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I am sorry if this is long but I am so lost here on this.  I have a laptop with Windows Vista on it.  I hate the sound card, does not record states volume too low when it is turned all the way up and found through research problems with Vista etc.  Has anybody used an external sound card that works well with it.  I was going to have Vista wiped out and have XP put on but the tech is telling me I cannot have that done as I need to have motherboard etc changed, need manufacture help etc.  Has anybody done this successfully or am I just stuck with Vista and need to get over it.  

Thanks ! 

Anyone heard from their MQ office what this check amount was based on and why it wasn't direct deposit like others if you are on direct deposit??

I work at home full-time as an Editor making $15 an hour.  I've been offered a position as a pathology Transcriptionist working in the office for a local pathology group.  They've offered me $16 per hour with a review in 90 days and a raise to $17 at that time.  It's about a 30 minute commute one way to the office.

Which would you choose?

The taxes/financial link takes me to the States board (?) so I hope I can post this here.

I'm considering going from FT employee status back to IC, but it's been years since I was IC and don't remember for sure what the tax rule is... and my accountant at the time didn't know something about paying estimated tax and I ended up with a penalty for not doing so... long story and won't go there... fired him!

Anyway, my question is... What amount do you pay your self-employment tax on?  For example: If an IC works for say two or three companies in a year and makes $30,000, and has $10,000 in business deductions like internet, phone, paper, postage, etc., do you pay your self-employment tax on the $30,000 gross or the $20,000 net? 

I'm trying to look at the pros and cons of giving up employee status and trying to figure out how it would pencil out paying the whole SE tax myself, private insurance, etc.  Whether the SE tax is paid on net income after deductions or gross income could be quite a chunk of change... and could change my mind about going IC.

Any info is appreciated... I am going to call my accountant tomorrow, but thought I'd ask here tonight and see if anyone knew.  Thanks!

Finally have given in and am switching from WP to MSWord. I work from home. If anyone has any encouraging words about MSWord, I certainly would like to hear them. So far, I am going crazy, i.e., I have put in "gray boxes" but when I enter my autocorrect short cut for the "shell", my cursor goes to the bottom of the page and I have to page up 2-3 times. I am missing something?

Any help would be so very much appreciated

Thank you.... bw...

For those who are IC's, while you are transcribing, do you handwrite a list of the patients with the date of their appointments in a numbered list?  Do you also give a copy of that list to your doctors?  I started doing this recently so that it would help the doctors see what patients they dictated for and how much it costs. 

Is this something of a standard practice?  I was thinking too that I should type out the list instead of the handwritten copy. 

TIA

Does anyone have any info on this?  Is it a good way to make some extra money?  I said NO, he decided to do it anyway.

Have you heard of  The Singing Podiatrist?  I stumbled upon her very interesting site. She has a lovely voice

Does anybody know anything bad or good about this company?  I am looking for a good MT employer. 

B.I.
Contact: Robin Loatman
105 Paul Mellon Court, Suite 15, Waldorf, Maryland 20602
rloatman@earthlink.net
Telephone: 301-843-9380, Fax: 301-843-7744

1025 lines per day and 0,075per line. Acute care, Benefits, one of the big corps employing foreign labor.  This is after 1,46 per exam in Rad for 4 years. 

0.075 cpl for acute care and shorthand, 1 normal so far (new acct). 

I am in my 50s and would like to be assuresd at 0.075 cpl in 8-hour day will givce me enought to live on for a single woman.  Hired at different rate but considered "new hire" which I feel requires a contract or some type of informativce interview.

What is this?  More "fleecing of America" in the disguise of pilferation?

I

I find myself, like when I'm reading a menu or magazine, newspaper, etc, always finding the grammer errors, punctuation errors, spelling errors, and it drives me--not to mention my DH--nuts! I guess it's out of habit, but I can't seem to turn the "editor" in me off!  I'm always, instead of enjoying the story or article, or whatever I'm reading, looking for errors or typo's.  Does anyone else ever do this? I guess I'm obsessive/compulsive.  Think I could get work comp for that?

Vertically or horizontally? 

Just wondering. 

Do anybody know anything about this company? I am really interested in applying, but I am a little confused about their test. Does anyone know how many tests to do to apply? Do you pick one category and do all the tests within or several tests within several categories? If someone has applied before I would really appreciate some info on how many I need to do. Thanks.

It is so easy to convince yourself you cannot make as much money at a different company  or on a different account, or never find anything better, so you stay where you are, taking all the abuse in the world.  In management, this is called the Golden Handcuff, and they rely on it to keep the same employees, never give a raise, never give respect, and just continue to walk all over you.

In this profession you are very mobile if you can transcribe at all.  It may take a month to get used to a new system, a new account, or whatever, but your self respect is worth it in the end.  There are a lot of companies out there that actually do appreciate employees, and it certainly does not seem to be any of the companies who are mentioned frequently on these boards.

I changed jobs about a month ago, thought I would never learn, but in a week I was making far more with a small MTSO than I ever did with a large company.  Treat yourself to a new beginning and a new year. 

Just wondering what everyone uses.  I use a 17 inch but would like a 19 or 21.  I like mine big, but my mom who is also an MT says when the monitor is too big it slows down her production because her eyes have to travel further back and forth to read what she is typing.  LOL  Everyone is different.  I've seen these huge monitors at the computer stores lately, widescreen, like 30 inches, and they look pretty cool.  So...what size monitor does everyone use or would like to use?  Thanks!

Pros and cons of word Expander programs that work with Chartscript?  PC ShortHand as opposed to Instant Text?  Which is better?  I have downloaded PC shorthand for a 30 day trial, but to me its a little slow.  Any ideas?  Thanks

Please tell me if I'm wrong here.  I will try and make it short.  Okay, so I work as an LPN for a doctor and I also do his transcription AT HOME for an extra check (IC status) and I work for another company doing transcription on the weekends.  So, out of the blue he and his wife (office manager) decide that they no longer can "afford" transcription, so they want me to do the transcription during my 8-hour nursing shift.  They don't want to take away any of my duties, they just want me to work harder I suppose, and they said I could do transcription in between patients and things such as that.

I told them that I didn't feel that was fair and that I do make a considerable larger amount doing transcription than my nursing pay and it's really not fair to double my work and keep my ONE pay.  Well, the wife explained it to me and she said that even if they asked me to sweep the floor, as long as I was getting my salary that was required for that 8 hours, then I would be required to do so.  Okay, so I get that........BUT.......everybody working in the office knows how to sweep the floor and that would be fair.  I am the ONLY person that knows how to do transcription, so if EVERYONE can't do the transcription, then why should I be required to?  It is like they are using an extra "talent" that I have, for lack of a better word, to profit on it. 

I feel like what they are asking me to do would be in comparison to if I was also a hair stylist and they REQUIRED me to style everyone's hair at work for no extra money.  I mean doing transcription is a whole extra craft, but they feel it is the same as if they asked me to take out the garbage or sweep the floor.

Am I wrong?  TIA for your opinions.

I applied with them today and am curious about the feedback others can give regarding this company.

Thanks,

Vicki

You will see my last dictator dictating from a chopper with at least 10 choppers around him, landing in the middle of a Rolling Stones concert notifying the fans that Mick is sick and won't be there

just don't know how better to describe this background noise that is obviously distracting to him...oh, please add,  oops change that...uhh, hmm where was I   I have a migraine now and I don't even know what one feels like and from the looks of my que, I'm going in for round 2

As an independent contractor, where can I go to get a list of what I can write off legally when working from home?

TIA.

KSM

.

I need helping deciding...I'm looking for a keyboard that feels like a laptap's keys do. I hate the clickety-clack sound! Sometimes it's so loud I've got to turn my volume up on my headphones!

I've been looking at "quiet" keyboards but they still make too much noise for me. Someone suggested a gaming keyboard one time but I have no use for all those extra function buttons and LCD screens, so why pay ($100+) for something I'm never going to use??!!

I've been looking at Macally's IceKey and from what I've read, even though it's made for Mac's you can still use it on a PC (just the volume controls on the keyboard won't work, no biggie to me). The only thing (and this is a big thing) that's keeping me from buying this one is that it's USB.

I don't have anymore USB ports available on my PC!

Does anyone know of a keyboard similar to the IceKey but is PS/2? Or perhaps can I just use an adapter with it?

If anyone knows, or can suggest another keyboard, please help me out.

Do you send Christmas cards or other holiday cards?  About how many do you send out?