Google Photos

We all use our phones as cameras, but many of us find it difficult to transfer pictures from the phone to a computer or some other device.  We end up letting the pictures fill up on our phone and then have to figure out what to do when it is time for a new phone.  Worse, we break our phone and lose all those pictures forever.

There are numerous ways, of course, to get photos off of the phone. One of the most convenient is Google Photos.  This can be installed as an App on your Android or iPhone.  You can configure the app, so that all photos are immediately uploaded to Google's cloud storage.

There are several things I find particularly attractive about Google Photos.  First, there is no storage limit.  You may upload and store as many photos as you like without ever having to pay extra storage fees.  There is no need to worry about limits.  Second, once it is configured, it works without you having to do anything.  Just take a picture and you are done.  It will upload automatically.  Third, access to the photos is easy.  Just go to http://photos.google.com and see all of your photos (assuming you are already logged into your Google account).

You can leave the photos on the site, share them with others, or download them for use elsewhere.  No need to worry about transferring between devices or losing them when a computer dies.  If you have photos stored on your PC, you can also upload them manually to the Photos site for permanent free cloud storage.

Photo size is limited to 16 megapixels for the unlimited storage.  This is not a problem for pictures taken with your Galaxy or iPhone as neither phone can take pictures above that level.  It may be an issue if you are uploading high quality pictures from another device.  If you want the unlimited storage, Google will automatically reduce the photos to the required levels for storage.

Video can also be uploaded and stored.  Again, there is a limit that the video of 1080p HD.  But again, that will suffice for most people.  Your phones are not capable of higher video quality.

If you delete a photo from the web site, it will also delete from any synced devices, such as your phone.  So do not delete from there if you want to keep the photo.  You may, however, delete a photo from your phone and keep it stored in the cloud.

Also, if you plan to store pictures there forever, remember that if you leave the firm and we shut down your Google account, those photos will go with them.  If you are taking personal photos, you may want to sync them to a personal Gmail account that you control.

iTimeKeep v.2 Updates

I received the following message from iTimeKeep.  They are upgrading their Version 2 release with some requested additions.  Below are the details.  If you have auto-updates turned on for your phone or tablet, you should get this updated app automatically.

Thank you all for the wonderful feedback since our Version 2 release. We have been hard at work to continue to meet our customers’ needs. We are excited to announce that we will be releasing an update to both our mobile and desktop applications on Wednesday, December 16th!  What is included in the update? Ability to Submit All While the new version of iTimeKeep gives your attorneys the flexibility to individually submit timecards, we understand that the change in workflow might have slowed down some attorneys that are already used to submitting timecards all at once.For those entries that are created as “drafts,” attorneys will have the ability to submit all of those entries at once. Check out a screenshot of what to expect to see with the update! For additional information, click here. Calendar View We understand that attorneys want the ability to see the whole picture as it relates to their worked hours. So, we have created a new feature within iTimeKeep called the “Calendar View”. The “Calendar View” will allow users to see a complete daily total of all their submitted, draft, and errored time entries. Check out a screenshot of what to expect to see with the update! For additional information, click here. What is included in the update? The current mobile iTimeKeep application will update by an automatic update or having your users manually update the current application. These actions are dependent upon the users’ app settings on their device. In case your users need to manually update the current version of iTimeKeep to gain access to the new feature, here are two documents that will be helpful to pass along. How to update an iOS device How to update an Android device The iTimeKeep desktop application will automatically update without the users taking any action. If you have any questions regarding the update, please contact our Product Manager at product@bellefield.com. Sincerely, The Bellefield Team Copyright © 2015, Bellefield Systems All rights reserved. You are receiving this email because you are a registered iTimeKeep user. Bellefield Systems 2605 Nicholson Road Suite 202 Sewickley, PA 15143 Add us to your address book

iCore Communicator

Our phone accounts also come with a license to use a software program called "communicator".  This is a program that you can install on a computer, tablet, or cell phone that gives you the ability to make and receive calls as if you were in front of your office phone.  It also gives you access to voicemail and allows you to do a number of other things.

Firm policy allows only attorneys and other non-hourly employees to use Communicator.  Hourly employees are expected to use their phones only, since they should not be making or receiving work calls when not at work and on the clock.  If you have some wish to use Communicator on your computer in the office, please contact Michael Troy to explain why and get approval first.

You must install the Communicator application.  Your license permits you to install the program only on one computer and up to three tablets or phones.  So don't try to install it everywhere.

If you want the computer version of the software (PC or Mac) you can download it here:

http://www.icore.com/support/icore-one-communicator-download/

If you want the software for your Android or IOS device, you can download those for free from the Google Play Store or Apple's App Store respectively.  Just search for "icore communicator".  Note that there may be separate apps for tablets and phones.

Once installed, you will need to log in using your full 10 digit phone number as your user name. Please contact Michael Troy to get your password.

From there, you can view a list of callers, look up numbers, make or receive calls, or change some of your work phone settings.

If you are using this app on your cell phone, note that it uses your data rather than cell phone minutes for calls.  If you are connected to Wifi on your phone, the call will use neither minutes nor mobile data.

Phone Hoteling - for the Lawyer on the go.

Perhaps you occasionally or often need to work in another office.  You would like to be able to receive calls, but don't want to deal with all the calls on your cell phone.  There is a phone at the location where you are working, but it does not have your number on it.  This is where the phones "hoteling" feature comes in handy.

Hoteling allows you to set up temporarily any phone in the firm with your phone number.  We just need to know the extension of the phone where you are sitting.  From that, we can configure your calls to ring directly to that phone.  Further, any calls you make from that phone will identify you as you, rather than the name of the phone you are using.  It will also alert you about pending voicemail messages.

Hoteling is really limited to the phone number itself though.  It will not import your favorites or other settings you may have on your permanent phone.  The LCD screen does not change at all.  Hoteling also will not work with phones outside the firm.  Also, while you hoteling, calls to the host phone will go directly to voicemail.

With those limitations, hoteling can be a valuable tool if you are visiting another office and want to keep in touch.  If you have the need, feel free to call the help desk to set it up for you.

Receiving Voicemail Messages

Messages as Email Attachments

Many people have commented about the new feature that allows you to receive all of your voicemail messages as an email attachment.  If this was not turned on for you and you would like the feature, call the help desk and we can fix it for you.  Similarly, if you find the feature annoying and don't want copies of your messages filling up your email inbox, let us know and we can turn it off for you.

You may also just want the email notification, but not receive that bulky WAV attachment.  We can configure your line to notify you with an email only, no attachment.  You can then still check messages on your phone after getting a notification.

Keep in mind that WAV files can take up a fair amount of space.  I recommend you delete these emails after listening to them unless there is a specific reason you need to save it.  Otherwise, you may find your Gmail inbox filling up at an alarming rate.

If you try to open the attachment in Gmail, you will get an error that it cannot be played.  You would need to download the file to your computer and listen to it in Windows Media Player, or whatever preferred audio player program you may use.

You should be able to download the files on your phone, however, you may find it takes longer to download that it would be simply to call your phone and check messages.

Checking Messages Remotely

That brings me to my next topic, accessing messages remotely.  To do this, simply call your office phone number on an outside line and press * once your voicemail message begins.  You will then be prompted for your password and can then listen to your messages.

Messages Waiting

If you have unread messages on your phone, you will have a red blinking light at the top of the phone informing you of this (although we can turn that off if you prefer).  Check messages by pressing the message button (the envelope button to the left of your number pad) and connect.  Then follow the prompts.

The default configuration is that your messages are saved both on the phone and sent to you as an email.  If you listened to your WAV file attachment, that does not affect the read status of your messages on your phone. If you prefer to receive messages only as emails and never saved to your phone, we can configure that for you, or as mentioned previously, save messages only on your phone and just receive notifications via email, or the third option of no email notifications at all.

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iTimeKeep v.2

Bellefield has recently published a new version of iTimeKeep, which is a great way to enter and manage your time in Elite.

What is iTimeKeep?

For those not using iTimeKeep, it is a time entry system licensed supported by the firm.  I would say it is alternative to Webview, but I actually recommend it over Webview.  Rest assured we will be supporting both methods for the foreseeable future.  I think iTimeKeep is superior in many ways.

For starters, you are not limited to using certain versions of Internet Explorer.  iTimeKeep supports virtually any modern web browser.  There are also free apps for your Android or IOS (iPhone & iPad) devices.

If you have not yet tried iTimeKeep, now is a great time to see if this makes your time entry easier.   You are free to go back and forth between iTimeKeep and Webview.  Using one does not prevent you from using the other.  Your iTimeKeep user name and password should be the same as you use for Gmail.

Another good reason to use iTimeKeep is that, especially for the satellite offices, it works much faster than Webview in most circumstances.

What's New with iTimeKeep v.2?

If you are already an iTimeKeep user, you may have notice some significant changes in the last couple of weeks.

The biggest change for timekeepers is that everything is much more tightly integrated with Elite. Under the old system, iTimeKeep would not let you edit, or even view, time entries made in Webview.  Now, any time entered in any way is visible in iTimeKeep and can be edited.

No more batch submissions: with iTimeKeep v.2, when you enter or edit time, it immediately updates in Elite. You don't need to go through a separate step to submit your time.  There is no longer an need to save entries as drafts, since you can continue to edit your entries even after they have been submitted.

Timers are now synchronized.  If you start a timer on your phone, you will also see it running when you view iTimeKeep on your computer.  You can seamlessly move back and forth between devices as you enter and track your time.

Real time validation of Time Entry.  If you violate a rule for a time entry, such as omitting a task code when mandatory, you will be informed immediately so you can correct the error right away.  This feature will not work until we update the back end, however.  More on that below.

Any abbreviations set up in Elite will also work on iTimeKeep.  Alas this is not true for Shortkeys, which is not available for phones or tablets.  Of course, Shortkeys on your computer will still work if entering time via iTimeKeep on that computer.

You can also track your monthly progress.  iTimeKeep will show you your month-to-date hours so you can track your progress toward monthly targets.

For those so inclined, the new iTimeKeep also support Apple Watch.

Upgrading to v.2

Your browser connection should show you the new v.2 interface already.  If you have an App on your phone or tablet, you will need to update your App.  Many of you may have this set to happen automatically, in which case you should be fine.  If you have updates set to manual, you must update your iTimeKeep App to the latest version.

Once you are upgraded, you will have most of the functionality of the new version.   There are a few features that required the IT Department to make changes to the back end.  We will be making these changes shortly. We want to give everyone time to upgrade their Apps first.  Because while the new App works fine with our existing back end, once we upgrade the back end, the older versions of the Apps will no longer function at all.

Calling Your Favorite Numbers

On the main LCD screen of your new phone, you should see  your name and extension next to the first button. If you press the button, you can get a dial tone.

You may see a few other names on your screen if you cover calls for other people.  Most likely though, you don't have names next to all 12 buttons. For empty spaces, you have the ability to add people in your group to this list for making quick one button calls to that person.

If you press and hold a button for about two seconds, you will bring up the "Add Contact" menu. Enter a person's name and phone number (number goes under "contact") and press Save.  That name will show up on your screen all the time.  Just press the number next to that name to call that person.

You also have the ability to change the ring type for calls from certain people.  This can alert you immediately from the sound of the ring when a particular person calls.

There is also an option to auto-reject or auto-divert calls from a certain number.  However, if you are using that feature, you probably are not calling that person all the time either.  There are better ways to do block a person without having that number appear on your screen.  If you need help doing that, the Help Desk can assist you.

Favorite numbers are different from call coverage numbers in that your phone will not ring for the other person's calls, and you cannot pick up their line.  A favorite is simply an easy shortcut way to call someone you call regularly.  If you need call coverage, please contact the help desk.

There is also an option to add a "busy lamp" button to your phone which will allow you to add a name to your screen, but will also show you when that person is on the line.  A "busy lamp" will only work for numbers within the firm.  They can be added through the cloud portal.  If you are not comfortable with that, the help desk can add a "busy lamp" contact to your screen for you.