TechnoLawyer: Email/Messaging/Telephony

Coming September 14, 2006 to Answers to Questions: Jason Havens reviews Tabs3 and compares it to Timeslips for law firm accounting and time-billing, Debbie Westwood reviews Lotus Notes for document collaboration, Nancy Merreot explains how to archive e-mail using PST files and Adobe Acrobat 7, Nikki Rodeman discusses the bar code scanning system she discovered (and we provide tips on using bar codes for trial exhibits), and John Keller reviews Skype for outgoing calls. In addition, this issue features links to 5 additional Posts in the TechnoLawyer Archive. Don't miss this issue.

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Published Thursdays, Answers to Questions is a weekly newsletter in which TechnoLawyer members answer legal technology and practice management questions submitted by their peers (including you if you join TechnoLawyer). Like all of our newsletters, it's free. Please subscribe now.

In today's issue of TechnoLawyer NewsWire, lawyer and legal technology legend Dennis Kennedy covers an online alternative to Microsoft Office, a free service for tracking your wealth (and comparing it to that of your peers), and an Outlook add-in that enables you to organize and archive your e-mail by client and matter. Don't miss the next issue.

Below you'll find one of the three articles from today's edition:

An Office Without the Overhead
By Dennis Kennedy
In this new Web 2.0 world, expensive desktop applications may end up going the way of the dodo thanks to simple Webified versions — word processors, spreadsheets, and the like. These low-priced or free tools can serve as economical alternatives to programs such as Microsoft Office in certain settings.

Silveroffice offers up such a tool with gOFFICE, an online office suite that enables you to quickly create documents using just your Web browser. gOffice has four modules — word processing, desktop publishing, presentations, and spreadsheets. You create all four types of documents in your Web browser.

Each module features many templates. For example, the word processing module features more than 1,000 letter templates, making it easy to create a professional-looking letter. When you complete a document, you can export it to PDF format. gOffice handles the conversion so you do not need a copy of Adobe Acrobat. You can also email and fax documents directly from gOffice (faxing is limited to the United States).

You can use gOffice from any computer with an Internet connection, and you can store your files online or locally. Alternatively, you can host gOffice on your own server at your firm. gOffice works in Firefox (Mac and Windows) and Internet Explorer (Windows).

Like other Web 2.0 tools, gOffice offers limited functionality and customization compared with desktop applications. But because gOFFICE makes it easy to produce nice-looking documents, you may find it an acceptable trade-off. gOFFICE costs 99 cents per month. Learn more about gOFFICE.

How to Receive this Newsletter
Published on Wednesdays, TechnoLawyer NewsWire is a weekly newsletter that enables you to learn about new technology products and services of interest to legal professionals. Like all of our newsletters, it's free. Please subscribe now.

Coming September 8, 2006 to Fat Friday: Barron Henley strikes back on the issue of word processing training in law firms, Ron Kahn shares how he uses Time Matters and Zetafax in his paperless workflow, Philip Rhodes discusses cell phone etiquette, and Lawrence King criticizes the pricing of the TechnoLawyer Archive (and we respond). Plus, this issue features links to 5 additional Posts in the TechnoLawyer Archive. Don't miss this issue.

How to Receive this Newsletter
Published on Fridays, Fat Friday is a weekly newsletter that features a grab bag full of genuinely useful product reviews and tips on a wide variety of topics. Like all of our newsletters, it's free. Please subscribe now.

Coming September 7, 2006 to Answers to Questions: Rob Fox explains how his firm achieved a paperless workflow, Steven Schwaber reviews his experience with Timeslips, Sarah Laracy discusses a cheap and easy way to archive Outlook e-mail by case, Deana Spencer weighs in on the open WiFi debate, and Matthew Brown, a Workshare employee, discusses the difference between Workshare Professional and Acrobat Professional regarding sending a document for review. Plus, this issue features links to 5 additional Posts in the TechnoLawyer Archive. Don't miss this issue.

How to Receive this Newsletter
Published Thursdays, Answers to Questions is a weekly newsletter in which TechnoLawyer members answer legal technology and practice management questions submitted by their peers (including you if you join TechnoLawyer). Like all of our newsletters, it's free. Please subscribe now.

In today's issue of TechnoLawyer NewsWire, lawyer and legal technology legend Dennis Kennedy covers a hosted e-mail service for small and mid-sized law firms, a new expert witness online research service, and a free Firefox plug-in that enhances Google. Don't miss the next issue.

Below you'll find one of the three articles from today's edition:

Got E-mail? Get Archived.
By Dennis Kennedy
Still managing your own e-mail server? Or perhaps you host your firm's e-mail at an ISP. If so, your e-mail may lack advanced applications such as BlackBerry support and archival and search capabilities.

Here to help small and mid-sized law firms and legal departments is NTT America, a division of NTT, the world's largest telecommunications company (more than $100 billion in revenue).

NTT America's new service, Email Archiving Solution, aims to provide law firms with peace of mind with regard to all aspects of e-mail infrastructure. In addition to providing traditional POP and MAPI e-mail, Email Archiving Solution coupled with hosted Microsoft Exchange also provides for wireless e-mail via RIM's BlackBerry and Microsoft's ActiveSync (Treo and other Windows Mobile smartphones).

You also get the benefit of the latest in anti-spam and anti-virus protection (say goodbye to the deeply flawed Bayesian filters and highly annoying challenge response technologies of yesteryear).

Living up to its name, Email Archiving Solution also provides you with advanced archiving capabilities, which you can configure by mailbox (both incoming and outgoing messages). NTT America claims that this service can meet any regulatory or internal compliance requirements.

Even if you have no compliance needs, this archiving technology has other benefits. For example, a powerful search engine enables administrators to search for and retrieve lost messages and entire mailboxes — much faster and with more certainty than restoring a backup.

Email Archiving Solution also addresses another problem with traditional e-mail systems — storage costs. Thanks to some nifty technology, NTT America has figured out how to reduce such costs and pass along the savings to law firms. For example, its "single-instance" technology means that it stores just one copy of an identical message (such as those group messages sent to everyone in your firm).

NTT America's service level agreement (so-called "SLA") guarantees a 99.9% uptime thanks to its secure and highly redundant data centers. When you do need help, you can get it 24/7. Email Archiving Solution does not require any software, licensing, or maintenance fees, IT staff, or on-site servers. Instead, you just pay a low monthly subscription. Learn more about Email Archiving Solution.

How to Receive this Newsletter
Published on Wednesdays, TechnoLawyer NewsWire is a weekly newsletter that enables you to learn about new technology products and services of interest to legal professionals. Like all of our newsletters, it's free. Please subscribe now.

Coming August 24, 2006 to Answers to Questions: Jason Havens reviews Windows Desktop Search and the improvements he'd like to see in later versions, Jeffrey Schoen reviews his experience with Symantec products, Jay Solomon explains how to create case-specific e-mail archives with Acrobat 7 Pro, Steven Schwaber joins the open WiFi ethics debate, and Richard Hutchins reviews his recent Amicus Attorney purchase. Don't miss this issue.

How to Receive this Newsletter
Published Thursdays, Answers to Questions is a weekly newsletter in which TechnoLawyer members answer legal technology and practice management questions submitted by their peers (including you if you join TechnoLawyer). Like all of our newsletters, it's free. Please subscribe now.

Coming August 17, 2006 to Answers to Questions: David Heisler reviews ISYS desktop search, Norman Van Treeck reviews LogMeIn in comparison to other remote access tools, Mike Cash offers up an alternative way to record retainer fees in PCLaw, Roy Greenberg reviews his Amicus Attorney-Outlook integration, and John Starkweather explains how to use the latest version of Acrobat to archive old e-mails. Don't miss this issue.

How to Receive this Newsletter
Published Thursdays, Answers to Questions is a weekly newsletter in which TechnoLawyer members answer legal technology and practice management questions submitted by their peers (including you if you join TechnoLawyer). Like all of our newsletters, it's free. Please subscribe now.

Coming August 15, 2006 to TechnoFeature: No Internet at the hotel? No problem! Although not nearly a vacation, traveling for business can feel just as stress-free if you plan ahead for such techno-disasters. In this article, legal technology trainer Adriana Linares shares the contents of her travel bag and how each item keeps her sane while away. Learn traveling tips and tricks from someone always on the go — and always connected.

How to Receive this Newsletter
Published on Tuesdays, TechnoFeature is a weekly newsletter that contains in-depth articles written by leading legal technology and practice management experts. Like all of our newsletters, it's free. Please subscribe now.

Coming August 10, 2006 to Answers to Questions: William Kellermann discusses why there's more to metadata than meets the eye, Caren Schwartz offers advice for those looking to sync the new Treo 700 with Time Matters, D. Paul Dalton reviews his experience using LogMeIn for remotely troubleshooting computers, Andrew Simpson suggests a Google Desktop utility for searching image-only PDFs, and Shawn McKee reviews his Amicus Attorney-Outlook integration. Don't miss this issue.

How to Receive this Newsletter
Published Thursdays, Answers to Questions is a weekly newsletter in which TechnoLawyer members answer legal technology and practice management questions submitted by their peers (including you if you join TechnoLawyer). Like all of our newsletters, it's free. Please subscribe now.

Coming August 3, 2006 to Answers to Questions: Tim Schober explains how he uses Word's built-in document assembly features, Peter Pike reviews his experience with Amicus Attorney's Outlook integration for e-mail, Cynthia Zook discusses how WordPerfect X3 handles metadata, Miriam Jacobson reviews RTG Software as an alternative to QuickBooks and Timeslips (plus we provide links to some very helpful articles on time-billing solutions), and Jed Berliner explains how to scan multiple documents into one PDF file with a ScanSnap. In addition, this issue features links to 5 additional Posts in the TechnoLawyer Archive. Don't miss this issue.

How to Receive this Newsletter
Published Thursdays, Answers to Questions is a weekly newsletter in which TechnoLawyer members answer legal technology and practice management questions submitted by their peers (including you if you join TechnoLawyer). Like all of our newsletters, it's free. Please subscribe now.