Stenotypy
A stenotype or shorthand machine is a specialized chorded keyboard or typewriter used by stenographers for shorthand use. A trained court reporter or closed captioner can write speeds of approximately 225 words per minute at very high accuracy. Many users of this machine can even reach 300 words per minute.
The keyboard looks more like a compact piano than a regular alphanumeric keyboard. Multiple keys are pressed simultaneously (known as "chording") to spell out whole syllables, words, and phrases with a single hand motion. This system makes realtime transcription practical for court reporting and live closed captioning.
The first stenotype machine on a punched paper strip was built in 1830 by Karl Drais, then still a baron. An American stenotype machine was patented in 1879 by Miles M. Bartholomew. A French version was created by Marc Grandjean in 1909.
Most modern stenotype keyboards have more in common with computers than they do with typewriters or QWERTY computer keyboards. Most contain microprocessors, and many allow sensitivity adjustments for each individual key. They translate stenotype to English internally using user-specific dictionaries, and most have LCD screens. They typically store a full day's work in non-volatile memory of some type, such as floppy diskette, hard drive, non-volatile RAM, or flash card. These factors influence the price, along with economies of scale, as there are only a few thousand stenotype keyboards sold each year. Top-end models sell for approximately US$ 4,000 each.
Keyboard layout
This is the keyboard layout of the American stenotype machine:
In "home position," the fingers of the left hand rest along the gap between the two main rows of keys to the left of the asterisk (little finger on the "S" to forefinger on the "H" and "R"). These fingers are used to generate initial consonants. The fingers of the right hand lie in the corresponding position to the right of the asterisk (forefinger on "FR" to little finger on "TS"), and are used for final consonants. The thumbs produce the vowels.
The system is roughly phonetic, e.g. the word "cat" would be written by a single stroke comprising the initial K, the vowel A, and the final T.
To enter a number, a user presses the number bar at the top of the keyboard at the same time as the other keys, much like the shift key on a QWERTY keyboard. The illustration shows which lettered keys correspond to which digits. Numbers can be chorded just as letters can. They read from left to right across the keyboard. It's possible to write 137 in one stroke by pressing the number bar along with SP-P, but it takes three separate strokes to write 731. Many court reporters and stenocaptioners write out numbers phonetically instead of using the number bar.
There are various ways to combine letters to make different sounds; different court reporters use different theories in their work. Although most writing is similar, most stenographers cannot read another's work, as it is highly personalized.
Some court reporters use scopists to translate and edit their work. A scopist is a person who is trained in the phonetic language, English punctuation, and usually in legal formatting. They are especially helpful when a court reporter is working so much that they do not have time to edit their own work. Both scopists and proofreaders work closely with the court reporter to ensure an accurate transcript.
Steno Paper
Steno paper comes out of a stenotype machine at the rate of one row per chord, with the pressed letters printed out in 22 columns corresponding to the 22 keys, in the following order:
STKPWHRAO*EUFRPBLGTSDZ
Chords
This is a basic chart of the letters of this machine. There are, however, different writing theories that represent some letters or sounds differently (e.g., the "*F" for "final V" in the chart below), and each court reporter develops personalized "briefs" and alternate ways of writing things.
| English Letter | Stenotype Letter | English Letter | Stenotype Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Final B | B | Final CH | F P |
| Final D | D | Final DZ (S) | DZ |
| Final F | F | Final G | G |
| Final J | PBLG | Final K | B G |
| Final L | L | Final M | P L |
| Final MP | FRP | Final N | PB |
| Final NG | PB G | Final NJ | PB G |
| Final NK | * PB G | Final P | P |
| Final R | R | Final RCH | FRPB |
| Final RF | FR B | Final RVE | FR B |
| Final S | S | Final SH | R B |
| Final T | T | Final V | * F |
| Final X | B G S | Final Z | Z |
| Final SHUN | G S | Final KSHUN | * B G S |
| Initial B | PW | Initial CH | K H |
| Initial D | TK | Initial F | T P |
| Initial G | TKPW | Initial H | H |
| Initial J | S K W R | Initial K | K |
| Initial L | HR | Initial M | P H |
| Initial N | T P H | Initial P | P |
| Initial QU | K W | Initial R | R |
| Initial S | S | Initial T | T |
| Initial V | S R | Initial W | W |
| Initial Y | K W R | Initial Z | S W R |
| P: Comma | R B G S | P: Correction (Asterisk) | * |
| P: Paragraph | * P | P: Period (.) | F P L T |
| P: Question Mark | ST P H | ||
| Vowel A | A | Vowel A (Long) | A EU |
| Vowel Aw | A U | Vowel E | E |
| Vowel E (Long) | AO E | Vowel I | EU |
| Vowel I (Long) | AO EU | Vowel O | O |
| Vowel O (Long) | O E | Vowel OI | O EU |
| Vowel OO | AO | Vowel OU | O U |
| Vowel U | U | Vowel U (Long) | AO U |
Example
The following example shows how steno paper coming out of the machine represents an English sentence. Notice that key combinations can have different meanings depending on context. In the first stroke of the word "example," the "PL" combination refers to the letter M. In the second stroke of the word, that same key combination refers to the letters P and L.
The initial Z is also commonly chorded by the entire initial bank, STKPWHR, in order to avoid thousands of potential conflicts.
Manufacturers
Stenograph is by far the largest manufacturer of American stenotype keyboards with an estimated marketshare in excess of 90%. Their top models are the Stentura and the paperless élans. There were two other large manufacturers in the 1980s (Xscribe, with the StenoRAM line and BaronData, with the Transcriptor line). Stenograph purchased both companies and discontinued their products. The current manufacturers in the U.S. include:
- Advantage Software (Passport)
- Neutrino Group (Gemini)
- ProCAT (Stylus)
- Stenograph (Stentura, élan Mira, Fusion, and élan Cybra)
- Stenovations[1] (Digitouch)
- Word Technologies (Tréal)
Court reporters
A court reporter, stenotype reporter or stenographer is a person whose occupation is to transcribe spoken or recorded speech into written form, typically using a stenotype or stenomask to produce official transcripts of court hearings, depositions and other official proceedings. These shorthand systems allow the reporter to keep up with the flow of speech so that no words are missed. In the United States, the court reporter is often also a notary public who is authorized to administer oaths to witnesses, and who certifies that her or his transcript of the proceedings is a verbatim account of what was said.
Training
It typically takes two to four years to learn the basic skills to become a court reporter. The minimum speed needed to become certified is 225 words per minute, which is the requisite speed for approval by the American court reporters' organization, the National Court Reporters Association. Candidates usually attend specialized certificate, associate's, or bachelor's degree programs at accredited colleges or universities. Distance learning and online training courses are also available. After additional on-the-job training and experience, many court reporters then move on to real-time reporting.
Upon completion of formal training, court reporters engage in continuous practice in order to improve their skills. Most employers require various certifications for their court reporters. Some states require court reporters to be notaries public in addition to being a Certified Court Reporter (CCR). The National Court Reporters Association offers the title Registered Professional Reporter (RPR) to those who pass a four-part examination and participate in continuing education programs. A reporter may obtain additional certifications that demonstrate higher levels of competency such as Certified Real-time Reporter (CRR).
Required qualities of a court reporter are excellent command of the language being spoken, attention to detail, and the ability to focus for long periods at a time. The most highly skilled court reporters can provide transcription in real time and have significant earning potential.
Work as a court reporter
Court reporters may be employed by court agencies to provide transcription in court, or they may work as freelancers. In the freelance capacity, they may either work for themselves or work for court reporting agencies as an independent contractor.
In a courtroom environment, they may make suggestions regarding proper procedure, do research for items in the official record, and assist in other ways. Importantly, realtime reporting has proven beneficial for the judiciary, and many judges insist that their reporter be realtime capable.
Many court reporters work outside the courtroom in depositions and other situations that require an official legal transcript, such as arbitration hearings or other formal proceedings. Court reporters also often provide realtime transcription for public events, religious services, webcasts, and educational services.
Former court reporters and graduates of court reporting schools are employed by television producers and stations in order to provide realtime closed captioning of live programs for the hearing-impaired.
There are differing accounts of the earnings for court reporters. The United States Bureau of Labor Statistics had earnings of between $30,680 and $60,760 for the middle 50% of court reporters.
External links
- National Court Reporters Association (stenotype)
- National Verbatim Reporters Association (speech recognition)
- Dictation exercises for free download
- National Court Reporting Information and Resources
- National Court Reporting Net Assosiation
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