Controlling Your Document Sizes

I frequently hear from frustrated attorneys and staff about difficulties emailing documents that are beyond the 25 MB attachment size limit in Gmail.  How can a few dozen pages go over the limit when you sometimes receive documents that are hundreds of pages long and well within the limit?

The answer is that the way you create a document can GREATLY affect its size.  To demonstrate this, I created a sample document that was 19 pages long.  In WordPerfect, the document was only 61 kb (that's roughly 0.06 MB).  At that rate, I could get nearly 8000 pages into a document that would be under the 25 MB limit.

But we often want to convert a document to PDF.  When I used the "publish to PDF" feature in WordPerfect, the document size grew to 104 kb.  It is larger, but still plenty of room for thousands of pages. Rather than use the "publish to PDF" I made a new PDF using the bioPDF printer that lets you create a new PDF from any program.  BioPDF was more efficient and created a new document that was 90 kb.  BioPDF also does a better job of stripping out metadata.  This not only saves on size, but can also help you to keep data related to the creation of the document from the recipient.

Next, I printed out my document and then scanned it from a network copier.  Scanning will always drastically increase document size because it turns the text in the document into an image.  Images require much more space than text.  It also makes the document less useful because you cannot do word searches, or copy and paste text from the document.  My scanned file increased the document size to just over 1.1 MB (1142 KB).  The document size was 12.7 times larger than the one I created using bioPDF.

Using a network copier to scan document is not even the worst method.  Scanning on one of the desktop scanners most of use have at our desks is an even worse way to go.  The desktop scanners use a less efficient compression tool for the images.  So, in addition to taking a much longer time for the scan to complete, you also end up with a much larger file.  I scanned my test document on a HP Laser Jet 1536 printer/scanner as a black & white document and at 200 dpi.  The same document as before had now ballooned to about 8.6 MB (8595 kb).  This one 19 page document is now roughly 1/3 of my Gmail attachment limit.

Even worse, I scanned the document a second time as color and 300 dpi.  This was not necessary as the document itself was simply black lettering on white paper, but the scanner must use more space just for the possibility of of color.  In this case, my document was almost 11.3 MB (11,253 KB) or almost 1/2 of my Gmail attachment limit for a single 19 page document.  It is also more than 125x the size of the same document created with bioPDF.

Desktop scanners are a convenience if you are doing a small scan, such as a letter or a receipt.  If you have larger documents, even 10 or 20 pages, it makes more sense to scan from the network copier, or send to Reliable.  Your documents will end up roughly 1/10th the size you get on the desktop scanner.

If you are starting with an electronic version rather than just paper, a much better option is to use the print to PDF function using bioPDF (or its predecessor BullzipPDF - or any other PDF printer you might have). This will almost always create the most efficient PDF document you can get.

If you already have document in electronic format, printing it out and then scanning is about the worst thing you can do.  You create a much larger document, and have a less useful document.

Some people prefer to scan because they want to sign a document, then scan the whole document with the signature. Rather than do this, I recommend keeping a scanned image of just your signature on your computer. You can import this image into a WordPerfect document, then print to PDF.  Another option is to add your signature as a custom stamp in PDF Xchange Viewer or Editor and simply add your signature to an existing PDF document.  Either method will keep your document MUCH smaller than printing and scanning the entire document.

In summary, when creating a PDF, use a print to PDF method.  Using network copier/scanners are bad and using your desktop printer/scanner is really bad.

Working With Email Files

Frequently, I get asked to help people with files sent to us as part of discovery.  Often, people are sending emails from a system without providing any way to open or read them.

Email files can be tricky because of a wide variety of ways to open them.  If you have a relatively small number of files, and just need to take a quick look at them, this web site my be helpful:

http://www.coolutils.com/Online/Mail-Converter

This online utility will take files in EML, MSG, MIM, MBOX, MBX, DBX, PST, OLM, or VCF formats and convert them to a more easily readable format such as PDF.  This can be great if you just need to read the emails.  But if you need to do more with them, or access attachments, you may need something more.

Most commonly we see files in .PST or .MSG format.  Both of these formats are commonly exported from a Microsoft Outlook account.

Many of you have MS Outlook already installed on your computer.  If you have a recent version of MS Office, you probably also have Outlook.  We began installing it by default after we got rid of GroupWise.  Prior to that, we did not install Outlook because it often caused conflicts with GroupWise.

If you have Outlook installed, you may simply be able to import the file directly into Outlook.  From there, you can access the files just as if you were viewing them on the original system.  If, however, you are using Outlook for regular email, be careful about importing other people's PST or MSG files into your emails.  You don't want to get their email mixed in with your email.  Be sure to save it to a separate folder.

Another option it to use PST Viewer Pro.  This is a program specifically designed to let you review PST or MSG files.  This program will also work with OST files, which is yet another Outlook export format, but one not commonly used. As we have to pay for each licensed installation, we don't install it by default on all computers.  But if you have a need for it, call the help desk.  We can make it available to you.

The EML format is a default export format for Outlook Express or Windows Live Mail.  There is an easy trick to open these files.  EML is actually saved as a MHTML file, which almost any browser can open.  If you change the .EML extention to .MHT, you should be able to click on the file and have it open.  PST Viewer Pro will also open such files.  If you have Outlook Express or Windows Live installed on you computer, you should be able to import them that way.

The MBOX format is a mailbox file format that works across a wide variety of non-Microsoft email programs.   The best way to access these files is to use a free mail program and simply import the file. If you are looking for a program for just this purpose, I recommend i.scribe.  This is a very small program that can run on your computer.  Once installed, you can drag and drop MBOX files directly into a folder that you create in i.Scribe, then begin reading the emails.  Unlike several other email programs, you can begin using i.scribe without having to connect to an online mail account.

If you receive emails in other formats, we can try to figure out a solution.  But often, if the format is for some proprietary third party program, you may not be able to open it without access to the original program.

Avoiding Cyber Attacks

For many years, hackers attempted to access networks and data with viruses that could automatically move, replicate, and embed themselves on new computers.  Today, network security, firewalls, and anti-virus software have rendered most of these attacks ineffective.  But that does not stop hackers.  They have moved on to the next weakest link -- you.

Most current system attacks trick unwitting users into allowing hackers and malware into the system.  Once embedded there, the hacker can invite in other malware and begin to do real damage to a network.  Therefore we must all be vigilant against potential threats to our network.  There are several issues that everyone should consider:

Email providers have gotten pretty good about preventing dangerous attachments from getting through.  But they are not foolproof.  If you get an attachment that looks suspicious, have someone from IT take a look at it.  Often, you can view a document without opening it.  If the sender or the document itself says that viewing it properly requires granting a permission, or enabling macros, that is a big red flag to stay away.

Because many email providers block dangerous attachments, hackers may include a link asking you to connect to a web site.  That site may be infected.  If a link looks suspicious or is even unfamiliar to you, question whether you should click on that link.  If the link has a "php" in the address, that means it is designed to run a script.  Sometimes this is legitimate, but often not.  It requires closer scrutiny.

Just because you know the sender, that does not mean the message is safe.  Many times, hackers will access the email account of an innocent party, then send emails to everyone in the address book.  We recently had one hacker who remained connected to the account, responding to questions about the email and saying it was legitimate and that the recipient should go ahead and click on the link.  Poor grammar is often a tip off, but not always.  If you are not sure, pick up the phone and call the sender.

If a site asks you to enter any name or password where you do not usually do so, that is a red flag. A Google site, for example, should see you are already logged in and not ask again.  Hackers often create sites that look like a legitimate site, just to steal your name and password.  If you must create an account at a new site, be sure to use a name and password different from what you use for other sites.

If you go to a site and something strange happens, let IT know about it.  Years ago, a hack would be obvious right away as you were bombarded with advertising or had other immediate problems.  Sophisticated hackers today put malware that has little impact on you, but can turn your computer into a "zombie" used for distributing malware to others.  It is often a good idea to have someone run a couple of scans on your PC to make sure all is well.

If you think your home computer or other device (yes, phones and tablets are vulnerable), please don't connect to our network via VPN or use the firm's WiFi.  Your device can act as a Trojan horse, bringing malware inside our firewall to be released on the network.  If you ask, we can recommend several anti-malware programs to run and check out your home computer.

Never give your password to anyone, either via email or over the phone, unless their names are Mike, Mary, Lucy, or Bode.  No one from Google will ever ask for your Gmail password.  No one from Microsoft, Apple, your bank, your broker, or any other outside company should ever request that sort of information. If an outside vendor requests that sort of information, get their name and say you will call them right back, call the company's main number and ask to be transferred to that person.  Do not just call a number that the caller gives you. Do not rely on caller ID, which is easily faked.

In short, stay alert, if something looks suspicious get a second opinion before acting.