Transcriber

Hi everyone,  

I'm Kobey, your tech assistant.

The software you will be using for transcribing is called "Transcriber".

It is available for MacOSX, Windows, or Linux. You can find it here (click on Download on the left bar)

I found it pretty easy to navigate around, so I think you will too,

but in case you have problems, here are some directions:  

(I'm using a Mac, so these might be slightly different on other platforms -- please add comments if they are)

1. Download and Open Transcriber
2. Open up the file you want to work on (either the mp3 or transcriber files)
   The interview mp3s should be up on Latte. To open an mp3 you need to go to "Open Audio File" in the "File" menu
3. If you click on the rectangle that says "(no speaker)", you can create a speaker
4. Now you can play the file (press play) and type in what the speaker is saying.
5. When you have reached the end of the phrase (or whatever unit you are working on), select that place in the audio wave below and select "Insert Breakpoint" from the "Segmentation" menu.
6. If you want to change speakers, select "Create Turn" from the "Segmentation" menu (shortcut command-t on Mac).  You will have the chance to create a new speaker or select a previously used one

That should allow you to do just about everything you need.  

A couple hints:

• If you hold control, you can move the breakpoints (control-click and drag the bars below the sound wave).
• On Mac, I was having some problems with the windows not showing the bottom (which contained the "OK" or "Cancel" buttons.  If this happens, you just need to resize the window (click and drag the lower right corner).
• Also on Mac, I have noticed that occasionally the OK or Cancel buttons look greyed out, but are actually active.
• Under "Signal" > "Playback Mode" you can change how the audio plays back, which can be helpful for hearing only one segment at a time

For people who need to transcribe into IPA:

Go to SIL Doulos and download the Doulos IPA fonts.

You can also download some neat keyboard layouts and gadgets to help you see what characters you are typing.

Once the fonts are installed on your computer, you change fonts for the document in Transcriber by going to 

"Options">"Fonts">"text" and then choosing SIL Doulos IPA.

Let me know if there are any problems with this.  I'm using a slightly older version of the fonts, and I haven't tested the newest ones extensively.  

Please add comments if you find any other useful hints.

And feel free to contact me if you have any problems at shwayd@brandeis.edu

~Kobey