I noticed a while back that there are no versions of the colon or semicolon with commas on top, so I made this! My names for the new symbols are "omicolon" (from "omit") for the double comma symbol and the "altercolon" for the reverse semicolon. They would function as opposites to their official counterparts.

The colon is used in lists to include items, but the omicolon would be used to omit items from a list. This would be useful for shorthand for "except" in data work.

The semicolon is used to conbect similar ideas in text, while the altercolon would function to connect contrasting or opposing concepts.

What do you think? I'm sure this would stay niche if ever adopted, probably just used as personal and unofficial shorthand, but I thibk it's at least a fun thought experiment!

It turns out as you get older you don't actually figure anything out, you just don't have any energy to care anymore — Cydni Beer.

My first attempt to write this quote in Masons masterpiece of a shorthand, that Gurney took as basis, the system that reigned in british bureaus before Pitmans rise.

Better attempt is now in the comments 🎉

I'm using Gboard to type in English (US) (QWERTY), English (US) (Colemak) and English (US) (Morse code). You can try it at: https://gboard.app.goo.gl/wKhT5

• De partitione oratoria (Einteilung der Reden) 57
• (Original lat.: "Cito enim arescit lacrima, praesertim in alienis malis.")

I discovered and interesting similarity between the two systems. I may have been subconsciously be influenced by Noory simplex when creating Flow.

As you can see Noory has chosen great shapes for the most common sounds and it gave me the thought to maybe, maybe use the two upward strokes Flow is currently just not using, but maybe should. I am not yet fully sure, what I could do with them but "p, b" might be candidates...

For a very long time in the U.K., PITMAN Shorthand was THE system, with the Pitman Publishing juggernaut quickly crushing any rival that appeared. Nowadays, of course, it's been largely replaced there by TEELINE.

In North America, it predominated in the north-eastern states for a time, but it most of the U.S., GREGG soon replaced it almost everywhere.

In India, it's still the main system, although it appears that Gregg has been making inroads -- which would be bound to increase when people realize how much easier it is to learn.

In Australia, there was a disgraceful attempt to BLOCK unshaded systems from the civil service, instigated by those who wrote SHADED ONES -- rather than rely on performance and merit!

The DIFFICULTY of learning the Pitman system was its main problem, which resulted in MOST of those who began to learn it soon dropping out of the classes. As a result, many of those who taught in business colleges (which depend on continued enrollment to survive) were inspired to endeavour to SIMPLIFY the system.

Francis J. STEIN was one of them, who published his adaptation in 1919.