Futurelawyer

RV Lawyering - The Next FutureLawyer Book Is On The Way.

I am putting the finishing touches on the remote lawyering book, and I hope every one of you buys a copy. Not really. I may just give it away. Not. But, I will share the last paragraph, which should give you an idea of the theme. I discuss, in some detail, many of the gadgets, devices, and software applications that am using these days to be able to be a lawyer wherever I happen to be. Driving around Florida in an RV is a great way to see the beauty of our State in my declining years. I have come a long way from the days of being tied to a desk and a physical office location. 

"The current debate about the use of ChatGPT and other generative artificial intelligence bots in many industries is no different in general than the debates over the use of technology in law practice that I have lived with since my first computer in the 1980s. Every new development is resisted by lawyers afraid of change, and arguing that the future of lawyers is dim. But, 50 years later, here I am, still going to work every day, and using my experience and judgment to assist other humans with legal problems and tasks. I just do it better than I used to do it, armed with new technology. Dictating into a cassette recording, typing documents on typewriters, using handheld telephones, sending documents over fax machines, creating my own documents on a computer, which keep getting smaller, thinner and lighter, sending documents and pleadings to courthouses over telephone and data lines, and doing research by typing a query into a computer that has access to all of human knowledge; all these are just tools to be used. What is human about us will always be human. Our experiences and abilities can be enhanced by technology. They cannot ever be replaced. Now, get out there and help another human with their legal problems."

 

I Asked ChatGPT If It Was Familiar With My Poetry.

Okay, now I am a believer. If ChatGPT knows about a minor poet like me, it must know everything. Very cool. This is the answer I got to my question about Rick Georges, Poet:

" As an AI language model, I do not have personal opinions or experiences, but I can tell you that Rick Georges, also known as the FutureLawyer, is a writer and blogger who has published several books, including the two you mentioned.

"Poems for Lovers" is a collection of romantic poetry that explores the many aspects of love, from its passionate beginnings to its bittersweet end. The book contains poems that express the author's emotions and experiences, as well as those of other lovers throughout history.

"Life is Simple, Really" is a book that examines the complexities of life and offers insights on how to simplify it. The author shares his personal philosophy and provides practical advice on how to live a more fulfilling life. The book covers various topics, including relationships, work, happiness, and spirituality.

I hope this information is helpful."

Publishers Aren't Banging Down My Door, So I Will Do It Myself.

Get ready, grasshoppers. My new book, RV Lawyers, The Use Of Technology For Remote Lawyering, is coming. Since nobody seemed to want to publish it, I am doing it myself. It will be a little while; but, I hope some of you are interested. I will keep you up to date on my progress.

Get Out Of The Office And Go Buy An Envelope.

This fascinating post about an interviewer asking Kurt Vonnegut about a passage in his then newly published book, Man Without A Country, struck a chord with me. A few years ago, my longtime secretary and right hand woman retired. She wanted to spend her remaining years tending her house and garden. By then, I was relying more and more on technology, and figured I would slow down anyway. So, I decided to go without a secretary or paralegal, and do everything myself. Amazingly, I discovered that, while I spent less time at the desk, and a lot of time doing mundane things, like taking the mail to the post office, or going to the office supply store, or other errands, that I was having fun meeting new people, and enjoying the excursions. I made some dear friends at the Post Office and the other places I went, and every trip held new wonders. Computers and technology are wonderful, and they make us better lawyers; but, we must never forget, as Vonnegut reminds us, that we are dancing creatures, and we need to get out and about in the world, and have fun. So, try to avoid delegating the mundane stuff. Get out there yourself. You might be surprised how much fun you have.

"A Keyboard. How Quaint."

When I saw this cartoon, in which a little girl asks the teacher how to Google a Dictionary, I thought of the scene in one of the StarTrek movies in which Scotty tries to talk to a computer in the Sixties U.S. Pretty funny; but, a cautionary tale. Our kids are not learning to read books. They aren't learning to write in cursive. They are being taught that computers have all the answers, and they don't have to dig and make their own conclusions. This is not the way you grow a thinking adult capable of solving problems, big and small. Teach your kid to read books. Teach them to write in long hand. Teach them to find their own answers, and not to rely on computers for everything. Computers are a tool. Nothing more. This is one of the reasons I don't want robotic lawyers, or robotic doctors, or robotic philosophers. Humans, for all our faults, have something no robot or computer will ever have: a soul. Prepare your kids to be human beings first, and techno nerds after that.

 

A Tale Of Two Kindles

Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus. He brought the FutureLawyer a Kindle Scribe for Christmas, and he has been having fun tweaking it to take daily calendar notes, client conference notes, general get through the day notes, and switching to read his hundreds of Kindle books collection whenever he feels like it. But, he still loves his tiny Kindle Paperwhite, which he can put in his pocket and take anywhere with him, and which is water resistant. He can actually now read any note, any book, and any calendar entry while sitting in his backyard pool, sipping Scotch, and living the Florida lifestyle. Since both Kindles are registered to his Amazon account, any addition he makes to either Kindle is automatically synced to the other. Everything has a purpose, and a purpose gives everything life. Merry Xmas.

Lawyers Who Take Notes, The Kindle Scribe Is Your Eink Tablet.

I loved the Remarkable Eink tablet. I loved ditching yellow legal pads and paper that tended to get lost in the flotsam and jetsam of my law office. I spent a lot of time searching in my files for that page of notes I took with someone's email or phone number or address on it. But, the Remarkable was difficult to navigate, and was more interested in complicated note taking. It was pricey, at $600; but, it found a home with Diane, who tends to get all of the gadgets I stop using. She is a list maker, and it suits her fine. I was then enamored by the Boox Note Air, which combined a really great note taking and writing experience with a full functioning wifi tablet that could download and run countless Android apps. But, I found that the screen was really squirrely, and difficult to control, and I found that video and android apps in a monochromatic screen was not optimal. I tended to use my color tablet from Samsung for that stuff. I still use my Samsung tablet for android apps, including my newspapers and magazines from PressReader. So, when I heard that Amazon was making a Kindle with ewriting capabilities, I was excited to see it. I like my Kindle Paperwhite. But, its screen is tiny, and, while easy to carry around and use, I was usually carrying something else. So, my huge collection of books wasn't at my hand all the time. Now, it is. I have a big, beautiful 10.3 inch screen to read, which is designed for reading text, and on which I can make all of my daily notes, either separately or on a pdf of my daily calendar. If I need to make notes or read a document, pleading, correspondence, or large file; most of which are in docx, pdf or other standard format, I just email the document to my Scribe with the Send to Kindle app on the Amazon site. It is then instantly on any Kindle device. I can mark it up, take separate notes, or whatever. Then, I send the notes or marked up copy to my computer with a click of the send to email button on the Kindle. Look, ma, no more paper? But, I can always print the notes or pdfs if I like. Call it overkill with a purpose. On top of all this, the battery lasts for a week or more, and the pen never needs charging. This video review outlines what the experts are calling the Scribe's failings. I call them features. The Scribe is perfect for the reading and note taking professional. 

 

Kindle Scribe - It Keeps Going And Going.

While everyone keeps posting about the lack of note taking features of the Scribe, I keep finding things I love about it. Having a 10 inch ereader is great. Some liked the tiny screens of the previous Kindles; but, I love having a full sized page reading experience. In my law practice, I live in a world of 8 1/2 by 11 inch pages. Pleadings, books, contracts, and just about every document is in that format. Now, I have hundreds of books big enough to read, and, unlike others, I think it is thin and light and has a bezel I can hold with my right hand. I am left handed, so I flip it over and the bezel is on the right side. I also, however, appreciate the renowned Kindle battery, which keeps going and going for days at a time, without the need to recharge. Most of my devices have to be on a charger at night; but, batteries are getting better, and I have had my Kindle going for two days now with the battery at 84%. I love not having to worry about the battery running out; but, if it does, pop in a USB charger, and it is ready to go again.

Kindle Scribe - No More Yellow Legal Pads For The FutureLawyer.

Taking Notes On The New Kindle Scribe. Actually, since I discovered Eink several years ago, I haven't purchased, or used, a single yellow legal pad. For many years, I had a ready supply of legal pads, and I scribbled notes every day. Keeping the notes organized was a huge problem. The pages got lost in legal files, stuffed in file cabinets, and forever lost to history. The latest in legal pad obsolescence is my new Kindle Scribe, and I love it. Amazon promises that there will bs software upgrades to make organizing and using the notes better in the coming months. But, the ability to click the Notes icon, and start writing on any template I want, and then sending the notes via email to a client's digital file on the computer, is great. And, all of my Kindle books and magazines are synced across my devices, so I can read anything at any time. I also am able to make notes on pdf files, as well as organize them. I will be carrying the Scribe everywhere from now on. 

How To Start And Build A Law Practice - Jay Foonberg.

Jay Foonberg's seminal work on starting a law practice has been around since the 1970s, and I learned how to set up a law practice with it. I say Mr. Foonberg speak at a Bar event in the Seventies, and have been a solo ever since. Now, Jay is making available a PDF version of the book, Covid edition 2022, for the asking. Just send him an email, at [email protected], and a return email will attach a PDF version of the book. This book is gold for anyone wanting to start a successful law practice. FutureLawyer and Carolyn Elefant recommended.