ABSTRACT
In the process of developing new spoken language corpora that will be of the greatest use to the greatest number and variety of users, we are continually faced with the difficult question of how best to represent spoken language in a visual format. It is interesting at the outset to think about why we should want to do this. Spoken language, after all, comes in the form of sound, and why would not it be enough just to make sound recordings available to our customers? The question is not a frivolous one, and there is a part of me that would be happiest if we confined our efforts to collecting useful recordings and passing them on to whoever might want and be able to use them.
