Express Scribe Software Development Kit

This is the Software Development Kit (SDK) for programmers to integrate Express Scribe as part of other software or larger systems. It is intended for programmers only.

At the moment Express Scribe is controlled using the command line. Functionality includes opening and closing files, dispatching files, deleting files and bringing Express Scribe to the front or back. The full specification of the command line options are set out below.

If you are developing a dictation management system you should also consider integrating the dictation end, Express Dictate with the Express Dictate API and Etools to work with and manage dct files.

Express Scribe Command Line Usage
Express Scribe exe is located at "C:\Program Files\NCH Swift Sound\Scribe\scribe.exe". You can run command lines programmatically with the Win32 API call WinExec. See the Windows documentation for more. You should test your commands with the command line prompt if they are not working.

These options apply to Express Scribe version 4.00 and above.

ArgumentDescription
-exitForces Express Scribe to Close
-backMinimize Express Scribe
-frontRestore Express Scribe
-deleteDelete the current selected file(s)
-doneClose the current selected file(s) and move to done list
-dispatchDispatch the current selected file(s)
-deletefile "[OriginalFilePath]"Delete the file that was loaded from the original path
-donefile "[OriginalFilePath]"Mark as done the file that was loaded from the original path
-dispatchfile "[OriginalFilePath]"Dispatch the file that was loaded from the original path
-selectfile "[OriginalFilePath]"Finds the file with the specified original path in the list of dictations and selects it.
"[LoadFilePath]"Loads the specified file. You must specify the full path of the file. You should enclose the path in inverted commas.

Command Line Examples
"C:\Program Files\NCH Swift Sound\Scribe\scribe.exe" "C:\My Documents\MyDictation.dct"
- opens the file "C:\My Documents\MyDictation.dct" with Express Scribe

"C:\Program Files\NCH Swift Sound\Scribe\scribe.exe" -front
- opens the Express Scribe window

"C:\Program Files\NCH Swift Sound\Scribe\scribe.exe" -donefile "C:\My Documents\MyDictation.dct"
- assuming the file "C:\My Documents\MyDictation.dct" was previously opened, closes the file and marks it as done

Other Information

We can also rebrand Express Scribe with your logo and details for a small fee (see www.nch.com.au/reseller for more information).