Futurelawyer

Google Invite Feature Shut Down For The Night

Google Invite Feature Has Been Shut Down %u2013 Vic Gundotra Speaks. Because I religiously read Niki Black's tweets, she was able to get me an invite to the private beta of Google+, which opened the ability to invite others to the beta. Thanks, Niki. I actually downloaded the Android app first, and it is great. I have been separating my friends and fellow attorneys with whom I have had email contact into my Circles. If you want to be in a Circle, send me an email and I will take care of it. Naturally, Google is taking the adoption slowly, so as to keep the system up and running. However, I predict great success for it, as many of us are over Facebook's cavalier attitude towards the privacy and portability of our data. 

Browse Securely Over Public WiFi? Not

This little video shows how to set Facebook for secure browsing over a public network; but, it doesn't help with any other useful tips. As I have said before, the only way to browse securely over public WiFi is not to use it at all. Carry your own WiFi Hotspot, and use encryption. The newer Android phones make this easy, and my Thunderbolt has a WiFi Hotspot feature built in. I will have to start paying $20 to $40 a month for the feature next month, but it is well worth it. You can't legally use an iPhone to do this; and, you will be stuck at 3G slowpoke speeds even if you do. You can buy a tethering plan now for iPhone; but, it requires a USB connection. Ugh. So, if you must use public WiFi, make sure you follow this video's instructions; but, don't send any sensitive information in non-secure programs.

Execupundit.com: Economy of Effort

Execupundit.com: Economy of Effort. Great post today by Michael Wade, commenting on Churchill's theory of economy of effort. Technology has made much effort economy possible, which dovetails with my earlier discussion of the freedom of tech connectivity. Modern software permits dictation from smartphones or computers that can be dealt with in many ways. ExpressDictate will permit the user to dictate and then email the file anywhere in the world for transcription. My current favorite, however, is to transscribe it myself. Just dictate into Windows 7, and create a text file for editing and saving. Having a competent smartphone in your pocket is perhaps the best and most economical strategy though. I can be a law office anywhere, and I have taken, received and dealt with, business calls in places you wouldn't believe. Let your imagination run wild. So, kick your feet up, lay back, and lawyer away.

Google Takeout - Data Just Wants To Be Free

Google Takeout. When Google+ launches, it will be in direct competition with Facebook. In addition to improving the privacy of data by coming at social networking from small circles that you define, Google intends to highlight Facebook's draconian hold on data. You can't take it with you, according to Facebook; so all of those contacts and posts and photos are in virtual Facebook prison. Not so  with Google. Takeout liberates your data, and you can put it all in a box and take it with you wherever you go. Power to the people.

 

Google Plus - Social Groups Done Right

Google takes direct aim at Facebook with Google . Facebook begins with the premise that your relationships should be with everyone on the planet, and publishes more than you want. Google+ begins with the premise that you should control what information goes to whom in a social network. If you want to be in my Circle, ask me. Will Google+ wipe Facebook from the planet? Of course not. But, it may become the way Google app users connect with the people who are most important in their lives. I am creating a family circle that will be more intuitive than Facebook; and, I will know that what I share stays where I put it. 

Constant Connectivity For Lawyers - Is That A Bad Thing?

The Downside of Constant Connectivity for Lawyers. This author seems to think that constant connectivity interferes with family time, and family relationships. Get real. Everyone is connected all the time these days; and, so is the FutureLawyer family. We spend MORE time together, and it isn't all while tethered to our computers and smart phones. Family interaction isn't a function of connectivity; it is a function of people. We all know where the off switch is, and we spend quality time doing many things together. In fact, the computer connectivity enables us to be in touch with each other all the time; and we keep current on what everyone is doing, make plans to meet for various functions, and just generally enjoy each other's company wherever we are. As for the lawyers in this article, if they don't want to spend billable hours while with their family, no one is forcing them. If a client insists on invading that space, whose responsibility is it to say no? If you refuse to work during family time, you may lose a few clients; but, you will gain a family. And, if you can't turn off the machine, that is on you.

The World's Best Drug

Everything You Need To Know About Coffee in Less Than Five Minutes. I am addicted to coffee. If you want to learn everything there is to know about my favorite drink in 5 minutes, you should watch this short video. The narrator sounds like he has had about 10 cups of coffee before he began. I knew most of what he describes; except that I didn't know that coffee plants use caffeine to kill bugs. It is apparently poisonous in quantities eaten by the bugs who eat coffee beans. Also, if you could drink the equivalent of 90 cups of coffee without losing it to Mother Nature, you could die. Hey, the high is worth it, dude.

Office 365: The Web Is Where It's At

Office 365: Can Microsoft replace Microsoft? %u2022 Channel Register. There is no question that the future of computing is on the web. However, security issues, and a large base of stand alone vertical market software has kept law offices in the desktop and notebook world. While I am a WordPerfect guy, and you will pry my last copy of WordPerfect from my cold, dead hands, I am a realist, and I have a copy of Word 2007 on my machine. There are free alternatives, but I confess that I like being able to share files with my colleagues in true Microsoft Word. I save my Word files to the web with Google Docs; however, doing everything over an Internet connection just isn't there yet. Office 365 wants to change that; and, nobody ever got rich betting against the Microsoft juggernaut. If you upgrade to Office 2010, you will get the benefits of 365; but, you will pay a subscription fee, and it will be called Pro Plus. Whatever, the future is on the Internet, and you are going there whether you like it or not. You WILL enjoy yourself.

RV Of The Future - You Still Can't Afford To Drive It Anywhere

NAU's Slick-Looking Take On the Future of the RV. This designer RV of the future is pretty. But, at an average of 10 mpg, it will have the same fate as mine; the world's largest paperweight. If you can afford to drive your RV, I want to be in your Will

Let's Put Some Lipstick On That Pig

Brando Super Gear Telephoto Lens Adapter for iPad 2 | Appletell | Appletell. And, in today's most useless product category, we have the telephoto lens extension for the iPad 2's woefully inadequate 2 megapixel camera. Are you kidding me? This thing looks like an alien worm took over the iPad2, and is growing out of control. The author of this post says that "the results will have less visual acuteness than you would get with a full, dedicated interchangeable lens." Ya think?