Futurelawyer

� First 3G BlackBerry readied: here are specs, a pix | IP Telephony, VoIP, Broadband | ZDNet.com

Link: � First 3G BlackBerry readied: here are specs, a pix | IP Telephony, VoIP, Broadband | ZDNet.com. For all you diehards who refuse to give up the BlackBerry platform for the clearly superior Treo 650, here is a carrot dangling before your hungry eyes. As you all know, I use the Verizon enhanced broadband wireless card to get 3G speed to my notebook. The new Verizon Treo 700W also has 3G speed. Sometime this summer, 3G is expected to come to the BlackBerry platform in the U.S. and Canada, and it is rolling out earlier than that in the U.K. So, holdout for an inferior platform, and inferior product; or, just go get a Treo 700w now. Decisions, decisions.

Buy.com - V7 - R19WPS - 19'' LCD WideScreen - 8MS, 1440 X 900, 500:1 - R19WPS

Link: Buy.com - V7 - R19WPS - 19'' LCD WideScreen - 8MS, 1440 X 900, 500:1 - R19WPS. If you are still using a 17 inch CRT behemoth on your desk or your secretary's desk, you have no more excuses to avoid upgrading to an LCD monitor. This 19 inch beauty from Viewsonic is on sale at Buy.Com for $239. Reclaim some desk space, and save your eyes. Of course, I am still very happy with my 26 inch Olevia widescreen LCD TV/Monitor, but it cost $799. For you cheapskates out there, this Viewsonic 19 incher is the ticket to ride.

Mini-Microsoft: Vista 2007. Fire the leadership now!

Link: Mini-Microsoft: Vista 2007. Fire the leadership now!. Check out this blog and the comments for an interesting inside-the-company view of the Vista delay, from the perspective of some disgruntled Microsoft employees. The ultimate conclusion is that Vista will be a "passive" upgrade; that is, nobody will upgrade existing XP machines, but Vista will be supplied on new computers, when purchased. Lawyers will be a part of that trend; however, I don't think many lawyers buy a computer with any concept of the operating system. They generally let IT types choose for them. If Vista is as bad as these Microsoft employees say it is, you need to educate yourself before buying it. My favorite comment, from an anonymous Microsoft employee:

"Yep, it's time for a shareholder revolt. Vista is the biggest software development failure of all time, outside of the federal government. IBM's office vision was the previous record holder, with $900M spent. What's the cost of Vista to date?  Five, six billion in direct costs, and maybe another hundred in  opportunity costs?  MSFT shareholders need to start rolling some heads, starting with the monkey-boy."

When your employees start talking like this, the customer has to wonder whether the product will ever be delivered at all. Sometimes, I am glad I am a solo. All my disgruntled employees reside in my head, where I have some control over them. Or not.

Casio Pathfinder PAW1200 Reviewed (Verdict: It's Got it All) - Yahoo! News

Link: Casio Pathfinder PAW1200 Reviewed (Verdict: It's Got it All) - Yahoo! News. Okay, now THIS is a Geek watch. This huge Casio is a multi-frequency Atomic watch that displays accurate time to the millisecond anywhere in the world. It is also a digital alarm and digital compass, and is an altimeter with altimeter alarm. Okay, an altimeter is not an essential gadget in Florida, where everything is within 25 feet of sea level. But, what if I am stranded in an airplane someday that develops engine trouble? Note to family and friends. This watch will make a great birthday or Christmas gift.

WSJ.com - How Palm's Treo Capitalized On BlackBerry's Patent Fracas

Link: WSJ.com - How Palm's Treo Capitalized On BlackBerry's Patent Fracas. Just because RIM settled the BlackBerry litigation, it doesn't make corporate types worry free. This article from the Wall Street Journal examines the contingency plans being put in place by large corporate users who are taking advantage of trial plans that use Treos instead of BlackBerrys. My prediction is that, once Treos get into the hands of users, they will never want to touch a BlackBerry again. But, that is just my opinion. I could be wrong.

Golf and the Law - Computer Solution

Sometimes, the law can be a respite from golf. For the first time in a long time, I took a Friday off to play golf with a fellow lawyer. At my age, you know you have played a round of golf, because everything hurts the next day. I really need to start an exercise program. But, that is a topic for another time. I was helping the lawyer with technology advice, and had my ultralight notebook computer with me. I had prepared documents for a real estate closing the day before. The closing was going down while I was on the course, and, in a moment of clarity, I threw the computer bag into the golf cart. Around the 5th hole, I had already hit the damn ball enough times to satisfy any violent urges I had, and the inevitable cell call came in. There were changes to the closing statement. Could I fax them in an hour? Of course. I am FutureLawyer. I whipped out the computer, brought up the closing software, made the changes to the HUD1, and Efaxed it back to the office using my wireless Verizon EV-DO broadband card. All while the computer was on my lap in a moving golf cart. After 15 minutes, I had missed two holes, and, as a result, my total score was almost respectable. My friend was so impressed, he has invited me to play golf regularly. I even get to bring the computer.

iTWire - IT News Australia, Telecommunication News, IT JOBS - Lawyers that don't use open documents risk liability

Link: iTWire - IT News Australia, Telecommunication News, IT JOBS - Lawyers that don't use open documents risk liability. Maybe it is the Australian water; maybe it is the dingos; I don't know, maybe she is right. Ms. Raena Lea-Shannon, administrator of the newly-formed Australian Open Legal Practice Standards Collaboration Organization (OLPSC), thinks that law firms who don't eschew Microsoft Office for open standards will not be in a position to compete in Web 2.0. I agree that open standards are a desired goal, but most of the lawyers I know will fall in behind a behemoth like Microsoft in lockstep. We are not, as a group, innovators in technology. Oh, there are mavericks like me out there; but, as desirable as open, accessible, cross-platform services are, Microsoft will not go gently into that good night. Now, put another shrimp on the barbie, pop open a Foster's, and pretend it is Friday night.

The Paparazzi-Detector Test

Link: The Paparazzi-Detector Test . Trial lawyers have been wondering for some time about digital photography. How can any photograph be relied upon as accurate when most photographs are printed from digital files created by digital cameras, and consist of millions of pixels in a computer file? The simple answer has been that you can't. It was assumed that digital manipulation would be difficult or impossible to detect. Computer forensic scientists could examine the computer on which the image was manipulated to determine file changes, but the actual changes could not be determined. At least, until now. Italian Engineer Lorenzo Cozzella has devised an ingenious way to protect digital images from manipulation; at least, any manipulation can be detected. He removes a random pixel that doesn't contribute to the image, and replaces it with a pixel containing a logo or identifying digital watermark. It is invisible to the naked eye, and is encrypted so that its presence can only be detected with a private code. I guess we can add digital photography encryption engineer to the expert witness list. Will documentary evidence ever be the same?

Microsoft's Next Browser

Link: Microsoft's Next Browser. And, in the category of "Too Little, Too Late", Microsoft has announced that the next version of Internet Explorer, Version 7, will no longer be tightly tied to the operating system in Vista (another Too Late product), and that the new version of the Browser will be able to be separately installed in XP. Of course, most of us are using SeaMonkey, or FireFox, or another browser alternative, which already have the features that IE7 will have. Sometimes, it takes a long time to turn the Titanic, and the Iceberg can't be avoided. Microsoft needs to remember what it was like to be young and motivated.

BlackBerry Users Frustrated by Outages | mytreo.net - the ultimate Treo resource

Link: BlackBerry Users Frustrated by Outages | mytreo.net - the ultimate Treo resource. I hate to say I told you so (NOT), but I told you so. RIM this week admitted responsibility for outages affecting many BlackBerry users recently, an indication that the settlement of the NTP patent litigation may not have gotten RIM out of the woods. Software upgrades to RIM's infrastructure caused the outages, which causes one to wonder whether the business model of control that routes all BlackBerry traffic through RIM servers can create as many problems as it solves. If my Treo 650 using T-Mobile experiences network problems, I can always change networks. BlackBerry users must continue to worship at the altar of the monolith.