theopenstenoproj_Plover/Stentura-Protege-Setup-and-Usage-Instructions.md

Congratulations on getting a Stentura Protege. 

[Photo of my Protege. Note: My face plate is missing.](https://imgur.com/vKbiTOJ)

## What you need

You will need two cables:

1. **Data Cable:** 
USB to RS-232 DB9 Male Serial Cable. (Make sure the chord has a male serial with 9 pins)
- [Amazon link](http://a.co/9KWXIMP)
2. **Power Cable:**
USB 2.0 Cable - A-Male to B-Male. (Your machine may come with this. Mine did not. Ideally, the USB cable could carry data too but modern drivers are not available.)
- [Amazon link](http://a.co/fQDbqWD)

Note: Both of those Amazon links are for 6 foot cables. Make sure you get a cord long enough for your setup.

## Setup

**Step 1.** 
Connect power cord: Connect USB A-to-B cable to Stentura machine and computer. Your machine now has power. On the front of your Stentura is a row of 6 grey buttons. Press and hold the 1st one to turn it on. 

**Step 2.**
Connect data cord: Connect serial-to-USB cable to Stentura machine and computer. 
[Photo of cables connected.](https://imgur.com/wGc9y4p)

**Step 3.** 
Download the latest version of Plover for your OS.

**Step 4.**
Open Plover. Click the configure button. A new configuration window will open. Click the tab for machine. Select Stentura from the drop down menu. Go back to the window where you clicked the configure button. Click the radio button "enable" to enable output. Click the reload button (arrows going in a circle) until the dot turns green and it says "Stentura: Connected"

**Step 5.**
Thanks to Plover, your Stentura can now type on your computer. Start learning Steno with Plover [lessons](https://sites.google.com/site/ploverdoc/lesson-1-fingers-and-keys) and [interactive drills](http://stenoknight.com/plover/haxeploverlearn/). 

## Something went wrong

I ran into a problem because I was using an older Serial-to-USB cable and Windows was not able to load the correct Prolific drivers for the cable. I found a solution. [This site](http://www.totalcardiagnostics.com/support/Knowledgebase/Article/View/92/20/prolific-usb-to-serial-fix-official-solution-to-code-10-error) explains the problem and gives you a link to download the right drivers. 

## Stentura Protege Manual

[Link to user guide PDF](http://www.stenograph.com/content/files/documents/Stentura%20Protege%20User%20Guide.pdf)