krnotley

There's a whole thread on the problem of loading Sony files (msv/dvf) going back to February, called something like "Files not loading properly." There are several ways to deal with the problem, while Scribe's techs work on it... Best fix: If you have Sony's editing software, which comes with the voice recorder, you can use that to convert to wav. Then load to Scribe. Next: If you don't have Sony's software, download Switch Plus converter from NCH; it will work for free for two weeks for things like Sony and Windows Media, and then you either have to buy it, or only use it for simpler conversions like mp3/wav as unlicensed user. Next: download a version of Scribe that doesn't have some of the nice features of the later versions, but does load msv/dvf and wma files. Version 4.05 is available as a zip file here: I found a zip file of ES v4.05 from October 2006 at www.download.com. Search for it under "Express Scribe" not ExpressScribe." I would recommend saving the latest essetup.exe in the C:\program files\nch swift sound folder, and then you can switch off installing that and the earlier version as you need to. Good luck, KRN

Brendan, I found a quite older version, 2005-ish, as a zip file. I keep both the essetup.exe for the latest version, the one before that, and this zip file in c:\programs, rather than c:\programs...scribe, so I can load whichever I want, as needed. I found a zip file of ES v4.05 from October 2006 at www.download.com. Search for it under "Express Scribe" not ExpressScribe." The address is http://www.download.com/Express-Scribe/300...tml?tag=lst-0-1 krn

Some or all of the of the dictations that disappeared from the Scribe window may still be there, in the "current" folder as wav files. Try looking in c:\documents and settings\all users\application data\nch swift sound\scribe\current. If you can't tell which is which files, go to the windows toolbar and under "view" add "date modified" or "date created" or both. Those will "map" to the dates you loaded them. Once you get them back into the Scribe window, you might be able to change the name to whatever the original was. Good luck, KRN.

We have a whole thread, with a little red "hot topic" box next to it about this problem, which dates back to February. It coincides with NCH (and everybody else in the world) scrambling to get their software compatible with Vista. I'm just a single free lance transcriber, but I popped the money to get Switch, to convert files that Scribe is having trouble swallowing. I recommend that for Sony, unless you have Digital Voice Editor which is part of the CD that comes with their Digital Voice Recorder to convert msv/dvf files. There may be other problems, eg with wma, too now. You can test Switch Plus for free for 2 weeks, before buying it. The free, unlicensed version won't convert Sony, wma, etc.

So far v 4.13 has a number of problems: Re Gerald's wma/Olympus report. I tested an old wma file, originally coded that way outside of digital voice recorders, and which had loaded to earlier versions. Both wma, and the msv/dvf files load only a few seconds or minutes. I looked to see how they converted in c:\documents and settings\...scribe\current and no wav file shows up at all. Meantime, the Welcome audio reloads every time Scribe is opened, and if the wav file is deleted from c:\...\scribe\current, then the title loads with 00:00 minutes. This is causing serious problems for people who rely on Scribe, and have purchased other Swift Sound products based on Scribe's reputation for reliability and the gold standard of transcription software. KRN

Try this: Look in C:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Application Data\NCH Swift Sound\Scribe\Current, and see if the wav files there are the full length they should be. Probably the best way to tell is right click and "open file with" whatever player you prefer such as Windows Media Player. If they are the right length, maybe you can then load THEM into ExpressScribe. Since they don't have the same name in that Current folder, you can guestimate which is which by when they were created. In the Current folder, click on View on the toolbar, go to "Choose Details" and add either "Date Created" or "Date Modified" as you like. They should be created in the same order you loaded them into the Express Scribe window. I'm just trying to think of a quick fix to save your transcriptions, but I'll let Tech handle the problems, like what format were they and so on. Good luck, KRN

Hi Des, FIOS is a DSL or broadband but it uses fiber optic cable which has a far, far greater bandwidth than copper coaxial cable (what we used to call "phone lines"). FIOS' slowest speed is 5Mbps download/1.5 Mpbs upload, whereas with the old DSL that came over the phone line--i.e. coaxial cable--our maximum download was 768 kpbs. In other words, the cheapest FIOS that Verizon offers is comparable in quality to a T1 line. I regularly download audios in the tens of MB within 5 minutes or less, and can download hundreds of MB in 10 or 15 minutes. I believe the price you quoted for DSL is comparable to what Verizon is offering for FIOS, but that's for residential, not business. Verizon's main reason for wiring up everything with fiber optic is to sell FIOS TV in competition with cable TV, which is still on coax. The fiber optic DSL service is secondary, and designed to attract TV customers. But because that's their aim, their focus is wiring up the suburbs, and they're much slower to put fiber optic in commercial areas. I would definitely go with fiber optic, whether it's Verizon's FIOS, or another company buying bandwidth from Verizon and reselling it under their brand, that's your choice. Good luck.

I'm going to take a guess that the problem is coming about because you're running out of room. If you look into C:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Application Data\NCH Swift Sound\Scribe\Done or the same pathway with "Current" at the end, you'll find that your transcription files are converted into a kind of wav file. Either NCH has a limit in these Done and Current folder or you're just running out of space on your hard drive. My suggestion is the following: If you have room on your hard drive, copy the 500 original files to a folder on your hard drive, and load them a few at a time into Scribe. If you can't do that, burn them onto a CD and load them from there (using Load Dictation Files, and giving the drive letter as the folder to look in). When you are done transcribing and checking each or several files, completely delete them one by one, by highlighting the file in the Scribe window and holding down the Control button (Ctrl) and Delete at the same time. You'll get a warning that it will completely delete it. It won't touch the file you've saved on your hdd or cd, just in the "Current" folder. An alternative way to delete them is to mark them done, and then go into C:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Application Data\NCH Swift Sound\Scribe\Done, and manually delete the files in there. I think it's terribly labor intensive, but it's been recommended by Admin. Then you should be able to load another one or several of your 500 files. And repeat the process. Good luck! KRN

If these are wma files, that is, if they have .wma as an extension, then you're not dealing with an audio cd--i.e., like a music cd which can take up to 1:19 hours of audio. Rather, you have a wma format file on a CD medium. Why they are not loading, when you use "load dictation files" and give the drive letter (say, D or E) where your CD is located, is another question. It may be that the files are copyright protected, which is not something I've dealt with. It is address in various other forums, such as Switch. Just to make sure that I couldn't reproduce a problem with loading the format as such, I just now did successfully load a wma format file, albeit from my PC, into ExpressScribe. A test would be whether you can save a copy of the file to your hard-drive, say My Music, and load it to ExpressScribe from there, and/or whether you can convert the saved .wma file to another format such as wav or mp3. If not, it may be that it has a write-protect on it for copyright or proprietary purposes.

You're much welcome... Admin has posted a notice on other threads that version 4.13 is coming out, and he includes the listing of fixes in the new version, which is very helpful. I'm looking forward to it... krn

We had Verizon DSL for a long time even though we were well outside the distance to the central office. Nonetheless--and I've had BIG fights with Verizon about our regular phone service--the DSL worked quite well. We've switched over to Verizon Fios (fiber optic), which costs less and is 5mb down, 1.5 up. The downside with Fiber, or was when we signed up, is that Verizon forces you to put your regular phone on their fiber optic cable, which doesn't function if the power goes out. They put a 4 or 8 hour battery on the phone to keep it up for that long, but if you have a serious storm, you either have to get lots more batteries (we did), or rely on being able to recharge your cell from another battery, such as your car. I don't know about Opt Online, but I do recommend Verizon Fios for internet. Good luck.

All versions of ExpressScribe are free. I'm not clear on how you can have more than one file with over an hour on an audio cd. The medium usually doesn't take more than 1:19 minutes in audio format. Perhaps they're in another format, in which case use "load dictation files" and use the drive letter as the file to load from. If you see the files, they're probably not in audio format. Try loading them and see if that works better.

Would this slightly older version from www.download.com work with W95? I found a zip file of ES v4.05 from October 2006 at www.download.com. Search for it under "Express Scribe" not ExpressScribe." The url is http://www.download.com/Express-Scribe/300...tml?tag=lst-0-1

I supplied this link to another thread earlier this year. I found a zip file of ES v4.05 from October 2006 at www.download.com. Search for it under "Express Scribe" not ExpressScribe." The url is http://www.download.com/Express-Scribe/300...tml?tag=lst-0-1

I'm glad the new version worked better. Your second question is waaaay too technical for me. I'm a transcriber--really a high-tech typist--with a little side-line in the techie area, but very low grade. As for your last question, ES is designed to work with its dictation software, and much of it's workings are designed for high volume, fast turnaround transcription companies whose clients may use ExpressDictate, dispatch it by ftp to a server, which flags the transcription company, which then assigns it to a transcriptionist. These clients are often in the medical or legal field, or marketing consultancies, and they also have confidentiality issues. It's still plenty useful academic or journalistic users like you and me, but you have to take these other features into account, or you can get scrambled. That said, I recommend downloading your original files and saving them to a folder. Then, you use "Load Dictation Files" to load from the folder into ES. When it loads, ES will convert a copy of your file into dictation file (dct) with a wav extension, and save it in C:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Application Data\NCH Swift Sound\Scribe\Current. So, what ES uses is an uncompressed version of your original, which can take up quite a bit of space on your HDD. You can completely delete it from ES--from the C:\...\Scribe\Current folder--by using ctrl delete within ES, which I do as soon as I'm satisfied I no longer need it. Since I have my original safely in its relevant folder, I can retrieve it and reload if necessary. --KRN

Hi, I replied to this issue in a number of threads: With v4.12, F7 and F8 default to real FF/RW, instead of backstep/forwardstep. And the maximize feature is just a bug. However, despair not: Here's the fix! Go into Hot Keys Setup, choose F7 as the key and then there's a drop down menu that has "backstep 5s." Similarly with F8 for "step forward 5s." For some reason the back/fwd step settings do not maximize Scribe. Then I set up F7/F8 for back/fwd step, and Shift F7/F8 or something like that for FF/RW. What would be VERY nice, aside from posting the new version with its number on the webpage, would be to have a page saying what the new features/fixes there are. Almost everybody does it, and the client can decide then whether to download the new version, or wait. I've since discovered that if you do use RW/FF, regardless of its hot key assignment, they will still maximize the screen--an annoyment to be sure. The workaround is that if your file is playing, you can hold down whatever hot keys you assigned to backstep/fwdstep, and it will zip along until you release the key, at which point it stops. In contrast to RW/FF, in which you click the hotkey and it goes into RW/FF until you hit Stop. Good luck, KRN

From your oringal message, I suspected there might be another issue, that was preventing you from changing the Hot Keys. It may also be an issue with the Scribe version itself... There were earlier posts about v4.11 complaining of exactly that problem, I either didn't have or wasn't aware of. I assumed you were talking about 4.12 which changed the assignments on F7 and F8 from backstep/fwd step, to RW/FF respectively. In addition to the assignment change, in v4.12, it causes a minimized ExpressScribe to maximize. My solution was to reassign F7 and F8 to backstep/fwd step, in the manner I described. If you decide to download v4.12, you might want to save 4.11 just in case you like that better, and need to switch back. There have been quite a few new versions since February, in part to become Vista friendly. Let me know how it goes! KRN

If I understand your question about skipping ahead without using fast forward, you can use the Hot Key Setup for that. Or, what I did was to reassign the rw/ff keys (F7 and F8) to "backstep 5s" and "step forward 5s" respectively, since I've been using the program so long, that's where my fingers go. I actually have several transcriber assistants, and have reassigned all their hot keys to cohere with ExpressScribe as much as possible. Go into Control or go to Control from Settings. If you want to add your favorite key, choose that; if you want to change F7 and F8, choose "change." You should get a drop down menu, which allows you to select backstep 5s and step forward 5s, one for each hot key. It also turns out, if while playing the audio, you can hold down the backstep/forward step, it will continue to move backward or forward at high speed until you release the key, at which point it will stop. Not a true RW/FF, but sufficient. I hope that answers your questions.

Why not open Scribe first, and then play the file, since it's obviously there. But Scribe does copy most files to a form of wav, which are quite large, so you can't keep files there forever unless you have lots of HD space. To completely delete Scribe files, use ctrl delete.

Actually, there is no longer a text box in ExpressScribe. I had the same thing happen, when I installed 4.10, and only after a while did I realize that what I was typing was showing up as notes beside the file in the ES box itself. It is useful for Notes, tho'. KRN PS, I have XP--it's not a Vista issue.

The RW/FF in version 4.12 are not really backstep/fwdstep any more, but real RW/FF. You can use Hot Key Setup to change F7 to "step back 5s" and F8 to "step forward 5s" and that will both restore them to what you're used to, and also solve the problem of minimized Scribe re-maximizing, whenever you hit F7/F8. Then, I set up ctrl F7 as RW and ctrl F8 as FF. There are some other changes, such as next bookmark/prev bookmark are now ctrl +num6 and ctrl + num4, but it might help to look around a bit, re-read some of the Manual, which could save you some frustration. KRN

Are you sure this is "cvf" and not Sony's "dvf"? I've never heard of "cvf." You can download nch's Switch Plus trial software which will convert the Sony formats msv and dvf into wav or mp3. If it's not the Sony format that you're talking about, are you sure Scribe won't open it? --krn

Here's a suggestion, but it might lose your existing settings: Try uninstalling ES completely and then redownloading and installing it. Just at a guess, there may be an artefact from the earlier version that's causing a hickup. Obviously, before you uninstall, you want to write down or otherwise save settings, you can't easily reconstruct. Good luck, krn

Now F7 and F8 default to real FF/RW, instead of backstep/forwardstep. And the maximize feature is just a bug. However, despair not: Here's the fix! Go into Hot Keys Setup, choose F7 as the key and then there's a drop down menu that has "backstep 5s." Similarly with F8 for "step forward 5s." For some reason the back/fwd step settings do not maximize Scribe. Then I set up F7/F8 for back/fwd step, and Shift F7/F8 or something like that for FF/RW.

Now F7 and F8 default to real FF/RW, instead of backstep/forwardstep. And the maximize feature is just a bug. However, despair not: Here's the fix! Go into Hot Keys Setup, choose F7 as the key and then there's a drop down menu that has "backstep 5s." Similarly with F8 for "step forward 5s." For some reason the back/fwd step settings do not maximize Scribe. Then I set up F7/F8 for back/fwd step, and Shift F7/F8 or something like that for FF/RW.