Tablets and Firm Resources

The firm is re-thinking the way we do mobility.

At the Partner Retreat last week, I discussed how IT is taking a look at new document management, case management, and time and billing systems.  Critical to any of these new systems is the ability to do most, if not all of your work on just about any device.

Traditionally, the firm has focused on supporting Windows computers.  This was fine when Microsoft held a virtual monopoly on your devices.  Now that we do more of our work on cell phones and mobile devices, the firm needs to transition in order to accommodate a range of other devices.

To make all this work, most of our computing will be moving to the cloud.  The "cloud" is essentially an industry term to mean using a server outside of our own office on some remote location accessible over the Internet. Over the next few years, I hope that not only our data will be stored on the cloud, but most of our computing will be done there as well.

On our existing network, we have our PCs do most of the computing work.  We grab a document, then use software on the PC to work on it.  In a cloud computing environment, we can work on the document through a web browser or an app.  The work is being done on some large server far away. Your computer is simply showing you the changes you are making on that far away server.

The big benefit of this system is that you do not need a powerful computer to do much of anything.  All the work is being done outside of your device.  As a result, you can have a much smaller, lighter mobile device to do much of your work.

With that in mind, the firm is testing the use of iPads as a mobile device for attorneys.  Rather than carry around a laptop everywhere.  Attorneys could have a desktop PC in the office and use an iPad to work on files, enter time, and check email when out of the office.  Not only would this  be much smaller and lighter, it would allow attorneys to have Internet access anywhere, using a Verizon 4G connection, the same technology your cell phone uses.  No more hunting for open WiFi networks!

We are beginning a feasibility study to see if these tablets really can serve as a viable alternatives to a full blown laptop when outside the office.  Hopefully, I'll have more good news to report on this soon.

Google Chats, Video Calls, and Phone Calls

Lately, Google has been putting a great deal of work into Google Hangouts making it much more friendly for the enterprise.

Many of you likely have never used Hangouts.  It is a very simply way to make phone calls, video calls or hold quick text messaging chats on your computer.  When you have Gmail open, you see your labels (i.e. folders) on the left side of the screen. At the bottom of that list, you will see an option to start a chat with someone:

If you do not see this, you may need to go into your email settings, look for the "Chat" tab, and make sure your chat is turned on.

The first icon that looks like a person allows you to bring up a list of chat contacts.  You can use the + sign to select a new contact.  The talk bubble with quotation marks allows you to look at prior conversations.  The phone icon lets you call a phone number.

If you select a person to chat, or open an old chat, you get a chat box:

At the bottom, where it says "Send a message" you can simply type in a quick message to the person. It will then pop-up on their computer, assuming they have Gmail open.  This is a quick and easy way to chat back and forth with someone in the office, or anyone using Gmail.

You can also set up a group chat with multiple people.  This can be much easier for an interactive conversation with several people than sending an email and having everyone have to reply all to each message.  Gmail will also keep a record of the chat, unless you delete it, meaning you can refer back to conversations if needed.

You may notice there is also an icon of a video camera on the upper left corner.  You can use that to have a video conversation with someone. Since I have a "face for radio" I'm not a big fan of video chats.  However, one nice feature is that rather than showing your face, you can show the desktop of your computer.  This can be a convenient way to show people something you are working on, or how to do something.  Of course, using the feature requires that you have speakers and a microphone, as well as a camcorder if you want to have face to face video.  Our laptops all have these items, but some desktops do not.

You may also use the phone option built into Gmail.  You are able to call any US number.  However, the caller ID will show up as some different number.  This may cause some people not to pick up your call.

If you would like to use more advanced features, you may want to install the Google Hangouts extension on your browser.  You can do this by clicking on the three dots in the upper right hand corner of your Chrome Browser.  Select, SETTINGS then click on EXTENSIONS over on the left side of the screen.  Click on the link for "Get More Extensions" and do a search for "Google Hangouts".  From there, you can add Google Hangouts to your Browser.  This extension is not necessary, but gives you more control and features when chatting or making video and audio calls.

Auto-Replies in Gmail

The firm has a strict policy against attorneys using auto-replies for clients.  We never want to leave a client with the impression that we are not available.  Therefore you should never set up a general auto-reply to be out of the office.

If there is some reason an attorney is unable to access email from home, their phone, or just about any other Internet connected device  for an extended period of time, we can make arrangements to have a partner monitor your mail.

Gmail, however, has an option in its auto-reply to send auto-replies only to other people within the firm (i.e. to anyone who emails you from a margolisedelstein.com address).  This usage is permissible and can be an easy way to let people know you are out of the office when they are trying to contact you.

To set up an internal auto-reply, open your Gmail settings, toward the bottom is a box for "Vacation Responder."  Turn the Responder on.  Enter the dates you want it to be active and the message you want sent.

BE SURE to check the box that says "Only send a response to people in Margolis Edelstein."  We only want this message to respond to internal emails, not to clients.  Save changes and you are done.  Below is an example:

The auto-reply will automatically kick in on the "first day" you selected and will automatically turn off on the "last day" selected.  So once configured, there is no need to mess with it again until you want to change it to a new set of dates.

More on Moving to MS Office

My last post discussed the need to move away from WordPerfect and toward MS Office, specifically Office 365.

In my earlier post, I may have undersold management's interest in making this change happen soon. The firm has decided to make the move to MS Office over the next few months.

How to Install MS Office 365

We are planning to roll out MS Office 365 to everyone in the firm.  In the coming weeks, you should receive an email from Office 365.  If you would like to get Office 365 installed on your computer sooner rather than later, let me know.  We will be rolling out licenses to everyone over the next couple of weeks.  But if you are eager to get started, I'm happy to put you at the front of the line.

The email will contain a link and a password giving you access to your Office 365 account.  Once you login, you will see a link to download and install MS Office on your computer.

The download is a small executable program that gets saved on your computer, usually in the "Downloads" folder.  When you run it, the program will download and install the full version of MS Office on your computer.

IMPORTANT WARNING: If you install Office 365, it will automatically remove any older version of MS Office you already have installed.  This should not be a big deal on your work computer, unless you are using a version of Office that contains MS Access.  The new Version of Office only installs Word, Excel, PowerPoint & Outlook.  You do not have to use all of these applications, but they will be on your computer in case you need them.

If you use MS Access for something, or have some special setup, you may want to check with the Help Desk before installing Office 365.

Office 365 allows you to load the program on up to five computers that you use.  If you have a computer at home, you are free to install and use Office.  Please remember, firm policy forbids hourly staff from doing any work at home.  We are happy to let you use MS Office at home for personal use, but do not do work from your home unless you are an attorney or exempt employee.

If you choose to install 365 on a personal computer, it overwrites a copy of MS Office that you already have installed.  Please be aware that if you leave the firm, we will revoke the 365 license, leaving you with nothing, or at least requiring to reinstall any personal version of Office that you may have.

You may also install the Apps available for Word, Excel, PowerPoint, etc. on any Apple or Android device that you have.

Using MS Office 365

365 installs the most current version of Office (currently 2016).  If you use 2010, 2013, or 2016, you will probably notice little to no difference in how the new version works.  Most of the changes added since 2010 have been online features that we have not used much in the firm.

I will not attempt to offer a tutorial here.  Suffice it to say that the Help Desk is available for questions and I listed some online training available in my last blog post.

Going Forward

Getting MS Office installed on your computer is just the first step.  In May, Cain Elliot will be holding some training courses in MS Office to help with the transition.  We will have more details on those classes soon.

We are also evaluating several solutions that may be used perform a batch conversion of all WordPerfect documents on the file server to MS Word.  These conversions are still being tested. They may be implemented in the coming months if our tests prove successful.

Please start using MS Office as soon as possible.  It does not have to be tomorrow.  You may need to wait for training before you make full use of it.  You may also want to time your switch to when others on your team also make the change so that you are all working with  the same document formats. However, I don't recommend waiting until the last minute.  Over the next few months we will have time to get familiar with the software, if not already, and to develop templates, macros, and other items that may be of help to you in document generation.

By the end of this summer, we hope to have the entire firm fully converted to MS Office.  There may be a few exceptions for special needs uses of WordPerfect.  We are also still considering a firmer final schedule for the final switch.  But for most of you, plan to be using MS Office exclusively by the fall.

Moving to MS Office

I have written several times about the firm's slow migration to MS Office.  As much as I love WordPerfect as a word processor, it simply does not work and play well with others.

Most of our clients and co-counsel use MS Word, meaning that shared editing of documents causes regular problems for WordPerfect users.  In particular, redlining can be a nightmare when converting between document types.  Life is easier when everyone uses the same program.  It is also extremely difficult to view WP documents on other devices, such as phones or tablets, or to work on in any other context, for example, in Google Docs.  Virtually all document management system either do not support WordPerfect at all, or support it in a secondary way that leaves the process with too many bugs to be useful.

By contrast, MS Office formats, including Word documents, Excel Spreadsheets, and PowerPoint presentations have become the standard default formats for a wide range of applications.  Google Drive works well with them, as do many other third party programs beyond the Microsoft family.  More important for our purposes, almost all document management systems work exclusively, or work best with MS Office.  A great many email and calendaring devices are also designed around MS Outlook, which is part of MS Office.

For these reasons, and more, we have been slowly and somewhat reluctantly for many migrating to MS Office and away from WordPerfect.  Acceptance has been varied.  Some offices use MS Word very heavily.  In some offices, a few teams have adopted it but WordPerfect remains favored by the majority.  Many people have opted to have both systems installed and use one program for some purposes and the other for other purposes.

However, as we move closer to the adoption of a document management system (DMS), we are more strongly encouraging the use of Word over WordPerfect.  Most DMS don't work with WordPerfect at all, or if they do, it is in a limited way that makes life more complicated for the user.

So far, the firm has not made any decision to ban the use of WordPerfect, but that day may come sooner than you think.  Supporting two different systems places an extra burden on the help desk as IT is expected to have expertise in both.  It also leads to complications in sharing documents and making them available in a variety of formats.  However, we are now installing MS Office by default and only installing WordPerfect by request on new computers.

Office 365

At present the firm supports a range of version of MS Office from 2010 to 2016 (I think we have retired all of the older versions by now).  There is not a huge difference between version 2010, 2013, and 2016.  The main difference is that the later versions make more use of online features that the firm has not really used.

For the past year, the firm has been deploying Office 365 instead of static version of office.  Unlike earlier version, Office 365 is a subscription service.  This means that whenever a new version of MS Office is released, you can upgrade without any additional cost.  Currently the latest version of Office provided by 365 is Office 2016.

Office 365 permits you to download full copies of Office on up to five computers for the same user. This means if you have a home laptop or desktop, you can download a copy of Office there.   There are also limited versions of MS Office that run on your mobile Android or IOS devices.  Finally, there is  limited cloud version of Office that you can use if you are at a computer that does not have Office installed on it (for example a public computer at a hotel or library).  Office 365 makes mobile use of Office much easier.  As part of our ongoing efforts to help everyone become more familiar with MS Office, we plan to make Office 365 licenses available to all very soon.

MS Office Training

If you have been using WordPerfect for years, you may find yourself having difficulty using MS Office as a replacement.  MS Word does many things differently, and getting used to the new menus will take some time and effort.

Cain Elliott has offered to hold a series of training classes on MS Office.  We do not yet have a schedule for those.  I hope we will have a schedule and more details on these classes soon.

There are also some very good online training videos available on the web:

http://www.gcflearnfree.org/topics/office2016

The site provide free videos and written tutorials on a wide variety of MS Office topics.  Simply select the topic you want and either watch the video or read the tutorial.  These can be useful for learning at your own pace and when you have the time for them.

Change is Coming

The firm is looking into some rather dramatic moves in the way we manage documents.  While these options are still under consideration, any of them will require users to work with MS Word and Excel for the documents.  If you are are unfamiliar with using MS Office, now is the time to get up to speed.

Calendar Invites

You have almost certainly received calendar Invites in the past.  They come as an email giving the date of an event and asking if you are attending.  It may have an option to ask if you are attending, or a link to add to your calendar.  You can click to create a calendar item for that time and day.

It Works Across Platforms

Calendaring works bets internally or with other gmail users.  However, the ICS format is pretty universal.  If you invite others using other calendaring systems, they should get an email notice that allows them to add the appointment to their calendar with a single click.

Of course, if you are not certain what system an outside party may use, you may want to send an email the first time you send a calendar invite, just to make sure they got it.  Most people will get the invite, but it pays to be safe. Once confident they are receiving the invite, you can dispense with emails.

Better Than Email

You may ask, why is it better to send an invite than simply email people about a date?  Well, it makes it easier for the recipient to add to his or her calendar.  The recipient need only click on "yes" to add the event to his or her calendar.  The recipient need not cut and paste or retype information from the email to a calendar.

A calendar invite also makes things easier for the sender.  Especially if multiple people are involved.  Recipients need not email back replies.  They can simply click on "yes" for attending and that information gets added to the sender's list of who is attending.  This makes it much easier to keep track of who can or cannot attend, and avoids lengthy email chains in your inbox.

If the sender needs to change a date or time, all attendees receive notification of the change (unless the sender opts not to send notifications).

When used internally or with other gmail users, there are even more features.  You can permit users to invite others, or to change the details of the meeting.  The creator has the ability to restrict these permissions if desired.  Gmail users can also add a quick note to their decision to attend or not, which shows up in the calendar details.

How to Create an Invite

To create an invite simply open your Calendar and create an appointment like you would for any other calendar entry.  Once it is set up, on the right, you will see an option to "add guests" and three boxes regarding what level of control you want to give to guests.  Add the email addresses of those you want to attend,   Once saved, it will notify the guests.  If they are gmail users, the event  will appear automatically on their calendars.

Working with PDF Documents.

I have addressed the benefits of PDF documents in earlier posts, but thought it might be time to add a few more thoughts.

For years now, the firm has used PDF Xchange Editor, and its predecessor PDF Xchnage Viewer as the preferred program for PDF documents.  Some of you may still opt to use Adobe Reader or some other third party program to do the same thing.   If all you ever want to do with a document is read it, or perhaps print it, then pretty much any program will do.  Even the Chrome browser has the ability to let you read an print a PDF.

Benefits of a PDF Editor:

PDF Xchange Editor, however, lets you do so much more than a simple viewer.  You can:

• mark up a document, 
• make notes on it, 
• attach a virtual sticky note,
• highlight or strike out text, 
• add or remove pages from a document, 
• add or remove images from a page,
• add watermarks, 
• add bates stamping, 
• redact text, 
• add a signature, 
• and a host of other things.

The PDF format is not really meant for editing documents that still need changes to text or layout, but you can make some limited changes even there.

Making a Document Easier to Use

Many people have express frustration when they cannot copy and paste text from a PDF.  Typically, this has to do with the way the document was created.  Many PDF documents, are generated using a "print to PDF" or similar feature that retains the text of the original document as text.  This allows a viewer to copy and paste the text into another document.  It also has the benefit of making the file size of the document much smaller.

Other PDF documents are created in such a way that the text is not captured. Scanning a document is the most common way to create this sort of PDF.  In effect, the computer is taking a picture of the document and embedding that image into a PDF.  So instead of actual text, the page is a picture of the text in the original document.  If you try to highlight the text, it won't work as you are simply putting your cursor over part of an image.

Fortunately, PDF Xchange Editor offers a solution to this.  If you get a document that has imaged text, you can use the OCR feature in Xchange.  OCR stands for ocular character recognition.  The computer looks at the image and recognized the words in it.  It then saves those words as part of the document so that you can use that text however you like.

The OCR feature may take a while to run, depending on the length of the document and the power of your CPU processor.  A document that is thousands of pages long may take hours to OCR, so be aware of that.  Shorter documents, though, likely only take a few minutes.  Once you have run the OCR and saved the document again, the document will retain that information for future use.