When viewed from a far enough distance, I am a court reporting newbie. Though most days I feel like a veteran, having just celebrated the 10th anniversary of my first paying gig, compared to many reporters, I'm just starting my sophomore year. I learned theory on an Xscribe Stenoram II hooked up to a StenoTrainer, so I never had the pleasure of hammering on a manual machine and had minimal exposure to transcribing paper notes. My first professional setup was one of the first Stentura 8000s linked to a monochrome Toshiba Satellite running OZpc.

I set forth my background by way of introduction to this statement: How in the hell I got along in those "early days" without synchronized audio is beyond me. I got on CaseCATalyst version 1.03 in the summer of 1997, which shipped with free AudioSync... and the audio was about the only thing that worked back then. After seven years of use, that freebie that came with my CAT system has saved me literally thousands of hours of editing time and no telling how many thousands of bucks.

Since I'm constantly queried on what laptop to buy, here's the hardware my wife and I are currently using, which I would put up against anything on the market right now as far as sound recording quality:

The AudioSync Holy Grail...

1. Toshiba Tecra M1 laptop. They're making the M2 now, just make sure it has the SoundMAX software on it.
2. CaseCATalyst 4 version 5 w/AudioSync. Light years ahead of the old Catalyst in sound quality and synch.
3. AudioTechnica ATR-97 microphone. Toss your SoundGrabber in the trash. This $20 mic makes all the difference.
4. Phillips SBC HN100 headphones. Top-notch noise-canceling full-ear headphones for about 60 bucks.

Funny story, at our house we call the Phillips headphones "Ed Phones," named after my dad. After I fled the nest and left him on his own, futilely trying to get a word in edgewise between my mom and sister, he perfected the fine art of tuning out. With my "Ed Phones" on, I can reach a similar state of inner peace, even if it is electronically enhanced.

On a final note, this hardware setup may work too well. As I'm penning this entry, my wife is at her desk wrestling with the fact that somehow her recording simultaneously picked up Houston's Tejano Country Favorites in addition to the depo proceedings. Trying to dig out a mumbling RN's testimony from beneath a tractor pull announcer yelling, "Domingo! Domingo! Domingo!" -- well, we all have our own personal hell.

"Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic." -- Arthur C. Clarke