Want to Transcribe Audio to Text in 5 Easy Steps?

Imagine if you have been tasked to transcribe a large audio file to text and you were hoping to open a word processor, play the audio file, and start typing away. Unfortunately, you would end up spending most of your time rewinding the audio, constantly switching tabs, or checking to see if you missed anything. Luckily the transcription process does not have to be this tedious.

With the help of professional transcription software, you can significantly reduce the time it takes to convert audio to text and make your life much easier in the process. Express Scribe is the most comprehensive audio transcription software and has everything you need to help you transcribe audio to text faster.

How to Transcribe Audio using Express Scribe

1. Download and Install Express Scribe

Download and install Express Scribe. It is free to download for PC and Mac and installation should only take less than a couple of minutes. 

Download Express Scribe for Windows

2. Adjust Settings

Click on Options in the main menu bar to set and change all your transcribing settings. Set the audio playback to suit your typing skills or the quality of the recording. Additionally, you can also configure your foot pedal controller, hot-keys, speech-to-text software, and more. 

3. Load Dictation(s)

Once your settings have been configured, it is time to load your dictation file.  Load your audio file(s) by either uploading your file from your local machine, through an FTP server, LAN or even directly from a portable dictation recorder. 

4. Start Transcribing Audio to Text! 

It’s transcription time! Select the loaded audio file and click the Play button to start. Open Microsoft Word or any other word processor to type the text. Alternatively, you can also use the note section in Express Scribe, under the main interface to type your text. If needed, you can slow down or speed up the playback using the speed control tool in the bottom right corner. Additionally, you can also adjust the volume of the playback. 

5. Share Transcription

After you have finished transcribing your audio file to text, you can either select the “Done” button which will remove the file from your list, or select Dispatch to email your transcription along with your text attachment and remove the file from your list. 

So, there you have it. You have successfully transcribed an audio file to text in 5 easy steps. Whether you're an independent typist working for a Medical or Legal business, the Head of Marketing working on internal communication videos, or a secretary or needing to transcribe a recorded interview, Express Scribe has you covered. 

Download Express Scribe for Windows

How Text Expander Software Can Save You 100's of Hours a Year

How keyboard macro programs can increase productivity through typing shortcuts

If you work as a legal/medical transcriptionist, eBay reseller, customer relations manager, data entry clerk, programmer, or web designer - a simple text expander program can help you save many hours a week by creating text typing shortcuts to fill in common phrases or code strings in your workflow. Text expansion is a bit like auto-complete on a cell phone/Google — it allows you to enter a long string of text with a shorter string. When you’re using a text expansion app, it monitors your typing, and whenever you type a specific sequence of letters, it will replace those letters with a predefined piece of text. It could be your name, your address, or a full paragraph that you’ve saved.

Think of how many things you type over and over on a regular basis and the number of seconds it takes to write each phrase - text expansion allows me to type a few letters instead of that whole string of characters. Do the math - if you are in the medical transcription field, you are often typing long words that are hard to spell (and often don't register correctly with spell check). With a short setup period with the software, you can have several common diagnoses and descriptive sentences ready to go - a paragraph that would have taken a minute or two to type up can now be written in a few seconds!

With transcription usage covered, a couple of other examples:

eBay Seller:

Have a couple of different templates or common descriptions for your items? Save each one with a different string, and halve the time needed to make each listing and get more products up and running.

Customer Relations (CRM):

If you manage support emails or a business Facebook/Twitter account, you can have frequently used responses (Thank you for the comment, please leave us a review here; Sorry to hear about your issue with our product! For technical support, please go here; etc) saved and ready to go. It will certainly make qualifying for the Facebook Page Responsiveness Badge easier for your business page!

Data Entry/Programming/Web Design:

Have a particular formula, recursive loop, file location, or coding template that is referred to multiple times in your project? Text expanders don't just store letters, you can have common code snippets saved as well to save on development time.

Give our highly rated text expander a try: FastFox Text Expander for Windows and Mac

Features:

Text Expansion and Image Insertion

• Expand keyboard shortcuts into words or phrases
• Create an unlimited number of text shortcuts
• No limit on expanded text length
• Save plain text or formatted rich text expansions
• Create a shortcut to insert images 

Shortcut and Macro Creation

• Define macros for actions using special keys
  (i.e., Ctrl, Alt, and Shift)
• Create shortcuts from multiple key commands
• Use keyboard macros within any program
• Utilize a shared shortcut file on a network to standardize stock text across your business
• Back up and restore shortcut data and groups 

Intuitive Autocomplete

• FastFox learns your most commonly typed phrases and suggests them to you as you type, so you can select and insert text on the fly.

For a quick lesson on using FastFox, read this tutorial from WikiHow

Click on the link to download or purchase:

FastFox Text Expander and Typing Shortcut Software by NCH

Pocket Dictate for Android is Officially Here

It has been asked for repeatedly, and some of you may have started to lose hope, but the brand new Android version of Express Dictate has finally arrived.

Doctors, Lawyers, and other professionals will be glad to have the easy dictation-recording app on their Android phone, complete with HIPPA compliant encryption for keep client information safe when you send recordings off to be transcribed.

Transcriptionists too will want to take note of this wonderful new portable option for recording to recommend to clients.

We are really excited to have this Android dictation app available and we are only sad that we didn't get it into your hands sooner.

Making Fast & Accurate Transcriptions from Audio Files

Guest post by Danielle McAnn of Smartdocs

Transcription work requires close attention to detail. Every transcription should be assessed individually, as each one will depend on length, quality of recording and turnaround time. There are large companies such as Smartdocs dedicated purely to the transcription of audio files into text documents. We all know that while machine and audio transcription technology has come a long way, it is still useless compared with the keen ear and eye of a human when it comes to decoded human voices and interpreting human speech. Especially when there is more complex terminology being used as is the case in most medical and legal transcriptions. In other words, if you want a high quality, accurate transcription, you need a human to so it. That doesn't mean that you can't use technological aides to help you with professional transcription.

Tools like Express Scribe offer things like variable speed playback of both audio and video files, and transcription file management, making high quality, human transcription much much easier. And, with digital dictation software you can record and send dictation straight to someone else, whether a fellow typist or the document owner. It doesn't matter whether you are using a Mac or PC operating system, you still need a reliable audio software that you can control and manipulate with an effective user interface, because this will make the entire transcription process more efficient and more importantly, produce accurate transcribed files.

Amazing Tools for Transcription

Guest post by EQ Trans UK

As a transcription services provider which caters to clients all across the UK, we believe in the importance of using technology that enables our transcriptionists to perform at their optimum, while simultaneously benefiting our clients as well. Using the appropriate software while working on a transcript can help a transcriptionist do a better thorough job of transcribing and, of course, help in meeting deadlines faster, too.

We have been using various NCH software for a while and they are now form basics of what we do. If you are new in the transcription industry, here is what minimum you need to have to get going:

Express Scribe – This audio player which can be used on both PCs and Macs comes loaded with many features, such as support for foot pedals, variable speed playback, as well as speech-to-text integration. This software does a great job of supporting all the popular file formats. It also gives a transcriptionist better control over the audio playback through the use of a foot pedal and even keyboard shortcuts. Express Scribe does not take up too much screen space, unlike other software, and runs quietly in the background while a transcriptionist is at work.

Switch Sound File Converter - Although there are plenty of file converters available, this software wins hands down for its simplicity. Our clients often send us digital audio files in other formats and we use this software to convert them into an mp3 format using 128 bit mono encoding. This makes it easier for uploading files on our secured server so that our transcriptionists can get to work. Switch also gives users an additional option of configuring up to 3 right-click options which make the conversion process faster, too.

Prism Video Converter - This video file converter converts files from any format to the most commonly used formats, either in singles or in batches, and can even convert files directly from DVDs and other multimedia devices. We use this software mainly for converting large video files into mp3 file format so that they can be uploaded on our server easily. Prism also has another option of resizing a video file format and customising it in terms of the frame rate, brightness, and contrast, as well as text and caption addition.

WavePad Editing Software - One factor which can be detrimental to the process of transcribing itself is the presence of background noise in an audio file. The WavePad Audio Editing Software works on both PCs and Macs, allowing the user to cut and paste specific sections of the recording, besides adding features like noise reduction. This software supports a large number of file formats and has a remarkably easy-to-use interface as well.

EQ Trans UK is a transcription agency based in the UK. We have a well-trained and certified team of transcriptionists to address any client requirement.

What Dictation Can Do For You

Dictation and transcription are common practices in various fields, including the medical profession, law, court reporting, even insurance. However many of us have never considered what dictation or transcription is, much less how it might be able to help us in our careers.

When you have many different reports, letters, memos, or even articles to write, dictation can be a better use of your time than writing them all out yourself. With digital dictation software, you create an audio file with what you want those documents to say. If you need to add something, or go back, you can easily go to any point in the dictation to insert or even overwrite sections. When you are done editing your audio dictation the only thing left for you to do is send it off to your transcriptionist.

At this point all you need to do is wait for the transcriptionist to type up the document from for you. Express Scribe is a very popular transcription software allowing you to play, fast forward, rewind, stop, and slow down dictations to make transcribing faster and easier. And professional transcriptionists are well versus in their areas of expertise giving that extra insurance of complicated medical or legal terminology is correct. Accuracy is doubly important in the professional world and fast, accurate documents sent back to you is exactly what you will get.

Professionals everywhere can become more efficient freeing up time for other tasks by taking advantage of dictation and transcription. Consider what you do at your job, what you type, and how long it takes to create these documents. There is undoubtedly some aspect of your day to day activities that could benefit. Download Express Dictate and Express Scribe and see how it can help you.

D is for Dictation

NCH Software ABCs Series

Dictation is still a reality in many industries. While automatic voice-to-text applications may be on the rise, and can be wonderful for the casual user, in professions like medicine and law, a mis-translated term or phrase is a costly error. In the past we have talked to professionals who have benefited from the streamlined efficiency of a digital dictation process for getting their medical reports, correspondence or case notes documented. We aim to provide a wide range of solutions to fit anyone that needs to record dictations. These flexible options allow recordings to be made from anywhere then sent off for transcription instantly, saving you time.

NCH Dictation Solutions include:

• Express Dictate dictation software
  
• Pocket Dictate iPhone dictation app
  
• MSRS court and conference recording
  
• Dial Dictate phone in dictation system
  
• Web Dictate internet dictation system
  
• Express Delegate dictation workflow management
  
• Express Scribe transcription software
  

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Express Scribe Pro for Mac

Following the September announcement of the new professional version of Express Scribe, we are pleased to say that now the Mac version of our extremely popular transcription software has followed suit and now there are both free and professional versions of Express Scribe available for Mac OS X as well. Features of the professional version include video playback and support for proprietary audio file formats including dss, ds2 and mvf for those professionals working in legal or medical transcription.

Growing A Quality Transcription Business With Express Scribe

Guest Post by Annalisa Holmes, Director of The Transcription People

We have been using Express Scribe transcription software in our Australian-based outsource transcription business for years and we love it. Why? I have a list, so here goes:

Cost Effective

You can't get more cost effective than free software. For as long as I can remember Express Scribe has been free. This continues to be the case with a free version still being offered alongside a new paid Pro version.

In my business I employ a mix of transcriptionists; we have some work onsite in our office but the majority are work-from-home micro-businesses. Included in that mix are a wealth of "old school" typists and "wannabe" transcriptionists. Old school typists are used to the cassette tape days of micro and mini cassette dictation and are very experienced at transcription. Wannabe typists have time on their hands, want to learn a new job skill and possibly work from home or for an employer.

Express Scribe is perfect for both these dynamics, experienced typists can very quickly switch their mindset to the digital way of doing things and with the option of a USB foot control, can make the transition very quickly from tape to digital transcription with a free download and a low-cost foot pedal. Those new to transcription can have the software installed in minutes and have the flexibility of training themselves using the configurable control keys. For a zero dollar outlay Express Scribe is a very attractive tool to those looking to start a career in transcription.

Multiple Use Scenario

Most people think of Express Scribe as just a tool for transcription typists. That is true for the majority of people, but in my business we also utilise Express Scribe for our proofreading team. My company is renowned for producing high quality, accurate transcription and the way that we do that is with a two-step quality assurance process. Step one is the traditional transcription typist who listens and transcribes. Step two is where the quality and consistency across clients is provided by our proof-reading team. The proofreaders do not transcribe, their role is to apply customer-specific formatting and act as a second set of eyes over the transcript, ensuring the highest quality.

My proofreading team use Express Scribe to play back audio whilst reading through the transcripts. Typically they prefer the control key functionality and love the variable speed playback, one of the many features in Express Scribe.

Very Easy To Set Up, Install and Use

Express Scribe can be installed and up and running in minutes. For users of all technical levels we have found Express Scribe to be a breeze to get working and get used to. People of all transcription abilities get used to Express Scribe very quickly. As we all use the same software throughout my business, we have a pool of experts within our own teams who can help each other out with any questions.

From a business point of view, all my staff are on the same page when it comes to transcription and proofreading software. We don't need to waste time supporting various vendors' software. Consistency across the team makes for a smoother transcription and proofreading workflow.

The Future

I really can't see my business moving away from Express Scribe, there is no need. It has served us well for years and will continue to do so for years to come. We are particularly excited about the new Pro version of Express Scribe which can now process the DSS Pro audio files created on the latest Olympus and Philips digital dictaphones. Before the Pro version came along we had to include an extra file conversion step from .ds2 to .dss. Now NCH has that covered.

Thank you NCH for your excellent software, which has helped my business get to where it is today.

Annalisa Holmes is the director of The Transcription People Pty Ltd, one of Australia's largest outsource transcription services. Annalisa started as a transcription typist in the early years of forming her business and now oversees a large team of transcription typists across Australia and New Zealand. The Transcription People service clients from across Australia, the USA and the UK and boasts AMP, Holden, Ernst & Young as some of her clients.

New Express Scribe Professional Edition

Express Scribe, one of NCH's most successful products and a favorite among transcriptionists worldwide, is going Pro. With the extreme popularity of the program, we have decided to offer some of the functionality in a professional version for a nominal fee that will help us better support users, fix problems, and implement new features and improvements. The free version of this popular transcription software isn't going away, but advanced features like video playback and support for proprietary audio file formats (e.g., dss, ds2, mvf) will now be supported in the professional version.

Transcription Foot Pedal or Hotkeys?

One of our programs popular with transcriptionists worldwide is Express Scribe Free Transcription Software. Express Scribe, an invaluable tool to transcriptionists, helps control the playback of audio or video files during transcription with extremely helpful features, including variable speed playback, and can be controlled either with a transcription foot pedal or with assigned 'hotkeys' on the keyboard. Most transcriptionists rave about foot pedals, but have you ever wondered if they really make transcription more efficient or if their use is really just a matter of preference?

Well here's your answer. Chris Beamish at HoT Virtual Assistant Resources recently crunched the numbers on if you should use hot keys or a foot pedal for transcription and, based on his estimates, you could potentially save yourself over 11 hours-worth of typing in a week by using a foot pedal instead of hotkeys where he has found the potential for hitting the wrong command to be much more likely.

What do you think? Do you use a foot pedal or hotkeys with Express Scribe? And if you invested in a foot pedal did you see an increase in your productivity once you got into the swing of things?

Express Scribe Gets DS2 Support

Express Scribe users rejoice! One of your most requested features has arrived: support for .ds2 (DSS Pro Voice) audio dictation files. Express Scribe Transcription Software Version 5.30 for Windows is the first version to include support for both dss and ds2 dictation file formats, so the time of workarounds and training your clients to back-save is now a thing of the past. And ds2 support for the Mac version of Express Scribe will be on the way soon.

Stop Typing the Same Things Over and Over Again

Have you ever noticed that there are some things that you type all of the time? Some of the most common things that I find myself typing all of the time include the company description of NCH Software, a signature for when I leave comments on blogs or forums, and even a couple of answers to FAQs that seem to be constantly popping up in my email inbox, just to name a few. Being able to store these pieces of text with FastFox Text Expander is a huge help. Instead of looking up the information from the last time I answered a question, or wasting the time to write the whole thing I've typed a million times before all over again, I just need to type a couple characters and FastFox automatically expands that keyboard shortcut I chose into the complete answer/description/signature that I stored. Then I can quickly move on, or make minor edits to the text for the specific situation, and still be done in a fraction of the time.

Text Expansion Software is often sold to transcriptionists because of the boost it provides in typing efficiency. It really is an invaluable tool for helping medical and legal transcriptionists transcribe faster and reduce errors with long or complex terms and jargon, but truth be told, almost anyone can find things that they themselves type repeatedly and can benefit from having an application like FastFox to reduce this constant repetition in typing.

Florida Lawyer Reduces Paperwork and Cuts Administrative Costs with Express Dictate

If any job can claim to be buried in paperwork, it would certainly be the legal profession. Everything that is said related to any case must be documented, on the record, creating a constantly growing paper trail that can be hard to stay on top of. Just ask Richard Georges, a lawyer in St. Petersburg, Florida whose practice handles real property, corporate, wills, trusts and estates law.

“Dictating memos, correspondence, and mounds of paperwork is something that lawyers do all day, every day,” Georges said. He used to spend his days dictating into handheld machines, carrying tapes to his secretary, or using expensive systems that sent dictation over cords to a carousel tape machine on his assistant’s desk. But that wasn’t enough. He also wrote important case details down on paper and brought his scribbled notes to his assistant for transcription.

The paperwork was overwhelming, and he needed a solution that would enable him to devote enough time to strategize, research, to counsel his current clients, and to attract new ones.

Georges writes a column called Future Lawyer for the Tampa Bay Review. He served on the Florida Courts Technology Commission by appointment of the Florida Supreme Court, and is a past Chair of the Committee on Technology for the Florida Bar. He also served on technology-related Committees for the Real Property, Probate and Trust Law Committee of the American Bar Association and the Law Practice Management Section of the American Bar Association. His knowledge, experience, and position afforded him the opportunity to do exhaustive research of every possible dictation solution.

He found Express Dictate digital dictation software was a perfect fit for his needs, allowing him to record and send dictation directly from his computer. The software also included a Palm OS version that allowed him to dictate from his cell phone when he was away from the office.

“Express Dictate is the most useful, easiest to use, productivity tool in my arsenal,” Georges said. “Just dictate, and email the result to your transcriptionist.” This new dictation process is far more accurate and less time consuming than the old tape machine system. “My assistant no longer has to listen to me read to her, which has made her very happy.”

To see how Express Dictate can revolutionize workflow in your legal practice or office, cut down on scribbled notes, and relieve your assistant from doubling as a transcriptionist, download a free 14-day trial today. For your transcriptionist, Express Dictate works seamlessly with the free transcription program Express Scribe.

New Practice Transcription Audio Files

One of the questions I have seen asked several times in transcription forums in the past is from people new to the field looking for audio files to practice transcribing. I've always thought it would be great to provide some practice files to the next generation of Express Scribe transcriptionists to use as they are learning and gaining experience in transcription. Half the battle at the start of a transcriptionist’s career is getting fully acquainted with transcription playback software or practicing using a transcription foot pedal for that extra edge of hands-free audio control that can be such a huge efficiency boost.

With that said, I am really excited that, with the help of our friends at Accuro Transcription Services, we have pooled together a new resource for transcription students, providing several sample audio files to use with Express Scribe transcription playback software to practice your transcribing skills. In addition to the audio files, we have also included final transcribed PDFs that you can check your work against after you've finished typing out the sample.

So if you are looking for some practice transcription files, or know someone else just starting out in transcription, be sure to check out this new Practice Transcription Resource available at NCH Software, and maybe stick around and look at some of our other software for typists while you're there.

Across the Digital Divide

A police department gains efficiency with digital recording and transcription software.

It is always great to see some of the ways our software is helping people. This month Speech Tech Magazine featured a story about the Rancho Cucamonga Police Department, who are using two of our popular products Express Dictate digital dictation software and our free Express Scribe transcription audio playback software to help them step into the digital age and clean up their transcription process making it more efficient. At Rancho Cucamonga PD officers dictate their reports to be transcribed by support staff.

"We were looking for something easy to use that performs reliably. NCH so far has measured up to our expectations."

-Detective Steve Wolff

Read the whole story, Across the Digital Divide in the October 2009 issue of Speech Technology.

Also be sure to take a look at our complete range of dictation software applications if you are looking for a dictation solution for yourself or your business.