TechnoLawyer: Post

Regarding Barbara DiFranza's recent question about recipients unable to open her PDF files, TechnoLawyer member John Laster offers the following advice: "Check your document security in Acrobat. It gives you an array of choices, e.g., allowing recipient to print, edit, etc. Using that feature has solved a bunch of our .pdf problems."

About Quips
A Quip is a brief member contribution for which we don't have room in our Answers to Questions or Fat Friday newsletters. Instead, Quips appear first in TechnoGuide, and later here in TechnoLawyer Blog. TechnoGuide, which is free, also contains exclusive content. You can subscribe here.

Regarding a recent question from someone seeking a PIM, TechnoLawyer member Al Goldberger writes: "We use a program called Info Select. It's kind of a free form database that uses an outline structure. We put each matter as its own "topic" and then have subset tabs for notes, correspondence, pleadings, research, etc."

About Quips
A Quip is a brief member contribution for which we don't have room in our Answers to Questions or Fat Friday newsletters. Instead, Quips appear first in TechnoGuide, and later here in TechnoLawyer Blog. TechnoGuide, which is free, also contains exclusive content. You can subscribe here.

TechnoLawyer member Darren Cantor writes in with this quick take on TimeReporter: "I have used TimeReporter with my handheld and Timeslips 9.1 and now 11. Love it. Allows me to capture time that I otherwise likely would have lost while traveling from one courthouse to another, or in trial out of town, or otherwise away from the office. Minor inconveniences, like unavailability of references (like I said, minor), but overall, very much worth the cost."

About Quips
A Quip is a brief member contribution for which we don't have room in our Answers to Questions or Fat Friday newsletters. Instead, Quips appear first in TechnoGuide, and later here in TechnoLawyer Blog. TechnoGuide, which is free, also contains exclusive content. You can subscribe here.

TechnoLawyer member and IP Memes author Stephen Nipper writes with some helpful tips about Windows XP Service Pack 2 (SP2): "It seems Microsoft is tired of catching all of the blame every time a new security threat, worm or virus is found, so in SP2 various steps have been taken to better lock down Windows XP. For instance, the firewall and "Windows Update" will be automatically turned on. For many of our offices, the result may be quite a headache. If you don't have a dedicated IT guy/gal already planning the upgrade/update, all you ever need to know about SP2 can be found in the August 2004 edition of Scot's Newsletter."

About Quips
A Quip is a brief member contribution for which we don't have room in our Answers to Questions or Fat Friday newsletters. Instead, Quips appear first in TechnoGuide, and later here in TechnoLawyer Blog. TechnoGuide, which is free, also contains exclusive content. You can subscribe here.

TechnoLawyer member Michael Hanlon sums up the recent debate in our Answers to Questions newsletter regarding pinpoint citations rather succinctly, writing: "Always remember your audience. Judges are not necessarily technolawyers or consultants. Many judges (both federal and state) have bound volumes in their chambers. Use pin cites when and where available."

About Quips
A Quip is a brief member contribution for which we don't have room in our Answers to Questions or Fat Friday newsletters. Instead, Quips appear first in TechnoGuide, and later here in TechnoLawyer Blog. TechnoGuide, which is free, also contains exclusive content. You can subscribe here.

Regarding the recent debate in our Fat Friday newsletter regarding Microsoft's non-compete agreements, TechnoLawyer member Ed Dodds writes: "If Microsoft truly has its IP established, there is no need for a non-compete -- Microsoft can simply sue to recover damages. If Microsoft cannot recover damages, what's the point of being concerned about IP in the first place?"

About Quips
A Quip is a brief member contribution for which we don't have room in our Answers to Questions or Fat Friday newsletters. Instead, Quips appear first in TechnoGuide, and later here in TechnoLawyer Blog. TechnoGuide, which is free, also contains exclusive content. You can subscribe here.

TechnoLawyer member Brad Jensen reminds us that technology trends are usually more complex than they may appear. Take document imaging, for example. Brad writes: "The reason people use document imaging is not only cost, although the cost, over time, is far less than shuffling paper around. It's also a matter of access. It is not only that you can instantly access documents through a Web interface, it's also that you can index and find them again. How much time do you spend looking for lost items? Things you meant to save, things you didn't realize the importance of until later, things someone else asks you for that seemed unimportant when you knew where they were? Knowledge is power. Digitally accessible knowledge is hyperpower."

About Quips
A Quip is a brief member contribution for which we don't have room in our Answers to Questions or Fat Friday newsletters. Instead, Quips appear first in TechnoGuide, and later here in TechnoLawyer Blog. TechnoGuide, which is free, also contains exclusive content. You can subscribe here.

TechnoLawyer member Steven McNichols encourages his fellow subscribers to give VoIP telephone service a try, writing: "I've been using Vonage VoIP telephone service for two months now and can report that it works as well as-if not better than conventional telephone technology. The cost savings are significant. My cell phone functions as a backup phone should that be necessary, but I doubt it will be. Try it. You'll like it."

About Quips
A Quip is a brief member contribution for which we don't have room in our Answers to Questions or Fat Friday newsletters. Instead, Quips appear first in TechnoGuide, and later here in TechnoLawyer Blog. TechnoGuide, which is free, also contains exclusive content. You can subscribe here.

Regarding some recent advice about capturing lost billable time, TechnoLawyer member Michael Gallagher writes: "Please continue to disseminate this message widely. A day hardly goes by when we do not take away a client, generally a very good client, from firms that are obsessed over capturing time. The more firms that follow your advice, the more we will prosper!"

About Quips
A Quip is a brief member contribution for which we don't have room in our Answers to Questions or Fat Friday newsletters. Instead, Quips appear first in TechnoGuide, and later here in TechnoLawyer Blog. TechnoGuide, which is free, also contains exclusive content. You can subscribe here.

Regarding TechnoLawyer member Ramon Pagan's observation about Federal Courts not permitting phones being a drawback to using a device like the Treo 600, TechnoLawyer member Buzz Bruggeman responds: "I have had 2 Treos, both the 600 and the 300.  I travel all over the country, and the only places the 600 doesn't work is in areas where no one else's phones work either.  I have never had a problem.  As for Federal Courts, I have stopped even trying to bring my phone into a Federal Courthouse -- not worth the hassle. The Federal Courts are generally unhappy that the 19th Century is over."

About Quips
A Quip is a brief member contribution for which we don't have room in our Answers to Questions or Fat Friday newsletters. Instead, Quips appear first in TechnoGuide, and later here in TechnoLawyer Blog. TechnoGuide, which is free, also contains exclusive content. You can subscribe here.