Thank you so much... I love shorthand, but that always drove me crazy - sm
Posted By: mammamt on 2007-09-21
In Reply to: ...That should do it for you! :) NM - NM
I have gone in and changed mine. Just proves you can learn something new each day, or you can teach an old dog new tricks, not sure which... lol
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You're welcome, but I can't take credit. When this drove me crazy, I learned how to fix it on
.
Yikes! I just took five minutes to give my doggie some love and a treat! What a crazy world!
x
Try ShortHand if you love PRD+. sm
It reminds me a lot of PRD, but oh so much better. No maximum on the amount of shortcuts you can put in ShortHand. No changing buffers. I don't believe ShortHand works with DOS, though. You can even convert your PRD  files to ShortHand, but will have to tweak them all.
Love Shorthand....sm
It works with all windows based programs, not just Word or Word Perfect. XXXXXXX used to have a huge list of entries that you could add to most Expander programs. With Shorthand, you have your main dictionary that you set up and then a linked dictionary, which is how I set up the entries from the XXXXXXX site. It is a list of about 100,000 entries, I believe.
As far as brand name drugs go, ones that I use frequently in the specialties that I type (GI and cardiology), I enter them in my expander already capitalized so that I do not have to hit the shift key when typing. This may not save a lot of time, but time is money in this business and every little bit helps. I use my expander program and macros to the fullest extent to save time in typing reports.
If you decided to go this route and you cannot get the list from XXXXXXX any longer, let me know by e-mail....I would be glad to send you the file.
I love IT. Don't know anything about Shorthand...
But I have increased my productivity 60-70% in the past year and a half using Instant Text. Some people complain about it being hard to get used to because it runs across the bottom of the screen, but I like it. I have mine set to show me 9 rows at a time so I usually don't even have to type out the entire short form before I see it and can choose it. They also don't like getting used to hitting the ; key as the marker instead of the space bar (there is a mode where you can use it like PRD but then you lose a lot of the features). It took me about 2-3 weeks to get really used to using the marker keys and now I'm so used to it that it is automatic. A big pro is that if you switch jobs you can take it with you because it links to multiple applications. (I work 2 jobs and use it on both platforms which is great, no more adding expansions to 2 separate glossaries). I like that you can separate and make multiple glossaries if you want, the compile and continuation features save tons of time, I like that you have the option of entering both words and phrases, it comes in handy for those big long single words. I keep a list of all my drugs on my word side and once I enter them I never have to look up the spelling again. You can set it to automatically capitalize letters after a . or : and you can set it to automatically add 1 or 2 spaces after a period or colon or a comma. I like not having to worry about what I name my short forms, it doesn't matter if the abbreviation can also be a real word (ie PAT) because you don't accidentally expand them just by hitting the space bar.
Anyhow, like I said I don't know if ShortHand is anything like it, but as you can tell I am a huge fan of IT and think it is the best thing that has happened to my line counts in my 16 years of transcribing.
Have Shorthand, love it SM
I have no experience with the other program, but can still recommend ShortHand without reservation. It's always done everything I've wanted, very fast, very flexible, many more features than I actually use, no problems with a couple of new platforms with new accounts, and no lockups or weirdouts--very stable, bless it!
I didn't monitor the increase in my productivity, but it's been tremendous. I can't imagine just limping along with Explorer Tools, for instance, when superb programs like this are available.
BTW, although Shorthand will also provide a list of possible expansions for words as you type, I turned that feature off from the very beginning and started memorizing my abbreviations on the assumption that I would want to proof as I went and taking my eyes off the report itself could only slow me down.
ShortHand is what I use and LOVE it! nm
Amen to that. Love Shorthand because you can do macros, too. nm
x
aneurysm... love shorthand - just type anu and there it is...(NM)
xx
Use ExText for 1 job. Love it! Works with my ShortHand. Wish they all used it! nm
s
Love ShortHand and believe you can download it for a trial. Might be others out there, too. nm
s
I also love Shorthand and recommend without reservations. sm
Every once in a while I see people posting issues on other Expanders I just haven't experienced with Shorthand. Very stable and workable with the platforms I've used, and I find the ability to use symbols in abbreviations an extremely useful feature. I originally chose it for its very large storage capacity compared to others at that time and pretty much lucked out with the rest.
I've only been on it a short time but love it - I use Shorthand, though with it.
nm
I am going to order Shorthand for myself today. I love it. You can also manage your words in
:+
I use Shorthand for Windows and love it. I have found it works well with most every program. SM
I have used with Word and Word Perfect. I have used it with Meditech and Cerner. I have used it with RadNet and StarNavigator for Radiology. I can use it with my email applications and on the internet if I choose. If the Expander is open and running, you can use it with any and every window program you use.
I was really simple to learn to use too. Very user friendly.
Exactly. When I was in my 20s, I drove across the U.S. alone
I went to Hawaii alone, to Mexico alone, to Lake Tahoe alone, to the beaches of the Pacific coast alone. I talked with friendly local guys who approached me. I drank tequila. Gosh, I even hitchhiked when I was 16 with a gf back east to get to the beach. Call me lucky, but I was never drugged, raped or (as you can see) abducted and never seen again alive.
Call my parents irresponsible if you'd like but I was a free spirit and the times were such that we were curious and experimental. It goes along with being young.
Running into a man who would do what a man did to Natalee did not happen to me and I did talk (and not become intimate with) a lot of guys.
The point is...that guy probably did what he did to Natalee to others who simply chose to place it into a place in their minds where it was not disclosed. So many of them do.
I have seen, during a cruise, a young girl raped after being given a drug. We had to turn the ship around and get to land to have her flown into San Diego - they were losing her vital signs. We never head a word about it. She was a member of the b-ball team, taking an end of the school year cruise. Young, vital, athletic. Her picture posted showed her with drinking water in her hands. Of course, Carnival cruise line never let the media in on it. Had they, possibly the boys - who were next to their cabin - would have been tried and convicted had they bombarded them with interrogration and placed them in isolation in a jail cell.
It simply is rare for this to happen. I am 47, have traveled extensively alone and with others - one time, I saw this - it is RARE and when it does happen and the perpetrator is obvious, hell or high water could not keep me from wanting him convicted - as a decent human being and as a mother.
HA! that because you drove
through on your way to Montifornia - get of the interstate eastern Montana has some of the best kept secrets
Drove through sm
Pocatella (spelling is so wrong, I know) and thought I was in heaven.
I tried that out once...WAY too many emails...DROVE ME NUTS!!!
/
drove 80 miles round trip to work for $5/hr...sm
sitting in a metal folding chair at a folding banquet table, banging away on a Selectric in a room full of smokers. This was a service that would UPS cassette tapes out to your home when you started working from home. Obviously this was 25 years ago. After two weeks, the owner let me go and told me he couldn't make money off of me, even at $5/hour. But then I applied at the hospital for a radiology transcription position (because now I had experience!) and they hired me because I was the only one who would work on Saturdays. When I consider what I had to go through to break into the field, makes me laugh when I see newbies fresh out of school with no experience asking for 6 cents a line to work from home...I guess just understand you do what you have to do to break into the field. That goes for every job that is hard to get into. 
Daughter's friend drove her car into a pond the first week she had her license! Let him prove him
s
Shorthand works for Radnet. I love Radnet BTW! nm
nm
SpeedType and Shorthand are the exact same program. Shorthand is lots cheaper and also has a trial.
.
{@KEY BkSp}-pack-per-year is for Shorthand. Using the semicolon works with both Shorthand and
;yo = -year-old
;py= -pack-year
etc...
Shorthand and SpeedType are exact same program. Shorthand will cost you lots less.
you can import your autocorrect into Shorthand.
I took shorthand too. But it sure comes in helpful for my expanders. I view words in shorthand for
i did use shorthand once in a job but i was so nervous the "boss" took pity and dictated the report on dictaphone.
If it is Shorthand, save the SPF file to a disk, then if you buy Shorthand yourself....
you can just drop the SPF file into it. That is not dishonest since you are the one who put the macros in. I am sure is it is another Expander there is a way to save the macro file and then drop it in the expander you buy on your own.
Thats just crazy!
Makes no sense! Wonder how these types of people are running the HR depts?!! I am fortunate enough to have three offices that I IC for. So, you moved because of the pay situation?? Hope your in a great position now!
-DAWN-
That's crazy!!
Are you serious? I can't believe they would cut our pay. The more you produce, the more the pay should be. They are getting paid per line from their clients. I'm sure they are not getting less from their clients because of DQS. If that happens, I'm quitting. I barely make enough now!!! How much was the cut, if you don't mind me asking? 
Wow - now I know I'm not going crazy!
I had never had this happen so didn't know what to think of it. Sheesh! Is the US outsourcing EVERYTHING now??? ARGH.
Are you crazy?
nm
Crazy Day
I don't post too much here, but I just have to vent. I went to pick up my daughter from school today. While I was waiting in my car, a woman backed into me. The damange didn't look to bad, but the lady won't get out of her car, so I called the police.
She was so drunk, she could barely walk. She had a baby in the car, about 18 months old, and was picking up her 2 sons. The police took her away in handcuffs, the breathalizer was over 0.13 and still rising!!
I was so upset about getting hit, but started thinking, maybe it was a blessing in disguise. Our school parking lot (grades 3-6) is so crazy after school, I started worrying about how many kids she could have hit in the parking lot if she hadn't hit me first.
Now, I like a drink or 2 myself, but come on, it was 3 o'clock in the afternoon in the school parking lot. I always worry about getting hit by a drunk driver, but I thougt I was safe at school.
crazy day
Oh my - how sad is that!
Yep . . . I must be crazy :(
I have been on the account for 1 day so far :( Obviously I don't expect to get 1400 right now, but I am hoping within the next few months I can work my way up to that. My Expander is my own. I have about 100 entries right now, but that is only after 1 day of work. I do plan on adding more, but just haven't gotten there yet. I have been transcribing for a total of 4 years now, but brand new to this account.
No, you are not crazy! sm
Although you may be expecting too much of yourself too soon in your MT career.
I have been in over 12 yrs. I have my own Expander with 20,000+ short cuts in it (if you email me, you can have a copy of it). I know this expander like the back of my hand after using it for about 10 yrs. I make about 1800 lines or so a day, less if I am tired like I have been lately :(.
It IS doable, but I don't believe you have enough expansions to maximize your skills and time.
Crazy, huh?
I know that is simply ridiculous. I admit 3 years ago I was naive enough to believe you could make over 40,000.00 a year, I am sure there are people who do, but I certainly don't. I do enjoy my job, but I wish something could be done about the misleading advertisements which are placed luring in unsuspecting people. Because honestly, if I had known, I would have most likely gone for a profession such as court reporting where there is a wider range of different branches that can be quite lucrative.
going crazy!!!!
I would consider myself to be a new MT. I have only been doing this for 2 years now and you know what, I enjoy doing this, but for some reason, I am just not getting some of it. I look things up, I do not reach my goal everyday because I stop to look things up, I run my reports through word to double check the spelling of things, and I still seem to have numerous mistakes and it is very irritating. I am trying very hard, reading, re-reading. I just do not know what I am doing wrong. I am at a loss. I honestly do not know what to do. I am in tears just about everyday because I get soo frustrated that I still make mistakes. I use macros so I do not have to type the same report over and over. If anyone has any advise what so ever, please, someone throw me a bone. I will try anything. I love being home with my children, but at the rate I am going, not making any money, I do not have a choice but to look for another job. Do not really want to do that. HELP!!!!
love, love, love the show. hate american idol. this show is for real.
the only reason i entertained watching it was because of mark burnett and as usual he has such genious casting and editing. btw, don't know who anything about "metal" music but these performers make me like it. love marty and jd as performers. HATE JESSICA. susie is so nice and so emotional. it seems they all support each other and enjoy each others skills. regarding ty and bob marley, ty was excellent but he also lucked out on the song! bob marley was genious too and his music is very easy to listen to. i don't like 3/4 of what the others are given to sing but their performances make me love the music. dave navarro shines on this show, very gracious for the most part and letting the contestants down easy when they have to leave. he was great last night with brandon (?). sweet, sweet show. i am so impressed with everyone involved.
crazy idea
 I am not sure what would trigger anyone to think washing a keyboard in the dishwasher would work. I know from others who have had accidents by spilling a cup of coffee, water, soda etc it shorts out the keyboard so what would make anyone think washing it in a dishwasher is smarter? I cannot believe someone would try such an insane thing. Oh my. Those who have tried and ruined a keyboard obviously like to waste money on having to buy a new keyboard.
Because gas is going up like crazy, supposedly going up
30 cents/gallon tomorrow and will continue a steep climb. There are talks of rationing too as production has been severely cut due to Katrina.
yes - it will probably drive you crazy until you get
x
How are those crazy cupcakes?
Don't leave us hanging.
I'm w/you on this one! It's crazy to accept LESS THAN 10 YRS AGO. And that is just what MT com
benefits and put them in their pockets and called them PROFIT.
They put us at home and said that was an excuse to LOWER THE BASE RATE OF PAY.
I tell you what, 4 years ago I was making $42,000 a year working for a hospital.
I had benefits along with that $42,000
I WORKED AT HOME IN MY JAMMIES.
I HAD FLEXABILITY OF TAKING OFF just like I always had in life.
Do you want to know what I made last year doing the same amount of work??
I made $14,000 and NO BENEFITS.
The company I have worked for (which shall remain nameless but we all know who it is) has managed to take away BONUS LINES, ENOUGH WORK, and NEVER GIVE ME A RAISE IN 6 YEARS.
If they think they have created a better medical record system they have lost their everlovin minds. Reports are less accurate now than they ever were. The hospital may have a PIECE OF PAPER back in their hands quickly, but it isn't worth a tinkersdam.
So if you new MTs and even the older ones who now are on supplemental income or have a husband to back them up, us MTs who need to make a living to support our children - think again if you believe what we have been WORKED DOWN TO is a good deal.
MTs at home have taken on the RISKS of transcription. It is our personal time that goes unpaid while the company RISKS NOTHING. We are the ones sitting around setting up computers, eating down-time, trying to learn new programs on our own dime.
THINK ABOUT IT
crazy vs crazier
Actually, I KNOW that I worry so much more about things than I did when I first started out many years ago. Of course, now I have a family too, but I consider it an occupational hazard as we know what CAN and DOES happen to people. :)
Glad to know I am not just crazy :)
The company I previously worked for were so much more understanding. I guess this is what I get for moving to a bigger company
Does it drive anyone else crazy when..
You are listening to a dictation and can hear another doctor in the background dictating quite loudly, and then go to start that same docs dictation, and can barely hear him?? 
No, you're not crazy - but she is. Sorry.
x
It also drives me crazy when...
my kids send me e-mails with absolutely nothing capitalized and everything spelled phonetically.
Call me crazy...
but I don't really see how telling the truth is a stunt. I have never watched The View, so I don't really know why Star is so anoying to people (Please fill me in!), but it seemed from that video clip that she just decided to tell the honest truth. I think it is admirable that she decided not to put a spin on it and deceive people, IMO. From that clip, she seemed very gracious and sincere. I don't think it was a stunt.
Going crazy, need some answers...
My husband's grandfather is in the hospital. His mom just called and said that his kidneys have shut down and "it could be any day now." What does this mean?? Any idea of how long he could live?? He's refusing any treatment. We are just sitting by the phone waiting for his mom to call back after she talks to the doctors, but we're trying to decide if we should drive out there today (16 hr drive) or if it's already too late. Thanks for any help.
Please help me with a crazy idea....
Talk me out of this, tell me why it would not work, and tell me I am nuts.
OR tell me it is a great idea, how it would work and why...
I keep reading of all those who want to get into the MT field. Those who are in school and hoping to land their first job. Those who have finished school and are struggling to get a job because they have no experience.
I keep thinking I could do something about this. Somehow I could mentor newbies. Get them up and running, give them experience, then off they would go into the world of MT.
Whenever I get this crazy idea, I think I must be insane. Why and HOW would I venture to do such a thing? I have years and years experience, I make a VERY good income as an IC, I have what most would want in the MT field. I have no accounts of my own, nor would I desire that. I contract from two services. They have the headaches - - - I have the flexiblity and pay I want.
Then I think, maybe I could do this for a service instead of having my own accounts. Then I think no one would pay me what I make now.
THEN I think I have lost all my marbles and I put these crazy ideas aside. Then, they resurface.......
Please tell me why this would not work. Help me understand once and for all that it would be a devastating move for me, that newbies are too hard to mentor, that the field is *going downhill*, etc., etc., etc.
Or tell me why it is a great idea.
Thank you for your input.
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