Category: Other Stuff…
Make copy and paste easier by assigning extra mouse buttons
Posted by Scott Bassett in MS Word, Microsoft Office, Other Stuff... Thursday, 29 July 2010 06:48 No Comments
This is a great tip found on Lifehacker that is especially useful in law offices. As an appellate lawyer, I often copy text from other documents or sources into my briefs. Most lawyers do the same thing when constructing all sorts of legal documents. This task can be made easier by assigning extra mouse buttons to the copy and paste functions.
Unless you have a very basic mouse (perhaps the one that came bundled with your computer), odds are your mouse has buttons you don’t use. For example, I have a Microsoft Wireless IntelliMouse Explorer 2 connected to my desktop PC. It has two extra “thumb” buttons on the left side plus, as is true of most mice with scroll wheels, the wheel can also be used as a separately programmed push button. I simply downloaded the latest version of the IntelliMouse driver software from Microsoft’s web site, installed it, and assigned the large thumb button to Control>C for copy and the scroll wheel push button to Control>V for paste. Now I can copy and paste in my MS Word legal documents (or any PC application) entirely with the mouse without touching the keyboard of even right-clicking.
Even slicker is the programming features of many Logitech mice. The Logitech software (unlike the IntelliMouse software – unless I am too dumb to locate the setting) allows you to assign functions to the left and right scroll wheel tilt (did you know that you can horizontally scroll by tilting the wheel? – well that may not be so useful with today’s widescreen monitors unless you work with large spreadsheets, but it does let you move one character at a time left or right when working in Word).
But you don’t really need the mouse manufacturer’s specialized driver. You can download and install the free Auto Hotkey utility to program special functions to your mouse buttons (and keyboard). Auto Hotkey is a little clunky to work with, but if you don’t mind creating your own scripts (be sure to read the documentation for detailed instructions), it does the job.
Finally! Here’s What To Do With All Your Old Technology!
Posted by Alison Lukan in Financial Management, Hardware, Law Office Management, Other Stuff... Wednesday, 21 July 2010 09:26 1 Comment
As technology enthusiasts, we often find ourselves wanting (and buying!) the latest gadget which leaves us with a lot of hardware we no longer use. How many old cell phones, cameras, computers, PDA’s and other personal computing devices do you have no idea how to get rid of?
Well – there’s a cool new solution in Gazelle. Think of Gazelle as an “eBay-like” solution for technology. You go online, select the item you are looking to sell, answer a few qualifying questions, and receive a 30-day guaranteed quote. Gazelle will mail you packaging to send in your technology that arrives quickly and once your package is received, the promised money is en route to you – either via check or Paypal (when I recently used Gazelle, you could also select gift cards from certain vendors that offered an additional percentage of your total payment). Should you feel extra generous, you can also select to have the proceeds of your sale donated to charity.
Gazelle not only offers a valuable service, they also pride themselves on being eco-friendly and have special offers for groups that are looking for volume related offers. I can’t say enough about their quality of service – Gazelle kept me updated every step of the way, emails to generic customer service email addresses were answered quickly and professionally, products were processed efficiently and payment was received as promised.
An important caveat, while Gazelle advertises their focus on cleaning all your hardware before resale, you should definitely take any and all necessary steps to clean your hard drive, database, phone data before shipping your equipment away. Remember, that you need to be sure to securely wipe all data from your device – simply deleting data doesn’t remove it completely. Feel free to contact us for tips or resources on how to accomplish this if you are not sure how. Also, if you choose to send your equipment in to Gazelle on your own, consider if it is worth it to you to ensure and/or pay for tracking on the package (if you use USPS).
All in all, using Gazelle was a pain-free, professional way to put my old personal electronics to good use. I recommend it to anyone looking to get rid of your old devices and perhaps even make a little money along the way!
**If you are considering using this service for business asset, please consult with your IT specialist before making your equipment available to Gazelle
Tipping Point for Digital vs Paper Books? – And the Continuing Trend from Physical to Virtual
Posted by Scott Bassett in In The (Legal Technology) News, Mobility, Other Stuff..., Web/Tech Tuesday, 20 July 2010 06:55 No Comments
Lawyers tend to be avid readers. Much of what we read is professionally required (statutes, rules, case law, discovery responses, etc.). But lawyers also read extensively for pleasure. Having ready access to a steady stream of reading material is important to many of us. Traditionally, that has meant well-stocked, but also bulky and unwieldy, bookshelves stocked with hard covers, paperbacks, and periodicals. Today, it is just as likely to mean an ebook reader.
That is why the news yesterday from Amazon, as reported by Gizmodo, is so interesting. Sales of ebooks for Amazon’s Kindle ebook readers have outstripped sales of hardcover books for the first time. This trend may accelerate with the recent substantial price drops in both the standard-sized Kindle and the lawyer-worthy large-format Kindle DX.
As revealed by Amazon:
Over the past three months, for every 100 hardcover books Amazon.com has sold, it has sold 143 Kindle books. Over the past month, for every 100 hardcover books Amazon.com has sold, it has sold 180 Kindle books. This is across Amazon.com’s entire U.S. book business and includes sales of hardcover books where there is no Kindle edition. Free Kindle books are excluded and if included would make the number even higher.
So we are seeing with books what we’ve seen over the last decade with music. Digital media is replacing physical media as the format of choice. Just as the iTunes store and the iPod drove the move to digital music, Amazon and its Kindle are driving the move to ebooks. The Apple iPad will help move that trend forward, although it is a slate or table computer, not truly an ebook reader. Android and Windows 7 slate computers coming later this year will also promote ebook sales.
We see another form of this move from physical to digital everyday in our offices where on-line legal research services have effectively replaced a paper library for most research tasks. Also part of this trend is the move from locally installed software on a firm’s own servers to web-based hosted applications (software as a service) for everything from time and billing to practice management to word processing. Read Ed Emmerson’s recent post on cloud computing for more information. Being in the cloud is especially useful for firms or businesses with multiple offices in different locations or with a mobile workforce. Affinity Consulting Group, for example, with offices around the Eastern U.S., uses a “hosted Exchange” service to better integrate email and calendar functions no matter where a consultant or staff member may be located. It is a cloud-based tool that lets us serve you more efficiently.
Moving to cloud-based services from locally installed hardware and software can be a mind-set adjustment that isn’t easy for lawyers (or even some consultants). Security and confidentiality concerns are usually at the forefront of the debate. On the other hand, most small and medium-sized firms don’t do an adequate job of protecting their physical technology assets. In many cases, moving to the cloud will improve security and reliability. Each firm’s situation must be carefully analyzed. We can help with that process.
Travel Without Notebook, Netbook, or Even a USB Flash Drive (But Remember to Bring Your Cell Phone)
Posted by Scott Bassett in Mobility, Other Stuff... Monday, 19 July 2010 13:02 No Comments
Not long ago I wrote about installing portable applications to a USB flash drive and using it to plug into any available PC so you can work while traveling. Now PCWorld has an article showing how to do essentially the same thing, but without a USB flash drive. Instead, you use your smart phone’s flash card storage (likely an underutilized microSD card) to hold the portable applications. Then all you need is a USB cable to run from your smart phone to the host computer you want to use while traveling. The applications will load and run on the PC from your smart phone’s storage just as they would from a USB flash drive.
Why not just work from your smart phone? There is no doubt that many functions are more easily handled using a full-sized keyboard and monitor. So why squint you eyes and cramp your fingers. Install a suite of portable apps on your smart phone’s flash card and it will be like having your office computer with you wherever you go.
Is Coffee a Law Firm Management Issue?
Posted by Scott Bassett in Law Office Management, Other Stuff... Friday, 16 July 2010 11:12 1 Comment
One of the most intriguing posts I’ve read recently is Lifehacker’s report on its interview with author/researcher Stephen R. Braun. Braun wrote a book published in 1997 called Buzz: The Science and Lore of Alcohol and Caffeine.
We don’t make alcohol regularly available to our ourselves and law office staff as a matter of course, but most law firms do have an ever-present pot (or two or three) of caffeine-laden coffee brewing each morning and often throughout the work day. I personally did not begin drinking coffee until, as a brand new associate in a medium-sized law firm, I was assigned the chore of wading through discovery responses in complex litigation matter. The work was tedious and I wanted a little boost to help me stay awake. I remain a regular coffee-drinker, but typically limited to two cups each morning.
So how is coffee a law firm management issue? Well it turns out that caffeine is not a simple stimulant. It’s impact on the brain is much more complex, and that complexity can affect productivity for you and your staff. Assuming you have not already built-up a tolerance for caffeine (surprising easy to do over a very short period of time), a cup or two of coffee will not make you sharper or faster at tasks that require abstract reasoning (which includes much of what lawyers do). But it may increase speed (not necessarily quality) of simple and routine tasks (perhaps things like folding billing statements and stuffing envelopes).
Once you read the Lifehacker post, and the more detailed full email interview with Stephen R. Braun, your firm may want to revisit its policy on making coffee readily available to staff at all times – or at least circulate this information so lawyers and staff can better understand how caffeine works and impacts their job performance so that they can make a truly informed decision about their coffee-drinking habits.
