Law Office Technology

How to Access Amicus Anywhere from your Mobile Device

On your smartphone, Amicus defaults to the Time Tracker App, even if you go to www.amicusanywhere.com.  If you want to get to Amicus Anywhere:

1. Click on Showing…

 

2. Scroll to the bottom and Click on Go to Amicus Anywhere

How to chose Between Microsoft 365 and Google Apps

A big part of our business is moving legal clients from in-house Microsoft Exchange to the cloud.   When our company does “cloud migrations” we have to decide whether to use Microsoft 365 or Google Apps. 

	365	Google Apps
Cost	$4 per User	$4 per User
Storage	25GB per user	25GB per User
Outlook 2010,2007	Yes	Yes
Outlook 2011*	Yes	No
Direct** Clio Sync	No	Yes
Direct** Amicus Sync	N0	Yes
Direct** PCLaw Sync	N0	No
Direct TimeMatters Sync	Yes	No
Amicus Cloud	Yes	No
Gmail Interface	No	Yes
Web Mail	Yes	Yes
Easy Migration	Yes	Yes

* Outlook 2011 is the Mac Version of Microsoft Outlook.  It is a pain in the ass to deal with.  On my Mac,  I run Parallels and Windows Outlook 2010.   Another thing to consider, if a program says they have Outlook integration, it means Windows Outlook not Mac Outlook.     Hey, if it weren't complicated I would not have a job.

**Direct means that the software syncs via the application and not Outlook.  Clio, Amicus and PCLaw all have applications that you can install in Windows Outlook that syncs To Dos, Contacts, and Calendar.  For each user that wants to sync you have to install this in Outlook and their computers need to be on and Outlook running for the sync to work.  In a Direct Sync Environment,  nothing needs to be on.  Clio and Amicus support a direct sync with Google Apps.  Clio is also working in a Direct Sync with 365.  TimeMatters and Amicus Cloud has a direct sync with 365.  Direct sync is the way to go. 

 

Still confused?  Here are some questions I ask clients during our tech audit:

Are you in a Mac Environment running Outlook 2011?

365

Are you using Clio or Amicus Attorney?

Google Apps

Are your users familiar with Gmail?

Google Apps

Do you hate Microsoft?

Google Apps

Are you running TimeMatters or Amicus Cloud?

365

Do you hate Google?

365

Data Escrow with Clio

When you move your data into the Cloud with a SaaS (Software as a Service) provider there is the perception that you lose control of the data.   Most attorneys are worried about the cloud provider going out of business, suffering a hardware failure, or the inability to move to a competing product in case of a price hike or diminished service.  By sticking with traditionally installed software, all three of these concerns could be avoided.

Clio, a leading cloud based Practice Management Software has a Data Escrow feature that allows you to backup all of your data (including documents) to Amazon Web Services.  This allows a law firm to have complete control of their data while still getting all the benefits of the cloud. 

Setting up Data Escrow

Step 1: Sign up from Amazon Web Services.  Under 5gb of storage is free

Step 2:  Go to Security Credentials –> Access Credentials –> and Create an Access Key ID

Step 3: In Clio go to Settings –> Clio Settings –> Data Escrow

Take the information from Amazon Web Services and plug it in here. 

Viewing Your Data

Step 1: Log into Amazon Account and go to S3

Step 2:  Chose what data you want to view.

Documents contain all the Documents you have uploaded to Clio.  So if you have a Word or PDF  Document that you attached to a Clio File, it is here you can open or download it.

If you go into the Exports Folder, you see the following:

These are CSV’s (Comma Separated Values) of all your data.  This can be viewed in Excel or imported into a new practice management system. 

As you can see from above, if you use Clio or similar products with Data Escrow,  you have full control of you are your client’s data while still having all the benefits of cloud computing. 

Your Practice In the Cloud

Your Practice in the Cloud

View more PowerPoint from Lawtopia

 

 

The Mississippi State Bar: Greenville CLE on the Road Program

04/20/2012

Tom O’Connor and Craig Bayer

How I Learned to Stop Worrying about DropBox and Love the Cloud

DropBox is a file sharing service that I started using a couple of years ago.  It seamlessly syncs files over multiple computers and mobile devices.  It works so well that I have several clients with multiple offices that use it as their file server.  Its the perfect solution for firms that are just starting out and have multiple offices. 

This past year I have been hearing comments that DropBox is not “secure”.  These voices in the background are starting to get louder.  One of them is my good friend and E-Discovery Guru Tom O’Connor.  Tom is not the sort of person to jump on the fear band wagon when it rears its head, so I take his advice seriously.  His concerns, not with DropBox per se, but online file storage in general center on maintaining confidentiality of client documents and include:

• What country does your data reside in
• Does the storage service claim to own your data
• Do their employees have access to your data

Besides Tom’s Concerns, here are some grumblings around the web

• Facebook, Dropbox app security holes are shocking in their stupidity (updated)
• Dropbox Security Bug Made Passwords Optional For Four Hours
• Dropbox confirms security glitch--no password required
• Will Dropbox start paying attention to their security?

I have gotten to the point where I can no longer recommend DropBox to clients without some further enhancements.  Not that I think my any of my clients data will be stolen.  In fact, I think that there is a one in a million likelihood.  I always have my clients use wep passwords on their wireless routers.  I don’t really think that some is going to steal their data, however we put the password in place because we must take “reasonable steps” to protect our clients data. 

One solution I have heard is to password protect your documents.  In my mind, that is extremely impractical.  No one wants to type in a password every time they open a document and users will go to great lengths to avoid doing so.  

Another option is to use Worldox or NetDocs, Legal Specific Document Management Systems.  I am a consultant on both these products and make money selling them to law firms.  However most firms evolve into using a DMS so not many firms have one when they begin using DropBox.

The remaining option, then, is to use an encryption service which will encrypt the document on your computer, and then add it to DropBox. By encrypting your data, you make it completely unreadable to DropBox. So no DropBox employee could ever read your data. If someone hacked DropBox and stole your files, they could not read them. If a government agency subpoenaed your files, they would not be able to read them.

In fact, to break this encryption it “would take far longer than the age of the universe to complete”. In my mind, this is taking reasonable steps to protect your client’s data.

There are two limitations to encrypting your data on your PC. First, you must have the encryption program on all machines that are connected to DropBox, or you will not be able to see your documents. Second, you lose the ability to log into the DropBox website from a random computer and download a document.

Ernie Svenson , better known on the web as “Ernie the Attorney” ,always told me to look at security and usability as a sliding scale.

 

The goal was to find that happy medium.  So if I have to sacrifice a small portion of usability to get greater security, its worth it. 

 

Therefore I am testing BoxCryptor as my encryption service.

• Works on PC
• Works on Mac
• Has an iPhone App
• Has an iPad App
• Has a Droid App
• Cost $100 for unlimited use

When you install BoxCryptor on your PC,  it adds a folder to your DropBox account. 

However, if you were to open that folder, it is all gobbledygook

BoxCryptor mounts a virtual drive.

If you open that drive up you can see your documents.  Anything you put into that virtual drive automatically gets encrypted. 

Again, if you go to the DropBox website,  you will NOT be able to see any of your documents.  That is the price you will have to pay for securing them. 

 

 

There are some other similar services out there, but BoxCryptor was the only one I found that had an iPhone and iPad app.  As you can see below, the app works pretty much like the DropBox App. 

 

You can even open a document and email to someone else and the app removes the encryption.  

 

Cloud date storage is fairly new and there are a variety of issues that have yet to be resolved.  LinkedIn and Facebook take the attitude that they own every piece of data you put online.  DropBox has even claimed at one point that they own the data you add to their service.  Regardless of the ownership issue, at one point or another these cloud based storage services have had security lapses.  There is also the issue of employees at DropBox or other storage companies having the ability to view your data.  Other issues have been raised about these companies given your data to government agencies.  Depending on where your files are stored, this does not necessarily mean the United States Government.  Therefore with all this uncertainty,  encrypting your client’s data on your end it a reasonable approach to making sure their data is safe. 

Overload – A Process to Intake Information for the Web

I have streamlined the system that I use to gather and process information.  It meets the following criteria: 

• Cross Platform – I want to be able to use a Windows, Mac, iPhone, Droid, iPad and have everything synced.  If I read an article on one device, it should be marked read on all of them.  If I add a source to one device,  it should be added to all.   
  
• Cloud – It has to be backed up online.  It also needs to be viewable through a browser but have the option of downloading to go offline. 
  
• Cheap or Free.
  
• No new Programs to install on my PC.
  
• Easy to add articles to Twitter and Facebook. (So people think I am smart)

 

RSS

Most blogs and websites have an RSS Feed.  You take that feed and plug it into an RSS Reader and it tells you when the site has been updated.  So instead of going to 25 different sites a day and hoping there is new content, the RSS Reader will display all this information on one page. 

Google Reader

I chose Google Reader as my RSS Platform because it’s the industry standard and most apps syncs to it.  It is also free and easy to use.

Outlook

 

I found a great article on Life Hacker on how to hook your google reader account to Outlook.  Therefore, no new software on my PC. 

 http://lifehacker.com/#!5187172/use-google-reader-from-within-outlook

iPad / iPhone

There is an app called Reeder available for the iPad and iPhone which syncs with google reader.  It also allows you to download content to view when you are not connected to the internet.  The iPad version is $4.99 and the iPhone is $2.99.  As soon as I add something into google reader, it automatically updates the app.  It also links to Facebook, Twitter and Instapaper. 

Flipboard

After using RSS Readers for a couple of years I have determined that they are best for sites that update once or twice a week.  Sources that update hourly tend to  drowning out everyone else. 

For those sites,  I use an app on my Ipad called Flipboard.  Apple named Flipboard its app of the year,  and I have to agree.    I don’t have the words to describe it, but its rendering of articles is beautiful and simplistic.  Its also free, but it only works on the iPad and nothing else. 

Flipboard also makes it very easy to post articles to twitter and facebook, plus lets you look at your google reader account.  It also links to Instapaper. 

Instapaper

The last piece of the puzzle is the ability to save articles to be viewed at a future time period.  There are many times that I am looking at something on my iPhone and want to be able to file it away for future reference.  To get this accomplished, I use a program called Instapaper which hooks into Flipboard and Reeder as well as the browsers on my pc and iPhone/iPad.  When I see something interesting,  I just tag it to Read Later.  The service is free. 

 

Conclusion

Besides Dandy Don, the LSU sports website that had no RSS Feed, I process all other information through this method.  Before I put this system in place,  I was kind of lost in the stream of information.  In the end,  the web should make your life more efficient, not waste your time in a puddle of mass confusion. 

MiFi much Better then AirCard

Ditched my AT&T Aircard the other day.  The network was unreliable and my aircard was poorly made and kept breaking. I decided to join the sprint network and use the MiFi 2200 from Novatell, which is a small portable router that hooks up to Sprint Network.

Since I usually travel with two laptops and an iphone, now all these devices can connect to the MiFi for internet. I can also put the MiFi near a window in a hotel and then go back to the desk to work without having to worry about getting a good connection. Costs about $100 after rebates and the sprint data plan is $60 a month.  Seems to be much more reliable then AT&T. I am in car heading up to Oxford to the LSU Ole Miss Game and have only lost connection twice.  It is about the size of a deck of cards but much thinner.   This would be great for Clio users.

Advice for using Hosted Exchange

I have been getting a lot of questions about Hosted Exchange recently.  Law Office Technology has been using it for over a year and selling and setting it for client sites for the past 6 months.  If you are going to use hosted exchange, I recommend buying it from a company that does not force you to enter in your email password every time you open up Outlook.  I had a client that purchased hosted exchange that did that, and every time they opened Amicus, it would crash outlook.  Fortunately the hosted exchange that we resell does not ask you for the username or password when you log into outlook.  If you are linking ay product with outlook, whether it be PCLaw, Amicus, TimeMatters, Worldox, ect, you must make sure that you do not have to enter in your password every time. 

New Great way to schedule meetings

http://tungle.me/craigbayer

Added this to my signature line.  If someone outside of my office wants to know if I am available, it is very easy for them to find out.  

Missouri Solo and Small Firm Conference

I will be in Missouri this upcoming week for their state’s Solo and Small Firm Conference.  I will be working the Clio booth, which is Practice Management SaaS for attorneys. 

For more info on Clio, click here: http://www.goclio.com/

For more info on the conference click here: http://members.mobar.org/sasf2009/index.html