Number Triggers

[Rebecca Callow]

I love the number triggers in Eclipse. They make me look like a million bucks. Saves editing time too.

First there are the after-the-fact triggers. Write any number and then the trigger stroke afterwards to get the desired translation:

R*-M={#R} Makes Roman numerals
T*-M={#T} Makes time, including military
TK*T={#D} Puts hypens in for dates and apostrophes for abbreviated years.


Then there are the triggers that are right in with the steno and they translate automatically. Below are examples. I will attach an Eclipse dictionary file with the conflicts so the AI data can be utilized. #G = Generic, #R = Roman

\rule\Rule{#G} = RAOUL
\region\Region{#R} = RAOEPBLG
\war\{|-}War{#R} = WAR
\Olympic\{#R}Olympic = PHREUFRP
\Pentium\Pentium{#R} = PEPBT KWRUPL
\World War{#R}\world war = TKWAORLD
\section\Section{#G} = S*EBGS
\Super Bowl\Super Bowl{#R} = SPER PWOEL
Wrestlemania{#R} = WRES -L PHAEUPB KWRA
Henry{#R} = HEPB RAOE (don't write the word "the" after)
Elizabeth{#R} = HREUS PW*ET

Then there are the number template entries, which are found in the bottom right corner of the Numbers Tab in User settings. These are a huge time saver. Before you use these, make sure your templates match the following:

1=.### (will add a decimal point before the number written in steno .22, .45, .357, etc.)

{#1}holster = HOEL STER
{#1}pistol = P*EUS -L
{#1}Magnum = PHAG TPHUPL
{#1}rifle=RAOEUFL
{#1}caliber = KAL PWER

2=#'#" (will make the equivalent of 6'4", rather than 6 foot 4 inches - great for CART/captioning)

{#2} = TPAO*T (write SEUBGS/FAO*T/FOUR or 6/FAO*T/4 = 6'4" - you don't have to write "inches"!)

For those that are writing extra strokes for ordinal numbers, those can be done in one stroke for one-digit numbers, two for two digit numbers. The dictionary entry looks like this:
1{#O}, 2{#O}, and so on up through 10{#O}. The steno I use is 1E, 2E, E6, E7 and so on. Note: do not put 1{#O}=1st in your dictionary. That is a redundant entry and will mess up the number conversion. In my example my dictionary looks like so: 1E=1{#O}.

When I want an ordinal for a two-digit number, I stroke the number with the trigger stroke last: 1/1E = 11th, 10/1E = 101st, 5/3E = 53rd, 7/E9=79th.


The are some caveats, though. If you write number bar 2 and then the word pistol, for example, it will translate .2 pistol.

In addition, if you don't use the number bar, make sure that "ignore written numbers" is UNchecked. There may also be some tweaking of the number conversion settings on Number Tab depending on how you write your numbers. Check out the attached documents for further explanation.
1: Dictionary w/conflict AI data
2: Eclipse Numbers Setup
3: Further Number explanation

If you need more assistance, I have other cheat sheets I can provide or I would be happy to answer questions.

Rebecca

[Brenda Rogers]

Rebecca, you have *almost* made me want to try number conversion again. I tried it. I really truly did! I didn't like it. I got my numbers down to come out just the way I want them long before CAT was smart enough to do it for me, and those habits are hard to break. (I don't use number bar.)

But I undid all my numbers v numerals, my ^00 and ^,000 strokes -- all that. Worked at getting things to come out right. Wasn't thrilled, but the thing that made me put everything back to the way it was before is when I had "two five gallon buckets" come up and it tranned to "25-gallon buckets." The way *I* would have written it would have come out perfectly: TU/FAO*EUF/O*E/GLON/PWUBGTS. One extra stroke in there, but perfect!

If things like that can be cured consistently, I might consider giving it another shot. I'd love to be able to pick and choose WHEN number conversion kicks in and leave the rest of my numbers alone.

[Rebecca Callow]

Brenda, I totally understand your frustration. I learned steno before computers too, and had a whole elaborate system to make things come out right. Unfortunately, my numbers were always a mess. I could figure them out after the fact, but I would never have been able to get it to fly for realtime. I remember the feeling of "Bracing Myself" when I knew that numbers were coming, like phone, social, yearly income. It was a nightmare. They would ask how much a person made per year and I would have to lag back to wait to hear that "dollar sign". By that time I had forgotten what they had said, or I was so nervous from lagging back that my fingers fumbled and I would misstroke. The worst thing of all is I would write dollar sign before the number, anticipating that they were going to say dollars, and then they wouldn't say it!! I HATED that.

For me using the number conversion was kind of a relief. The idea is Just write what you hear. Literally. If they say twenty-five thousand dollars (meaning $25,000) I write 25 THOUDZ. My old system would have had me waiting for them to say dollars, and then it would be something like DZ/25/-RS (for comma-delete space) and then 0/0/0 or some goofy steno I made up for ,000. I really didn't have a very good system, so it never translated very well.

To switch to using number conversion was a learning curve, I will admit, but it was nothing like what I went through to get the numbers to come out on the DOS system I learned on. My old way was very stroke intensive and I had to really THINK about what I was writing. This job is hard enough. I don't want to add extra thinking!

With Eclipse, it doesn't matter if you use exclusively number bar, no number bar, or a combination. My personal current system is a combo. The number conversion has a setting for every type of writer. That's why the Numbers Tab looks so confusing. Once a person has an understanding of what each category means and gets it set correctly for their particular style, writing numbers is no longer a headache.

For me with my old numbers system, it was sheer terror. I dreaded anytime someone said a number. Today, I'm like "Bring it on!" Millions, trillions, hundreds of thousands, even to the penny. Measurements, fractions, decimals! I wish for them to say two 5-gallon buckets. I just write exactly what I hear. For me, Number Conversion was an welcome change; namely because the system I had wasn't working.

BUT I always say, if it ain't broke don't fix it. That sounds like where you are. If your numbers are translating correctly, then I would stay right where you are. BUT...

If you are even toying with the idea of trying it again, check out this cheat sheet "Total Eclipse Automatic Number Conversion". Starting on page 2 there are some examples of reporters and their writing style and then recommendations for how to set the Number Conversion settings. You may find with some minor dictionary adjustments you can use the Number Conversion and not have to change your writing style. If you do decide to fiddle around with it, I would love to hear how it goes, so keep me posted, and good luck with it!

Rebecca

[Brenda Rogers]

Thanks, Rebecca. I'll take a look at it.

My numbers really do come out nicely. Even odd thousand dollars are pretty. I just trained myself to write my {^},{^} stroke instead of the word "thousand" and my decimal stroke instead of the word "cents." I know what you mean about the dollar sign or not, but I just delete the $ if they didn't say it. (There's a macro for that!)

The first reporter I worked for gave me the $ stroke to put before numbers. I brought up the argument about, "What if they don't say it? I won't remember the number by the time they get there." And she said, "Well, you know they're talking about dollars and not COWS, so just write it in!" I loved her pragmatism. :)

So I did write TU/FAOEUF/GLON and it tranned to 25-gallon. I have a stroke for 25! Why would E combine those?

As I said, I wish I could pick and choose NC. If I add a trigger, it works; if not, it leaves alone what I wrote.

I really appreciate this, because there are a few things that I would like to be able to address. I'll keep you posted!

[Cathryn Bauer]

Thank you very much for this helpful and detail post which I just printed out!

[Rebecca Callow]

You are very welcome, Cathryn! I hope you find it useful. Eclipse software changed my life as a court reporter/CART provider, and I am pleased to share what I have learned if it will help others.

[Susan Crivello]

Rebecca,

This is GREAT! I hate anything that has to do with numbers. I started entering these into my dictionary....where have I been!!
I have a question. I entered TK*T = {#D}, and when I stroke May 25, 1994, it comes out May 28/19/94. Did I do something wrong?

Thanks,
Susan

[Jenny Griffin, RMR CRR CCRR CRC]

Susan, you didn't need the trigger for that. When you stroked 19/94, it should have come out as 1994. Do you use the number bar? It shouldn't matter, but I'm curious. The numbers should glue together. Where the trigger helps is if you stroke 5/25/94/D*T = 5/25/94. You need to be a little careful with numbers like 12/1/86/D*T as it may tran as 1/21/86. I always look at my notebar when scoping numbers.

[Susan Crivello]

Jenny, yes, I do use the number bar, and I hate it. I still don't know why there was a slash between the 19 and 94. I will take your advice, and not use the trigger for that. I just found out about the triggers yesterday, and I am still learning. How do you use the trigger for dates? I tried the '08, and that worked out.

I appreciate any advice.
Susan

[Jenny Griffin, RMR CRR CCRR CRC]

Susan, I write my numbers out. I do use the date trigger. I have several different triggers. Now you've got me thinking about streamlining my triggers, but I'm not quite in the mood. Are there certain numbers that are giving you problems? Have you downloaded and printed out the info Rebecca posted above? If you post a particular problem you're having, I bet it will get solved here.

[Susan Crivello]

Jenny, yes, I did print out Rebecca's info. Brenda is right, and not way off base....NC is for numbers. It does not work for....May 25, 1994. The month "May" throws it off.

I am going to keep working with the NC....anything to make my editing easier.

Thank you. This Eclipse users' group has been so helpful to me. Who needs to pay for seminars!

[Brenda Rogers]

I don't use NC so I may be way off base, but seems like you wouldnt use the date trigger if you are using a month in words. It's giving you the slash because it's trying to make a date out of the numbers 281994.

You NC users, do you use the date trigger when you use a word for the month? Just seems to me that that is addressing only digits and did what it's supposed to do in Susan's example.

[Jenny Griffin, RMR CRR CCRR CRC]

Does everyone know that when editing a number, you can press Ctrl Shift 3 to make the change the easy way? I just needed to change '84 to 8/4. I put my cursor on the '84, press that built-in editing macro, then click in the dropdown box to select the correct user template.