STENOCAST vs CABLE HOOKUP

[April McMillan, CRR, RPR, CSR]

Please post your opinion, pro or con, on either of these Realtime hookups. I just attended a webinar hosted by Keith Vincent and a rep for Stenocast was also there.

The Stenocast RED is $400 and each blue output device (Bridge) is $100 and the red output device (LiveNote) is also $100. If you're going to get two of each device (gotta be prepared), a reporter is looking at an $800 expense/investment in a slow economy.

Is Stenocast so much easier to use that it's worth taking the financial plunge? Is what you're doing now burdensome? Do you have a system that's economical and easy to use? I'd love to hear what you have to say.

[Reagan Evans]

I can't say enough positive things about Stenocast. I love the system. I've used it since it came out. I just upgraded to the RED system. It is intuitive for the many laptops that we come into contact with. Meaning it keeps the same number in the ports. if the driver has been loaded once for an atty, the next reporter with the stenocast system can connect very easily. i bought it on a subscription plan, but then bit the bullet and spent the money to purchase it when they went to an owner plan. and i just chose to upgrade. and i agree, it is a slow economy. but as professionals, we must stay up with what is best for what we do, and what we can do to make it easier for the client. the driver is easy to load the first time. you'll know right away if you are connected with the atty, even if you haven't sent a test feed from your writer. it's not messy with all the wires strung across the table. i bought 5 receivers, because you never know. i needed four when i first purchased it. i think three is probably pretty safe. hope this helps! reagan

[April McMillan, CRR, RPR, CSR]

Thanks. And yes, it helps :)

[Kyung]

I still use cables. Haven't heard of the red. I'll have to look it up.

[Janet]

Hi April,

I've been considering getting Stenocast for a while. I've been waiting for the price to come down, which it has. In the meantime, I've been using Top Cat Steno's retractable cables. They work great and are easy to set up and take down. I guess I'd be quicker to jump into the Stenocast if I had problems with the system I use, but I don't.

Janet

[April McMillan, CRR, RPR, CSR]

Thanks, Janet :)

[Lisa O'Sullivan]

I've always used cables till recently. I don't like cables for the mess and for the feeling that I have too much stuff to pull out and set up. (I also use two trays and tripods.) But that Stenocast price is too high for me right now.

Instead I bought Teleview from Advantage Software for $200 plus $50 for each additional output, and I upgraded my air card to the $60/month plan for up to 5G usage. Teleview seems a little bit cruder at this point than other viewers, such as it won't hold settings from last use, but it definitely does the job. All the attys have to do is launch their browser and type in an IP address I give them and enter a password I also give them. They don't need any software.

Drawbacks as far as I understand would be, one, this only works with Eclipse; and, two, if someone insisted on using Livenote instead of Teleview, I'd still have to use wires and also change my configuration settings. I haven't had that happen yet, thankfully. I haven't been able to try this too many times, unfortunately, but those times the attys were just happy to be able to get onboard so easily.

One more thing: atty has to make sure his screensaver is turned off. At least, I think that's what the problem was with this one guy, for whom it then wouldn't work until I restarted the Teleview session.

[April McMillan, CRR, RPR, CSR]

Lisa, do you get the automatic refresh in Teleview? Is it used in conjunction with Bridge?

[Lisa O'Sullivan]

Yes to refresh, no to Bridge.

Bridge CAN be used, I should say, on the atty end, but it's not necessary.

With Teleview, when they type in the IP to their browser and enter the password, Teleview appears for them, and away they go.

[April McMillan, CRR, RPR, CSR]

Thanks:)

[Lisa O'Sullivan]

Kelly, but why would everyone not be on the same server? I'm not challenging; just not understanding.

[April McMillan, CRR, RPR, CSR]

Kelli,
Does it have to do with their browser, like Internet Explorer, Mozilla Firefox, and the others that are out there?

[Rebecca Callow]

Sometimes people behind firewalls cannot actually get out from behind that firewall to log into a server without opening what I will call a porthole. Most big companies will not do that. That is not a problem with TeleView, though. TeleView works beautifully, no bugs.

I will say though that sometimes, with certain clients, especially law firms with tight security, I have to have the internet directly plugged into my computer, and not receiving internet through my wireless connection. That makes a big difference. In fact, most of the time that is the case.

As far as the "different servers" comment, you should probably get that clarified. I have had people log into my screen from different ends of the country at the same time, so I am clueless as to what that phrase means.