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Young Lawyers and Technology; Last Days of the File Server; Review of Sony Digital Paper Model DPTS1

By Kathryn Hughes | Friday, April 10, 2015

Today's issue of TL Serendipity contains these articles:

Scott Bassett, Why Young Lawyers Lack an Interest in Technology

Neil Squillante, The Last Days of the File Server

Eric Zaidins, Review of Sony Digital Paper Model DPTS1: A Better Way to Read and Write?

Don't miss this issue — or any future issues.

How to Receive TL Serendipity
Our most serendipitous offering (hence its name), TL Serendipity consists of contributions by TechnoLawyer members who have important information to share. You'll no doubt enjoy it because of its mix of interesting topics and genuinely useful knowledge, including brutally honest product reviews and informative how-tos. The TL Serendipity newsletter is free so don't miss the next issue. Please subscribe now.

Topics: Coming Attractions | Desktop PCs/Servers | Document Management | Laptops/Smartphones/Tablets | Technology Industry/Legal Profession | TL Serendipity

The Cost of DIY Document Management; Holy Grail of Cloud Practice Management; Run DOS Apps Safely; Much More

By Kathryn Hughes | Friday, February 13, 2015

Today's issue of TL Serendipity contains these articles:

Brad Smith, The Undocumented Cost of a DIY Document Management System

Neil Squillante, The Holy Grail of Cloud Practice Management Apps

Thomas Stirewalt, How to Run Old DOS Software Safely

Blair Clark, Defending WordPerfect; Review of Perfect Authority

Michele Ballagh, Tip: Create, Assign, and Track Tasks in Outlook

Don't miss this issue — or any future issues.

How to Receive TL Serendipity
Our most serendipitous offering (hence its name), TL Serendipity consists of contributions by TechnoLawyer members who have important information to share. You'll no doubt enjoy it because of its mix of interesting topics and genuinely useful knowledge, including brutally honest product reviews and informative how-tos. The TL Serendipity newsletter is free so don't miss the next issue. Please subscribe now.

Topics: Business Productivity/Word Processing | Coming Attractions | Desktop PCs/Servers | Document Management | Email/Messaging/Telephony | Networking/Operating Systems | TL Serendipity

TL NewsWire Top 10 and Top 25 Products of 2014 Awards

By Neil J. Squillante | Wednesday, December 10, 2014

You and your fellow TL NewsWire subscribers have done it again. You've chosen the winners of the TL NewsWire Top 10 and Top 25 Products of 2014 Awards.

Here's how you did it. We reported on nearly 200 new products in TL NewsWire this year. When you clicked to visit a product's website and learn more you also voted for that product. These clicks are more meaningful than if we subjectively chose the winners. Besides, who better to judge what's hot and what's not than lawyers and law firm administrators like you?

You'll notice several themes as you read through the winning products — document automation, document management, integrations (especially with Microsoft Office), and litigation management.

Without further ado …

WINNERS OF THE TL NEWSWIRE TOP 10 PRODUCTS OF 2014 AWARD

1. pdfDocs 4.1

The PDF format paved the way for the paperless law office, electronic filing, and the iPad as briefcase. So it's fitting that DocsCorp's pdfDocs 4.1 finds itself in first place. Designed specifically for law firms, pdfDocs 4.1 handles all the basics while also providing advanced tools such as Organizer Project and Binder Project for assembling closing books, deal books, and ebriefs.

2. MetaJure

It's not every year that new software for document management hits the scene, which explains the high level of interest in MetaJure. Unlike traditional document management systems, MetaJure eschews manually-created document profiles in favor of automatic indexing and Google-like search technology.

3. Primafact

In theory, clients pay you to focus on the facts and legal issues, not to organize their case file. Designed for litigation, Primafact keeps all case-related documents and email in a virtual binder. Integration with scanners and built-in optical character recognition (OCR) enables you to add everything that arrives on paper and make it searchable.

4. Lexis for Microsoft Office 4.2

Microsoft Word remains a fixture for legal writing, but Outlook has made inroads as clients often prefer an email message to a formal memo. Lexis for Microsoft Office works within both, enabling you to download all cited cases and other materials. It also checks your quotations and citations.

5. Digital WarRoom Express

Most lawsuits don't have a big budget. At a cost of just $99 per year, Digital WarRoom Express enables you to cull, review, and produce up to 50 GB of email and other electronic data across your cases (it handles up to 500 document formats). The Defensibility Log watches your back while you work.

6. Drafting Assistant - Transactional 2.0

Lawyers have long relied on the Deal Proof technology within Drafting Assistant - Transactional for proofreading their Word and WordPerfect documents. The new version integrates with Practical Law's Standard Documents and Clause Library to help you jump-start your drafting.

7. Timestream

Ntrepid's Timestream builds a timeline for your case as you add events and associated details (documents, issues, location, people, etc.). When it's time to discuss settlement or go to trial, you can use Timestream to give your presentation.

8. Transporter Genesis

The cloud is here to stay, but the jury has yet to return a verdict on private versus public cloud. Last year, Connected Data ranked first in the TL NewsWire Top Products Awards with Transporter, its initial private cloud product. Transporter Genesis is like Transporter on steroids, providing Dropbox-like functionality for up to 150 people.

9. MyCase Websites

Every law firm needs a mobile-friendly website so it's no surprise that MyCase Websites is in the top 10. Now just $500, marquee features include a content management system, and responsive design so that your website automatically adjusts to all screen sizes.

10. NetDocuments ndOffice

"Integration" has truly come of age this year. NetDocuments ndOffice essentially places the NetDocuments cloud document management system within Microsoft Office. This means you can open documents from and save documents to NetDocuments without leaving Microsoft Word, Excel, or PowerPoint.

WINNERS OF THE TL NEWSWIRE TOP 25 PRODUCTS OF 2014 AWARD

Congratulations to the next 15 hottest products of 2014 ranked in order by most clicks!

11. Synergy Matters

Synergy Matters combines practice management with document management and automatic time capture. Accordingly, it automatically tracks the time you spend working on your PC. Its cost recovery technology tracks copies, faxes, prints, and scans so you can cover your costs or at least bill for the time you spend at these devices.

12. Actionstep 14.7

Actionstep helped pioneer automated workflows within practice management software. The new Activity Log complements these workflows via a Facebook-style feed that keeps everyone apprised of what's happening across your firm. The new Scratch Pad captures your strokes of brilliance.

13. PhraseExpander Professional 4.0

Why let programming stand between you and document assembly? Nagarsoft's PhraseExpander Professional stores text such as clauses in groups. Using Quick Find, you then insert the material you need to build a document. PhraseExpander Professional integrates with Dropbox, Google Drive, and OneDrive.

14. Pathagoras 2014

Like the contestants on Iron Chef, lawyers can create any number of documents from the same core ingredients. Pathagoras keeps your text snippets organized in Collections. Environments further increase your speed by hiding irrelevant Collections. Pathagoras works inside Microsoft Word. It doesn't require any programming.

15. imageFORMULA DR-M160II

Most desktop scanners top out at 30 pages per minute. Canon's imageFORMULA DR-M160II doubles that speed without doubling the footprint (it measures 9.09 x 11.02 x 9.76 inches). The Kofax VRS Elite software included with the scanner removes hole punches, crops and straightens documents, notifies you about hardware problems, and even handles blueprints and other documents with a colored background.

16. TrialPad 4.0

Thanks to TrialPad 4.0 (and TranscriptPad 2.0), Lit Software cemented its reputation as the leading pure play developer of legal iPad apps. The new version of TrialPad has a search box on every screen for quickly pulling up any exhibit. The search results contain thumbnail document previews.

17. Surface Pro 3

The Surface Pro 3 has a higher resolution screen than the MacBook Air, which Microsoft has targeted in its advertising campaign. You can add a detachable keyboard and powered stylus. A touch-friendly version of Office remains MIA, but it runs any existing software compatible with Windows 8.

18. Legal Publish

Blogs have gone from curiosity to mainstream to underpowered relic. Legal Publish offers a suite of tools such as role-based privileges, customizable workflows, and a media library for creating more sophisticated online publications. Legal Publish also contains tools for creating proposals, and integrates with email services, social media platforms, customer relationship management apps, and Google Analytics.

19. Worldox for Mac Version 1.15

Too many lawyers use Macs nowadays for providers of document management systems to ignore. Worldox for Mac is a client for the popular Worldox GX3 document management system. Worldox for Mac integrates with Apple Mail and Microsoft Outlook so that you can save client-related email and attachments to Worldox GX3.

20. WordPerfect Office X7 Legal Edition

The legal industry remains a stronghold for WordPerfect. Corel responded this year by including Perfect Authority with the Legal Edition for the creation of tables of authorities. Perfect Authority supports Bluebook, California Style Manual, Florida Rule 9.800, and Louisiana Public Domain formats.

21. PeopleMap on WestlawNext

Lawyers often forget their role as gumshoe. PeopleMap on WestlawNext enables you to unearth gems from blogs, chat rooms, and social networks, as well as photos and business data. Unlike other public records services, PeopleMap shows you non-obvious connections that may lead you to hidden assets. Google Maps integration literally puts these assets on the map.

22. Equil Smartpen 2

Atlantis. El Dorado. Smartpens. When a legend has such appeal, it's hard to give up on it. Ludia's Equil Smartpen 2 works on paper, stores what you write without the need for any other device, transfers your notes to your Windows PC, Mac, iPad, or Android device, and converts your handwriting to editable text.

23. Varidesk Pro Plus

You'd like to stand up for telephone calls, but you can't bear to part with your mahogany desk. Varidesk Pro Plus transforms any desk into a standup desk by adding up to 17.625 vertical inches. The two levels house your monitor and/or a laptop, and your mouse and keyboard respectively.

24. CosmoLex

CosmoLex takes a finance-centric approach to practice management. Its conflicts checking and trust accounting tools enable you to efficiently intake new clients. A cloud application that stores data only in domestic datacenters, CosmoLex also offers billing, calendars, cost recovery, task management, and time tracking.

25. Dragon NaturallySpeaking 13 Legal

The latest version of Dragon NaturallySpeaking tears down some of the remaining barriers to speech recognition. You no longer need to train the software or buy a pricy microphone. In a reversal of roles, Dragon NaturallySpeaking can read what you write back to you.

How to Receive TL NewsWire
So many products, so little time. In each issue of TL NewsWire, you'll learn about five new products for the legal profession. Pressed for time? The newsletter's innovative articles enable lawyers and law office administrators to quickly understand the function of a product, and zero in on its most important features. The TL NewsWire newsletter is free so don't miss the next issue. Please subscribe now.

Topics: Accounting/Billing/Time Capture | Automation/Document Assembly/Macros | Business Productivity/Word Processing | Collaboration/Knowledge Management | Copiers/Scanners/Printers | Desktop PCs/Servers | Dictation/OCR/Speech Recognition | Document Management | Graphic Design/Photography/Video | Laptops/Smartphones/Tablets | Law Firm Marketing/Publications/Web Sites | Legal Research | Litigation/Discovery/Trials | Online/Cloud | Practice Management/Calendars | Presentations/Projectors | TL NewsWire | Transactional Practice Areas

How to Create Word Documents With a Fillable Form Plus 53 More Must-Reads

By Kathryn Hughes | Monday, December 8, 2014

Coming today to BlawgWorld: Our editorial team has selected and linked to 54 articles from the past week worthy of your attention. Below you'll find a sample article from each section of today's issue, including our BlawgWorld Pick of the Week.

Review: LexisNexis Firm Manager

Two Lawyers Discuss Their iPhone Home Screens

2014's Best Android Apps for Lawyers

The Transformation of Middle Office Services

Congratulations to How-To Geek on winning our BlawgWorld Pick of the Week award: How to Create Word Documents With a Fillable Form

How to Receive BlawgWorld
Our newsletters provide the most comprehensive coverage of both legal technology and mainstream technology of interest to the legal profession (e.g., monitors, smartphones, scanners, the iPad, and more). But not the only coverage. BlawgWorld enables you to stay on top of all the noteworthy legal and mainstream technology articles (and podcasts and videos) published elsewhere without having to hire a research assistant. Even when you're busy, you won't want to miss each issue's Pick of the Week. Please subscribe now.

Topics: BlawgWorld Newsletter | Business Productivity/Word Processing | Coming Attractions | Desktop PCs/Servers | Laptops/Smartphones/Tablets | Practice Management/Calendars

Transporter Genesis: Read Our Exclusive Report

By Neil J. Squillante | Wednesday, December 3, 2014

Today's issue of TL NewsWire covers a network appliance that offers Dropbox-like cloud storage with better security (see article below), a smart email app that works its magic on your device, software that helps you fine-tune patent applications, and a desktop scanner that can transform into a network scanner. Don't miss the next issue.

ROLL YOUR OWN CLOUD

Once upon a time, law firms paid a consultant to buy a PC and configure it as a file server. When that file server died, they repeated the cycle. In recent years, many firms understandably switched to Dropbox or one of its public cloud competitors. Even firms that continue to operate their own file server often find that their employees use public cloud services on the sly. It's the age old convenience trumping security conundrum at work.

Transporter Genesis … in One Sentence

Launched earlier this month, Connected Data's Transporter Genesis is a network appliance for creating a private cloud.

The Killer Feature

Unlike file servers and traditional Network Attached Storage (NAS) appliances, Transporter Genesis looks like Dropbox to end users. In Mac and Windows, you navigate through files and folders in the operating system. On Android and iOS devices, you use the free File Transporter app from which you can send documents to other apps.

Other Notable Features

Unlike public cloud services, you control the location of Transporter Genesis (e.g., your office most likely or a data center of your choosing). Owning the actual box gives you other forms of control. Most notably, there's no subscription to pay. You just buy the hardware configured to your specifications.

If you have two offices, you can house a Transporter Genesis in both locations and automatically keep them synced, thus providing redundancy if you lose power or suffer some other connectivity problem in one of the offices.

Transporter Genesis offers a number of administrator tools. You can create users and assign them to groups to enforce restrictions. You'll find support for Microsoft Active Directory. Even users can exercise some control by accessing all prior versions of their documents and creating read-only versions of documents they share.

What Else Should You Know?

You can choose from two models — the Genesis 75 and Genesis 150. The Genesis 75 offers up to 12 TB of storage and supports up to 75 users. The Genesis 150 offers up to 24 TB or storage and supports up to 150 users. Both have dual Gigabit Ethernet connectors and fit in a rack mount. Despite being hardware, you can try Transporter Genesis for free. Learn more about Genesis Transporter.

How to Receive TL NewsWire
So many products, so little time. In each issue of TL NewsWire, you'll learn about five new products for the legal profession. Pressed for time? The newsletter's innovative articles enable lawyers and law office administrators to quickly understand the function of a product, and zero in on its most important features. The TL NewsWire newsletter is free so don't miss the next issue. Please subscribe now.

Topics: Desktop PCs/Servers | TL NewsWire

Review of Abacus Private Cloud Plus 82 More Must-Reads

By Kathryn Hughes | Tuesday, September 30, 2014

Coming today to BlawgWorld: Our editorial team has selected and linked to 83 articles from the past week worthy of your attention. Below you'll find a sample article from each section of today's issue, including our BlawgWorld Pick of the Week.

Five Ways to Use Your PC Remotely

View a Desktop Website in Mobile Safari

iPhone 6 Plus Second Impressions

The ROI of Law Firm Practice Management

Congratulations to James A. Farr of Law Technology Today on winning our BlawgWorld Pick of the Week award: Review of Abacus Private Cloud

How to Receive BlawgWorld
Our newsletters provide the most comprehensive coverage of both legal technology and mainstream technology of interest to the legal profession (e.g., monitors, smartphones, scanners, the iPad, and more). But not the only coverage. BlawgWorld enables you to stay on top of all the noteworthy legal and mainstream technology articles (and podcasts and videos) published elsewhere without having to hire a research assistant. Even when you're busy, you won't want to miss each issue's Pick of the Week. Please subscribe now.

Topics: BlawgWorld Newsletter | Coming Attractions | Desktop PCs/Servers | Law Firm Marketing/Publications/Web Sites | Law Office Management | Networking/Operating Systems | Online/Cloud

Apple Takes on Dropbox Plus 73 More Must-Reads

By Kathryn Hughes | Monday, June 2, 2014

Coming today to BlawgWorld: Our editorial team has selected and linked to 74 articles from the past week worthy of your attention. Below you'll find a sample article from each section of today's issue, including our BlawgWorld Pick of the Week.

My Switch to Mac and Then Back to PC

The Best Gear for Your Road Trip

New Study on Law Firm File Sharing

New Survey on iPad and iPhone Usage Among Lawyers

Congratulations to Ellis Hamburger of The Verge on winning our BlawgWorld Pick of the Week award: Apple Takes on Dropbox

How to Receive BlawgWorld
Our newsletters provide the most comprehensive coverage of both legal technology and mainstream technology of interest to the legal profession (e.g., monitors, smartphones, scanners, the iPad, and more). But not the only coverage. BlawgWorld enables you to stay on top of all the noteworthy legal and mainstream technology articles (and podcasts and videos) published elsewhere without having to hire a research assistant. Even when you're busy, you won't want to miss each issue's Pick of the Week. Please subscribe now.

Topics: BlawgWorld Newsletter | Coming Attractions | Desktop PCs/Servers | Document Management | Gadgets/Shredders/Office Gear | Laptops/Smartphones/Tablets | Technology Industry/Legal Profession

Reviews of Olympus Digital Recorders, Yola, RingCentral; Worldox Migration

By Kathryn Hughes | Friday, April 18, 2014

Today's issue of TL Answers contains these articles:

Gil Marquez, Review: Olympus DS-5000 and DS-7000

Michele Peters, Review: Yola (Law Firm Websites)

Philip Landsman, Review: RingCentral (Including Fax Lines)

Ron Fox, Dates in Document Names and Our Migration to Worldox

Don't miss this issue — or any future issues.

How to Receive TL Answers
Do you believe in the wisdom of crowds? In TL Answers, TechnoLawyer members answer legal technology and practice management questions submitted by their peers. This newsletter's popularity stems from the relevance of the questions and answers to virtually everyone in the legal profession. The TL Answers newsletter is free so don't miss the next issue. Please subscribe now.

Topics: Coming Attractions | Desktop PCs/Servers | Document Management | Email/Messaging/Telephony | Law Firm Marketing/Publications/Web Sites | TL Answers

Essential Computer Hardware for Law Firms on a Tight, Moderate, or Large Budget Plus Cheap Lawyer Horror Story

By Kathryn Hughes | Tuesday, April 8, 2014

Coming today to SmallLaw: In this issue of SmallLaw, legal technology consultant Jack Schaller wraps up his two-part series on the technology required for a new law firm or an established firm that needs a fresh start. Jack covered software in the first installment. Today he covers the computer hardware to run that software. Desktop or or notebook? Which smartphone? Chromebook or iPad or Surface? Jack is back with all the answers for three budgets — tight, moderate, or large. Also, don't miss the SmallLaw Pick of the Week for a horror story about a small law firm that charged too little.

How to Receive SmallLaw
Small firm, big dreams. Written by practicing lawyers who manage successful small firms and legal technology and practice management experts who have achieved rock star status, SmallLaw provides practical advice on management, marketing, and technology issues in small law firms, as well as comprehensive legal product reviews with accompanying TechnoScore ratings. SmallLaw also ensures that you won't miss anything published elsewhere by linking to helpful articles (and podcasts and videos) about solo practices and small law firms. The SmallLaw newsletter is free so don't miss the next issue. Please subscribe now.

Topics: Coming Attractions | Desktop PCs/Servers | Laptops/Smartphones/Tablets | SmallLaw

PDF OCR Tip; Automating a 25-Lawyer Firm; Review of Directory List & Print; NSA; Microsoft Word; Email Syncing

By Kathryn Hughes | Thursday, March 13, 2014

Today's issue of TL Answers contains these articles:

Joshua Gordon, How to OCR Only Part of a Page in a PDF Scan

Michael O'Neill, What It Costs to Automate a 25-Lawyer Firm

Michael Flanagan, Review: Directory List & Print

Mark Olberding, Embrace Your Insecurity (Don't Fear James Bond)

Harold Dye, More Reasons Why Law Firms Use Word Despite Its Flaws

Don't miss this issue — or any future issues.

How to Receive TL Answers
Do you believe in the wisdom of crowds? In TL Answers, TechnoLawyer members answer legal technology and practice management questions submitted by their peers. This newsletter's popularity stems from the relevance of the questions and answers to virtually everyone in the legal profession. The TL Answers newsletter is free so don't miss the next issue. Please subscribe now.

Topics: Business Productivity/Word Processing | Coming Attractions | Consultants/Services/Training | Desktop PCs/Servers | Document Management | Privacy/Security | TL Answers | Utilities
 
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