CRC Vocabulary Building & Dictionary Management 1 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: What is the primary purpose of a realtime captioner's personal steno dictionary?
- To store certified exam questions for review
- To map steno outlines to their corresponding English words and phrases (Correct answer)
- To record client billing and payment information
- To archive completed captioning job files
Correct answer: To map steno outlines to their corresponding English words and phrases
A steno dictionary maps steno outlines (keystrokes) to their English text equivalents, enabling CAT software to translate strokes into readable text in real time.
Question 2: What is a 'conflict' in a steno dictionary?
- A professional dispute between a captioner and a client
- An error generated by the CAT software during translation
- When two different steno outlines produce identical output
- When the same steno outline is mapped to two different words or phrases (Correct answer)
Correct answer: When the same steno outline is mapped to two different words or phrases
A conflict occurs when a single steno outline is assigned to two or more different translations, creating ambiguity that can cause incorrect output during realtime captioning.
Question 3: In realtime captioning, what is a 'brief' or 'brief form'?
- A short legal summary provided by an attorney
- An abbreviated steno outline that represents a longer word or phrase (Correct answer)
- A condensed version of a captioning session transcript
- A client introduction document signed before an assignment
Correct answer: An abbreviated steno outline that represents a longer word or phrase
A brief form is an abbreviated steno stroke or series of strokes that produces a longer word or phrase, increasing writing speed and reducing physical effort.
Question 4: What does 'untrans' refer to in realtime captioning output?
- Steno outlines the CAT software cannot find in the dictionary, appearing as raw steno strokes (Correct answer)
- A software error that permanently corrupts a transcript file
- A captioner who has not yet completed certification training
- A transcript that has not yet been delivered to the client
Correct answer: Steno outlines the CAT software cannot find in the dictionary, appearing as raw steno strokes
An 'untrans' is a steno outline the CAT software cannot match to a dictionary entry, causing raw steno characters to appear in the output instead of English text.
Question 5: What is a 'job dictionary' in CAT software?
- A list of all clients and assignments a captioner has completed
- A temporary, event-specific dictionary containing specialized terminology for a particular assignment (Correct answer)
- The main master dictionary used across all captioning jobs
- A dictionary module that stores automated billing information
Correct answer: A temporary, event-specific dictionary containing specialized terminology for a particular assignment
A job dictionary is a session-specific supplement created before an assignment to hold specialized terms, proper nouns, or technical vocabulary unique to that event.
Question 6: How should a realtime captioner best handle an unfamiliar technical term discovered during pre-assignment preparation?
- Ignore it and rely on context if it arises during the event
- Request that the speaker avoid using that term during the presentation
- Add it with the correct steno outline to a job dictionary before the event begins (Correct answer)
- Write it out letter by letter if it appears during live captioning
Correct answer: Add it with the correct steno outline to a job dictionary before the event begins
Pre-populating a job dictionary with anticipated technical terms ensures accurate real-time output without interrupting the flow of captioning during the live event.
Question 7: What is 'dictionary stacking' in CAT software?
- Using multiple dictionaries simultaneously with the top-most dictionary given search priority (Correct answer)
- Deleting outdated dictionaries to free up disk space in the CAT software
- Copying all entries from a job dictionary into the master dictionary
- Organizing dictionary entries in alphabetical order for faster lookup
Correct answer: Using multiple dictionaries simultaneously with the top-most dictionary given search priority
Dictionary stacking allows CAT software to search through multiple loaded dictionaries in priority order, so job-specific or client-specific entries can override the master dictionary when needed.
CRC Vocabulary Building & Dictionary Management 1
What is the primary purpose of a realtime captioner's personal steno dictionary?