Tag Archives: Transcript Packages

Concept #7

Transcript Package

Transcripts that work better in browsers & on mobile devices

Offer clients an interactive transcript that bundles related files — such as exhibits, video, and PDF transcripts — with it into a convenient package. It can be used by your clients through RB Connect on their computers or through RB Connect Mobile on their mobile devices. Transcript Packages eliminate the need to provide hard copies of transcripts but give your clients the option to produce their own easily anytime saving time and money.

Like RB-PDF Transcripts you can hyperlink exhibits in Transcript Packages. Unlike PDF transcripts, linked files in RB Transcript Packages are not added into the transcript keeping file size down and improving speed performance.

When your clients open a Transcript Package they can download/view any exhibit image in its native format by clicking a hyperlinked reference to it in the transcript. They do not have to maintain any additional files or file structure to access the exhibits.

While PDF transcripts are designed for print RB Transcript Packages are designed for screens: standard computer screens and screens on mobile devices like smart phones. If you have RB Connect your clients can work with their Transcript Packages on any screen, but if you have RB Connect Mobile too your clients can work in an environment designed for the smaller screens of mobile devices — no pinching and zooming to read and interact with their transcripts. And if they want hard copies they can export transcripts in several formats.

In Transcript Packages attorneys can:

• Highlight text.
• Set different highlight colors to designate different content categories.
• Make notes on transcripts and exhibits.
• Download attached exhibits, videos, and other files one at a time, all, or a selection of files.
• See exhibits in context by tapping on links in the transcript.
• View streaming video instead of waiting on long downloads.
• Search transcripts by word, page, comment, or highlights.
• Export their highlights and notes to work with offline.
• Export their transcripts in full-size PDF, condensed PDF, or AMICUS versions.
• Customize the appearance of exported PDF transcripts including condensed.
• Generate and export word indexes and word lists.

Easier for production staff

If you are already providing RB-PDF Transcripts to your clients, your production staff will find the process of creating Transcript Packages familiar yet faster.

For example Transcript Packages like RB-PDF Transcripts are created using the original ASCII file. And the linking process is exactly the same as exhibit linking in RB9’s PDF Transcript Creator.

Even better is how Transcript Packages can save your production staff’s time. They do not have to customize the appearance of transcripts. If your clients want their transcripts to look a certain way they choose customization options when exporting files from Transcript Packages in a browser or on their mobile devices. And if you have the optional Full-Text Search plug-in, Transcript Packages are automatically indexed for searching across multiple transcripts — saving staff time creating indexes.

Like RB-PDF Transcripts your production staff can preview Transcript Packages before releasing them. Then they notify clients automatically via email when their Transcript Packages are available.

The only RB-PDF Transcript features Transcript Packages do not have are digital signatures and transcript stamps (e.g., “Original” or “Certified Copy”).

NOTE: Transcript Packages is an RB9-only feature. It is not included in RB Lite.

TL;DR: Transcript Packages are interactive transcripts designed to work in browsers and on mobile devices, and are easy to produce.

Related RB concepts

Full-Text Search: Clients can search for specific text in their RB Connect repositories and Transcript Packages, and get results in seconds with this plug-in. When they locate the right file in their repository they can download it. More >

RB Connect: Online repository, calendar, and access to your office for clients and resources includes interactive transcripts, downloadable invoices and e-commerce for clients, and online turn-in, one-touch job acknowledgements, and downloadable pay statements for resources. More >

RB Connect Mobile: Clients and resources can access your RB Connect on their smartphones and tablets in an interface optimized for mobile devices. More >

RB-PDF Transcript: PDF version of a transcript with built-in transcript-specific features like hyperlinked exhibits, word lists/indexes, errata sheets, and enhanced headers/footers containing case and depo information from your RB9 database. It can be branded and customized extensively to match client requirements; and can include digital signatures, condensed transcripts, security restrictions, stamps, and archival formats for the courts. More >

Lesson #142

Connect – Transcript Packages function

Bundle transcripts with hyperlinked exhibits, video, PDF transcripts, and other related files, so your clients can view, highlight, and comment on transcripts and bundled files in browsers and on mobile devices. Your clients can also export different versions of the transcript and download the associated files.

RB9’s Transcript Packages are interactive transcripts clients can view in RB Connect in web browsers and RB Connect Mobile (RBCM) on mobile devices. Users can download/view attached files, view streaming video, comment on transcripts and exhibits, highlight text, and export transcripts in a variety of formats, including their highlights and comments.

The Transcript Packages function is included free in RB9, but requires RB Connect for your clients to use it. Transcript Packages are readable in RB Connect on desktop computers and laptops. If you add RBCM to your system, your clients can easily work with their Transcript Packages in an environment designed for the smaller screens of iPhones or other mobile devices — no pinching and zooming to read and interact with their transcripts.

Producing interactive transcripts vs PDF transcripts

If you already provide RB-PDF Transcripts to your clients, your production staff will find the process of creating Transcript Packages familiar yet faster. For example, Transcript Packages, like RB-PDF Transcripts, are created using the original ASCII file. And the linking process is exactly the same as exhibit linking in RB9’s PDF Transcript Creator.

Where it saves staff time is that they do not have to customize the appearance of transcripts. If your clients want their transcripts to look a certain way, your clients choose customization options when exporting files from Transcript Packages in a browser or on their mobile devices.

Like RB-PDF Transcripts, your production staff can preview Transcript Packages before releasing them. Then they notify clients automatically via email when their packages are available.

Unlike PDF transcripts, there is no physical file to deliver, and your clients do not need a third-party application like Adobe Acrobat to read and work with their transcripts. Your staff cannot apply digital signatures or transcript stamps to Transcript Packages, but they do offer end users export options for PDF, condensed PDF, Amicus-formatted ASCII, word lists, word indexes, highlights, and notes.

Assembling transcript packages

You can assemble a Transcript Package after uploading an ASCII transcript to a witness repository in RB9 and publishing it to RB Connect. (If you don’t want to make the ASCII file available to your client before you create the Transcript Package, you can wait to publish the ASCII until you have created the package and are ready to notify the client.)

To create a Transcript Package, use the search criteria in the Transcript Package function to find the right ASCII file. You can search by job number, job date or date range, witness name, and/or one/some/all of your business units.

In the returned results, files are listed by job number, job date, witness name, file name, case, and date the ASCII file was uploaded. You can sort your results in the grid by one or more columns in ascending or descending order (but when you exit the function, RB9 will revert back to the default order). Export the list as an Excel spreadsheet or a CSV (comma-separated values) file to save, print, share, or use in other applications.

Any Transcript Packages that were already created and fit your search criteria are also listed along with who created them and when. You can easily tell which is which because ASCII files are indicated by a radio button. Finished Transcript Packages do not have a button; instead the file name is hyperlinked to the package so you can manage the attached files, preview the package, and send the client a notice that the package is ready and waiting on their RB Connect.

When you create a Transcript Package, any exhibits, video, and other files that were uploaded to the related job’s witness repository are available to bundle with the interactive transcript. You choose which ones to include, and like the returned results list, you can export any of these sub-lists as Excel spreadsheets or CSV (comma-separated values) files to save, print, share, or use in other applications.

When you create a package that includes exhibits, you can have RB9 automatically add hyperlinks to the exhibits in the transcript the same way you link exhibits in RB-PDF Transcripts.

After generating the package, you can preview it to check for errors and missing attachments, and that any attached video streams correctly before sending an email notification to alert the client. The Transcript Package preview screen is the same as the Transcript Packages screen in RB Connect/RBCM (minus the ability to make or export highlights and comments), so you can be confident about sharing the final product.

Sharing transcript packages

Before sharing Transcript Packages with clients, customize your Connect preferences:

• Turn on Transcript Packages accessibility so your clients can see uploaded Transcript Packages.
• Select one of your RB-PDF Transcript templates as the default for your clients’ export specifications. Your clients cannot select a different template, but they can change some of the specs, including margins, borders, font, Q&A styling, timestamp location, and PDF format (regular PDF or one of the more restrictive PDF/A formats for archiving purposes), when exporting a transcript.
• Customize the contents and appearance of the email notifying clients that a package is available. You can edit the default contents and style the appearance of the body of the email with text formatting, images, color, hyperlinks, and tables.
• Insert contextual data fields into the email subject and body so RB9 will automatically insert relevant data into Transcript Package notification emails. You can have RB9 include the file name, case name and number, job date and number, and witness in the subject and body of emails, plus you can have the direct URL for the Transcript Package inserted into the email body so your clients only have to click the link to go directly to their package, instead of having to search for it in their RB Connect.

If you set the ASCII file to publish before creating the Transcript Package, the package will be automatically available on RB Connect for the client to work with as soon as you create it. If you didn’t set the ASCII to publish beforehand, RB9 will remind you when you attempt to send the notification email alerting the client to its availability on their RB Connect. Once you publish the ASCII file, RB9 will publish the Transcript Package as well and you can alert the client.

When you send the notification email, RB9 records the email sent in the Email Log function in Tools, so you can refer back to it later.

Managing transcript packages

Other things you can do in the Transcript Packages function:

• Download the original ASCII file of any package.
• Search for text in a transcript.
• Skip directly to any page of a transcript.
• Export an AMICUS version of a transcript.
• Export PDF versions of the full-size transcript, condensed transcript, word index, or word list.
• Delete any Transcript Package you no longer need.

NOTE: This is an RB9-only function. It is not included in RB Lite.

TL;DR: Create interactive transcripts clients can work with in RB Connect in web browsers and RB Connect Mobile on mobile devices. Bundle related exhibits, videos, and other files with the transcripts, then automatically upload the packages and notify clients. 

RB concepts in this lesson

RB Connect: Online repository, calendar, and access to your office for clients and resources, including interactive transcripts, downloadable invoices and e-commerce for clients, and online turn-in, one-touch job acknowledgements, and downloadable pay statements for resources. RB Connect is an optional plug-in to RB9. More >

RB Connect Mobile: Clients and resources can access your RB Connect on their smartphones and tablets in an interface optimized for mobile devices. RB Connect Mobile is an optional plug-in to RB Connect. More >

RB-PDF Transcript: PDF version of a transcript with built-in transcript-specific features like hyperlinked exhibits, word lists/indexes, errata sheets, and enhanced headers/footers containing case and depo information from your RB9 database. It can be branded and customized extensively to match client requirements; and can include digital signatures, condensed transcripts, security restrictions, stamps, and archival formats for the courts. More >

Transcript Package: Bundle containing interactive transcripts with all of their related files (exhibits, videos, RB-PDF transcripts, etc.) to be viewed in a browser through RB Connect and RB Connect Mobile. More >

Lesson #138

Manage your RB Connect online offices

If you have the RB Connect plug-in and maybe the RB Connect Mobile plug-in, this is the module you use to manage your RB Connect online & mobile offices. In this module, you can:

• Invite contacts and resources to use your RB Connect.
• Process and monitor the progress of transcript back orders received through RB Connect.
• Allow COD clients to pay for and download transcripts online.
• Fulfill online reward point requests.
• Create transcripts to be viewed in browsers and on mobile devices with hyperlinked exhibits and related files bundled together.
• Create indexed files contacts can search for specific words in their RB Connect repositories.
• Manage resources’ time-off requests made through RB Connect.
• Manage billing sheets turned in through RB Connect.
• See who is using your RB Connect and how often they access it.
• Manage users’ questions and problems and maintain a paper trail of their resolution.
• Customize the experience for contacts and resources by setting function preferences.

Connect functions by name

• Send Invitations – RB9-only function
• Transcript Ordered – RB9-only function
• Publish COD Invoice – RB9-only function
• Fulfill Points Redemption Orders – RB9-only function
• Transcript Packages – RB9-only function
• Create Full-Text Search – RB9-only function
• Approve Time-Off – RB9-only function
• Billing Sheets – RB9-only function
• Activity Log – RB9-only function
• Support Tickets – RB9-only function
• Connect Preferences – RB9-only function

TL;DR: Used for providing services through the RB Connect and RB Connect Mobile plug-ins.

RB concepts in this lesson

Award Points: Used to encourage clients to book with your agency by rewarding them with points for different services.

RB Connect: Online repository, calendar, and access to your office for clients and resources.

RB Connect Mobile: Clients and resources can access your RB Connect on their smartphones and tablets in an interface optimized for mobile devices.