Gadgets, Gizmos and Apps 2011

For the December 2011 Oklahoma Bar Journal I decided to pass along some interesting add-ons for a PC user. It's not like the old days where you had to cobble things together yourself with lots of customizations and add-ons, but I think you will find these additions helpful. Oklahoma lawyers who read this in the Bar Journal may still find this version useful as the hyperlinks have all been enabled (and corrected from the entire PDF version of the Bar Journal on our website.) So download this file to more easily visit the sites mentioned and install some of these useful add-ons. Download Gadgets_Gizmos_and_Apps.Calloway.Oklabaj

Tech Toys for the Holidays - 2011 Edition

Well, it is the holiday season and with Black Friday quickly approaching, you will certainly want to listen to the 49th edition of the Digital Edge podcast, our annual Tech Toys for the Holidays Edition. Sharon Nelson and I have our usual assortment of the cool and practical high tech gifts, along with a few that are wild and wacky. (You would probably have to have settled a pretty big case this year to bid on the DeLorean Time Machine or justify buying a Robomower, but there are many low cost items featured.) The show notes provide links to all of the products mentioned.

As Sharon and I make our own holiday arrangements, we are gearing up to produce the 50th Edition of the Digital Edge podcast, Lawyers and Technology. Who knew? 

And while we are discussing online gift guides, our friend and colleague, Reid Trautz has just published his 2011 Holiday Gift Guide for Lawyers. Reid's guide is not limited to technology toys and this year even includes some new ideas in liquid refreshments. Cheers.... I mean Happy Holidays!

Five Takeaways from the 2011 National Solo & Small Firm Conference

Last week at the ABA/GPSolo National Solo & Small Firm Conference I sat in on some great CLE sessions, did a presentation with Colorado Bar's Reba Nance on Keeping Them Happy: Secrets of Client Satisfaction and was drafted for a non-singing bit part in the Oklahoma Bar Family Law Singers Ethics Musical The Perils of Pauline, which was presented at the Conference.

The folks from Attorney at Work asked me to do a brief essay on my five takeaways from the 2011 National Solo & Small Firm Conference and it was published today as a part of their Friday Five series. It contains some nice technology tips. So read it at this link.

The Droid Lawyer™

Oklahoma lawyer Jeffery Taylor has another identity. He's also The Droid Lawyer™ and publishes a really nice blog under that title with lots of good information about Droid phones, among other things. He's got a lot of great content, so feel free to share the link with your friends. You can also follow him on Twiter at http://twitter.com/jeffrey_taylor.

Tech Toys for the Holidays featured on Digital Edge Podcast

The 37th edition of the Digital Edge: Lawyers and Technology podcast features Tech Toys for the Holidays, our annual roundup of interesting, wild and off-beat technology tools and toys that might interest the practicing lawyer, or at least someone on his or her shopping list. From not-so-boring surge protectors to the ultimate in headphones to the wild DTV Shredder, there's something to fit every teckie's taste, if not their budgets.

Do You Have an Appetite for Apps?

Courtney Kennaday loves her Droid HTC Incredible. I still like my iPhone. In our Sites for Sore Eyes column this month, Do You Have an Appetite for Apps?,  we discuss a select few of our favorite apps for our respective phones. New apps hit the apps stores every day it seems and these are just a small sample of the apps now available. These are the ones we use all the time.

Are you still faxing?

Well, if your office is like most law offices, you still have the trusty fax machine and a business phone line dedicated to your fax number. You may not be motivated to change that at the moment, but I hope to make you reconsider that with a few links and a few observations. Failing that, I want you to at least think about the issue and revisit this blog post when the old fax machine dies.

Internet faxing (aka virtual faxing) has been around for quite a while now. Those who converted to these services years ago still maintain it was a great business decision. But the current generation of these services provides even more compelling reasons to consider a switch. First of all, you can save money. In many cases, the monthly charge for an Internet faxing service may be less than the monthly charge for the business phone line that supports the machine. Even if you have avoided having an additional business phone line for the fax with custom ring tones or some other method, it is still probably cheaper when you consider paper, toner and the cost of purchasing new fax machines-- and you will avoid a phone line being busy when sending/receiving faxes.

As lawyers improve their law practices with more paperless processes, Internet faxes are a time saver as well. There's no need to scan the fax to include it in the client file when you have already received a digital copy of the fax in the first place. (For those unfamiliar with the process, virtual faxing means you receive the faxes in a designated e-mail inbox with the fax as an attachment to the e-mail.) If you are concerned about security, I understand that the faxes can be encrypted.

It is much easier on the law office staff when you are traveling as well. If you need to examine the fax, they simply forward the e-mail to you. For a solo, it is even more important; you receive faxes immediately whne you check your e-mail instead of waiting until your return to the physical office.

When I first shopped for an Internet faxing solution years, the lack of local phone numbers was a deal breaker. In my mind, it didn't matter how convenient or cost-saving it was for me, asking clients or opposing counsel to pay long distance charges to fax to me across town was a bad move for my reputation. Now more local numbers are available, along with free or very inexpensive toll free numbers.

Faxing Gets a New Look by Steve Adams on law.com's Legal Technology Blog covers these advantages and more. It is a nice read and suitable for printing out to leave on the Senior Partner's desk.

But one thing that article does not provide is a head-to-head comparison between Internet fax providers. No need to worry, the Law Practice Tips blog will provide some comparison charts. Here are links to one from FaxCompare.com and one from FaxCritics.com. These also have links to the various providers. I'd strongly encourage you to make use of the free trials (many are 30 day free trials,) so you can make an informed decision.

The Automated Attorney

The Automated Attorney is the theme of the December, 2009 GPSOLO magazine. It is one of those must read issues. Congrats to Jeff Allen and the rest of the contributors and staff. If you are not an ABA GPSOLO member, then you should thank the generous members of the section who provide all of the articles online for free. Share this link with a fellow lawyer who might have an interest in law office automation. no matter what their firm size or practice setting.

Every feature and column is worth your time!

Hardware That Automates Routine Office Tasks 
by Alan J. Klevan and Jared D. Correia

More Access Can Mean More Problems 
by Brett Burney .

Software That Automates Routine Office Tasks 
by Sandra H. Adams

Effective Software Training for Law Offices 
by Wells H. Anderson

.

High-Tech Penny Pinching? 
by Jim Calloway

Here's the blurb for my piece: "When adopting money-saving tools, make sure you're not "cheaping out" with technology that wastes your time."

Law Firm Marketing 2.0: Internet Marketing for Rainmakers 
by Stephen Fairley

Widgets and Apps 
by Anita Fuoss, Jason Beahm, and Aaron J. Rittmaster

The GPSolo 2009 Shopping Guide to Holiday Techno-Gifts 
by Jeffrey Allen  

It may be too late for holiday shopping, but Jeff has outdone himself with this year's review of cool gadgets, phones and office equipment. So you may see something you really need to buy for yourself.

The Road Warrior Looks at Netbooks by Jeffrey Allen

BEING SOLO - Techno Tips and Tricks 2009: Being Solo Strikes Back By David Leffler

And last but not least --Sites for Sore Eyes this month is AUTOMATE THIS by Jim Calloway and Courtney Kennaday. We focus on web sites lawyers can visit to help automate parts of their practices.

Again, after you read these articles don't forget to share the link.

High Tech Toys for the Holidays and Other Holiday Gift Ideas

I cannot believe they are already playing Christmas music in the malls! But the change of season also brings two great online resources for ideas for gifts for lawyers (or just for yourself if you have been good.)

Sharon Nelson and I have posted our latest Digital Edge podcast, High Tech Toys for the Holidays. While a few of these have some business use, most are just fun. Listen to the podcast (about 20 minutes) and then click on the links in the attached show notes section to visit the product websites. This is our 25th podcast!

Our friend Reid Trautz has also posted his 2009 Holiday Gift Guide for Lawyers with lots of interesting gift ideas. This is his fifth year for the Holiday Gift Guide and I certainly saw a couple of items there I need.

If you do your holiday shopping online with the help of these resources, then maybe you can spend Black Friday at home watching football instead of shopping.

Walk around in your own wireless cloud

This about-to-be released MiFi card really looks cool.  You can carry your own wireless cloud with you and share it with up to four other users. There are lots of very interesting possibilities, including, as one poster noted, saving a lot of money if you exhibit at trade shows where they charge through the nose for Internet access.

Here's David Pogue's review.

Here's his CNBC interview.

Release date is May 17,  2009.