fixing tape

• Broken tape - Shell
  • fixing tape - scarolina
    • I cut a hole in the plastic - Me
    • Broken tape memories - RPM
      • I'd say dictating at half speed exonerated you - Me
        • Thanks! - Shell

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a Lanier transcriber?  Bought it on ebay and do not see an erase function.

TIA,

Dawn!

A lot of people also have disabled the erasing mechanism so that tapes cannot accidentally be erased and have to manually erase them.   I have always done that to prevent it after my first accidental erasure.  Other than allowing the tape to play forward without background noise, to tape over what is there,  no answers here and have been using tapes for 15+ years.   A manual eraser cost is cheap.  

Patti

I found great, low-cost software that allows you to convert tapes to digital files (MP3, WAV, WMA, etc.).  Check out www.dak.com !  Your PC needs a sound card and a line-in connection (usually next to your line out to plug in your headset or speakers), as well as a tape player and an actual line that plugs from your PC line-in to your tape player.  Think they call that line a male-to-male or male-to-female or something like that (got my line from www.martelelectronics.com).  Use Dak to convert your music cassettes, too.  Hope this helps!

P.S., I'm an MT, not from DAK

HELP!  I have had a microcassette tape break.  Any ideas on how to fix it (if possible!)? 

Thanks!

I love it!  It is so cut and dry.  I throw the tape in and start typing.  You may save time so people think by going digital, but it takes time to upload and download voice files.  I just find that throwing the tape and typing is just simple!  Of course, I'm a simple person.

In answer to your question, yes I think you may have something there as the tape doctors do not want to go digital because they like doing things simply.  They don't want a lot of hassle, and yes, I do believe there are physicians that still like the old method.  Some do not think that digital is very user friendly. 

The other problem with digital is there needs to be someone in the office doing the uploading, which mean the physician is paying them to do that.  With the tape, the doctor puts it in a folder with his patient list at the end of the day, and then leaves it for me.  The only thing required by the office staff is the copying and mailing when I bring the work back usually anywhere from 3-4 days later.  They do not require 24-hour turnaround, which is great.  But, if they do need a note, which happens very rarely, I can simply fax it over to the office.

I am quite content with my tape accounts and the other thing I like is the networking.  I can network with the office staff and feel like a movie star since they don't see me every day.  They usually stop what they are doing for a friendly quick chat, which is very nice.  I have business cards that I carry just in case someone mentions to me that so and so is looking for a transcriptionist. 

See below, don't want to rewrite the entire thing but it did all work out.   Basically I had put the envelope and tape from one day in a different spot due to being in a hurry and the other one the doc did not hand in as he was going on vacation.  So when both were gone, I thought I had erased them and handed them back in.  When I told the doc that I thought I had erased one and he grinned at me and gave me the tape, he told me to include some extra charge for the time I spent looking for the tape -- so it did all work out.  God just threw me a curve to tell me to slow down.   I averaged 2500 to 3000 lines per day last week and that was with one doctor on vacation.  So just hurried, hurried, hurried.   Thank you to all of you for your support, it really helped me in a tme of need.   Patti

Patti

Sure does bring back memories.  I remember sitting at my Selectric in my basement when I was a newbie back in 1975 crying my eyes out because I had just finished a 3 page report and the doc wanted me to insert a paragraph at the beginning of the report!  There was no "memory" back then and the whole thing had to be retyped just to add one paragraph!  I remember them fondly, but am much happier with my computer!  Thanks for the walk down memory lane, though!

I have Desperate Housewives and Grey's preset to tape every week.  Wasn't thinking with the Super Bowl that Grey's would start late.  The tape cut off right after Dr. Burke sent everyone out of OR except for 2 other people.  He had just told the EMT that her hand was keeping the man from bleeding out and the bomb squad was coming.  Then <poof> that was it!  What happened next?  Anyone, please?  Thanks.

"D-dimer"

"Parenchyma"

"Acidosis"

Any first year terminology student wouldn't have to ask about these elementary MT words.  It's a cheater trying to pass a test she is in no way qualified to be taking.

I have two Internal Medicine docs that average 25 to 35 minutes per day which equals about 500 to 600 lines each.  (time to do each tape 1 to 1.25 hours per tape)     Monthly line count is about 15,000 to 16,000 per month average .

Two oncology surgeons that dictate three days per week -- one is 25 to 30 minutes per day which can equal up to 1000 lines as a  lot of letters and consults the other surgeon is shorter about 10 to 15 minutes and equals about 300 to 400 per day. (time to do tape -- long ones about 1.5 hours and short about 20 to 30 minutes -- good money maker)  Monthly line count is about 11,000 to 12,000 per month

Plastic surgeon -- short chart notes only 10 minutes = 100 lines per day - 3 days per week.  Only get about 1000 lines per month if he has some letters.

Hand surgeon - some IME's, chart notes - 2 days per week depends but usually about 30 to 40 minutes per day.    About 4500 to 5000 lines per month.

Psychologist -- 3 to 5 psych consults - ADHD children - 35 to 40 minutes per report with accompanying letter about 600 to 700 lines per report/letter.  (takes me about 1.25 hours per report/letter)  About 4500 lines per month.

I have been doing these for so long I can type them in my sleep. 

Hi, has anyone ever recorded files from a C-phone onto cassette tapes?  I have an account that is accessed via C-phone.  I am going to be going out of town for a couple days and wanted to record some work to take with me.  Can this be done?  I have a Lanier micro-cassette player and a Dictaphone C-phone.  Is there an attachment of some sort that could accomplish this?  Thanks for any help you can offer.

I have a sony mini-cassette tape that is bunched up on the inside to the point where I can no longer pull it to straighten it out. It is just stuck. This has a full day of dictation on it. Anyone know a gentle way of trying to pry this cassette apart? It's the only way I can straighten up the tape. I did it once before over a year ago and it took 4 hours, but it worked, but I don't remember what I used. I don't know how it happened. I just want to fix it because I'll have to be the one to tell this doctor he has to do his dictation all over and it won't be pretty. Thanks.

I would try to spool it back with the eraser tip of a pencil, but I wouldn't waste alot of time doing so.  I've had this happen in the past, and fortunately for me, I returned it to the physician, explained the problem, and he said, "no problem"...I'll just redictated it.  

I am again stating here that the single most important thing one can to do to ensure the quality and lifespan of tapes, is to keep them in their plastic case when not in your machine and being transcribed.