TechnoLawyer: Accounting/Billing/Time Capture

Today's issue of TechnoLawyer NewsWire covers an email and instant messaging security and archiving service, an online spreadsheet (see article below), and a simple billing program for Mac users. Don't miss the next issue.

Context Is King
By Taeho Lim

Why use an online spreadsheet when you have a perfectly good one in your Office suite? Context, my friends, context. Being online means you can share your spreadsheet with just about anyone or anything.

For example, Team and Concepts' online spreadsheet EditGrid enables you to create a spreadsheet, access it from any Web browser, collaborate with colleagues, send the data to other applications and databases, publish the spreadsheet on your Web site, etc.

Team and Concepts claims that EditGrid has a short learning curve because it looks and feels just like Excel. Familiar features include cut and paste, charts, auto-fill, number and cell formatting, and more than 50 keyboard shortcuts. EditGrid works with all major Web browsers, including Internet Explorer, Firefox, Opera, Safari, and Netscape. The iPhone Edition, currently in beta, enables you to use it on Apple's popular smartphone.

With EditGrid, you can collaborate on spreadsheets in real-time with anyone else. For example, you might create a firmwide expense report. When someone makes an edit, it flashes in red so you always stay up-to-date on the latest version. You can control access levels and privileges, and prevent others from editing specific parts of the spreadsheet. EditGrid even offers an in-application chat feature for communicating with your co-editors.

In addition to its familiar feel and real-time editing, EditGrid provides an API that connects your spreadsheets to your existing databases and legacy applications. The API is bidirectional so you can both send and receive data. Other spreadsheet features include Web publication, auto-save, revision history on a cell by cell basis, versioning and rollback, and integration with any public data source such as Yahoo! Finance.

EditGrid comes in two versions — Personal and Organization. The Personal edition is free whereas the latter costs $5/user/month and provides SSL security, shared workspaces (which can contain several spreadsheets), technical support, a custom login page, and administrative tools. If you prefer, you can run EditGrid internally on your own server, thus enabling you to integrate LDAP. Learn more about EditGrid.

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Published on Wednesdays, TechnoLawyer NewsWire is a weekly newsletter that enables you to learn about new technology products and services of interest to legal professionals. Like all of our newsletters, it's free. Please subscribe now.

Coming December 06, 2007 to Answers to Questions: Jason Havens discusses the pro and cons of local versus national Web and email hosting services plus what he thinks of Yahoo Small Business, Anna Marie Sossong reviews her experience with PCLaw upgrades and tech support, Paul Hager issues a warning to Microsoft Word haters, Pam Rolph discusses the must-have features of an online calendar for law firms, and Brent Blanchard reviews Windows Explorer for case management. Don't miss this issue.

How to Receive this Newsletter
Published Thursdays, Answers to Questions is a weekly newsletter in which TechnoLawyer members answer legal technology and practice management questions submitted by their peers (including you if you join TechnoLawyer). Like all of our newsletters, it's free. Please subscribe now.

Coming November 29, 2007 to Answers to Questions: Andrea Cannavina discusses the three primary options for digital dictation, Jeff Scott Olson reviews PaperPort used in conjunction with ScanSoft PDF Converter Professional, Caren Schwartz discusses the ins and outs of choosing the right accounting/time-billing software, Douglas Folk offers some sound advice to anyone having trouble with a faulty laptop touchpad, and Lewis Kinard provides a tip for using a laptop and an external monitor with Windows XP (plus a strange predicament you may experience with multiple monitors). Don't miss this issue.

How to Receive this Newsletter
Published Thursdays, Answers to Questions is a weekly newsletter in which TechnoLawyer members answer legal technology and practice management questions submitted by their peers (including you if you join TechnoLawyer). Like all of our newsletters, it's free. Please subscribe now.

Coming November 21, 2007 to Answers to Questions: Thomas Stirewalt explains how to link exhibits and deposition or trial transcripts using software you probably already have, Darren Cantor reviews LaserFiche for reviewing discovery documents, William E. Olson reviews UltraMon for dual monitors, Robert McNeill clarifies some misconceptions about Time Matters such as whether it's matter- or calendar-oriented, and Paul Bannon reviews his experience using Dragon NaturallySpeaking 9. Don't miss this issue.

How to Receive this Newsletter
Published Thursdays, Answers to Questions is a weekly newsletter in which TechnoLawyer members answer legal technology and practice management questions submitted by their peers (including you if you join TechnoLawyer). Like all of our newsletters, it's free. Please subscribe now.

Coming November 19, 2007 to Answers to Questions: Barry Hubbard reports on how he uses Linux in his small practice, William Elias explains how to use your Treo 700p to provide wireless Internet access for your laptop, Susan Zachos provides a helpful tip for improving Time Matters' performance, Brian McCollum reviews RoboForm, and Gerri Martin points to some resources to help you choose your time-billing software (and we add to her list of resources with some our own recommendations). Don't miss this issue.

How to Receive this Newsletter
Published Thursdays, Answers to Questions is a weekly newsletter in which TechnoLawyer members answer legal technology and practice management questions submitted by their peers (including you if you join TechnoLawyer). Like all of our newsletters, it's free. Please subscribe now.

Coming November 20, 2007 to Answers to Questions: Caren Schwartz provides some tips on using QuickBooks for trust accounting, Thomas F. McDow explains how to make the most of your front and back office software, Paul Mathias shares his experiences with multiple monitors (and we point to nifty solution favored by hedge funds), Charlotte Quiroz discusses the costs associated with Tabs3 and the various training options, and Morris Tabush offers some suggested products for shared calendars (and we provide some suggestions of our own). Don't miss this issue.

How to Receive this Newsletter
Published Thursdays, Answers to Questions is a weekly newsletter in which TechnoLawyer members answer legal technology and practice management questions submitted by their peers (including you if you join TechnoLawyer). Like all of our newsletters, it's free. Please subscribe now.

Coming November 15, 2007 to Answers to Questions: David Hudgens discusses the key to managing case-related email, Kerry Hubick explains how he uses Microsoft Access for managing his intellectual property documents, Paul Purdue explains the shipping fees and training options associated with Tabs3, James Crowley recalls how he erased data from numerous hard drives while at CVS Inc., and Sonja Knauft shares her experience switching to a Mac, including practice management software. Don't miss this issue.

How to Receive this Newsletter
Published Thursdays, Answers to Questions is a weekly newsletter in which TechnoLawyer members answer legal technology and practice management questions submitted by their peers (including you if you join TechnoLawyer). Like all of our newsletters, it's free. Please subscribe now.

Coming November 13, 2007 to TechnoFeature: Thomas Edison once said "Just because something doesn't do what you planned it to do doesn't mean it's useless." This aphorism may hold true for amorphous inventions like the Web, but not specific products like accounting and billing software. If such a program doesn't work as advertised or as expected, a lawyer's livelihood suffers. Hence, the need for comprehensive reviews like this one in which patent attorney Norman Van Treeck rates Lexis Back Office Powered by PCLaw 9.0. This new version features time tracking, billing and accounts receivable, credit card processing, trust accounting, and much more.

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Published on Tuesdays, TechnoFeature is a weekly newsletter that contains in-depth articles written by leading legal technology and practice management experts. Like all of our newsletters, it's free. Please subscribe now.

Today's issue of TechnoLawyer NewsWire covers intelligent scheduling software (see below), a free office suite, and a time-billing program for Mac OS X. Don't miss the next issue.

Balance for Your Balancing Act
By Taeho Lim

Got too much to do? Get in line and join the club pal. Better yet, break free and take control of your life. That's the promise of Life Balance, "The To Do List for Real Life" from Llamagraphics. Life Balance is intelligent scheduling software. Just tell Life Balance what you care about and the program can help you prioritize what matters the most and set your schedule accordingly.

Life Balance uses "fuzzy logic math techniques" to help you better manage your schedule. Specifically, depending on your priorities, how much time and effort you want to put into each task, and how much you actually get done each day, Life Balance will make recommendations about your schedule.

Life Balance offers a number of other unique features as well. For example, the outliner can group your smaller tasks into larger projects. You can also quickly switch around the tasks in your project with a simple click and drag of your mouse. Most importantly, you can literally work on your matters one step at a time with a feature that adds only the next step to your to-do list after you have finished the previous one. Seeing the next task instead of every task keeps you focused and prevents you from feeling overwhelmed.

Life Balance can automatically schedule routine tasks that it notices, provide alerts for impending deadlines, integrate with your Palm OS device, and create pie charts that break down how you spend your time. In the Life Balance User Community you can share tips for best using the software.

Life Balance works with Mac, Windows, and your Palm. The Palm-compatible version costs $39.95 while the Mac and Windows versions cost $64.95 each. You can also purchase a Mac+Palm or Windows+Palm bundle for $79.95. Learn more about Life Balance.

How to Receive this Newsletter
Published on Wednesdays, TechnoLawyer NewsWire is a weekly newsletter that enables you to learn about new technology products and services of interest to legal professionals. Like all of our newsletters, it's free. Please subscribe now.

Coming November 9, 2007 to Fat Friday: Mitchell Herbert explains how to get the best tech support from Dell, Caren Schwartz responds to a recent post about the stability of Time Matters 8, David Garretson provides a few Treo 650 Bluetooth headset tips, David Caracappa adds to Neil's TechnoLawyer Summer Mix with some of his favorite tunes about the law, technology, and more, Rush Wels reveals which word processor has a built-in Rosetta Stone so to speak. Don't miss this issue.

How to Receive this Newsletter
Published on Fridays, Fat Friday is a weekly newsletter that features a grab bag full of genuinely useful product reviews and tips on a wide variety of topics. Like all of our newsletters, it's free. Please subscribe now.