Choosing a steno theory

A steno theory is the set of rules a stenographer learns that allows them to convert words to stenographic outlines. Ideally, the stenographic outlines are a shorthand form for the words that is quicker to input. There are several English steno theories available to learn (some free), and it is easy to become overwhelmed with the choices you have. If you are ever unsure, we recommend starting off with Lapwing theory. However, if you would like to learn more about other available steno theories (and why you might want to learn them), feel free to give this page a read.

The rationale for multiple English steno theories

A common question for those unfamiliar with stenography is, why are there multiple steno theories? And why do they all use the same layout? Machine stenography has been around for over a hundred years, so it may seem strange that there is no "standardized" steno theory. The primary reason for this is that languages are complicated and all people interpret the language they speak in their own unique way. English, in particular, has much more variance than other languages. Being one of the most spoken languages in the world, it is very unstandardised in its pronunciation and spelling rules, which vary depending on what regions of the world you are in. Unlike languages like French, the English language has no governing body that defines rules. And for the spelling rules that are somewhat standard, such as for General American English or British English spelling, they still poorly reflect the pronunciation, largely due to the many phonological changes English has undergone through the centuries.

Being a language with no standard rules, a poor orthography-phonology correspondence, and billions of speakers naturally invites multiple interpretations on how to represent it in shorthand.

Homophones

Homophones that have different written forms cause conflicts for phonetic stenographic theories. First of all, there are many exceptions and edge cases. Different theories take a different stance on how to resolve these exceptions. A method that works well for one person may not be effective for another person.

Constructing outlines for homophones (words that sound the same but are spelled different) is a common difference between steno theories. In Lapwing theory and Plover theory, a word's outline can differ depending on if a homophone exists. For example, the "ee" sound as in "seem" can be either AOE or AE. The word "cream" has no homophones, so it is given AOE. However, the word "team" has a homophone, and thus it is given AE. This isn't ideal because it relies on having to stop and think if a word has any homophones. However, for people who have no problem memorizing these exceptions, this is a perfectly good method.

Some theories deal with homophones entirely orthographically. So the words "tear" and "hear" would be written with the same vowel chord, despite being pronounced differently. This is very consistent spelling-wise, but some people may prefer not having to think about spelling—especially when transcribing spoken word.

Steno theories can also handle homophones by just adding an extra stroke at the end. If "teem" is given the TAOEPL outline, then "team" would be written as TAOEPL/R-R. This method can be nice because it requires no extra cognitive load; if the wrong homophone was outputted, it can be corrected easily just by pressing another stroke. However, this method relies on having quick finger speed to make up for the extra stroke.

Shorter versus longer theories

Steno theories exist on a vague continuum between short and long. By definition, short steno theories require fewer strokes for any given text — words are abbreviated and compressed to a great extent. On the other hand, long steno theories require more strokes for any given text because the steno outlines closely resemble the output words — long multisyllable words will require as many strokes as there are syllables. The length of a steno theory is often measured by strokes per word.

• Short steno theories require more cognitive load since there is more mental effort needed to create abbreviated steno outlines.

• Long theories require less mental processing going from words to outlines, but require fast stroke speeds of around 6 strokes per second.

Different individuals may be better with one or the other, or somewhere between. Choosing a theory that is just right can pay off in the learning and speed building process. Both types of theories are used in practice to reach professional certified speeds, so it is entirely the preference of the user.

Varieties of English accents and dialects

English dialects and accents can affect how words are spelled and pronounced. It is difficult to create an effective steno theory that works for all speakers and writers. For phonetic theories, it is much more practical to have multiple steno theories that tailor to specific variants of English. That being said, pretty much all steno theories (at time of this writing) are based on North American English.

Open steno theories

There are currently three steno theories that are freely available to use. They are fully supported by the Plover app, but have different learning resources that can be found online.

Plover theory

See also: Plover theory

The Plover app comes with a default dictionary, <code>main.json</code> that we claim you can learn by learning Plover theory. It originated as Mirabai Knight’s own personal dictionary that she uses for stenocaptioning. The dictionary is very brief-heavy, and outlines are often short. Plover theory has its origins in NYCI Steno theory, where Mirabai learned from, which itself is derived from StenEd theory. The documentation for Plover theory arose partly as an analysis of the dictionary donated by Mirabai, and can be understood as an understanding of how Mirabai approaches stenography. The closer your conception of stenography is to Mirabai's, the better you will be at using Plover theory.

As the dictionary of a professional stenocaptioner, it contains outlines for a broad range of subject matter and can be regarded as being much more complete than many other stenographic theories, which often only contain general vocabulary and justice system terminology. Using Plover theory will allow you to approach practically any word you see out there.

However, as a personal dictionary that has been used and built for many years, there are many inconsistencies on application of rules, mistaken definitions, and personalised misstrokes that come with the dictionary. Many of the rules outlined in the documentation for Plover theory are understood to guide you to the correct definition most of the time. The rules are not complete enough to judge whether or not any strange definitions are correct — this judgement is left to the intuition of the user. These shortfalls often lead to frustration in the learning process. Much of this frustration could be alleviated if people in the community went through the effort of creating a new dictionary based on Plover theory that eliminated inconsistent definitions and mistakes. However, most attempts at doing this result in the creators adding additional rules and spawning new theories, such as Lapwing theory.

For details on how to set up and learn Plover theory, see Art of Chording. You can also reference Learn Plover, but that resource is outdated.

Lapwing theory

See also: Lapwing theory

Lapwing theory was created by a community member who wanted to address the shortcomings of Plover theory. It shares many principles with Plover theory, but incorporates new rules—particularly when it comes to writing complicated words. Many regard it as easier to learn than Plover theory due to its improved consistency.

We recommend starting with Lapwing theory because it is more beginner friendly. For details on how to set up and learn Lapwing theory, see the Lapwing for Beginners Wiki.

Proprietary steno theories

Platinum theory

See also: Platinum theory

A free but proprietary theory for court reporting students available for download on the Platinum steno website taught through YouTube videos.

Phoenix theory

See also: Phoenix theory

A theory known for patenting the Vowel Omission Principle that reduced conflicts while still allowing the theory to remain highly phonetic.

Magnum theory

See also: Magnum theory

A brief-heavy steno theory used by Mark Kislingbury, the current record holder for stenography transcription at 370 wpm at 95.4% accuracy.

StenEd theory

See also: StenEd theory

Possibly the most popular stenographic theory in the industry.

Realwrite/Realtime theory

See also: Realwrite/Realtime theory

Which steno theory should you learn?

Ultimately, it does not matter which theory you choose when it comes to speed—it is always possible to add more memorization after learning a theory. After all, customizing your dictionary is part of the speed building process. All of the steno theories listed above have the same basic chords, and it is quite easy to switch in the early stages.