I've worked on a laptop only for going on 7 years.
Posted By: me on 2006-07-24
In Reply to: USB WiFi - Fingers2TheBone
I do use an external keyboard the majority of the time though. The USB WiFi does not accept a card, it is small, plugs into a USB port and acts like your card does, you don't use a card. Go to a website like best buy and search for Wireless USB adapters and you'll see what I'm talking about.
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I've been using a laptop exclusively for 6 years.
I use an external keyboard 99.9% of the time, use the laptop keyboard if I'm in the car. I'm used to the monitor, but if you're used to a larger one you can also hook up an external monitor. Not sure how many USB ports computers have now, but I have 3 on my laptop and I have a USB hub I can connect if I need more. I haven't used a desktop in so long, but I can't think of an advantage of one over the other.
I have a power box that all my equipment hooks into that I sit my laptop on top of. You will need to elevate it in some way or you'll get a crick in your neck.
I've used my laptop to MT for about 5 years, full-time. Couldn't
I love being portable, plus I have a small working space. It's great transcribing on the deck (or at the beach) on nice days. Have never had any technical issues; there's always some sort of adapter thingie that's available for whatever comes up.
I've worked for MQ for years and
have NEVER been given the opportunity for bonuses. Those who have gotten them have been lucky.
I've worked for MQ over 4 years now and
I have never been told how many spaces to put or not put after a sentence; I have never been paid for spaces, by my count at least. I occasionally check my reports. I do not get spaces.
I'm not sure why, or actually by the anonymous stature of posters on this board, IF anyone has really been told to limit spaces to one after a sentence.
If MQ really isn't paying for spaces, it wouldn't make any difference monetarily so I cannot see that they would make a stipulation like that.
We supposedly have Labor Day, but I've worked it for years.
I do respect those that have serious religious holidays though and only hope that the company that they work for understand.
At first I kicked myself for picking Mondays as one of my scheduled work days, as most of our holidays fall on a Monday. But the kids sleep in because they have no school, so it always works, as I only have a 3 hour shift and I'm done before they get up.
I do. I've worked closely with these people for years,
nm
I've worked at home for years and mothered sm
4 babies during that time. Buy a battery-operated swing and put it right beside your desk. I breastfed all of mine, too. They would swing and sleep, then when they woke up I'd take a break and nurse and then put the baby back in the swing. Get one that reclines and the baby will be very comfortable. That battery-operated swing allowed me to continue working. It was worth every penny I paid for it, and then some! Good luck and enjoy your little sweetie. She will grow up much too fast.
I've worked weekends for 10 years, now I want to move onto a company
that does not require at least one weekend day. I realize hospitals are open 24/7 but you would think that companies seeking good MTs would be more willing to offer a M-F shift.
I've worked on a Dell Inspiron 8600 for 3 years
I've heard they're not as good as they used to be, but so far (knock on wood), I haven't had any problem except last week my AC power pack died. They mailed me a new one within 3-4 days (I was under 4 years parts warranty). I use a USB keyboard and mouse and don't bother to try to use the scrunched up laptop keyboard.
I worked for Cbay for 3 years. I was also part of their lay off back many years ago. sm
Even though I got stuck in a lay off era, I still love the company. They paid well then. The people were nice (exception of 1 person) and if I had the opportunity I would go back again. Fortunately (or unfortunately - depending on how u look at it), I have a great paying job right now, so I am not looking for a change. I do know that at one time, they asked management to accept late paychecks, but never sure of the reason why. My check was never late.
Yipee.. I FINALLY found an adapter that worked for my laptop
I actually used Escription's suggestion of Dynex adapter..I have been trying to find one that worked for 2 years..and today, I found it. You can buy it from like Best Buy for $30 but I went on ebay and bought it for $10 or something. Well, worth the money. Just wanted to update you.
I have used a laptop only for 7+ years.
I have a 17-inch screen and use an external keyboard 99% of the time.
I've never had a problem with my USB/laptop, but
if you have any concerns why not just power down, attach it, and restart.
Been working on a laptop for 6 years.
Definitely need an external keyboard and I would also recommend an external mouse instead of using the touch pad, unless you have a keyboard that has a touch pad. Unless you plug in an external monitor too, the smaller screen may be an adjustment, although several of the newer laptops have 17 to 17.5 screens now. A major plus to a laptop is if the power goes out and you download via wav files you can work, at least for a little while, using the battery. I have cable internet, but I also get 20 hours/month dial-up with that, so I can use the dial-up to download/upload and use my battery to work for 3+ hours. You can also get an inexpensive inverter to plug into your cigarette lighter in your car and plug your laptop into that to charge your battery, or use for working in the car while traveling. I have a box about 1-1/2 inches tall that all my power cords plug into and I have my laptop sitting on that and it makes it the right height for typing.
Laptops generally run considerably more than a desktop, though you can find a decent laptop now for $800.00 or less, though most will run you around $1000.00/more depending on what bells and whistles you want.
I used a Dell laptop for 5 to 6 years and I never had
a problem with the monitor. I did turn it off at night though and used a screen saver. I now have a Toshiba that I've had for about 18 months. I turn it off for the weekend because I also have a desktop I use for non-MT stuff, but I leave it on most of the time otherwise, unless going out of town. I have not had a problem with this monitor either. I also have an HP laptop that I've had for about 5 years. I don't use it on a daily basis, but I have never had a problem with the screen on it either.
I have never used an external monitor, though I do use an external keyboard.
Been using a laptop only for 7 years now. Some laptops aren't
meant to be mobile, at least that what a salesman told me. I was looking at the Sony Viao and he said there weren't really meant to be mobile, at least not as their main function. Get a good padded case, use an external keyboard. Anything you get off the shelf these days should be enough for you to work on. I'd get one that had a DVD player just in case you want to watch movies while traveling. I'd get a minimum of 512 RAM, preferably twice that.
With all the back to school sales now is a good time to be buying a laptop. Also, if your state has a tax-free weekend (ours is this weekend) you can save another $200.
I'd make sure you had enough USB ports to plug in everything you need. You can always buy a USB hub for $20 or less if you need more.
Be sure and get the extended warranty. If you need repairs it will pay for itself the first time.
Whatever you get don't get Vista. It might be hard to find one without it unless you order it. I'm not sure if you can dump Vista and install Windows or not.
Whatever you get give yourself a couple of weeks to try it out at home and make a check list of all you need to take with you. I've traveled and left my external keyboard at home, I've left the adapter to convert my PS/2 keyboard to USB, and I think I even left my power cord once, so it is good to have a checklist so you don't forget stuff.
When I upgrade my Stedman's I get the electronic ones so when I travel I have them on my computer and don't have to worry about carrying my books, or not being able to look things up if I don't have constant internet access.
I have an Acer laptop, almost 3 years now, no problems at all.
nm
Worked inhouse for years and years
Inhouse transcription from 1973 to approximately 1992 and we had no downtime for answering the phones and when the physicians came into the room (or others) needing some assistance, just part of the job. I did not feel bad about doing it then and I dont see why you would either. You don’t realize that probably you are making right now more than if you are outsourced, right? You have hourly salary plus incentive. Guess how many of us have that now? Probably inevitable about outsourcing so I would say just enjoy while you can. The pay our here now sinks further and further. I make, for instance, 4 cents a line for voice recognition and 8 for straight. Now, more complaining?
I have a desktop Dell and it has been alright so far, but I've never owned a laptop.
What brand are you currently using then?
I've purchased one laptop and one desktop system used/refurbished, sm
...both from that place I mentioned, and you wouldn't know them from used. I used the laptop happily for many years (still have it, though it's quite out of date now), and the PC is going on it's 2nd year with no problems. You do have to be careful when buying used, but if you're dealing with a reputable site that has a good rep, it's usually not a problem at all and the savings can be tremendous.
I've been doing this doc for many years, so I've learned how to function with him. sm
I can tell what's a stutter, what's another word, what's just an "uh." Years of experience will get you through a lot.
Wouldn't want to do his charts all day, of course, but a few per day aren't bad. I haven't had to send his to review in a long time, but they do take a little longer to shuffle through.
I've worn contacts for 30 years. I've had both
hard and soft. My vision is much better with the soft ones than they were with the hard ones. When I first started trying contacts soft ones were still new and they couldn't get me to 20/20, so I went to hard. Hard were okay until my eyes started changing shape and then I could no longer wear hard ones. The soft should give you better vision as they conform more to the shape of your eye.
that is what is being worked out, and has been worked on for the last few years already...only
why are we just hearing this now? I know voice recog has been around, but this is entirely different. This will also make coding and billing obsolete.
Don't know why, but it just bothers me that one of our 'own' is the one pushing this...and she is also connected with AAMT. Do they support this, and if so, what is their advice I wonder to the MT?
Perhaps that is one question for their website (I do not subscribe to their mag or credentials...)
Thanks, for the input!
I've worked for both
I think there are two big differences. (1) Benefits should be much better than the national, and (2) in working for the hospital, you will only be working on one account (which makes a BIG difference in my opinion). I averaged about 225 lines per hour working for national on a main account plus a couple backups. I am averaging 300+ with the hospital.
The only advantage with going with the national might be better job security. If you lost the account, at least they could move you to another one. But personally, I would take the hospital job in a second. Good Luck!
I've worked with one of their
products. It was an excellent transcription product; they basically bought another company and added the product to their line. I've read some about the owner of the company. He seems like a very above-board kind of guy. He values the special knowledge that MTs have, and we used the product without VR, BUT ... he won't be happy until his VR product is worked in to the transcription process. (I think they might focus on radiology only). He is just SURE it can improve turnaround time, but he admits that VR on its own is not very impressive and reports will always need to be tweaked by a knowledgeable MT. What he doesn't realize is that the transcription process is much more active and able to catch errors when the MT is immersed in transcribing the report. I don't believe 95% of MTs could in a time-efficient way get the complete gist of each report and catch as many dictator errors, history errors, as she could when her mind was completely involved in the transcription of every word. Doing radiology, how many times is there just the briefest pause from the dictator and the MT's mind is already filling in the next word or phrase, and then the dictator says something else, and you think - wha?? and then the radiologist realizes his blunder and corrects himself at some point. Or if he doesn't, the MT's mind is reasoning out what is right or wrong and can bring any problem up with that report. Because of noticing, that report will get corrected before it goes out to the referrer and causes a phone call from an angry referrer.
Radiology needs to go out at 100% accurate, and IMO, insisting on the use of VR will lower accuracy rates and won't improve turnaround time much at all. When I was doing radiology, the better radiologists could dictate a note in a quick and efficient manner and the MT would get on and do it within about 3 minutes. Every 20 minutes the good radiolgists would sign a batch and the reports would go out. So it was about a 30-minute turnaround time for those reports that didn't need a different radiologist to read them. Turnaround time had everything to do with which radiologist was reading and how many specialty reports there were and how efficiently the off-site radiolologists were getting on to dictate. It seems like the VR guys think the MT is the slow one, but IT'S NOT THE MT - SPEED IS UP TO THE RADIOLOGISTS.
I worked for MQ for 11 years.....
and about 5 years ago was fired for not meeting my line count requirements. I started there when they were still sending out typewriters to work on and sending tapes back and forth by FedEx. I worked for the Warminster office. If I got work on a daily basis (even 11 years ago!!) I was lucky. The girl that was supposed to pack up my envelope daily "forgot" to send me stuff at least twice a week. As they moved to computers and internet, etc. they still were so unorganized it was pathetic. The account I was on NEVER had work. And it was the big hospitals in Philadelphia. I would try first thing in the morning, all day and half the night to get work, but there was never anything. And yet they fired me for not getting my lines......go figure!
I worked as an IC many years ago
and paid my taxes yearly instead of quarterly. I am going back to IC as I cannot make a living as an employee. Can you still pay your taxes yearly? Anyone know or can anyone tell me how they pay their taxes? TIA.
I have worked for BTS for 2 years
And have really enjoyed it! Pay is always on time, they are very thoughtful (like sending Christmas gifts to ALL employees and MT day). As an MT, I've had arguements with QA, but think they (QA) are great overall, as is the company.
It's been about 2 years since I worked there--
but my whole family was covered. There was a prescription plan. I can't remember how much copays were, but not more than $30, I'm pretty sure it was less than that. You could also get dental and vision.
I worked for them 5 years. They won't, lol.
nm
Not sure, as I have not worked in WP for years, but....
I think if you hit the Windows key (one with the Windows logo) twice it will release it. Hope this helps.
never ever worked for MQ. I have 16 years
experience in medical transcription - both in hospital and doctors office/specialties.
I worked for them a few years ago...sm
I believe the owner's name is Lisa - she was nice to work for. Platform seemed a little slow, but it could have changed by now. I would go for it. The work was pretty easy. I was an IC and she had in mind what hours she wanted me to work, which didn't work for me. Left because I was interested in becoming an employee somewhere.
I have worked for 2, 13 years for the first and 3 for the second. nm
x
Yes you can. Worked that way for 3 years. nm
Have worked for co several years and this 1st
x
the doc i have worked for for 4 YEARS
still spells his name at the beginning of his dictations. And when i talk to him I joke with him about it... he STILL DOES IT!
(I am the only MT so that's not the reason that he doesn't know who might get his work)
i worked for them for 7 years too...
LOYALLY, skipping vacations and not taking on new accounts, just to keep my "favorite" office up to date with a 24-hour TAT for the 3 doctor urology practice.
It was very very upsetting and a total slap in the face and the minute I realized, nobody cares about us...
You are probably right about employee status being unhappy, I probably would be too. I know I am lucky as an IC... however that comes with paying the price too, absolutely NO benefits... and constantly being nervous now that my job will be taken away and given to cheaper people... :(
Years ago, I worked for a guy who actually said
I should consider myself his wife at work! He expected me to take dictation in ShortHand (revealing my age here), fetch coffee, and told me that if I gained weight, he would lay me off until I lost it because I was projecting the image of the company (it was a pasta manufacturing company). What a PIG! I was 18 years old and totally naive and sooooo stupid. I quit the job after a couple of months.
Your post made me look back and thank GOD I'm sitting at my desk, looking like a complete slob on my slightly fatter rear and don't have to deal with creeps like that anymore!
all the ones I've worked with (6) were gay. Go figure.
The only male MT I've worked with is now ...
one of the MDs I transcribe for now. He worked as an MT for the same small service I did while he was going to school.
I should add, I don't know how they are to work for as I've never worked for them, just saw th
post.
I've worked for several companies using this VR
I make on average $20-$26 an hour with the editing at 4cpl/straight typing 9-10 cpl 65 char with headers and footers and templates. I've been using it for several years though. There are several job ads for this software.
I've worked the same one account...sm
for over 10 years. They know I'm reliable and I know what those docs are going to say before they say it ;0) Seriously, though, I've tried other short term assignments or on-call situations through the years but always come back to my bread and butter. Like anyone, I could of course be let go tomorrow, but in the meantime I'm making good money and doing work that comes second nature by now. Less stress too!
No, not gullible. I've worked in
years and not just in MT. You need to unwrap your mind from around the state of MT of 25 years ago. Those days are long gone. Another unfortunate issue that we're faced with today - new MT graduates. The quality just is not there as it was back in the day. Well, enough said - we obviously will need to agree to disagree. I see it every day the negotiations with major hospitals and offshore. They know what their pennies are getting them and they don't care as long as it's cheap.
What is the best platform you've ever worked on
and why? What do you like about it? Also, what is the worst?
I really like EditScript 8 & although it isn't perfect, I like the fact that I can access other reports on the same patient/same dictator if I need to verify something (although I never trust it 100% lol) One thing I don't like is that I can't use my Expanders (or maybe I can, but don't know how to go about it?)
I don't like ChartScript, as I don't think its very user friendly and those old DOS-based antiquated systems were for the birds!
I've worked and traveled with (sm)
A Verizon Broadband USB device on a 5GB/month plan for $60/month. Anywhere that I can get a Verizon phone signal, I can work. Working on the DQS platform, I could work 24/7 and never approach the 5 GB limit per month, but I'm not sure how other platforms work in that regard.
Europe in general is more sophisticated in their cell phone plans than the US (the majority in Europe use prepaid as opposed to 2-year contract plans). I would think that you could get a USB device over there that is compatible with the cell phone frequencies they use over there.
Hope this helps!
If have worked for TransTech for two years,
you undoubtedly know that Debbie and J go way back and used to work together at another company (reference a recent email you should have received from T, the new president that states that she, J, S, and D all worked together before TransTech). I received an email from Debbie stating that she was sorry I was dissatisfied with tech support, but that they had never ever had any complaints about them before mine. Kind of shows me where I stand in all of this. Many times when managers and tech support are friends, it's the MTs who suffer.
I worked for SS a few years ago and while we didn't have the
line count issues they were HORRIBLE. They e-mailed me last week asking me to come back so they must be in dire straights cause I gave them an earful when I left.
My DH worked from home for about 2 years
I felt like a hermit when he went back to a conventional office job!
I take it your husband isn't working at the present time? Did I understand you correctly? How the heck are you getting bills paid? My DH makes 3 times what I do so I couldn't imagine living on just my pay as an MT. Just curious!
I worked the 3rd shift for 5 years and....sm
found that each night shift person has to figure out for themselves what sleep pattern works best. For some sleeping in the morning after finishing work is best, for others sleeping in the afternoon/evening before starting work bests suits them. For me what worked best was when I was working from midnight to 8 a.m. I would log off at 8 a.m. and sleep until noon, then would go back to bed between 8:30-9 p.m. and sleep about 3 hours. Most of the time I didn't get sleepy during the night doing this pattern but if I did it would be around 4 a.m. and I would just log off and take about a 20-30 minute nap which would be enough to refresh me.
Some of the best advice I can give you for sleeping during the daytime is to go to Target and in the girl's department they're currently selling some blindfolds, or you can go to Claire's boutique as I've seen them there. I would have never survived sleeping during the day well without my Delta Airlines blindfolds that I had - they do a great job of tricking the body to thinking that it's night time when it's daylight outside.
My blindfolds now reside on my brother-in-laws head at night as I'm no longer on nights and he is with his job - so he snoozes during the day with them on.
Good luck to you!
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