Futurelawyer

Toto, We're Not In Kansas Anymore - This Toilet Wants To Analyze My Poop.

Toto's Wellness Toilet Will Analyze Your Poop. I get it. We all use our Smartphones on the toilet. I actually dropped mine into the toilet bowl once. But, no S***, I really don't need my toilet bowl to talk to me about the composition of my poop while I am sitting on it. I know that fecal matter is sometimes used for medical diagnoses. But, a toilet that claims to analyze poop? I don't think so.

Wanna Blog? Get TypePad, Grasshopper.

BlockQuotes. There are many reasons to blog. For lawyers, it is a way to have a conversation with other lawyers, clients, prospective clients, and anyone else. It is a unique way to let the world know what interests you, and to have an unfiltered message unfooled around with by editors and other evil people. But, publishing a blog isn't as easy as spewing your thoughts on to digital paper. You need to create a magazine look using digital language, and programming skills. Enter Typepad. This great application has fueled my blogging for over 15 years, and at under $30 a month is some of the best money I have spent. I have no ad budget. I have no television money. I don't own a newspaper. But, my blog at Typepad has engendered hundreds of thousands of views from people all over the world. Typepad creates the framework. You provide the content. Now, go out there and share your intelligence with the world.

Planet Of The Apps.

Planet Of The Apps. Get away from me, you stinking App! Okay, enough bad movie allusions. I begin the New Year with a modest resolution. I promise to spend less time with useless, brain dead, and horrible apps; I will prune my collection of apps to a number that doesn't rival the number of miles to the sun. I will try not to watch repeat episodes of "Apps Gone Wild". I will reduce the number of apps on my phone that require 30 minute WiFi downloads of game files. And, I will not recommend apps to my readers that I have not thoroughly vetted and used myself. Okay, I probably already vet the apps I recommend; but, you have a responsibility to find your own apps. What if we woke up one day on a planet where apps ruled humans? Oh, wait, we are already there.

The Best Tablet Of 2020 Is The Remarkable 2.

Remarkable 2 Beats iPads. Every Xmas, I buy myself a present. I know what I want, and it is unlikely anyone else does. This year, it was the Remarkable 2, and, while it won't be delivered until January, I haven't been this excited about a product for a long time. For the last few years, I have taken notes in my practice with LiveScribe pens, which write on special paper in regular looking lined notebooks. I record each day, and I like having a digital copy of them on my computer, and in the cloud. However, the only LiveScribe pen that I like is the original, which, because it includes voice recording, is fat and bulky. I got used to it over time; but, whenever I pull out my slim Cross pen, it is a breath of fresh air. At the end of each year, everyone is writing about the "best" of that year, and this year is no different. So, when a tech site I respect, like Tom's Guide, highlights the Remarkable 2, it makes me anxious to get mine sooner. I can't wait to ditch the heavy, paper based notebooks and the bulky LiveScribe pen for a thin, light digital tablet that feels like writing on paper, and syncs to my computer and the cloud. I will keep my LiveScribe, because it is handy to have a synced recording of seminars and meetings, along with my written notes.

U.K. Practice Management Company, Matters.Cloud, adds AnyLaw Legal Research.

Matters.Cloud Now Provides AnyLaw Legal Research. The future of law practice management is in the cloud, and there are many new entrants into the market. U.K. based provider, Matters.Cloud, which also is being marketed in the States, has entered into a partnership with Anylaw, the absolutely, positively, free comprehensive legal research product, and is integrated into the Matters.Cloud practice management system. At $25 a month per user, Matters.Cloud is an affordable alternative to more expensive products, and AnyLaw, which is free, and will likely monetize itself with similar arrangements, and, ultimately, advertising revenue, is a great addition. A great case finder, and a competent billing and case management system in the cloud is certainly an attractive partnership. How much are you paying for case management and legal research?

Android 11 Is Rolling Out For Samsung Phones.

The next 3 months, a subtle, but significant update to the Android OS will be rolling out to Samsung phones. My 10+ phones have to wait until February; but, if you spent too much money on a Galaxy s20 or Note20, you will be getting it this month. This 10 minute video will show all of the new stuff, and the improvements to the best OS on the planet. IPhone users, sorry. This is for the rest of us.

Lawyer, Protect Thyself And Thy Clients' Secrets. Use A VPN.

Why Law Firms Need To Use VPNs. By definition, VPNs are private networks. They serve as a tunnel to the Internet, and they have locks and barred doors to keep out interlopers. They use encrypted data transfer, and don't permit just any data to go in and out of the network. Privacy, security, and anonymity are all reasons why VPNs are useful in protecting client data, which is a requirement for any lawyer using the Internet. There is a target on your back. Defend yourself and your clients. This article lists some of the better VPNs. I use PureVPN, which is also competent and practically invisible when set up.

Hello. We Have Your Data. Pay Us Or It Disappears.

Ransomware Gangs Are Calling Up Persons Who Restore Their Data Without Paying. One of the most devastating data attacks is the ransomware scheme. Your data is valuable, and these criminals know that. They require victims to pay large sums of money in order to get the keys necessary to get data back. Some companies, however, hire third party security experts to restore the date without paying the criminals. Now, the criminals are actually calling the victims and threatening to take further action if the victims don't stop. The best way to prevent this nightmare scenario is to prevent it from happening in the first place. I use  Malwarebytes, which protects, in its premium version, against such attacks. $40 a year is a lot less expensive than thousands to restore data. I also image my drive on a regular basis so that I can start over with a recent data set in the event of catastrophe. You not only have a duty to yourself, you have a duty to protect your clients' secrets. It's Saturday. Take an hour or two, and get going.

Holidays Are For Gadgets And Fun

Google brings the Mandalorian to AR in its new App. Some of you have asked how I was able to put the Mandalorian in my office and den. Well, a new AR app that works on newer 5G phones is the answer. This cool app promises to get better as new abilities are added; but, for now, once set up, the Mandalorian will appear in any reality you happen to be, and you can share the images. There are a lot of valid reasons to celebrate holidays; but, since I was a kid, and I still am, I have enjoyed celebrating the joy of living with gadgets, toys, and, recently computers and tech. So, while I am waiting on my new Augmented Reality headset, I will be fooling around with my Smartphone, my Quest 2 Virtual Reality headset, and my computers. You can find your own fun stuff, can't you? If you are reading this after I die, know that, while I lived, I had fun doing it, and, if I wasn't having fun, I wasn't doing it. Enjoy the day. Be thankful.

The Next Zoom Is In Virtual Reality And It Is Called Spatial.

Spatial On Galaxy Quest 2. As I prepare for a Zoom get together tonight with my Whisky Blogger buddies, I am excited about the next stage in virtual meetings. A new app on the Quest 2 allows virtual meetings using virtual reality avatars. It really will be the next best thing to being there. You can walk around the room, share whiteboard notes, and talk to each other in a virtual universe. Check out the trailer to get a feel for what Zoom and its companions will become in the near future. Now, Whisky Bloggers, you each need to purchase a Quest 2 for Xmas.