TechnoLawyer: TL Editorial

You don't have time to track 100 business and technology magazines and blogs. We do. Below you'll find our latest discoveries.

Google Gets the Gong

Grading Google

Understanding Flavors of PDF

Use of an E-Mail Trail Helps a Jury Acquit an Energy Trading Executive

Blogs to Riches: The Haves and Have Nots of the Blogging Boom

About TechnoEditorials
A TechnoEditorial is the vehicle through which we opine and provide tips of interest to managing partners, law firm administrators, and others in the legal profession. TechnoEditorials appear first in TechnoGuide, and later here in TechnoLawyer Blog. TechnoGuide, which is free, also contains exclusive content. You can subscribe here.

A few months ago, Samsung released a new line of LCD monitors, including its top-of-the-line Syncmaster 244T, a 24 inch widescreen monitor (1920x1600) with one DVI input, one VGA input, one composite input (for a DVD player or video iPod), and a USB 2.0 hub. You can toggle among the three inputs with a button on the front.

The monitor can also swivel, providing both landscape and portrait mode (which lawyers seem to like). It comes in silver or black. TigerDirect seems to have the best deal among reputable resellers — $1,399.

I'm writing this review on the Syncmaster 244T in silver. I just took it out of the box today. Unfortunately, I'm sending it back. Why? It's too high. The monitor enables you to adjust its height, but at its lowest height, the bottom of the monitor measures 6 inches from the desk and the top measures 21 inches. My sweet spot is 3"/18". Given that most monitors accommodate my sweet spot, it didn't occur to me to check. Plus, none of the existing reviews discuss the height.

If you're tall (or enjoy craning your neck), I highly recommend this monitor — it has the best picture quality I've ever seen. Having to return it breaks my heart, but I feel like I'm bird watching.

The Syncmaster 244T I received has no dead pixels. Setup is a breeze, but Samsung does not include a manual — you must download it from the Web site. I found the monitor too bright at its default setting. In a nice touch, Samsung provides a number of settings for various applications. These settings not only change the brightness, but other parameters as well. I found the "Text" setting the most suitable for my purposes, and suspect most lawyers would feel the same.

All in all, the Samsung Syncmaster 244T is an incredible LCD monitor marred by poor ergonomics for a large portion of society. A shame.

PS: Kudos to TigerDirect for its fast, friendly service, and for not charging me a restocking fee.

Read ZDNet's Review

About TechnoEditorials
A TechnoEditorial is the vehicle through which we opine and provide tips of interest to managing partners, law firm administrators, and others in the legal profession. TechnoEditorials appear first in TechnoGuide, and later here in TechnoLawyer Blog. TechnoGuide, which is free, also contains exclusive content. You can subscribe here.

I started TechnoLawyer when I turned 30. Back then, people like Wells Anderson, Dennis Kennedy, Ross Kodner, etc. were the young guns of legal technology. These pioneers continue to educate thousands of legal professionals here in TechnoLawyer and at trade shows like the just-finished LegalTech. But I'm growing concerned by the lack of new faces. Where are the new young guns of legal technology? Jason Havens is one. Who else will carry the torch? And who will preside over TechnoLawyer when I step down someday?

About TechnoEditorials
A TechnoEditorial is the vehicle through which we opine and provide tips of interest to managing partners, law firm administrators, and others in the legal profession. TechnoEditorials appear first in TechnoGuide, and later here in TechnoLawyer Blog. TechnoGuide, which is free, also contains exclusive content. You can subscribe here.

This year I've encouraged TechnoLawyer members to start thinking about how to incorporate mobile video into their marketing activities. For inspiration, check out Podguide.tv, a new site devoted to content created for the video iPod. A tip of the blog to Richard DeLuca of Stark & Stark for informing me about this site.

About TechnoEditorials
A TechnoEditorial is the vehicle through which we opine and provide tips of interest to managing partners, law firm administrators, and others in the legal profession. TechnoEditorials appear first in TechnoGuide, and later here in TechnoLawyer Blog. TechnoGuide, which is free, also contains exclusive content. You can subscribe here.

The industry's largest trade show celebrated its 25th anniversary last week. In two days, I met with 18 legal vendors, dined out four times, and attended a low-key happy hour and a raucous nightclub. Here are my notes:

• The biggest change this year was the roped off Bridges Bar in the Hilton Hotel. Those without access complained, and those with access rejoiced. I guess it depended on your point of view.

• The WiFi hotspot on the third floor didn't work reliably. Fortunately, the Wolters Kluwer executive trying to give me a demo of CCH @Hand 2.5 was able to use his wireless modem.

• The exhibit hall seemed busier than I've ever seen it before. I heard a rumor about 11,000 attendees. However, one legal vendor remarked that the crowd seemed static (same faces every year).

• I personally witnessed salespeople make unsolicited pitches to exhibiting vendors — a practice that ALM Media should outlaw. Vendors pay a lot to exhibit at LegalTech. I met with legal vendors last week, but only with those that set up meetings with me in advance. All of my meetings took place away from the exhibit booths (except for Litera).

• Rob Robinson has uploaded some LegalTech photos to Flickr.

• On the first night of LegalTech, ALM held its annual awards ceremony. Read about the winners.

• ALM doesn't hand out best of show awards, however, so Matt Homann filled the void and bestowed this honor on the o-Ya search appliance. Don't miss Matt's upcoming LexThink Lounge if you plan to attend ABA TechShow. Being an avid bowler, I hope to attend.

• As I mentioned, I had about 18 meetings. Mostly, I discussed TechnoLawyer (which you already know about) and learned about forthcoming products (which I cannot yet talk about). Here's what I can disclose: CaseCentral announced bundled pricing for its litigation services, CCH's @Hand 2.5  and the LexisNexis Toolbar may change the way lawyers conduct legal research, and LexisNexis has teamed up with the Wall Street Journal.

• The third annual Best of Breed party at at Strata sponsored in part by CaseSoft and Dataflight was the best one yet — a great crowd (250 people) and great food (brie-pear dumplings, coconut chicken skewers, chocolate strawberries, cannoli, etc.). Before the party, I dined at Pinch with my colleague Sara Skiff and her husband Eric. After dinner, we "evaluated" a possible location for the next TechnoLawyer party.

• More Schmoozing: Breakfast at Norma's on Monday with Julia Wotipka and Mary Mack of Fios and several bloggers, lunch at Redeye Grill on Monday with JoAnna Forshee of Envision, lunch at Beacon on Tuesday with Les Hansen and Andrew Cummins of Gavel & Gown, and dinner at Bellini on Wednesday with Scott Rosen and Greg Miller of Network Box. Finally, Dennis Kennedy's informal happy hour at the Bridges Bar (before it became a VIP lounge) on Sunday night enabled me to meet Jim Calloway who recently secured free TechnoLawyer Archive access for every Oklahoma lawyer.

Congratulations to ALM for raising the bar yet again with its biggest LegalTech ever. Here's to another 25 years!

About TechnoEditorials
A TechnoEditorial is the vehicle through which we opine and provide tips of interest to managing partners, law firm administrators, and others in the legal profession. TechnoEditorials appear first in TechnoGuide, and later here in TechnoLawyer Blog. TechnoGuide, which is free, also contains exclusive content. You can subscribe here.

In our January 9, 2006 TechnoPoll, we asked you: In your opinion, what is Google's weakest offshoot service?

The results are in, and the loser is ... Froogle, Google's shopping and price comparison search tool. Froogle garnered 22% of the votes. A number of other services also received a fair number of votes, including Orkut (14.5%), Google Talk (9.7%), and Picasa (8.1%).

I voted for Google Local Search, which received 6.5% of the vote. I used to like Google Local Search until Google enlarged the map it places on every page. Now I much prefer Yahoo! Local Search, which provides more space for the listings and loads faster. Plus, Yahoo! Local Search has never let me down — it has helped me with everything from finding a good car service to the airport to finding a parking garage near the location of our recent BlawgWorld launch party.

Take a look at the results.

About TechnoEditorials
A TechnoEditorial is the vehicle through which we opine and provide tips of interest to managing partners, law firm administrators, and others in the legal profession. TechnoEditorials appear first in TechnoGuide, and later here in TechnoLawyer Blog. TechnoGuide, which is free, also contains exclusive content. You can subscribe here.

You don't have time to track 100 business and technology magazines and blogs. We do. Below you'll find our latest discoveries.

One [Law Firm] Marketer's Trip Through Hell

Meet "Bloomberg Law"

11 Techniques to Increase Page Views on Your Blog

RSS Sucks

Victoria's Secret Kitchen Now in Wide Release
With more than 1,200 downloads, Victoria's Secret Kitchen is a bona-fide indie hit! By popular demand, this 6.5 minute homage to Rachael Ray featuring an easy-to-make secret recipe for eggplant is now available to a wider audience (QuickTime, Real, and Windows Media) thanks to the folks at iFilm.

The video iPod version remains available for download as well.

About TechnoEditorials
A TechnoEditorial is the vehicle through which we opine and provide tips of interest to managing partners, law firm administrators, and others in the legal profession. TechnoEditorials appear first in TechnoGuide, and later here in TechnoLawyer Blog. TechnoGuide, which is free, also contains exclusive content. You can subscribe here.

Finding the perfect laptop bag can prove a challenge because of the sheer number that exist and because many of the companies that make them are small and hard to discover.

In November 2005, I decided to buy a new laptop bag along with my new 15 inch laptop. Because I commute with my laptop every weekday, I set out to achieve the impossible — find a laptop bag as light as a sleeve, but with more storage space.

Most sleeves accommodate only the laptop. I need space for business cards, cell phone, iPod, pens, and the occasional magazine.

As luck would have it, Booq released the PowerSleeve L90 in November. I first learned about Booq a year ago. Unlike most laptop bag designers, Booq lists the weight of each bag on its site. Booq's former sleeves were extremely light, but lacked the storage space I wanted. So I waited, checking back every now and then. When the L90 arrived, I bought it immediately. It sells for $89.95.

At 2 pounds, the L90 strikes a good balance between weight and storage. In addition to the padded computer compartment, the front section of the L90 also features an accordion-like compartment that can hold a magazine or two (or a power adapter). Various pockets within this compartment can accommodate business cards, pens, etc. Another compartment in the front can hold thin items such as envelopes. Finally, a zipper compartment on the back of the L90 provides quick access to my cell phone and iPod without having to open the front. Finally, the bag looks very sharp (black with just a touch of orange trim), and has a very comfortable handle (it also comes with a removable shoulder strap, which I don't use).

No product is perfect, including the L90. First, I wish the computer compartment had a zipper since I often have to brave the rain and snow. However, even though the computer is slightly exposed on both sides of the bag, the rain does not seem to make it through — a pleasant surprise. Second, I wish the bag weighed a bit less. Like the 4 minute mile, I hope Booq can someday break the 2 pound barrier while providing the same amount of storage.

All in all, I highly recommend Booq's PowerSleeve L90. Learn more and take a look at some photos.

About TechnoEditorials
A TechnoEditorial is the vehicle through which we opine and provide tips of interest to managing partners, law firm administrators, and others in the legal profession. TechnoEditorials appear first in TechnoGuide, and later here in TechnoLawyer Blog. TechnoGuide, which is free, also contains exclusive content. You can subscribe here.

To date, BlawgWorld, an eBook we published on November 30, 2005, has been downloaded 19,702 times!

As I reported previously, BlawgWorld was well-received by bloggers and non-bloggers alike. However, a small number of bloggers have criticized the eBook. One of them even deemed it a "failed project."

Fortunately, most of the criticism resides in one place — Evan Schaeffer's Legal Underground blog. For a month, we watched the attacks pile up. Now that the activity has died down, I responded to all the criticism in one fell swoop.

Check out the entire thread, including my response, and feel free to add your own two cents.

About TechnoEditorials
A TechnoEditorial is the vehicle through which we opine and provide tips of interest to managing partners, law firm administrators, and others in the legal profession. TechnoEditorials appear first in TechnoGuide, and later here in TechnoLawyer Blog. TechnoGuide, which is free, also contains exclusive content. You can subscribe here.

In my annual New Year's Day message (which I have since posted to our blog), I made my technology prediction, dubbing 2006 the year of mobile video.

For your reading pleasure, I've rounded up some other technology predictions:

Dennis Kennedy sees a comeback for document assembly, the use of RSS feeds for project management, mobile billing automation, and much more.

Alan Meckler sees the arrival of true broadband as opposed to today's midband. This article also features predictions by six other industry leaders.

The San Jose Mercury News thinks you'll soon write briefs in your Web browser.

Chris Pirillo has the most dramatic predictions, including Google's stock crashing, exclusive iTunes video deals that lock out the competition, a terrorist attack on the Internet, and much more.

About TechnoEditorials
A TechnoEditorial is the vehicle through which we opine and provide tips of interest to managing partners, law firm administrators, and others in the legal profession. TechnoEditorials appear first in TechnoGuide, and later here in TechnoLawyer Blog. TechnoGuide, which is free, also contains exclusive content. You can subscribe here.