Streamline all sorts of information
tasks for work, business or school
For anyone who
reads online or uses electronic information
regularly you can use RapidReader to save
you time and effort on a daily basis.
RapidReader includes a powerful set of
markup tools to help you with:
•
Report Writing • Proofreading •
Studying for Exams • Reviewing for
Meetings • Collaborating with Colleagues
and much more.
Below
you'll find easy "step-by-step"
instructions and "how tos"
for a number of techniques that RapidReader
users have shared with us that make their
work or study easier, faster and more
efficient. Each has a downloadable
sample in the RapidReader (.r2d)
format which you can open with RapidReader
to use as a model.
Spend
Less Time Keeping up with your
Business Reading and Professional
Journal Articles:
Most
business and professional people
spend a great deal of their
time trying to keep up with
all of their "must" reading.
This is the critical information
you need to stay current in
your job and in your industry.
In today's work place, the ease
of electronic distribution has
had the effect of loading more
reading into the work week.
The good news is, that because
the material is distributed
electronically, you can now
use RapidReader to cut your
reading time to a fraction.
That means that instead of printing
it out and lugging it home,
the software can help you spend
less time reading and more time
putting that information to
good use. Of course anything
you can read in RapidReader
you can also annotate and Highlite
in RapidReader. This will make
short work of later review for
meetings or reports.
(Please see Using
the Paragraph View in the
help files for information about
how to open files and web pages
in RR)
Every
day, more and more professional
Journals and publications are
being put online. Some are these
are subscription or fee based,
others are free. Below is the
address for the Stanford "Highwire"
project which lists most online
medical and scientific journals. Http://highwire.stanford.edu
There
are other library projects that
offer a similar service of aggregating
online journals. Some are listed
at SoftOlogy IdeaWorks Central
Internet Library http://www.centralinternetlibrary.com
You
can download a sample of a Journal
Article in RapidReader below
NOTE:
Many of the journals are formatted
as HTML web pages. You can read
these in RapidReader directly
from Internet Explorer. Other
online journals are only available
in PDF format. These can be
converted and read with RapidReader
PRO*.
To
read and save online journal articles
in RapidReader:
1)
Access
the journal site as normal
and navigate to an article
2)
In
Internet Explorer Click
on the RapidReader
Icon on the tool
bar. This will open the
page in RapidReader ParagraphView.
NOTE:
If you are using other
browsers please see Troubleshooting
in the Help Files
3)
If
the page has navigation
items and advertising
that you don't want to
read; scroll down
to the beginning of the
content of interest
4)
Double-click
on the word where you
want to begin RapidReading
5)
To
save the article and any
User-Notes or Highlites
you've placed go to FILE
> SAVE AS on the RR
ParagraphView menubar
NOTE:
If you receive a "text
not found", "clipboard
failed" or "unable
to parse text"
message during this process
you will need to click
on the "printer
friendly version" of
the web page. From there
you can follow the instructions
above or simply Click
on the RapidReader button
on the toolbar to open
the page in RR. Alternatively
you can press CTL+A
then CTL+C and FILE>read
from clipboard in
RapidReader.
Streamline
Creating a Market Research Report
Using RapidReader
With
RapidReader you can streamline
much of your work and literally
cut hours off the time it takes
to create a paper from your
research on the Internet or
corporate materials.
Aside
from the reading speed advantage,
RapidReader will allow you to
capture the text of web pages,
save them as RapidReader documents
to easily work off-line. This
means that you can quickly load
any pages that may be of interest
directly to your desktop and
later use RapidReader to review
them for useful material. Using
RapidReader's markup tools means
you can add your own Notes directly
into the web page for future
reference and Highlite text
of interest. Then you can copy
your Notes and easily extract
quotes using the Highliter tool
to paste directly into your
paper.
With RapidReader you have a
fast, efficient, flexible format
to put the materials you need,
from research to writing right
at your fingertips.
What's more, you can then accelerate
the Proofreading and Editing
process.
You can download a sample of
a
research paper in
RapidReader below.
NOTE:
Much of your online research
will be formatted as HTML web
pages. You can read these in
RapidReader directly from Internet
Explorer. Other online materials
may only be available in PDF
format. These can be downloaded,
converted and read with RapidReader
PRO*.
To
create a research paper using
RapidReader
Using
Web Pages: Gathering Resources
NOTE:
If you receive a "text
not found" message
during this process you
will need to click on the
"printer
friendly version" of
the web page. From here
you can Click on
the RapidReader button on
the toolbar to open the
page in RR.
1)
Access
a web page. In Internet
Explorer Click on
the RapidReader Icon
on the tool bar. This will
open the page in RapidReader.
2)
On
the RapidReader menubar
Click on File > Save
As a RapidReader file
(.r2d)
OR:
If the page has navigation
items or advertising that
you don't want to appear
3)
In the browser, select
the story portion you
want, "Click and drag"
in the page over the desired
text .
4)
On the browser menubar
Go to Edit / Copy (CTL+C)
to copy the content on
the clipboard
5)
Open
RapidReader by Double-clicking
on the RapidReader Desktop
icon
6)
On the RapidReader menubar
Click on File
/ Open from Clipboard.
This will place the
text in RapidReader.
7)
Save
the document as a RapidReader
file (.r2d)
NOTE:
If you are using a browser
other than Internet Explorer,
please see Troubleshooting
in the Help Files
Once
you have the text in RapidReader:
1)
Open
the .r2d file in
RapidReader by Double
clicking on the item
2)
You can add and
place your own explanatory
User-Notes and
comments throughout the
document.
3)
To extract quotes,
you can use the Highlite
tool to select the text
and then save the Highlites
to paste into your paper.
4)
Save
the document as a RapidReader
file (.r2d) to
preserve your mark up
You
can then Save all your
Notes and Highlites
as a separate text file
to paste directly into
the body of the paper
you're writing.
For more information,
please see Using
Notes and Highlites.
Make
Collaboration More Efficient.
Using RapidReader as a "Group
Ware" Environment.
When
a document is saved in RapidReader
format it can be easily circulated
among colleagues as an e-mail
attachment. This RapidReader
file format is a major time-saving
tool that benefits every stage
of the collaborative process.
Colleagues can quickly read,
review and share relevant content.
With the User-Note feature the
team can add their own comments
as the document circulates.
Text can be Highlited for emphasis
or to use as "pull quotes".
As the project nears completion
RapidReader becomes a powerhouse
for proofreading and final editing.
RapidReader
makes every step in a team environment,
from conception to approval,
faster and far more efficient.
You
can download a sample of RapidReader
as GroupWare below
NOTE:
Materials available in
PDF format can be converted
and read with RapidReader
PRO*.
Using
RapidReader as GroupWare for Collaborative
Projects: time savings at every
step.
1)
Open
the file in RapidReader
(see help
files for instructions
for the best method for
you)
2)
Make
and append any comments
with User-Notes or
Highlite text
3)
Save
the document as a RapidReader
(.r2d) file.
4)
Attach
the document as a RapidReader
file (.r2d) and e-mail
it.
5)
Your
colleagues can then add
User Notes, edit
your Notes and Highlite
text. (see Using
Notes and Highliter)
6)
This
mark-up remains attached
to the master copy as
it circulates
When
Time is Money. Using RapidReader
to Review Contracts and Add Annotation
Markup
Whether
you're in negotiations or reviewing
legacy documents to "come
up to speed" for a new
client , contracts and business
agreements can be very time
consuming to read and annotate.
The specificity required in
these agreements means that
they can run to hundreds of
pages. The importance of the
document language accurately
reflecting the mutual understanding
of terms has significant ramifications
for your business. Consequently,
reviewing and revising from
a paper copy or even a word
processor document is a laborious
and exacting process.
Now,
with any electronic document,
you can use the power of the
computer to accelerate your
reading and annotating with
RapidReader. You can create
"User-Notes" and Highlited
text to record your changes
and then easily embed them in
the original document or copy.
You
can download a sample of an
annotated contract in
RapidReader below
To
rapidly review and annotate a
contract or business document:
1)
Open
the file in RapidReader
(see help
files for instructions
for the best method for
you)
2)
Save
the document as a RapidReader
(.r2d) file.
3)
Make
and append any comments
with User-Notes or Highlite
portions of the text
Then
you have two choices:
4)
If
your colleagues have RapidReader,
you can save the
document with your markup
as a RapidReader file
(.r2d) and e-mail it.
Lighten
the Load. Save Time Grading Essays
and Papers using RapidReader
One
of the most time intensive tasks
that a teacher faces is grading
essay papers. Now there's a
new tool available to help.
At RapidReader speeds, it's
amazing how obvious poor writing
or factual errors become. At
several hundred words per minute,
awkward language, grammatical
errors and even "filler and
padding" stand out in high relief
as a result of the flow of language
with the RapidReader "speech
mimic" algorithm.
As education moves toward requiring
that papers be submitted in
electronic form, the job of
grading actually becomes more
difficult for the teacher. The
teacher has two choices, slower
reading speed on the computer
screen or printing out the document
and dealing with stacks of paper.
RapidReader dramatically enhances
the inherent efficiency of electronic
documents by delivering the
power of the computer to accelerate
reading and streamline the grading
process. RapidReader is a powerful
time saver, reducing review
and per paper grading time to
a fraction.
You can also communicate your
comments to the student with
RR's markup capabilities like
User-Notes and Highlites.
Finally, with RapidReader there's
a way that being in the electronic
domain delivers the teacher
the assistance, speed and efficiency
that the medium promises.
You
can download a sample of a graded
paper in RapidReader below
To
read, grade and add comments to
a student paper
1)
Open
the electronic paper in
RapidReader (see
help files for instructions
for the best method for
you)
2)
Save
the paper as a RapidReader
(.r2d) file.
3)
Make
any comments with User-Notes
or Highlite text
Then
you have two choices:
4)
If
the student has RapidReader
on their machine, you
can save the document
as a RapidReader file
(.r2d) and return it.
OR
5)
You
can save your Notes
and Highlited text
as a separate file (see
Using Notes and Highliter)
6)
Copy
and Paste them directly
into the students original
electronic paper.
Better
Scores on Standardized Tests.
Accelerated Vocabulary "Flashcards"
for Prep
One
of the principle requirements
of any kind of learning is practice.
When it comes to knowledge building,
the psychophysiology of learning
tells us that there is simply
no substitute for repeated exposure
to the information we want to
remember. This is particularly
true of vocabulary building
and other rote learning tasks.
That's why "flash cards" were
invented in the first place.
To create a time efficient
tool for practice. RapidReader
uses computer assisted technology
to build on this premise. When
you're able to sit back and
read at several hundred words
per minute, multiple exposures
to words becomes easy and learning
is accelerated.
Using RapidReader for vocabulary
review, a student can easily
be exposed to each entry three
or more times in the
time it previously took to read
it once. This of course means
shorter study time. In addition
to the benefit of multiple exposures
in less time, the speed of the
dynamic display helps the student
to maintain focused attention
which in turn increases retention.
With RapidReader you can create
a powerful immersive experience
to encourage retention in far
less time than with traditional
materials.
Below you'll find an optimized
format for creating RapidReview
for vocabulary. With it you
can create a lesson which will
give the student multiple exposures
in one sitting.
You
can download the sample RapidReview
vocabulary "flashcards"
for you to use as a model
To
create your own accelerated Vocabulary
RapidReview lesson:
1)
In
a standard MS Word
document create an entry
in the following sequence*.
Word
Word
Word
Use in a sentence
Definition
Definition
Use in a new sentence
Use in a new sentence
Word
Definition
Word
Word
Word
2)
Using
the above format for each
word, create a sequence
of however many vocabulary
words you wish to contain
in a practice session.
3)
Once
you have the sequence
and order of the vocabulary
lesson completed, Select
/ Copy the entire
group to create a duplicate.
4)
Then
Paste it in the document
after the first initial
group. Repeat to form
3 repetitions of the entire
group. Save the
document
5)
Open
the document in RapidReader.
(See help files for instructions)
6)
Once
in RapidReader, Highlite
each vocabulary word
each place it appears
to act as a reinforcer
7)
Save
the document as a RapidReader
file (.r2d) to preserve
your Highlites
NOTE:
* You may want to maintain
a master list of these
words as you build them
from which to create various
"mix and match" lessons.
More One-on-One Time with Students.
Create Engaging Accelerated Self-Study
Subject Lessons from the Web in
RapidReader
In
the class room, the challenge
for every teacher is to not
only convey the required information
but equally importantly, provide
context and meaning for the
student. In this day of standardized
testing, oversight and compliance,
it is becoming increasingly
difficult for teachers to meet
the administrative demands and
still provide the individual
attention that students want
and need. Historically,
when time and resource demands
on people became overwhelming,
technology has emerged to help.
RapidReader is the kind of assistive
technology that can provide
a tool to give the student and
the teacher more ways to streamline
the use of the Internet and
other electronic resources to
accelerate core learning objectives
and make time in the class room
more productive.
One way to use RapidReader to
assist both teaching and learning
is to provide a means of accelerating
the learning of "core information"
in advance of classroom discussion.
For instance an historical narrative
with names, places, dates and
events is primary to understanding
the deeper issues of the political
or social context of the subject.
RapidReader excels at this kind
of transfer of factual information
in a fast, engaging manner to
prepare the student for deeper
discussion in the class room.
You
can easily create a lesson from
web pages you've found or from
electronic documents already
in your curriculum materials
You can customize the lesson
and communicate with the student
with your own User-Notes as
well as Highlite passages of
importance.
In the sample you'll see the
use of Notes and Highlites as
reinforcers.
Your
Notes and Highlites can themselves
be saved as a separate text
file for them to use as a summary
or test review. This is a powerful
tool for preparation for standardized
testing.
Below are instructions on how
you can easily and quickly build
RapidReader lessons for accelerated
knowledge building.
You
can download the sample lesson
in RapidReader with Notes and
Highlites below
To
create a RapidReader lesson: First
import the text from the Web or
a document
Using
Web Pages:
NOTE:
If you are using a browser
other than Internet Explorer,
please see Troubleshooting
in the Help Files
1)
Access
a web page. In Internet
Explorer Click on
the RapidReader Icon
on the tool bar. This will
open the page in RapidReader.
OR:
If the page has navigation
items or advertising that
you don't want to appear
in your lesson:
2)
In the browser, select
the story portion you
want, "Click and drag"
in the page over the desired
text .
3)
On the browser menubar
Go to Edit / Copy (CTL+C)
to copy the content on
the clipboard
4)
Open
RapidReader by Double-clicking
on the RapidReader icon
5)
On the RapidReader menubar
Click on FILE
/ Open from Clipboard.
This will place the
text in RapidReader.
6)
Add your custom
markup
7)
Save
the document as a RapidReader
file (.r2d) to
preserve your mark up
NOTE:
If you receive a "text
not found" message
during this process you
will need to click on
the "printer
friendly version" of
the web page. From here
you can follow the instructions
above or simply Click
on the RapidReader button
on the toolbar to open
the page in RR.
Text
From a Word Processor
Document Pages:
1)
Either
open the document in RapidReader
by Clicking on