These are notes from the book EasyScript Express, by Leonard D. Levin. The ISBN is 1-893726-00-2. The publisher's web site is http://www.easyscript.com.
Lenny I decided to include two types of information in this document. I will list factual errors that I find, such as an incorrect translation or abbreviation that is given in the answers section. I will also try and list things that I found to be confusing. Please keep in mind that I am a mathematician, not an english major. So please do not implement any of my language suggestions without doing an editorial review.
Another quick note. I listed several words below where I questioned the OVR abbreviation of the word. I think they are probably OK, based on clarification given on page 91. I have left them in the text below to give you an idea of confusion that other students may run into. The cause for the confusion is the way that SCR and OVR are defined on pages 25 and 39. In both places the implication is that SCR is a 3 or 4 letter abbreviation and OVR is the root with all vowels omitted (except for an initial vowel, if present). Not until page 91 is this clarified to say that OVR is also a 3 or 4 letter abbreviation, comprised of the root with vowels omitted. (This information is also implied on page 63.)
Anyway, one is led to believe that an OVR abbreviation would be longer than 3 or 4 letters if the root contains more than 3 or 4 consonants. This confusion would be eliminated if the text on pages 25 and 39 were updated slightly.
Page 7, paragraph 1
Written
For short simple words EasyScript uses the Simple Rule
which has two techniques the alphabetical technique, for
short simple words and the positional technique for long
simple words.
Problems
- I think the sentence is not grammatically correct.
- The explanation is confusing.
Suggestion
EasyScript uses the simple rule for simple words. The
simple rule has two techniques. The alphabetical technique
is used for short simple words. The positional technique
is used for long simple words.
Page 9, paragraph 2
Question
This paragraph mentions the phonic technique as an option for use with short simple words. Is the phonic technique a type of simple rule? If so, then when you define simple rule on page 7 you should say that the simple rule has three techniques: alphabetical, positional, and phonic.
Page 17, Special Characters
Written
+ = add, (ed, ing, tion)
Suggestion
+ = add, (ed, ing, ition)
Written
‘ = not (does not = do’; have not = hv’)
Suggestion
Make the abbreviation mark consistent, for example:
’ = not (does not = do’; have not = hv’)
Clarification
In the book the abbreviation mark is written as a left-single-quote but the examples are all written using a right-single-quote. I'm just suggesting that both the abbreviation and the examples all us the right-single-quote.
Page 19
I'm wondering if the practice word until should be introduced here. Shouldn't it be introduced later when prefix abbreviations have been shown? The abbreviation for this word is utl, which is the correct abbreviation for a prefix word; i.e., the prefix abbreviation plus OVR.
Page 21, next to last practice word
The practice word guarantee should be abbreviated guar. On page 99 it's abbreviation is listed as quar.
Page 21, bottom of page
Written
...the positiinal technique...
Correction
...the positional technique...
Page 25, top
Minor point: As a matter of general style one should define an abbreviation before using it. It is written at the top of the page:
To abbreviate a prefix word use the prefix symbol + SCR or OVR
But SCR and OVR have not yet been defined. This is a minor point, but in the interest of completeness I felt compelled to point it out.
Page 29, transcription
Written
...F h usr types pst...
Question
Shouldn't the word types be abbreviated using the simple/alphabetical technique, since it is a short simple word? Something like this (vowel omission):
...F h usr typs pst...
Written
...of ths letter.
Question
Shouldn't the word letter be abbreviated? Perhaps this:
...of ths lett.
...or this:
...of ths letr.
Page 31
The word personnel is shown to have the following abbreviations on page 101:
pson (psnn)
Question
Shouldn't the OVR abbreviation be this?
psnnl
Or perhaps this?
psnl
The reason I ask is because the OVR abbreviation technique doesn't mention anything about omitting consonants as well as vowels.
Page 33
The word determine is shown to have the following abbreviations on page 101:
dter (dtrm)
Question
This question is similar to the one I had about the OVR abbreviation for the word personnel. One thing I have noticed with both of these OVR abbreviations is this: It appears that in addition to omitting vowels from the root, you also limit the length of the resulting abbreviation to the first 3 (or maybe sometimes 4) consonants of the root. If this is the case, then that should be documented (like maybe on page 27). Because without this addition to the OVR rule, one would expect that the word determine be abbreviated as follows:
dtrmn
Other words in this same section that cause the same OVR translation question include:
accredit = acre (acrd)
uncertain = ucer (ucrt)
This last one in the same section (page 35) also has an OVR translation problem, but instead of using my "hypothetical" OVR additional rule of using only the first 3 or 4 consonants of the root, it actually uses the first 2 and last consonant of the root:
understand = usta (ustd)
Page 37
Problem
In the section where we are instructed to write and memorize the suffix symbols, two suffix symbols have been omitted:
- CY, LY, RY, TY (y)
- ED (d)
Page 41, near bottom
The practice word factor is listed as having these abbreviations in the answers on page 101:
facr factr factr
Question
Is the OVR abbreviation correct? Shouldn't the OVR abbreviation be fctr?
Page 43, top
The OVR abbreviation for the practice word classical is given as clssl on page 103.
Question
Is this correct? Is this another example of using only the first 3 or 4 consonants of the root? I ask this again to find out if this is accurate and to emphasize the need to point this out in the text if that is a valid form of OVR.
Note for Lenny
Lenny to avoid repetition of the point that I just listed, I will omit further references to OVR translation questions. I will hi-light them in my copy of the book. If you do decide they do need to be listed, let me know and I will go back and add them to this document.
Page 43, middle
In the first sentence of the transcription practice, the word specifies is abbreviated specs. Specifies is a plural form of a long simple word. So it should be abbreviated using the simple/positional technique. It looks as if you are using the "first 4" simple/positional technique, with the addition of the letter "s" to indicate plural form of the word. So in the definition of simple/positional technique, you should probably add that it is OK to put in an additional letter to show plural form of the word. You may have done this somewhere, but I don't see it listed anywhere before page 43.
Page 43, middle
Written
...dte on whh u wl...
Question
Is whh a good abbreviation for the word which? Would wch be better?
Page 43, third transcription paragraph
Written
W smit tf list...
Problem
The translation on page 103 is incorrect:
We submit the list...
It should read:
We submit the following list...
Page 43, third transcription paragraph
Written
...fr yr specl filg.
Comment
The word special is abbreviated as specl. I don't really think of the word "special" as having a root of "speci" with a suffix of "al" and so the SCR + prefix abbreviation is confusing.
Page 43, third transcription paragraph
Written
Custr mainc cn be dne...
Comment
According to page 9, the word can may be abbreviated as k. So the sentence fragment above may be encode thusly:
Custr mainc k be dne...
Page 45
The SCR4 abbreviation for the word available is written on page 103 as avalb. It should be written as avaib.
Page 47
The SCR4 abbreviation for the word tentative is written on page 103 as tenav. It should be written as tentv.
Page 47
Written
...t yr lettr o h 5th...
Problem
This passage is transcribed on page 103 as following:
...to your letter on the 5th...
It should be transcribed as:
...to your letter of the 5th...
Either that or else the part on page 47 should be written like this:
...t yr lettr on h 5th...
Note that the letter "o" is used as an abbreviation 4 times in this one sentence. In two cases it is translated to mean "on" and in the other two cases it is transcribed to mean "of". According to page 11 the letter "o" is an abbreviation for "of".
Page 49
In the list of suffixes to practice, these two have been omitted:
CY, LY, RY, TY (y)
ED (d)
Page 51
Is samples really a suffix word? I don't think of "es" in this word as being a suffix. Rather I think of this as the plural of "sample". Accordingly I think the rule for this word probably should be the simple/positional technique with an "s" on the end to make it plural; e.g., samps.
Page 59
The OVR abbreviation for unavoidable is given on page 105 as uvdb. I do not think this is correct because you are omitting the initial vowel in the root. This violates instructions given on page 41. I think one correct OVR abbreviation would be uavdb.
Page 59, bottom
I believe the abbreviation that you use for the word paragraph "∂" is non-standard. The normal abbreviation is "¶". In either case, I would advise against its use. The reason is because it cannot be entered easily from a computer keyboard. Recall that one of the advantages of ES is that the rules for ES and CS are supposed to be the same and that is clearly not the case if you are using an abbreviation in ES that you cannot enter in CS.
Page 59, bottom
Written
...by lettr agrem...
Should be
...by lettr o agrem...
Page 59, bottom
Written
...mortg cmittm dte t 8/4/87.
Problem
On page 105 this fragment is translated as this:
...mortgage contingency date to August 4, 1987.
The correct translation for this fragment is this:
...mortgage commitment date to August 4, 1987.
Page 63
I don't see the reason for the use of the symbol ">" following "CONVENTIONAL" and "DISAPPOINTMENT."
Page 67, middle
I don't think the word comply is a valid prefix-suffix word. On page 107 it is broken down as follows:
com-p-ly
This makes the root of the word the single letter "p!"
Page 67
In the following fragment from the transcription exercise:
...wrk z itely at thr ivesms z thy did...
The answer on page 107 is given as this:
...work as intelligently as thy did...
This incorrect. Three words have been omitted from the answer, which should be:
...work as intelligently at their investments as they did...
Page 67
In the same paragraph, the work "their" is written first as "thr" and then a few words later as "thir."
Page 67
The compound word h/slf is used in this exercise. But compound words are not defined until page 79.
Page 67
A word has been omitted from the text.
Written
...cary d t rais ccerg cfli...
Should be
...cary d t rais quehs ccerg cfli...
Page 69, top
I don't think reply is a valid prefix-suffix word. If so, then the "root" of this word is the single letter "p."
Page 69, bottom
I don't think supply is a valid prefix-suffix word. If so, then the "root" of this word is the single letter "p."
Page 71
The compound word m/plc is used in the transcription exercise, but compound words are not defined until page 79.
Page 71
Question
Is comply a valid prefix-suffix word? "P" doesn't seem like a valid root word.
Page 71
Question
Is reply a valid prefix-suffix word? "P" doesn't seem like a valid root word.
Page 73
Question
Is supply a valid prefix-suffix word? "P" doesn't seem like a valid root word.
Page 77
The abbreviation for acknowledged is given as ackd on page 111. I think it should be aknod, or something similar.
Page 85
For the practice word downhill, only the OVR answer d/hl is given on page 113.
Page 109, paragraph 3
Written
...every conflict of interest to be thoroughly...
Should be
...every conflict of interest be thoroughly...
Page 113
The OVR abbreviation for noisemaker is incorrectly written as o/mkr. It should be n/mkr.