• Textbook’s 60th Anniversary
According to Amazon, June 1st will be the 60th anniversary of the publication of Gregg Shorthand Manual Simplified - second edition.
It’s extraordinary that this book is still in print 60 years later. And it’s often #1 or #2 in Amazon USA's Business & Money > Skills > Secretarial Aids & Training category.
I ordered a new copy from Amazon a few months ago and I was surprised at the quality of its construction. It is printed on brilliant white, acid-free paper and (after you remove the garish dustjacket) it has nicely decorated covers.
How will you celebrate the anniversary of this publication? Drinking, dancing or both?
• Simplified Brief Form Variations
The Angelfishy website and Wikipedia say there are 181 brief forms in Simplified.
There are 184 brief forms shown in the reference charts in the Functional manual (1st and 2nd editions) and Dictation Simplified (1st and 2nd editions).
On page 89 of the October 1950 edition of Today’s Secretary, there’s a chart giving 187 brief forms. (The extra ones are “yours very truly,” “very truly yours” and “sincerely yours.”)
In the UK version of the Simplified manual 2nd edition there is a chart of 185 brief forms. They’ve added d-m for “Dear Madam.”
The UK version uses r-l for “railway” instead of r-r for “railroad.”Labels: books, general, simplified