Part 1 covers a lot of ground, all of the basics, in fact: What makes a phone a smartphone, the most commonly encountered smartphone operating systems (iOS, Android, Blackberry, Windows Phone 7), what 3G and 4G mean and what they mean for you as a user, what the major carriers are offering in terms of phones and service, "apps" as a general topic (what they are and can do for you) and then a few very popular apps are covered.

Part 2 picks up where Part 1 left off. With basics out of the way, Marybeth and Scott zoom in on how the smartphone can be used as a valuable business tool by court reporters. Need to get to a job and route around the traffic jam ahead of you? There are apps that handle the task beautifully. Does keeping track of expenses make you crazy? They'll show you apps that simplify the process and you can use them on the fly, as you are racking up those charges. Use your smartphone to scan business cards and documents quickly and easily. Use an app to deliver transcript to your clients. And learn how to use Google Sync to handle messaging, scheduling, mapping, voicemail, and more.

There are literally THOUSANDS of different gadgets and gizmos out there. The trouble is knowing which ones work—and don’t—as well as which ones are best suited for court reporters.

It's that time of year again. Black Friday is just around the corner and after that it's downhill all the way through the holiday season and the New Year. These are festive occasions, but for most of us it also means we're destined for a lot of shopping, gift giving, and even a bit of tax planning. We'll be choosing gifts for those we love, those we work with, those we do business with, and, if a tax-deduction is desirable, even for ourselves.

Choosing the right gift is often a quandary, at least for many on your list. We can help. We're going to present a webinar chock full of cool gadgets and gizmos, tech tools and devices that will make great gifts for your colleagues in reporting as well as for yourself.

We have finally reached the long-awaited release of Windows 7. This event has inspired lots of press coverage and confident proclamations by Microsoft, which is all too happy to step away from Vista, the operating system everyone loves to hate, especially the folks over at Apple. The release of a new version of Windows is always a seminal moment for court reporters because it runs our CAT software. Windows isn't always a gracious host (think of program freezes, Blue Screens of Death, failed connections, and so on), so this event has also inspired considerable curiosity and anxiety on the part of our clients as they look at new computers loaded with "7" (its shorthand name) and as they contemplate their own versions of Windows.

Scott and his panelists are going to talk some about Windows 7, but its release prompts us to spend most of our time on Windows, in general, and the features or settings within it. Here are some of the topics he'll cover, topics that affect you as a court reporter and which will help you understand Windows better and get more out of it.

It seems that everyone hates wires! Our recent webinar covering Wireless Realtime Transcription received many favorable comments, along with lots of requests to present another on the topic of realtime connections for steno machines. So, by popular demand, our next webinar will cover all the ways to hook up your steno machine for realtime.

Not all of those ways are wireless. Just as you can connect your realtime clients wirelessly or with cables, you can connect your writer either way, too. There are several choices and choosing the right one for you and your writer is essential. Another important aspect is making sure you're backed up. If one type of connection fails, how can you easily and quickly switch to another?

Michael and Scott will begin with an overview, explaining your alternatives, both wired and wireless. Since everyone wants to go wireless, they'll cover those options first, and work through hardware, software, and Windows considerations.

If you've ever been baffled by the technologies you must manage and deploy, you're not alone. Most court reporters are not technologists by inclination or training, yet every reporter must choose and rely on hardware and software that can be confusing and difficult. This webinar will help you chase away this demon as Marybeth breaks down the equipment and software you need, how to select it, where to get it, and, most important of all, how to get help if you have problems.