel kind of alone. I worked full time while my baby (now almost 8) was in daycare.
Even being married, I'm still busy, my husband works a different shift than I do, so he's rarely around to help keep the rug rat subdued while I study! I try to have my son help with my lessons by reading the words or short phrases that I'm working on. It helps him to feel like he's being my helper and he's part of what I'm trying to accomplish.
You can do anything you choose to do and you can keep your sanity while you're doing it! Press on and don't let the little bumps in the road throw you off. And take breaks on the weekends and do something with just the two of you. I know we can't always spend all the time we want to with our kids, but sometimes letting them choose something fun to do and doing it, helps them to know that they are important to us, even though we're busy.
Kathy Dittmeier - 07/29/98
I started school while married with a 1-year-old and a 2-year-old and finished as a divorced mom, working 4 different odd jobs to accomodate my school schedule and what I could work out with babysitters.
Court reporting school is hard work, and Laura is right about taking time each week to just relax with your children. It's important to try to keep a little bit of balance in your life. I used to work on my medical vocabulary in the car with the children. "Can you say tachycardia?" I also used to allow them 5 minutes each on my steno machine if they were reasonably quiet during my practice time. They *loved* writing on my machine and getting to have the paper tape afterward to play with (makes great roads for matchbox cars). Some days though, you just have to settle for quality practice rather than quantity.
Yvonne is also correct that you will need reliable and backup childcare when you start to work. Hopefully your first agency will be a good one for working with as a new reporter. That means they give you the easier, usually shorter, jobs until you get more comfortable with what you're doing, plus ones that have a 2-week turnaround instead of expedite. Something that will make your first months as a court reporter much smoother is knowing your CAT system very well before starting your first job. You need to get your dictionary up-to-speed with your writing habits and get totally familiar with editing jobs. Those first ones always take 50 times longer than you thought they would! Many software companies have student versions available at a reasonable cost, so you could get started soon. (It's never too soon to start working on CAT -- it helps you write better!)
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Sandre Maxwell - 08/14/98
I would strongly suggest that you lease your software.
I lease TurboCat from Cheetah and really think that
it is very user-friendly.
If you purchase software while you are a student you
may find that you need to buy a different software
when you start working. Do some serious thinking
about renting. It allows you to learn which
software you want to purchase once you are out
of school
Kathy Dittmeier - 08/18/98
Most vendors, Stenograph included, have student versions of their software available at a greatly-reduced price. You usually have full functionality with limitations on file size and print capability (Case Catalyst prints a footer on each page). Many vendors will also let you trade your student software up to the full version and give you full or partial credit towards your purchase.
If you're getting ready to purchase full, professional software, you might want to check with agencies and the official court reporters in your area to see if there is a regional preference for software. Some employers might request or require you to use a specific software package.
Here are some of the features of Case Catalyst that I like:
1.) Windows-based
2.) Great online support in CRFORUM on CompuServe; support also available via telephone or email.
3.) Updates available online at the Stenograph website.
4.) EZKeys feature -- programmable macros that you can use to create shortcuts for repetitive keystrokes.
5.) EZ Speakers -- let's say you write HRAOEB/HRAOEB for "MR. LIEBERMAN:" You can enter the strokes HRAOEB/HRAOEB into the EZ Speakers dictionary and it will automatically create entries for you that cover every possible mistroke you could make for Mr. Lieberman. That results in better translation, less editing, more employability!
6.) The realtime features are absolutely wonderful. Number translation, formatting *after* you write a number, edit while you realtime, record the proceedings and play back at any spot in the transcript, and a whole lot more.
7.) Easy dictionary management. You can see the entries in your dictionary, scroll through them, make changes and deletions, group them, display them in steno order or in English order.
8.) Page Layout flexibility. If you want a box on page one, none on page two, no problem. You can change the layout on each individual page if you want, apply a layout to an entire file, or apply layouts to only specified parts of a file. You can even add a graphic as a watermark behind the text. Setting up the page layouts is simplified with the ability to watch a sample page change as you manipulate the variables.
9.) Case Compress -- the built-in utility that prints condensed and indexed documents. You can put 2 or more transcript pages on one sheet of paper (the norm is 4), change the fonts, add a notes box and do all kinds of nifty things. You can also easily create keyword indexes or all word indexes of your transcripts.
10.) Import/Export capabilities. Case Catalyst can import and export in RTF format which gives you greater flexibility for sharing documents. The ASCII importer is a "smart" importer that will examine the imported document, determine if consistent formatting exists and convert the spaces that make that formatting to actual format symbols rather than leaving you with a document that only contains text and spaces. The export dictionary to Stentura format is also built right in.
Judy, I haven't had opportunity to look at other software packages for awhile, so I honestly can't compare Case Catalyst to other choices you might have. In addition, I am a certified training agent for Stenograph, so I naturally tend to be a bit biased when it comes to the topic of software!
I will say this though... last fall when Catalyst training was available, I opted NOT to get certified -- partially due to the fact that I had a young baby at home and didn't want to leave for 3 days, but also because I felt the program wasn't all that it could be and I wasn't sure I wanted to train on it. When I received the updates to Catalyst in December and January, I signed up for the training and called the president of Stenograph to tell him that THIS was a software I would be proud to train on and I could really see that Stenograph has been listening to the customers, incorporating their requests and ideas into the product. The Catalyst software available today is a fantastic product which I highly recommend.
I'd suggest you call several agencies, courts and reporters in your area to find out what people are using, then schedule demonstrations with the sales representatives of the systems that are widely used in your area. You need to see the products, see if they make sense to you, get to know the sales rep a bit, then make your decision.
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Barb - 02/19/99
I just wanted to share a few things about working, as today is my two-month anniversary of being gainfully employed and out of school.
First of all, everyone is always going on and on about speed and practicing their speed. While I am not saying that that is not important (obviously), I am saying that a part just as important is having a good dictionary and having a familiarity with the software you choose to use.
I attended, unfortunately, a school that provided no training on how to produce a transcript. It was not NCRA approved so they didn't have to "live up" to any guidelines for students. That school produces students with speed, but that is not enough. You need to go home and transcribe and right now it is taking me forever and a day because I was never taught how to do it.
Second, know that you can do it. Whether it be a test or when you are out there at an EBT. You can do it!!! You know you can. Working is so much different in the sense that if you get a little behind, you ask them to slow down. You can ask the witness to repeat an answer and buy some time there. There are so many shortcuts to use.....You are in charge in an [Examination Before Trial ("EBT") as the reporter, unlike school where if you are caught short, you just drop it. You can't drop at an EBT.
Third, make reporter friends. I sat in with an agency for about eight months twice a week (my idea -- my school never pushed it!) and got to know a lot of people who are there to help. I have not met a reporter yet who didn't answer one of my goofy questions (and I have a lot of them!). You will need a good networking system because this field is a lot of "who you know" not necessarily "what you know."
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Carrie - 01/15/99
I have recently read some of your messages regarding masked reporters and I thought I'd write in response to them.
I started out in 1991 in Stenotype school in Maine. Over the next couple of years I had moved across the country a couple times (long story) and attended numerous other court reporting schools offering stenotype. When I moved back to Maine in the fall of 1994, I was amazed to find out that the two schools that offered stenotype no longer offered the program. I checked into Champlain College in Vermont. That, too, no longer had the stenotype program. Hesser College in New Hampshire no longer had the program. Two schools in Massachusetts had also closed their programs. Here in the Northeast I believe there are only two schools left that offer the program, Johnson & Whales in Rhode Island and Mass Bay Community College in MA.
After learning about this, I found a school in MA that offered a program called "Stenomask Court Reporting." I had no idea what that was, but I loved court reporting so much and wanted to pursue it as a career that I looked into it. I took the course which lasted a year. We had courses in English, Medical Terminology, Legal Terminology, Word Processing, and of course Stenomask.
I am currently working in Superior Court in Massachusetts both in civil and criminal sessions. We get paid the same pay rate and daily rate that stenotypists do. I can't comment on pages rates as they relate to the freelance field, because I don't do depositions. I can honestly say from having experience in both stenotype and stenomask that I prefer stenomask. I can talk a lot faster than I could ever move my fingers. Along with repeating what's being said, I can also takes notes at the same time. This allows me to write down words to check for spellings later or phonetically write out words that I'm unfamiliar with. Marking exhibits is easy because I have one hand free and they don't have to stop the proceeding and wait. We also have a backup track consisting of microphones that are placed around the courtroom. We don't rely on this track only because one cough or sneeze could wipe out a whole sentence. But we use it mainly as a backup.
Transcription is another story, however. I think stenotypists definitely have the upper hand here. It does take us longer to prepare a transcript because we must start from the beginning and type it all out. But we have typists that can speed up the process. And if we have an expedite, we can copy sections of the tape and split it up among numerous typists in order to speed up the process. However, with technology making leaps and bounds these days, I reasonably forsee speech recognition being a major factor in the next few years. I currently use Dragon Dictate's Naturally Speaking which allows me to redictate what I'm hearing on my tapes into the computer and it comes up transcribed. This allows me to transcribe at about 160 wpm which is a lot faster than I can type.
Out of all the courthouses that I have worked at, including Boston, Cambridge, Lawrence, Lowell, Salem, Peabody, and Newburyport, I know of only 6 stenotypists. So, I'd say that about 90 percent of all reporters that work in the court system in MA are stenomask reporters or "voice reporters." We all do the same job and in the end turn out the same product. But as far as the future is concerned, there are major changes coming. People aren't going to want to go to school for 4 or 5 years and practically learn a whole new language (or theory) when you can do the same job after being in school for only a year. Our equipment is less expensive, and our transcripts are just as good if not better because if we're ever in doubt we can refer to our backup track.
My best friend is a stenotypist and we talk frequently about the field of court reporting and the technology available. We do have our differences of opinion, but we can disagree without being disagreeable!
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William Parsons - 09/23/98
THE COURT REPORTER' CREED
My profession stems from man's desire and his necessity to preserve the happenings of yesterday and today for tomorrow.
My profession was born with the rise of civilization in Ancient Greece.
I was known as a scribe in Judea, Persia and the Roman Empire.
I preserved the Ten Commandments for posterity and was with King Solomon while building the temple.
I was with the founding fathers of The United States when they drafted the Declaration of Independence. My hand labored upon the scroll that set forth the Bill of Rights.
The immortal Abraham Lincoln entrusted me to record the Emancipation Proclamation.
I was commissioned to be with Roosevelt at Yalta. I was with Eisenhower on D-Day and with MacArthur at Tokyo.
I have kept confidence reposed with me by those in high places, as well as those in lowly positions.
My profession protects the truthful witness, and I am a nemesis of the perjurer. I am a party to the administration of justice under the law and the court I serve.
I discharge my duties with devotion and honor. Perhaps I haven't made history, but I have preserved it through the ages.
In the past I was called a scribe. Today I am the court stenographer that sits in the courts of our country. I am the stenographer that sits in the United States Congress.
I AM THE VERBATIM COURT REPORTER!
(A 1991 adaptation of a speech given by C.W. Jones to 1964 meeting of Kansas Shorthand Reporters Association. Adaptation by Bill Parsons, 236 Old Stagecoach Road, Meriden, CT 06450. Copies of the creed suitable for framing may be requested by e-mailing Bill Parsons your U.S. Postal mailing address. e-mail to Bill Parsons at b-parsons@mindspring.com)
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Kathy Dittmeier - 03/18/99
I always tried *not* to check my machine when I was on my way to an event. If the case is too big to fit within the standards specified for carry-on luggage, you won't have any choice but to check it. I was able to wrestle it into an overhead bin on most planes.
A better solution might be a soft-sided wheeled flight bag (like the Samsonite one, but soft). It's narrower than the hard-sided case, and you can pad it yourself. I had a reporter here one day who had purchased a wheeled bag with tapestry fabric. She got eggcrate foam at the local craft store and hot-glued it in. Just make sure your machine is held securely and has some padding on the top of it as well.
The machines are quite sturdy. Once when I was waiting to get off a plane, I could see the luggage being moved by conveyor out of the bottom of the plane. My Samsonite case had been placed on the conveyor too close the edge and I watched in horror as it rolled right off the conveyor, crashing to the ground. Upon retrieval, the case had a major dent in one corner, but the machine inside was perfectly fine.
Another bit of travel advice I was given years ago has proved to be some of the best advice I've ever received. Wear an outfit on the plane that you could wear to work if your luggage is lost. My luggage has been lost a couple of times, and while always returned within 18 hours, both times I would have been sunk since I flew in late at night and had appointments early in the morning.
I extend that advice to cover any supplies I might need: realtime cable, paper, diskettes, pen, paper, backup diskettes, etc. I usually carry backup copies of my programs and my dictionary. If your laptop breaks down, you're most likely going to have to rent a computer and install your software. I only had to do it once, but I was very, very glad I had my software with me!
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Kathy Dittmeier - 10/07/98
If memory serves me correctly (the information is no longer published in the Stenograph catalog), you can buy extended (extra wide) keys for the asterisk keys and for the final TS or final DZ. The final TS keys extend over to the DZ keys. The final DZ keys extend over to the TS keys. Obviously, you only need one or the other! I believe the extended asterisk keys come in two varieties as well: one bridges the gap between the asterisk and the final FR, the other set bridges the gap on both sides of the asterisk key.
Most people only go to extended keys when (1) their theory calls for simultaneous pressing of the asterisk and an adjacent key, or the -TS and an adjacent key or, (2)when they have difficulty reaching a key and believe a wider key would serve them well.
It takes some getting used to! (Read that as EXTRA PRACTICE TIME.) You don't want to have wide keys installed right before a big test, or at a critical time in your training. On the other hand, once you get used to them, if you ever need a loaner machine, try to request one with your wide keys. Once you've trained your fingers, you'll find you depend greatly on them.
The keys are available from Stenograph or most ASPs (Authorized Service Providers). They can remove your old keys and install the new ones for you. It's usually best to have a qualified technician do this. It's easy to bend the levers under the keys.
Carol Jochim - 10/07/98
I'm not sure who originally posted an inquiry or comment about extended keys, so I'll just address this comment to ALL.
The extended keys can contribute a great deal to stroking comfort and accuracy. Most theories today use the asterisk extensively. An asterisk key with the extension can make this a much easier reach.
Realtime theories have strokes which include an -SZ combination, some required a -TD combination. Again, extended keys make it an easier reach and prevent those of you with slender fingers from getting your finger stuck in a crack
But here you have to make a decision: Do you want wide TS (with the extension on the right side of the keys); or do you want wide DZ (with the extension of the left of the keys)?
If your little finger is of AVERAGE length or shorter in relationship to the rest of your fingers (the tip of your little finger is even with the first finger joint of your ring finger) the wide DZ keys are usually your best choice because you're shortening the reach to the D and Z keys. If your little finger is longer than average in relationship to the rest of your fingers, the wide TS keys are usually your better choice--there's less likelihood of your slightly longer finger unintentionally catching the extension on the wide DZ and dragging in unwanted Ds and Zs.
If you're not certain which is best for you, find classmates who have the extensions on their keyboard and con them into letting you write on their keyboards for a few minutes so you can evaluate the difference between wide TS and wide DZ.
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Created on March 22, 1999. Updated on March 22, 1999.
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