When synchronized with the DiscoveryVideoZX software and a specialized VCR, portions of videotape can be located and played automatically, without significant trial delay. Information storage and presentation via Folio Views. Plus for Windows is installed in Courtroom 21 to provide text-searching database capabilities to the participants. Text databases allow one to search for words or combinations of words in documents and transcripts to find the required information. Folio Views provides similar text-searching capabilities on the user's computer.
More advanced users can create logical hypertext links between sections of documents.
When a court reporter writes, the computer within the Stentura translates strokes into English. The Stentura is connected via a cable to a host personal computer in the control room, which distributes the transcript to the judge and counsel, who receive the trial testimony on their personal computers. Hearing-impaired witnesses and jurors can greatly benefit from this technology since they can read along with the testimony in the courtroom simultaneously with the actual proceedings. And, the judge and attorneys can take a copy of the day's testimony with them on their laptop computer or on a floppy diskette for review and trial preparation. The second part of this article, which will examine the implications of the technology as it is used in practice, will appear in the next issue of the Bulletin.