Transcribing Audio Files

Transcribing Audio Files

Create New Job in AutoScript Web (ASW)

The process of using the AutoScript suite of tools begins on the website. This is where you will create a new job by uploading your audio and providing a few details. You can find full directions HERE in the AutoScript Web user's guide.

Open in AutoScript Desktop (ASD)

If you plan to edit your file in ASD, or even if you plan to export the job to CAT format, you'll use this method. There are two ways to do this. Begin by clicking on the Job Title in the AutoScript Web workspace that holds the job to view the Job Details page. The next step depends on if it's the first time opening a job.
  1. If it's the first time opening a job, you'll need to click the big blue [Start editing in AutoScript] button.
    Note - You may see a security warning the first time requesting permission to allow your web browser to open ASD. Check the box and click OK.
    You will see a screen that informs you the job is opening in ASD. This screen also contains a button to open the job again.
    Note - Some users don't realize the button is only needed to re-open the job. If you clicked the button before ASD launched, two copies of the program will open. Please close one before proceeding.
  2. If you've already created a version of a job, you can click the "Open in AutoScript Desktop" icon for that version. The icon looks like this: 
  3. If you need to open an earlier version of the job, you can click on the link under "Originating Version" in the Job Details.
Follow the prompts within ASD after it opens to create, save, and start editing your job. These steps are explained in more detail in the "Processing a Job in AutoScript Desktop" section of this manual.

Download the ASR Text

You have the option to download the ASR text in MS Word (docx), Rich Text (rtf), or Plain Text (txt) format.
  1. Click the vertical ellipsis  to display the download button, which looks like this: 
  2. The three download options are presented. Click the one you prefer.
    NOTE - the end of the file name may go off the screen. The choices are in the order docx, rtf, and txt.
  3.  You can also find links to these raw ASR documents in the Job Details.
The Remove button  will delete the job permanently. Use this sparingly as this action cannot be undone.

Overview of AutoScript Desktop (ASD)

Technically, you are now ready to start the job of editing your transcript. But first, we need to go over the features and workflow in ASD.

ASD was designed to be flexible and conform to the user's needs. Various settings, including Layouts and Hotkeys, can be adjusted to tailor the user experience for each person, client, and job. The audio player also includes customization options to make the editing process easier. After a brief introduction to the basics of ASD, we'll explain the job creation process and the editing workflow.

Audio Player


  1. Rewind and advance intervals can be changed by adjusting the Skip Amount.
  2. Standard buttons may be used to control playback. Additionally, a foot pedal or Hotkeys may be used to control the audio player.
    The default hotkeys are: Rewind [Alt]+[Left Arrow] * Play/Pause [Alt]+[P] * Advance [Alt]+[Right Arrow]
  3. Playback speed can be adjusted using this control.
    The default hotkeys are:  Accelerate - [Ctrl]+[Alt]+[Up Arrow] * Decelerate [Ctrl]+[Alt]+[Down Arrow]
  4. Volume can be adjusted with this slider, with your computer’s audio controls, or hotkeys (Increase [Alt]+[Up Arrow] * Decrease [Alt]+[Down Arrow]).
  5. Audio mute/unmute button.
  6. Audio playback position indicator. You can click and drag this control to adjust the current play position.
    Tip: You can also adjust the current play position by double-clicking on a word in the document or inserting your cursor in the document. The playback will automatically begin at that location when you play.
  7. The foot pedal indicator lights up green when a pedal is connected to the computer and red if the pedal is disconnected.

Playback Options

There are several options for playback settings which are accessed by clicking [Options] in the Home tab. You can toggle each option on or off.
  1. Synchronize audio with cursor position when audio is not playing. If you edit and restart the audio, the audio will begin playing from the position of your cursor in the document.
  2. Pause audio on text change. If you modify or edit anything in the document while the audio is playing, the audio will pause. Note - if you are using a pedal to play, the player will attempt to pause but will resume because you are holding down the pedal. The result is a stuttering effect. Just take your foot off the pedal to pause.
  3. On pause move cursor to audio position. This will automatically move the cursor to where the audio was paused for quick editing.
  4. Enable page scrolling. This makes the document scroll along with the audio playback. It is most useful if the next setting is also enabled.
  5. Enable highlighting. Sometimes referred to as follow-play, this feature highlights the words in the document as the audio plays. This is a great feature to have on, but if it is not properly syncing or is causing performance issues on your computer, then turn it off.

Hotkeys

Repetitive tasks are easier with Hotkeys. All of the Hotkeys for AutoScript Desktop are user definable. You can choose which keys to assign for commonly used tools, such as Player Operations, Editing Features, and System Functions. To access the Hotkeys click the [Hotkeys] button on the Home tab.

Double-click on the Hotkey you wish to change. This opens the editing window.

From there you can change the Hotkey combination. You can add a second Hotkey as well if you find you need it. You can also delete the combination if you don't need it and it's getting in your way. Once you have made the modifications you desire, just close the Edit dialog. If you're done viewing and modifying your Hotkeys, you can just close the Hotkeys window.
NOTE - if you use a combination that is already assigned to another function within ASD, the old combination will be updated to an unused combination. If you find that a Hotkey isn't working as you expected, check the settings for that Hotkey. You may have accidentally overwritten it when you set a new combination.
The [Print] button is used to create a list of Hotkeys in PDF format. Click [Print], select which Hotkeys you want to see, then click [Print]. A PDF containing the Hotkeys you selected will open in your default PDF viewer software. You can use this file on-screen or in printed format as a "cheat sheet" while you're learning to use ASD.

Opening and Closing Files

There are different file operations buttons on both the Job and File tabs.

  1. New Job:  This reminds you that you must go to www.AutoScript.ai to begin the job creation process.
  2. Open Job:  This opens a previously started ASD job so that you can continue editing.
  3. Import Job: This opens an ASD job zip file created using the [Export Job] button.
  4. Export Job: This is used if you need to send the edited text, layout, and synced audio to another user. It exports the job into a zipped job file they can use to continue editing the transcript.

  1. Open: You can open a variety of file types in ASD, including DOC and DOCX files.
  2. Save: Each document automatically saves when it is created and periodically while it is open, but you can click this button to save the document at any time. The default hotkey is [Ctrcl]+[S].
  3. Save As: You can save your transcript document in several file formats, including DOCX, and PDF. 

Layouts

Layouts contain the format settings and pre-defined text elements that match the requirements of the transcript recipient. You can create as many different Layouts as you need.

A layout is a combination of settings defined within ASD and settings contained in your own MS Word template file. If you don't have a template already, you can download some sample templates here: ASD Templates If you need help creating templates that match your needs submit a help ticket with your contact information and a brief description of what you need. We'll be glad to schedule some time to train and assist you.

There are two places in ASD where you will edit your layouts. They serve very different purposes and it's important to understand that difference before you begin working on a transcript. Editing a layout from the Layouts Library will only make changes to the master copy of that layout. Some software may refer to this as global templates. This is where you establish the baseline for jobs created using that layout. Once a job has been created in ASD, it makes its own copy of the layout. Any changes you want to make to the layout for a job that's already started must be done by editing the Current Job Layout. Changes made to the Current Job Layout will NOT apply back to the master copy in the Layouts Library. This is why it's important to ensure your master copy in the Layouts Library has all the settings you need for jobs that utilize that layout. Otherwise, you will have to do a lot of layout modification every time you create a job using that layout.
REMEMBER - Layouts Library - master copy; changes don't apply to existing jobs  *  Current Job Layout - a copy of the master; changes ONLY apply to that job.
With that said, let's dive into creating, editing, and using layouts.

Layouts Library

The Layouts Library is where you establish the baseline styles, formatting, and pre-defined text elements for a jurisdiction, client, etc. 
BEFORE you create a layout, you will need a document template file in DOCX format. At a bare minimum, this file must contain a Normal style with basic settings for all text in the final transcript.
Open the Layouts Library by clicking the [Layouts Library] button on the Job tab.

The library displays. Let's look at each of its parts.

  1. Layouts: This is a list of the layouts you have created. If you want to edit a layout, the first step is to select a layout in this list.
  2. Add [+]: This button creates a new layout with default styles and text elements.
  3. Layout name: This is where you can change the name of the layout, whether it was just created or it was pre-existing.
  4. Document Template: This displays the name of the document template you currently have matched to the selected layout. You can click the folder button to browse and select a new template. NOTE - after you select a document template here, ASD makes a copy of that file. Changes you make to the original document template DOCX file will not affect the layout unless you browse and reselect the document template file.
  5. Edit Document Template: Click this button to edit ASD's copy of your document template file. Changes made here DO apply to the layout.
  6. Duplicate: This creates a copy of the selected layout.
  7. Edit: Opens the selected layout for editing. NOTE - this does NOT open the document template. You'll see the difference when we explore layout editing.
  8. Remove: Deletes the selected layout. NOTE - this cannot be undone. Use with caution.
  9. Close: This closes the Layouts Library dialog. You can also close using the normal [x] button.

Editing a Layout

When you select a layout from the list and click the [Edit] button, you will see the following dialog.

This is where the text elements of your layout are defined, as well as their associated style. From here you can add entries, edit the text, change the style by selecting from the drop-down list, or even edit the style manually.
  1. Speakers:  this is the list of speakers that will be presented to you in the editor when you replace or insert a speaker. Remember that if you're editing this list from the Layouts Library, you are editing the master copy. So it's not a good idea to add case-specific names here. We can do that after we start a job by editing the Current Job Layout.
  2. Quick Text:  this is for large pieces of boilerplate text that get used quite often. There are two examples added by default to give you an idea of how they're used.
  3. Quick Parentheticals: this is for all of the parentheticals that you might want to use with this layout.
  4. Quick Heading: this is where you'll set your preferences for the headings.
  5. Q&A: this is mostly used to set the number of spaces after the Q and A, but you can also edit and add to match your unique requirements for Q&A sections.
  6. Byline: this is where you'll set your preference for spacing and format of the "by" in your bylines.
  7. Colloquy: for now all you can do with this section is select the style that will apply to colloquy. Future updates will allow a preview of how that style looks.
 There are several buttons available for each section and entry.
  1.  Add:   Click this button to add an entry to the section. The Title is what will display in the selection list when you use that function.
  2.   Display Hidden Punctuation:   Click this button to show the normally hidden punctuation marks in the text. This is useful for leading and trailing spaces.
  3.   Format: Click this button to open the text in an editor where you can apply style tweaks that need to be a little different than the style you selected for that element.
  4.    Delete: Click this button to remove the entry from the list. NOTE - this cannot be undone. Delete with caution.
Once you have edited the text elements and selected the style you would like assigned to them, you can just close the dialog.

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