CONGRATULATIONS MARK KISLINGBURY!

Stenovations would like to congratulate Mark Kislingbury on his recent win of the 2009 NCRA Speed Contest in Washington D.C.. Mark has competed in and won several competitions and set a Guinness World Record for speed writing in 2004.

Mr. Kislingbury has an online presence where he teaches his realtime theory and offers his new book: Magnum Steno: Write short, Write Fast! We are also proud to say that Mark was using a LightSpeed writer as he won this contest.

More information on Mark's theory, book, and products may be found at his website here. (http://www.magnumsteno.com)

Stenovations Introduces the LightSpeed!

Stenovations created a great deal of excitement at the mid-year convention in Vancouver by previewing its new steno writer. It was the "talk" of the convention, both during seminars and at social events.
The name says it all -- LightSpeed.

"Although LightSpeed is a great name for Digital Cat's keyboard, I could think of some others. Maybe Anti-Carpel Tunnel Keyboard, EZ-Travel Keyboard, or Speed-Demon-proof Keyboard. By any name, though, I am spoiled and will never be able to go back to the key-dipping writers again.

I'm into my fourth decade of court reporting now, and there are certain milestones that are still vivid in my memory. From the manual Remington to the magic ball-spinning IBM Selectric, the BaronData computer that filled a room with its pizza-sized dictionary disk, the smaller luggable sewing machine-sized computers to now the cableless CIC-configured laptops today.

Through all this the stenotype keyboard hasn't changed, although there have been power-assisted versions that have developed through the years, all of which you had better have a maintenance agreement to keep tuned.

Then came the LightSpeed, simple in design, dependable, practically maintenance-free, and perfectly suited to the super-fast processors of today.

For me it came just in time. After a career in freelance, I decided to accept a federal court officialship where every day is like a speed contest and, not getting any younger, I was regularly getting beat up writing realtime in the courtroom.

The LightSpeed takes out the mechanical limitation of machine writing, leaving one's skills to flow unbridled.

Its speed is so evident even in the simplest of applications, such as when forced to double-stroke for speaker identification. I even tested my opinion of its superiority by returning to my top-of-the-line Stylus writer one day. I couldn't believe how much I was slowed down by having to push even its sensitive keys down and wait for them to return before my next stroke.

True, it took me a while to get used to the LightSpeed keyboard. But those of us who remember going from a manual to electric typewriter know that was no easy transition either. And who of us would ever go back?

The LightSpeed is here to stay."

Nicholas A. Marrone, RMR, CRR

Atlanta, Georgia

***
"I have been a reporter since 1979. I have seen the advent of electric writers to computer-enabled writers, a huge difference in the capabilities of what you can do with the writer.

About two years ago at a convention I saw this new lightweight writer with a wonderful touch system. I decided after stroking the keys just at little that I wanted one.

I finally got to get my "Pink Pearl" last October, and I’ve never looked back since. I practiced on it for a week, starting with finger drills to acclimate my brain to the new stroke system and finger placement. Then I went on to write some old audios, and finally to taking my Ms. Pink Pearl on the job. I use the realtime functions on every job I take.

After so many years, my hands and right shoulder used to start hurting about 3:00 p.m. on an all-day job. Now I feel like I could write forever.

I have no hand or body pains. As a result, I feel less fatigued at the end of a long, hard deposition. I barely have to touch the keys, like a butterfly kiss.

I can put the "Pink Pearl" on my lap or on its stand to give my arms a movement break.

I actually enjoy writing again and am writing cleaner and faster than before because there is no pain.

I “borrowed” one of the config files for finger pressure adjustments from Greta’s site. I just had to tweak a few settings for my personal touch.

I am so looking forward to being able to get the StarLight with this touch system.

The LightSpeed method is a burst of light on the field of court reporting with its innovative techniques. I equate it to the difference the iPhone has made in cell phones. I am just so totally in love with using this machine."

Patricia Harris Vernon
Seguin, Texas 78155
Wokiebear@aol.com

***

"When I first laid fingers on the LightSpeed, it was like coming home.

The machine is light. The touch is lighter. And writing is a joy.

I have received compliments on how quickly I set up for a job, since I don't need to deal with tripods, paper trays, and separate power cords.

And the best part is I no longer get a knot in my back and pain in my wrist. After one month of using the LightSpeed, those problems went away.

I am madly in love with my LightSpeed."

Kathryn A. "Stenoray" Thomas, RMR, CSR-IL, CCR-MO
www.stenoray.com
www.linkedin.com/in/stenoray
www.twitter.com/stenoray
Caseyville, IL 62232

***

"I have been waiting 25 years for this machine.
It really is effortless writing, unlike anything else available. I walk around with a laptop bag now, instead of a 50-pound wheelie case."

Tony Lorenz, RDR-CRR
Freelancer in Atlanta, GA.

***

"I have been using the LightSpeed since it debuted in August 2007.

I love this little gem.

It's totally different from anything out there -- feather-light, uniquely designed, a dream to write on!

Now my fingers barely move, and accuracy is improved with quieter hands.

Shoulder fatigue is a thing of the past, as is the need for the awkwardness of a tripod.

I have let go my 8000 and instead carry two LightSpeeds with me at all times, and still don't come close to the weight I carried with the one standard writer. I throw a bag over my shoulder and off I go.

I'm a deposition reporter of 22 years, and I will never go back to a standard-style writer."

Brenda Y. Rogers, CSR (Oregon)

***

"The LightSpeed has been the most important court reporting purchase I've made in my 15 years of court reporting.

When I purchased the LightSpeed, I had grown increasingly tired of reporting. I bought it sight unseen and received one of the first batch of units.

I started using it the day after it arrived at my house. I've never looked back.

The LightSpeed has not only decreased the pain and fatigue in my neck, shoulders, and arms; it has (more importantly) re-ignited my joy of court reporting.

I had been real-timing for a couple of years before I got my LS, but it was after I got my LS that I really started to strive for the coolest techy type things I could find.

I went wireless on my real-time output, bought throw-down netbooks so anyone and everyone could get a real-time feed, and just started really trying to be on the cutting edge of our great profession.

Sure, the pain-free nights are probably the best thing about my LightSpeed. But I sincerely believe it was the catalyst for me to really start enjoying what I do again.

Thank you, Stenovations, and the twisted, beautiful mind that is Johnny Jackson, for the first truly next-generation jump in the steno machine."

Steve Stogel
Austin, TX
Stogels@sbcglobal.net

***

"My name is Alan Lesky.

In April of 1972 I sat down in front of a metal steno writer on my first day of court reporting school that my uncle, Harold Schulman, had given me.

In 1973, well on my way to becoming a reporter, I bought my first new steno writer with my earnings as a typist/notereader.

Over the decades as a freelance reporter, I've written on many different writers. There were times, however, when I would be watching a presidential speech on TV or a scene from a trial when I would "pretend" to write what was said on my leg or just in midair, to see if I could keep up.

I would think to myself, If only someone would invent a writer with the touch of a feather like that.

So when I saw the LS advertisement first appear in 2007, let's say I was more than intrigued.

Then I tried it at the New Jersey convention in April of '08 and knew I could write on it. So I bought it.

I practiced on it for about an hour a day for three weeks before trotting it out at a deposition. I haven't looked back since.

I now go to depos with just a small shoulder bag. Although I couldn't prove it medically, my body is healthier for it. I can assure you your hands and elbows will thank you after writing all day.

The LS touch is in a category it shares with no other."

Al Lesky

***

"I got the Lightspeed writer and was up and runnning for a job the very next day.  Wow!  E-a-s-y to use and set up.  It is so cool, how it writes.  Got the bluetooth working as well. 

Response so far:  Super Cool! (from my daughter and a couple of clients).  The touch is perfect.  I don’t use the finger pads.  Like the software, a winner! 

I am one who used to have my writers purposefully adjusted to have as little key motion as possible.  I discovered years ago that that is where a great deal of waste in energy and speed is.  I was up and running the next day, in an all—day job, with no problem at all.  EASY is hardly the term for the learning curve, but I don’t know a better word"

Mark Crossley

***

For LightSpeed accessories: Please Click Here