♬ Hey, look around it’s all so clear
Hey, wherever we were going, well we’re here
Hey, so many things I never thought I’d see
Happening right in front of me..♬
Lyrics and music by Chris DuBois and Brad Paisley, recorded by Brad Paisley, “Welcome to the Future”.
2012 Happy New Year
In this third and final collection of tips and predictions for 2012, we turn first to my good friend and colleague, Steve Gallagher. Steve has been one of those rare individuals who has kept a perspective on where the legal profession is and is going. Accordingly, I though it was appropriate that we start with his views in this final post of 2011 on what will be happening in 2012:
Stephen P Gallagher: “Coping with Change”:
(a) A Law Practice Management Perspective:
My primary business these days is coaching Lawyers in Transition, so from my vantage point, I see large geographic areas throughout Canada and the United States that will have no practicing lawyers within hundreds of miles. At the same time, law school graduates will cluster around metropolitan areas looking for entry-level positions primarily to pay off law school debt. I would like to think that our talented young professionals will start looking for opportunities with baby boomers, particularly in more rural areas of the country to continue the tradition of serving the public.
(b) Legal Technology:
I’ve follow the writing of Sherryl Turkle, a psychologist and director of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) Initiative on Technology and Self. Professor Turkel is concerned about how we may be losing things that Thoreau thought were essential to discovering an identity. Professor Turkle claims to be teaching the most brilliant students in the world (at MIT). She claims that they have done themselves a disservice by drinking the Kool-Aid and believing that a multitasking learning environment will serve their best purposes.
I too am concerned about this “multitasking learning environment” for lawyers.
For a Frontline interview, Digital Nation, Professor Turkle was quoted as saying, “She thinks that we’re living in a culture where we’re really not sure what kind of attention we owe each other. People put their cell phones on the table now. They don’t turn them off.” She goes on to say that, “One of my students talked about the first time he was walking with friends, and they received a cell phone call, and they took the call. And he said: “What was I, on pause?” I felt I was being put on pause.” Sheryl Turkle thinks that we’re socially negotiating what kind of attention we feel we owe each other.”
This flat out scares me. We owe each other more. (more…)
♬ See your heart will lead you where you want to be, but your head will lead you where you ought to be.
But which will lead you where you’re meant to be? ♬
Lyrics, music and recorded by K’LA.
2012 New Years
This is Part 2 in the 2012 Tips and Predictions series where I have asked my good friends and colleagues to contribute their best ideas for the New Year. Accordingly without further ado:
Dr. Frank Fowlie: “Future Shock” predictions:
- Consumers will no longer be forced to call their credit card company to deal with “unknown” charges. No more phone tress, no more wait times…You’ll be able to go to your bank’s credit card website and fill in a form online, the bank will handle it from there.
- When you buy something online and there’s something wrong with the purchase, you’ll be able to go to a single portal for goods sold in Canada, and start a redress process online, at your convenience. This is less Future Shock, as the European Union has already created a regulation which makes this possible across Europe. Like “chip” cards did in the past, the technology will migrate from Europe to Canada.
- Small Claims Courts in Canada will move towards Online Dispute Resolution to more effectively and efficiently manage the court processes. There will be a new wave of computer literate judges who hear and settle cases online.
- Courts of equity will look to technology to handle small value claims. Online Dispute Resolution will replace hearings in matters where the value is the same or lower than the Small Claims Court limit.
- Law firms will publish hourly rates on their websites to allow for consumer choices. Consumers will be able to search out legal services in the same way they look for other commodities online.
- Lawyers will begin to sell “Boutique services” allowing consumers to handle some part of their own legal matters. Some lawyers will develop practices which simply “guide” lay litigants, as opposed to forcing the lay litigant into court with representation.
- Legal Zoom, or some like entity, will set up shop in Canada. Legal services outsourcing becomes a market drive out of India and Ireland.
- The public can make complaints against lawyers using an online platform, perhaps to an independent body.
Dr. Frank Fowlie, www.internetombudsman.biz.
Judge Monty Ahalt ( Ret.): “Warp Speed”:
As the year closes out and some say the decade there is always a clamour for the folks to know what is in store for the next year. Some will look at last year and make resolutions. My Life now breaks down into three areas:
- Court centered ADR and case management as a recalled Circuit Court Judge now counting 30 years.
- A Mediator/Arbitrator now counting about 45 years – www.montyahalt.com.
- Founder and CEO of VirtualCourthouse.com – leading ODR provider – now counting 10 years - www.VirtualCourthouse.com
Each area has it’s unique challenges and will experience new horizons in 2012. While I do not pretend to be Carnac the Magnificent of Johnny Carson days there are some new happenings that seem to be clearly presenting themselves for the coming year. (more…)
♬ What’s happenin brothers and sisters?
Welcome to our time…♬
Lyrics, music and recorded by NAS.
Happy New Year 2012
Last year on Dec. 31, 2010 I posted a Top 10 Legal Tech Predictions for 2011. This year I asked my very good friends and colleagues to contribute their top Tips and Predictions for 2012 thinking that this would be a great way to get some perspective on the New Year. The response has been overwhelming! Accordingly, here is Part 1 of a three-part blog post containing their top advice and predictions for the coming year. But this isn’t the end – I will add in my own tips and predictions for 2012 at the end of Part 3 (can’t help but go out on a limb as well) and ask that you, good readers, add in your own tips and predictions by way of comments on the three blog posts.
Accordingly, here are Part 1 of the Tips and Predictions for 2012!
Karen MacKay: Change is Neigh…
There will be more change in Canadian law firms in 2012 than we have seen in the last 3 years. In Canada, we will see more mergers and spinoffs. Lots of change happened in the USA in 2011 that was forced on them by the economy. The difference between what happened in the USA and Canada will be: The change in Canada will be created by strategic decisions within firms seeking opportunities rather than the financial change that was forced on the American firms.
Karen MacKay MBA CHRP, Phoenix Legal Inc., direct 416.657.2997, mobile 416.904.4848, e-mail kmackay@phoenix-legal.com, www.phoenix-legal.com.
Mitch Kowalski: 2012 – A Turning Point for the Canadian Legal Profession?
When I ran for Bencher in Ontario earlier this year (and was utterly thrashed at the polls!) I did so because I believed that the next ten years are critical to the future of the legal profession. Six months later, my view has not changed.
All over Canada, the legal profession faces challenges it has never faced in the past – and the challenges will only become more numerous. Richard Susskind was right on point when he wrote, “Law does not exist to provide a livelihood for lawyers any more than illness exists to provide a livelihood for doctors. Successful legal business may be a by-product of law . . . but it is not the purpose.”
As lawyers we must constantly earn our right to retain a monopoly over the practice of law. It should never be assumed that we will always have the exclusive right to give legal advice, prepare legal documents, close transactions or even appear in court. One just has to look to the U.K.’s Legal Services Act which is dramatically transforming that jurisdiction’s legal profession. Or, take a look to Australia with Slater & Gordon being the only publically-traded law firm in the world – a firm that was once based on a strong litigation practice but is now aggressively moving into commercial practice areas.
Canada cannot remain an island of lawyer-exclusivity for long – particularly if the legal profession shows itself to be incapable of coming up with creative and efficient ways to make legal services better, faster and cheaper. The commercial pressures of the global economy are too great to ignore and lawyers who stick their heads in the sand will become the dodo birds of the 21st century.
I hope that 2012 will be a watershed year in which meaningful change will finally commence to surface throughout Canada’s legal profession. The following are eight predictions of what can (and should) occur over the next 12 months. (more…)
♬ Ain’t no pill for this pain
So please, please come to my rescue baby
Make it right away…♬
Lyrics and Music by: Diane Warren, recorded by Uncle Kracker.
If you are like me, you are facing the prospect of aging parents…or in my case, an aging parent (my dad having passed on 5 years ago). If you happen to live in a different geographical area from your parent, you are facing the additional prospect of trying to help them from a distance with the various challenges that life throws their way. When it comes to helping them with their technology, the distance aspect can become a real barrier…trying to talk them through “click on this” and “do you see that..” while on a telephone call with them seated in front of their computer trying to solve the latest crises gives you a whole new respect for anyone who works in IT support.
How can you solve this problem? For me, LogMeIn has come to the rescue (https://secure.logmein.com/).
This application allows me to log into my mom’s computer from thousands of miles away – and see her desktop. I can install software, update the applications, create bookmarks, run utilities – do virtually anything from a distance that I could do sitting down in front of the computer.
Of course, lawyers and others have been using LogMeIn or GoToMyPC for years to connect to their office computer remotely in order to work from the road. This is the same idea but with a twist – since I am logging into someone else’s computer.
In terms of security – you have to log into the LogMeIn site first. Once connected to LogMeIn, you connect to the remote computer and then log into that computer using a user name and password. Double security.
You are looking at the desktop of the remote computer…you can move the mouse, click on applications etc.
One proviso – the remote computer has to be on and connected to the Internet to work. If you require a reboot of the remote computer (to install or update software, for example) then it is useful to have your parent at home to ensure that the computer restores its internet connection so you can log back in again and check if the updates etc. installed properly.
How much does all this cost, you say? In the case of LogMeIn – I am using the free version. So far it is able to do anything that I need of it to keep my mom’s computer (a Mac Mini) working just fine by using my MacBook.
Since there isn’t any pill for the pain of an incomprehensible computer, LogMeIn allows me to come to the rescue – right away!
♬ Love Is In The Air
Love is in the air everywhere I look around
Love is in the air every sight and every sound …♬
Music and Lyrics by Harry Vanda, George Young , recorded by Tom Jones.
MacBook Air 2011
This is a guest post by my friend Sherry Katz, a recovering lawyer and now computer forensics consultant. I loved reading Sherry’s articles on technology when she was a lawyer/technologist and now I love her articles as a forensics consultant. Her advice on the new MacBook Air is posted here with her consent:
I have use of several laptops as I use them in my work (forensic analysis, ediscovery). Among them are an 11″ Macbook Air, a 13″ Macbook Air, and a 17″ Macbook Pro. I also regularly use a couple of Dell laptops and a few HP laptops.
The current generation of the Macbook Air is amazing. I work with technology every day, and the new Macbook Air is the best and most fun to use laptop I’ve ever had experience with. The lack of a network adapter is not a problem. I got a device for $15 that adds a network port and three USB ports through the USB. The use of screen real estate is ingenious, and the 11″ is as efficient and viewable as a 13″ PC.
Performance is stunning. Even with the i5 processer and only 4 MB of RAM, boot time is less than 10 seconds, and everything happens instantly. Programs open in a snap. The touchpad is great; the only usable touchpad I’ve found. (more…)
♬ My outlook on life is positive! ♬
Lyrics and Music by: Ray Cappo and John Porcelly, recorded by Youth of Today.
Outlook on the Mac
“I believe that Outlook for the Mac may be the most important app that Microsoft has ever created for the Mac environment.” – Gerry Purdy, MobileTrax
This is a guest post written by Gerry Purdy, PHD. I have been following Gerry’s posts on the state of wireless for some time now and always find them to be interesting and insightful. This particular post is published here with his permission.
“Over the past six months, Microsoft has (rather quietly) finally introduced their very popular Outlook email management system on the Mac platform. It allows Mac users to enjoy the same benefits as Windows users. However, there are a number of things that are important to enterprise IT, Apple and users beyond the obvious financial benefits to Microsoft.
If you owned a Windows PC and wanted to migrate to a Mac, the process could be very difficult or, if you were using Outlook, impossible. The reason has to do with Outlook’s internal file structure which uses ‘OST’ and ‘PST’ files.
Before Outlook became available on the Mac, there was no way to copy the files over to the Mac and use them with either Mac email or Entourage. Now, with the implementation of Outlook on the Mac, anyone can copy their Outlook email files from their Windows PC over to the Mac, load Office 2011 for the Mac and open the Outlook files on the Mac. I have tried it, and it worked flawlessly the first time. (more…)
♬ Because it keeps on working …♬
Lyrics and Music by Peter Kingsbery, recorded by Cock Robin.
ioSafe Portable Hard Drive
I have been a big fan of the ioSafe line of disaster proof external hard drives for some time now (back in October I wrote about the ioSafe Solo Pro hardened hard drive). I use a 1.5 terabyte SoloPro to back up my MacBook (using TimeMachine) regularly. I even replaced the internal hard drive using the SoloPro/TimeMachine back up and the data transferred perfectly to the bigger internal MacBook hard drive and I was up and running in no time. Voila!
But now ioSafe have come up with a hardened portable hard drive! Does it get any better than this? Look at the specs: (more…)
♫ And I’m thinking two is better than one… ♫
Lyrics and Music by Martin Johnson, recorded by Boys Like Girls with Taylor Swift.
Having recently acquired an iPad2, I am just starting to explore how to integrate this tablet into my daily workflow. As with any new gadget, I had questions as to the degree the iPad2 would replace my MacBook or fit into my existing workflow. Surprisingly, I have found that, rather than replacing my MacBook, the iPad has integrated into the workflow quite nicely. So here are the initial steps in my journey with the iPad2:
I realized that using the onboard screen keyboard was not something that I was prepared to use long-term if I was going to use the iPad seriously. So the first thing that I did was to purchase a Kensington iPad wireless keyboard + case:
Kensington iPad Case & Wireless Keyboard
This provided me with a nice bluetooth keyboard along with a very attractive leather case for carrying and protecting the iPad. The bluetooth setup was straightforward and the iPad ‘discovered’ the keyboard in short order once the settings were turned on in “System Preferences” on the iPad. In addition, the Kensington case props the iPad up on an angle in front of you with the keyboard out level in front. Great for working at a desk but not really suitable for lap-use, since the iPad is just propped up and if you shift or move, this may dislodge the iPad from its ‘groove’ that keeps it upright. But otherwise I love the case and the keyboard. The case is really designed for the original iPad which is thicker, so the iPad2 really needs a small bit of foam between the back of the iPad and the case to keep it tight in the case. Not really a problem. (more…)
♬ She’s my little deuce coupe
You don’t know what I got…♬
Lyrics and music by Brian Wilson, recorded by The Beach Boys.
The notice popped up on the screen – my hard drive had run out of space. I was facing the dilemma of either upgrading the original 160 GB hard drive in my MacBook or upgrading to a new MacBook or MacBook Pro. A bit of research into a new hard drive for my venerable MacBook made the decision easy…a Western Digital Scorpio 2.5-Inch 500 GB SATA Internal Hard Drive WD5000BEKT (Black) was $69.92 on Amazon.com. With shipping, taxes and duties, the total was under $90.00. A far cry from the cost of replacing my MacBook.
My reading up on the web tried to assure me that it was not that difficult to replace the hard drive (I most certainly know my limitations in working with my hands….) Despite my reservations, I took a deep breath and ordered the new hard drive. (more…)
♬ Modern technology
unleashed upon mankind…♬
Lyrics, music and recorded by Cause For Effect.
Microsoft Office for the Mac
Well I thought it was about time to try the latest version of Microsoft’s Office for the Mac, version 2011. 2011 was released in Oct, 2010 and has been followed by ‘bug fixes’ and the usual series of updates (one major one shortly after release), so I thought it would be safe to download this latest version by now.
I had been using the 2008 version with Word, PowerPoint, Excel and Entourage.
One of the major differences in the 2011 version is the incorporation of Outlook onto the Mac to replace Entourage. I won’t go into an extensive review of the differences between the 2008 and 2011 version since PCMag did such a great job, giving the 2011 version of Microsoft Office for the Mac a Best of the Year 2010 Award.
Now I have to say that while I learned to adjust to Entourage, I use Outlook on a PC daily (I work concurrently on a PC and a Mac). I learned to like (and know) Entourage, I knew Outlook from years of use and experience. So yes, I was actually looking forward to seeing Outlook on the Mac. (more…)