What is Electronic Machine Shorthand?

A system for writing text and numbers by sound, at speeds of 240 words per minute or higher.

How are such high speeds possible?

On a shorthand keyboard, multiple keys can be depressed with each stroke. Entire syllables, words, even phrases containing multiple words, can be written in one stroke. For example:

Word(s)	Computer Keyboard	Shorthand Keyboard
straight	9 strokes	1 stroke
centralization	15 strokes	3 strokes
ladies and gentlemen of the jury	32 strokes	1 stroke

Note: Figures for computer keyboard strokes include the space bar stroke. Spacing between words is automatic with electronic shorthand.

Is electronic shorthand the same as machine shorthand used by court reporters?

Machine shorthand is a decades-old technology. The keyboard captured data only as characters on a paper tape. Creating a translated hard copy required reading the shorthand characters and typing the text they represented, a time-consuming, labor intensive process. Consequently, machine shorthand was used almost exclusively by court reporters for making verbatim records.

Thanks to the efforts of the court reporting profession to keep machine shorthand apace with current technology, today’s shorthand is written on a keyboard which captures the data electronically. Sophisticated translation software translates the electronic data instantly (realtime) to text.

Who uses electronic shorthand?

Electronic shorthand is the fastest means of creating text and is an invaluable technology for any business or organization with a need to input text to a computer or create hard-copy text.

Some examples of current uses: Hospitals/transcription bureaus for medical transcription; law offices for legal transcription/general correspondence; insurance companies; police departments; schools and businesses as an aid to those who are hard of hearing or deaf; state-of-the-art court reporters.

What are the benefits to an employer?

Increased productivity: Writing electronic shorthand is less physically fatiguing than high-speed typing. Consequently, operators have longer periods of maximum productivity.

Lower overhead: Production by one electronic shorthand operator can equal the production of two—potentially even three—typists. With electronic shorthand operators, employers can realize equal productivity while significantly reducing expenditures for office space, equipment, FICA, and employee benefits such as coffee breaks, lunch hours, sick leave, personal leave, health insurance, profit sharing/retirement plans, etc.

ARE ALL ELECTRONIC SHORTHAND SYSTEMS THE SAME?

The Keyboard

All shorthand keyboards for writing the English language have the identical configuration of keys for writing vowel and consonant sounds.

The Theory

A theory is the language of shorthand: it defines which keys are combined to create the vowel, consonant, and consonant combination sounds used in the English language.

Is there more than one theory for writing shorthand?

There are multiple shorthand theories. With few exceptions, all theories use the same key combinations to represent letters of the alphabet and the basic vowel/consonant sounds. Theories may differ in key combinations used for some consonant blends (e.g., -nj, -nk, -mp, -th), and in the availability of and correct stroking for shortcuts.

The two major differences between theories are: (1) How they avoid conflicts; (2) The degree of spelling dependency.

What is a conflict?

In English, the identical sound may represent multiple words (homonyms); and the identical sound and/or spelling may represent a word, word beginning, or word ending. If the identical shorthand stroke(s) could represent two different correct translations, a conflict exists.

Examples of conflicts:

• Homonyms: to/too/two; there/their/they’re; our/hour

• Word boundaries:

• Word/word beginning/word ending: therein tended/there intended; compare/come pair; advents/add vents

• One word or two words: bargain/bar gain; saline/say lean

What is meant by spelling dependency?

Shorthand is described as "writing by sound." In reality, all theories except Phoenix Theory require shorthand strokes for the majority of words to be conformed to correct vowel spelling. The pronunciation of the majority of English words includes vowel sounds which could have various spellings. With spelling-dependent theories, realtime translation can be limited to words which the operator knows how to spell.

Phoenix Theory’s unique Vowel-Omission Principle (patent pending) eliminates the vast majority of all spelling dependency, making it possible for operators to write and receive realtime translation of each word they can hear—rather than just those words they can spell.

To better understand the benefits of a spelling-independent theory, including a comparison of actual shorthand outlines used by differing theories and a self-test to see if you’re a "realtime" speller, see Sound vs. Spelling by clicking on its link on the left.