Court reporters have never faced a time of change in their profession as they are right now. The reporter is becoming not only the manager of the court record, but, in an informal sense, an information manager too. While it's true that the reporter whose technical knowledge extends only to the steno machine is quickly becoming the reporter of the past, these experts say, no one will have to become a computer geek to survive in this brave new world. Knowledge of some basic procedures will suffice. What s most important is to recognize the opportunities the smorgasbord of technology now coming together represents.
Court reporters have to re-evaluate where they are and where they want to go.
The court reporter who wants to stay a hundred percent court reporter and only use a steno machine will find that their skills are not as in demand because there's a demand for other things. We must respond to attorneys' needs and keep our profession in the mainstream by knowing what's out there and telling the attorneys how useful and productive it can be for them. You just have to find it and integrate it. The Role of Realtime Many of these value-added services bounce off realtime transcription. But with software systems like LiveNote and Summation offering realtime capability, many believe its use will certainly become more common.