Digital Voice Recorders... again!

New 2 iceeYouRN · Dec 16, 2008

Digital voice recorders are pretty interesting. I have one, however have yet to use it in nursing. Instead I use my computer. I have a MacBook and I use their microsoft's version of word for mac's and it's truly AMAZING!!

It has a template called notebook where the most convenient bullets and tabbing exist. While you type your notes you can record them too. So once you stop recording you can go next to the line where you typed and press the sound bullet and BAM! You hear what was being recorded while you were typing at that part of your notes!! It has the best quality but you do hear typing over it.

This has honestly got me through some difficult classes. I type about 95 wpm and only wish I could write that fast which is why I type and I had pathophysiology with a professor who only wrote topics on the board and verbally lectured w/o notes (He was amazing). The first day of class I brought my Mac and by the second day a few other people had it. I constantly got questions about how it worked and no lie, by the last week of class I had convinced 8 people to purchase Macs and bring them to class!!

Now Mac's are not cheap so that's just an idea about how great this program is!!

Best of luck

*LadyJane* · Dec 16, 2008

Hi RNin2011 and all,

You don't have to buy a Mac to use that software. You can buy a PC and the software called "Microsoft One Note". It's the same thing, and records the same, etc.

I use mine to collate and sort and find stuff in my notes. I am also just learning to use it, so I mainly am still using my digital voice recorder (Olympus dvr, purchased at overstock.com) which I can plug into my laptop, download the lecture, and then delete it off my dvr.

DVRs have gotten much more sophisticated in the last few years. They can record more hours of lecture, and have also gotten smaller. I record all my lectures, only one lecture was not allowed to be recorded, and I am happy to email lecture .wav files to fellow students who might have missed class. So, it's not only good for me,it's good for my classmates...

Just remember, at the higher recording times, the quality suffers. So, you'll likely want to record at at least the medium quality, so look and see what hours you can record at medium andthen see if that will last you at least a day's worth of lecture or lecture and lab.

I don't listen to mine very often, I mainly do this as backup for classes that I don't "get" just from sitting in lecture, or if it's a really meaty lecture.

I do like the Olympus brand. Their quality is great....

Jane:clown:

jeanpants · Dec 17, 2008

Hey all,

It seems like Olympus is a popular brand from everything I've read... Personally, I've been using a pen and paper for the last semester :stone. The pen was actually a gift from my boyfriend, and it's the new pulse smartpen if anyone's heard of it. It helped with my note-taking a LOT, and I'm really glad he gave it to me. If you haven't heard of how it works, it's a digital pen that records audio as you take notes in a notebook. So when the professors would talk and talk and my hand wasn't up for all the vigorous notes I'd have to take, I just pressed record and wrote a few words or a sentence about what the professor was talking about, and then set the pen down while I sat back. :chuckle Anyway, the feature I really love about the smartpen is that the audio it records, it links to whatever you were writing/doodling/drawing at that time in the recording, so one day when I wasn't feeling very class-oriented, I just started drawing with it and let it record. Later when I was back in my apartment and feeling more focused I took it out and pressed random parts of the drawing to see what my professor was talking about then. I think it's really neat :]

So I guess a drawback would be that the paper is special dot paper, but when you order a smartpen, it comes with a notebook that's 100 sheets, and yes that seems like a small notebook, but it actually lasted me a whole semester for three different courses because your notes can afford to be so condense when you use it. Plus, the company just came out with free printable dot paper, so price isn't even an issue

Oh, and the audio quality (very important obviously) is really something. It has settings specifically for auditoriums/classroom settings, and I was just really impressed with the playback. The pen also comes with earbuds that when you plug them in while you record, record the audio just like you hear it in class. It's really cool, and I'm just really grateful I had it this last semester. It's awesome technology!

If you have any questions about it or want to know more, just msg me/email me - jeanpants123 at yahoo

I also know a discount, but I don't want to get banned :confused: Anyway, I hope I kind of helped?

moncj66 · Dec 17, 2008

WEll I have the Olympus WS-331M series and I love it. I sit in the back in an auditorium that seats 400 and I can hear the instructor loud and clear. I definitely recommend it and It filters out all the people around that talk and type soo loudly..Definitely get one!

Sarah Bellum · Dec 17, 2008

I just bought an Olympus WS210-S. It has folders to organize recordings and it has a built in USB so you can download it and listen from your laptop or PC.

I also have a lower model Olympus tha tjust records, can't do anything but listen to it and erase. It's fine and dandy, I just wanted to be able to keep lectures and notes stored together to better study for our (bleh) cumulative final exams.