I’ve never liked the phrase “paperless office”; it brings too much negativity and confusion.

The law has been recorded, delivered, studied, and transferred on paper for the entire career of every living lawyer. Why now must we talk of being without something so familiar, convenient, and comfortable? In the legal industry, I think the effect of an assault on paper particularly potent.

A law office without paper is unthinkable. We are lawyers, we do paperwork, and that is that. For most industries, paper merely supports or commemorates the actual product or service. A doctor, plumber, mechanic, musician, artist, or builder can deliver value without paper; we can’t. So long as ideas must be captured in fixed form, the paper is the product and service.

What’s next? Food-less restaurants and liquor-less bars. At least, that’s how it feels to me.

Let’s change, or drop, the vocabulary to avoid the confusion, and see if we can get some lawyers on board with something worthwhile.

Let’s focus on the actual benefits and convenience modern technology brings to people doing a job and forget about offices without something.

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Computers and the web have made the world a friendlier place for sharing.  It is much easier, faster, and cheaper to send a digital file than mail paper.  But sometimes recipients can't open the file. That's aggravating and something we never had to worry about with paper. 

Compatibility problems usually arise from variance in operating system, software, or version.  I cover all three here - if you have ever had problems with the new Word 2007 format, .docx, or are curious how compatible Macs are, this article is also for you.  

As lawyers, we care about documents. The good news is that all compatibility problems related to documents, from whatever source, can be eliminated at once by switching to PDF as the default format. 

Avoid Problems by Using the Common Language

The best way to rest easy is to make sure that everything leaving your office is in Portable Document Format (PDF).  Because Reader, the essential software to view PDF, is free and ubiquitous your recipients will always be able to open your files.     Updating their version of Reader is the maximum possible hassle.  But since the basic feature of Reader, i.e. reading, is highly backward compatible, most versions will read most PDFs.

A Good Rule of Thumb

If, in the tangible world, you would have printed the thing on paper before sharing it with others,  then in the digital realm you should print it to PDF before sharing it with others. PDF is the digital equivalent of tangible paper. You may want to take a quick look at the relationship between PDF, Adobe, Reader, and Acrobat.

I think of .doc as a factory assembly line and PDF as a finished product in the box and on the shelf ready for sale. When the file leaves the factory, it should be in appropriate packaging.  

The name says it all: "Portable Document Format."

A couple of fringe benefits:

More Stable and Predicable

PDF is more secure and predictable than other formats like Word. Once a letter is converted to PDF, you know what your recipient will see, a Word file may look different depending on the version and the users settings. 

Fraudulent intent aside, PDF eliminates the risk that someone will accidentally alter or delete part of your message.

Many people think of a PDF as a picture and, while not technically correct, it's a good way to think about how a PDF works in Reader for most purposes. 

More Secure (but probably not as secure as you may think)

PDF is less susceptible to alteration and editing than other files.  A PDF in Reader can't be changed.  But an Acrobat user can edit a PDF in a way similar to a word processor unless the PDF is secured. If you want to be sure your files will stay exactly the same once released into the wild, you'll need to apply security in Acrobat -you can also protect, remove, or alter metadata in Acrobat. 

Now let's get specific about, 1. PDF, 2. Microsoft Office, and, 3. Operating System compatibility.

I have prepared screen shots of all this stuff so before you get into it you can open the screen shot gallery in a pop up window to refer back and forth- you might to have to allow pop-ups from this site if your browser asks.

Or you could check them out after on the "Screen Shots" page.  

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Mac and Spaces at the Deposition

A few days ago, DCB - a lawyer, friend, and Mac user - was telling me how well Spaces performed during a deposition to make him the fastest lawyer in the room.

Curious others gathered around and said he likely made some converts. I asked him if he ever used the preview feature in OS X Leopard called “Quick Look.”

Quick Look Preview: Even More Convenience

A few minutes ago, I reminded him how it worked in a SMS text, two minutes later he responded, “Thanks. I love it.”

How it Works

Just press the space bar and the Mac will preview any file. It’s fast and easy and prevents wasted time. It also works on movies. Have a look.
 

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Abode is a Software Company, PDF is a Format, Reader is Free, Acrobat is Not. 

This may be the most misunderstood, confused, and even confusing subject in law office tech. 

I have seen resumes from lawyers that claim to be expert in Adobe, expert in a entire company? A PDF is often regarded as an inherently secure format, it's not.  The difference between Reader and Acrobat is often not recognized.  And the enormous capability of Acrobat goes tragically underutilized.   

Here is what you need to know to clear up the confusion and get on the way to using some truly incredible software.

Adobe is a Leading Software Company

Abode is probably most famous for Photoshop.  But they also make Dreamweaver, inDesign, Flash, Coldfusion, Illustrator,  Soundbooth, and of course Acrobat ($400) and Reader (Free). 

Adobe software is often sold bundled into Creative Suites aimed at particular purposes, e.g. Web Premium, Production Premium, Design Premium, ($1,700) and then there is the Master Collection ($2,500).  

PDF is a Format Adobe Invented

PDF is an acronym for Portable Document Format. 

Abode invented it in the early 1990s to facilitate document exchange.  PDF lets people view files independent from the software that created them, e.g. a person does not need Excel to see a spreadsheet created in Excel because they can view it as a PDF.  As a document sharing tool, PDF serves a critical function.

Originally, PDF was used as part of the desktop publishing work flow. For example, a designer working for a magazine can layout and ad in inDesign and then convert it PDF for approval and feedback.

This may seem like a trifling matter but inDesign and other industry class design and layout programs are expensive, inaccessible, and complicated. inDesign, alone, costs $699 and universities and trade schools base design curriculum on programs like it.  I can tell you from experience, it takes many hours of study and practice to even get near programs like inDesign.  See the Screen Shot Gallery for an idea of how complex these programs are. 

The legal industry is split between WordPerfect, Word 2003 with the .doc extension, and Word 2007 and its .docx extension; a standardized file format accessible to all is no small thing.

PDF is a common language. 

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1. What is SEO?

SEO stands for Search Engine Optimization.

SEO is defined as the practice of including features in a web site so it is more likely to appear high in a list of "organic" (as opposed to paid) search results in response to particular keywords. The diagram below depicts the location of the paid and sponsored links.

Many lawyers have opted for web sites coupled with SEO services. Findlaw is one example of web design services coupled with SEO, there are many others.

2. What is the Value of a SEO Campaign?

Increased traffic to a web site. Provided your site is optimized for the right keywords and it converts visitors into clients once they arrive, SEO can mean more business.

Recent research into Google user behavior has revealed the existence of what is called the “Google Golden Triangle.” The Golden Triangle, situated over the top organic search results,  receives an overwhelming majority of clicks. Users  mostly ignore sponsored links and rarely go to the second page of results; rather they start a new search. A diagram generated by the actual number of clicks made by Google users.

Organic search that lands a page on the first page of results is the game when is comes to getting traffic from Google.

3. What is PPC and how do Sponsored Links work?

PPC stands for Pay Per Click and it means an advertiser pays each time a search user clicks on their link when it appears on the search results page.

Google's Adwords is the premier program that offers PPC advertising. Site owners choose keywords relevant to their site and when a Google user searches for those keywords, a link and description of the site appears in the Sponsored Links section of the Google results page. If the Google user clicks on a sponsored link the site owner pays the amount of their bid for each click.

PPC Adword campaigns are often used in conjunction with SEO campaigns but paying for links does not increase a site's organic importance within the Google search engine. If an advertiser stops paying, their presence will disappear unless the site has established a high rank in Google under the SEO principles.

4. Why is Google so Popular?

Google dominates because their page ranking algorithm named "Page Rank" after co-founder Larry Page - a fateful coincidence indeed - resolved problems that dogged precursor search engines and produced results people wanted to see. Understanding Google's basic innovation comes easily to lawyers because it is the same approach we use to assess the importance of a case or journal article. The more cites from important people makes a case or journal more important, that's it.

Prior to Google, search engines used primarily the number of keywords, once understood that system was easily defeated. The porn industry was frequent exploiter. For example, they would include the keywords "Chevrolet Suburban" hundreds of times in white text on a white background. Search for an SUV and find something else.

Google's algorithm crunched keywords, links, content, and other factors, and gave us back the Internet and very likely saved it from the junk heap.

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A colleague recently switched to Mac, he is happy he did, but had some questions about moving his files from the PC. He had the files he needed on a external hard drive but didn’t know where to put them on the Mac.

All drives on a Mac mount themselves on the desktop for easy access. All that we needed to do was click on his USB drive open a new Finder window, select the files and move them over. I go over that and a little about the PC program that’s used to move around files called Windows Explorer.
 

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Folders and drives on a Mac pop open to allow files to be easily placed inside. It’s a good way to get a file deep into a folder structure.

To change how fast the folders spring open click on “Preferences” menu in the “Finder” drop down menu.

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When I decided to learn about computers, I started with MS Word and was captured by the power and ease of styles and the related automatic tables of contents.  Who cares?

It may be the difference between sleeping and not. 

I have one client whom I often work with late into the night. We were about 6 drafts in at 3 am and we had yet to build a table of contents and the formatting was a little rough.  He said I was done and he’d get up early and take care of the table in the morning before calendar. 

I knew that he was going to manually format and assemble a TOC.  I don’t know how long that would have taken him, but I knew it would take me about 3 minutes. I told him not to worry about it and the polished memo would be in his inbox in the morning. It was, and I went to bed about 5 minutes later. 

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The traditional approach to computer files essentially recreates the physical structure of our files. While digital documents, in any structure, have a number of advantages over their tangible counterparts, maintaining traditional computer file structures of nested folders requires care.

Finding Files is Always the Problem

We have to create folders, arrange all documents within, and be certain that each document in the proper folder to avoid document loss. Locating a misplaced document on a computer is perhaps more troublesome than searching through tangible papers. Without some computer expertise we are powerless to recover the document without excessive frustration or the intervention of some expert third party. As computer files increase, it seems inevitable that we will encounter the misplaced document problem. Under those conditions, it seems reasonable to avoid converting paper to digital as a matter of course.

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Google and search have changed the way we find information. Rarely do we look for something by clicking through a series of increasingly specific categories, we just search for it. With Vista and the upcoming Windows 7, a PC can be searched in the same way.

The search feature also finds:

• Folders
• Files
• Programs
• Communications, e.g. Email
• Contacts
• Control Panel items

Basically, anything you want it to find.

Windows does all this automatically and the feature is available with a click or keystroke. Just click on the “Window” button –formerly the “Start” button- or press the Window key on the keyboard, and start typing. Windows will deliver results instantly in response to each new keystroke.

Windows search, like Google search, works by creating an index of the computer’s contents. You can change what Windows indexes in “Indexing Options” –just start typing index and you’ll see that option come up.

By using this search feature you can dramatically decrease the amount of time and effort spent finding things. It is also a powerful tool to manage the increasing numbers of files we have on our computers.

Just like Google and the search engines transformed the way we use the Internet, local index search can transform the way we can use our computers and that is good news for us.

Macs also have an indexed search feature; it’s called Spotlight. Mac had it first and like most things, I think it is better than the Windows version.

See what it looks like in the Screen Shot Gallery.

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