A videographer’s View Down The Table

OK, court reporters, please listen.   I know I have spoken to a number of you about the torturous way you treat your power cords.  I know some of your spouses and significant others have spoken to you about the electrical-cable-abuse you commit with wanton abandon.  I don’t know how many of you have ever suffered from a power outage secondary to the criminally sadistic manner in which you coil your cords.  I do know that if it hasn’t happened to you yet, it’s going to happen to you soon.

I do know that your videographers take great strides to ensure that their power cords and cables are coiled with love and care.  We don’t claim to have a greater knowledge concerning electrical wire “shorts.”  We don’t think ourselves superior for our angelic treatment of our wires. It’s just that, with very few exceptions, none of our equipment runs with a battery backup.

After five-and-a-half  years of video depositions, I had my first power outage.  It happened just before we were to go on the record and it was obvious to the whole room, as I had my auxiliary light plugged in on the same circuit.  When the light went out and the room was plunged into relative darkness, my first thought was the lamp-bulb itself. Doom!  Oh sure, I have a spare.  It’s never been tested but I have one.  The “DOOM” part is: it takes about 10 minutes for a halogen lamp to cool down enough to change!  And yes, thanks for asking, it WAS a doctor depo!  But, immediately, it became apparent that my whole “stack” was dark and the lights on my industrial strength power strip were as dark as closing time. Whew!  I reset the breaker on my power strip though it hadn’t tripped, and I moved my cord to another socket on the same wall.  This part of the hospital was enduring renovations so it was assumed this was the problem, and with power restored we went on the record.  For ten whole minutes.

That’s how long it took before the room went dark again and my stack powered down before my stunned and unbelieving eyes. I relocated my extension cord to a different wall ( Madame Court Reporter didn’t lose power ) and all was bright and ready to proceed, after an interminable wait as the dvd recorder chewed on the disc “repairing” it after the outage.  I actually have a battery powered backup as I record to a computer simultaneously.  Belt, suspenders, staples, duct-tape…whatever it takes.

We got through the morning, all of us believing it was just something to do with the construction.  Still, upon reflection I had to wonder, could it be something about the new dvd recorder?  Something about the iCharger plugged into the strip?  For my next deposition I was going to lighten the “load” on my power strip, just in case.

Fast forward one week.  Different case, different doctor, different hospital.  No construction. iCharger not plugged in.  Power for my mobile wi-fi hotspot across the room on a different wall.  Ready to go.  Holy reruns Batman!  It happened again.  I couldn’t get power to the stack!   It took less than five minutes to locate the fault.  My orange extension cord.  Arguably the most “abused” piece of wire in my kit.  Six plus years old, it was very stiff and never liked all of the recoiling it had to endure.  Still, it was very high quality and it’s not like I abused it as a child.  While there were no visible signs of breakage or damage, it looks like the hands of the most painful arthritic you have ever seen.  Because you can’t carry a spare “everything,” I was suddenly without an extension cord.  Lucky for me, no Nun can resist a poor soul with a ducky neck tie and Sister Louise let me use hers.  It did cost me a Diet Pepsi for the poor box, though!  Haven’t quite figured that one out yet….

So what, John?  So, dear friends, wires break and fail when they’re well taken care of.  When is your twisted and twisted and twisted power cord going to fail?  But John, our equipment runs on batteries.  Yep.  Batteries that have to be charged.  And when your “low-battery” lights start flashing like a disco light show – that’s the time my friends!  That is when your cords are going to fail.  You know I’m right.  So be kind.  Also, look at doing something to protect the “ends” of your cords.  I use “Rescue Tape” around the terminal ends of all my wires and power cords.  Any of the places where stresses are always put on the cable.  It prevents them from bending so radically and this will help to extend the life of your cables and cords.  There may be other products available and the same result can probably be had by using a liberal amount of electrician’s tape.  Also, straighten them out and gently loop them before you put them away. 

John Spohnholtz
Legal Video Services

NOTARY CERTIFICATION– EASIEST WAY TO RENEW.

Deposition Reporting - Jane M. Jones

As working certified court reporters, it is required that you keep your notary commission current.  If you’re anything like me, when you receive the documents in the mail informing you that your expiration date is looming, you groan and think, “I don’t have time for this.”  In this blog, I am going to tell you the steps you need to take to renew your notary certification.

1.  There is now a Wisconsin Notary Public quiz that you must pass in order to renew.  This is the first thing you need to do.  Go to www.wdfi.org.  Click on the Notary Public tab.  Then click on “Notary Tutorial Exam.”  There are seven chapters for you to study.  I would recommend printing them out and reading through them.  After you have finished studying the material (this should only take about an hour), then you are ready to take the quiz.  Once you start the quiz, you need to finish it at that time.  It is 50 questions.  If you have the seven chapters printed out, or a second computer handy, then you can refer to the chapters if you need to look something up.  After you are finished taking the test, you will receive your grade immediately.  You must get 90% to pass.  If you pass, you then need to print out a certificate verifying that you passed.  If you don’t pass, don’t worry about it.  You will be informed which questions you got wrong and which chapters to refer to for the correct answer.  Then you can retake the test.
2. Once you have your certificate for the quiz, then you need to go to the Forms tab of the same website.  You can print out the forms you need.  You will print out the Wisconsin Four-Year Commission Notary Public Application, the Oath of Office, and the form for the Notary Public Bond.  These are very easy to fill out.  Just follow the directions.  You will need a notary, other than yourself, for the Oath of Office form.
3. Make out two checks.  One will be made out to WDFI, for $20.00.  The other check will be made out to the Notary Bond Renewal Service for $25.00.
4. Personally, I then make it easy on myself and send my two checks, the three forms, and the certification that I have passed the tutorial, all to the following address:

Notary Bond Renewal Service
300 West Forest Avenue
Neenah, WI  54957-0698
Attn:  Ms. Judith Stilp

1-920-722-1331

No, these are not my relatives, but I have been using this firm for many years, and they are from my hometown and do a great job.  Once they get your paperwork, they will take care of sending everything to Madison for you, and you will be informed once your notary certification has been successfully renewed. 

I would note that I started receiving info in the mail about six months before my expiration date.  Once you send in the paperwork, your present notary commission will lapse, and the next term will begin.  You might want to wait until about two months before your expiration date.  Once you take the quiz, the certificate may only be good for a certain period of time, so I wouldn’t recommend taking the quiz and sitting on it for three months.

Also, the above method will only cost you $45.00 total, to renew.  The National Notary Association will offer you different options, some of which are more expensive.  Liability protection is also offered.  That is a personal decision you need to make.  I have never thought it was necessary; however, after studying for the quiz, you will realize that being a notary public does have many serious responsibilities and penalties for not complying with the statutes.

That’s it.  The whole renewal process should only take you about two hours.  It is worse thinking about it than actually doing it!  I hope this information will make the process easier.  Have a great day!

Jane M. Jones, RMR, CRR
Deposition Reporting
Wisconsin Court Reporter

Using a Wisconsin realtime court reporting service is convenient and beneficial. You can take advantage of the latest court reporting technology such as annotating text or searching through the testimony for a specific keyword. In order to have the best experience, it’s smart to know what to expect and prepare accordingly.

 Before the Testimony: What to Expect with Realtime Court Reporting

Wisconsin realtime court reporters use traditional steno machines hooked up to computers with special software to create “real time” transcripts. Your computer is then connected to the court reporter’s. Using a special type of software, the court reporter’s transcribed words appear as text on your computer screen as they are typed.

 If you want to view the court reporter’s realtime feed on your computer, contact the court reporting agency to find out what equipment, if any, you need to bring and if you need to install any software. You may also need a serial port, USB serial adapter, or virtual serial port to connect to the court reporter’s feed.

 During the Testimony: Working with Realtime Feeds

On the day of the proceeding, arrive 15 to 30 minutes early so that the court reporter has sufficient time to hook up your laptop, test the connection, and install any additional software or device drivers. Even if the court reporting agency supplies you with a laptop to use, the court reporter may need additional time to go over basic instructions on how to use the software or access the transcript afterward.

 During the proceeding, you’ll see realtime testimony on your computer screen and be able to take advantage of all of the benefits that realtime court reporting offers. You can annotate the text, copy and paste testimony into an email to your partner or secretary, and even search through earlier testimony for a given keyword.

 After the Testimony: Getting the Most out of Court Reporting

Wisconsin court reporters later edit the testimony to correct any spelling errors or typos and then send you an updated version of the transcript. You can import this into your software where all of your original annotations remain intact. You now have an electronic copy of the transcript that you can use to quickly find key discussions, copy and paste text into presentations, and share with your partners.