Required

Computer

You need a computer that can run Windows to be able to install Case CATalyst. You don’t need the latest or greatest.

Case CATalyst Software

See below for the link to purchase the software from Stenograph, the company that sells Case CATalyst. Be sure to purchase the Edit edition, which is for scopists and proofreaders and not as expensive as the full version court reporters use. Also, Stenograph offers our students a discount. There are payment plans available with Stenograph. Be sure to contact a Stenograph representative directly to get your discount or payment plan.

Headphones

While you can, of course, hear the audio without headphones, we recommend them so much that we’re putting it as a requirement. They will help clear up a tricky word that maybe is difficult to hear, and they will help you really focus on what you’re doing and cut out any distractions in your environment. We recommend over-the-ear, noise-cancelling headphones.

Recommended

Books

Bad Grammar/Good Punctuation (BGGP) by Margie Wakeman Wells. ISBN9781881859598

We follow Margie’s guidance on many recommendations regarding punctuation of the spoken word. She is very well respected in the industry, and many court reporters follow her recommendations. She offers a discounted price for scopists and proofreaders.

Morson’s English Guide for Court Reporters by Lillian Morson. ISBN9780965793209

This is another well-loved English-language guide for court reporters. This book is considered by many to be the “bible” of transcript punctuation.

The Best Punctuation Book, Period, by June Casagrande. ISBN9781607744931

This book is a great high-level view of punctuation in general and can help when one gets a little lost in the weeds of punctuation.

The Gregg Reference Manual by William A. Sabin ISBN9781283391474

This book isn’t a guide specific to court reporting, but a lot of the recommendations in the other books are based on this one. It’s also more affordable than BGGP and Morson’s, so it’s a good place to start.

Gear

Monitor

As we said, you can do this on a laptop, but after a while, you may want a bigger screen to keep it easy on the eyes.

Foot pedal

A foot pedal minimizes the work you need to do with your fingers, can help speed, and can prevent you from missing portions of the record that were spoken but not recorded.