Jim Calloway

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Podcasts are hot right now and many more people are listening to them. As shelter in place for the pandemic began, I thought less commuting might cause podcasts to be less popular but instead, the opposite seems to have occurred. Attorney@Work posted a feature today Lawyer Tech Tips: Favorite Podcasts for Learning Something New? Sharon Nelson and I have produced over 150 podcasts for our Digital Edge Podcast and I have guest hosted several other podcast interviews for Legal Talk Network, often at ABA TECHSHOW or ABA Annual Meetings. Anytime you get a group to name their favorite podcasts, you…
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As soon as we started using USB drives and other connectors, we started plugging them in upside down. The extremely frustrating experience was trying it three or four times when there were only two options. IT professionals learned the simple secret to avoid this quickly, but many other computer users never did. So, if you are still spinning USB drives trying to plug them in, here’s the secret: Look at a USB plug. See that USB symbol on the plug? If you are plugging the USB cable in horizontally, the symbol faces us so you can see it. If you…
I’m a reader. Given the choice on a web page of reading the content or watching a video, I’m normally heading for the text. (How-to Videos are certainly the exception to this rule.) An increasing number of consumers prefer videos as the preferred method to receive new information. There are certainly generational differences at play here. Lawyers may believe a twenty-page brief has to be better than a ten-page brief. But for many, the belief is that shorter reading material is superior to lengthier treatments. So the lessons for law firm websites include having more videos and tightening the text…
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Some iPhone users can’t wait to see what the new iOS update will bring. Others don’t like the changes come to their phones with software updates. I know one lawyer who refuses to let automatic updates install because “the last thing I want first thing in the morning is to learn my phone changed overnight.” But iOS14 is worth the effort. Just look at the graphic of how you can improve your home screen to show your next two scheduled events by using the improved widgets on the home screen. Doesn’t every lawyer want to do this? The Verge calls…
Google Street View can be intrusive, especially if you had all your windows open when the Google recording vehicle drove by your house. Of course, other people were thrilled that Google Street View preserved them for posterity sitting on their front porch or working in their yard. Before you decide to replace the image of your house with a blur on Google Street View, you should be aware that Google says this is “permanent.” So, if you are going to be placing your house on the market in the near future, this sounds like a poor idea. (I wonder if…
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Many small firm lawyers use the free Google email service Gmail to communicate with their clients. There are often questions raised about the security of Gmail because of the ads displayed that can change based on the content of your emails. So when you email several relatives seeing who is attending the cousin’s wedding, it is a little creepy to see ads displayed for wedding planners and similar services in your email. Based on the sheer volume of Gmails sent each hour, I accept Google’s statement that the ads are automatically generated and no one there is reading your emails…
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As I have noted in this tip series previously, if your WiFi router has been in service for several years, it is likely time for a replacement. You may be using out of date security tools without knowing it. And in many cases a wireless router, particularly a mesh system, will improve your online experience. PC Mag just today updated some shopping guides for you if you need a new WiFi router. The Best Wireless Routers for 2020 The Best Budget Routers for 2020…
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Caller ID was a great tool, at least it was, until the criminals learned to fake it. Google has an interesting new idea that is being rolled out to fight phone spam—verified calls. “Google is slowly rolling out its new “Verified Calls” service, a kind-of supercharged Caller ID that should at least let Android users know whether the number that’s blowing up your phone is a legitimate business or not. As an added bonus, businesses using the service can even list a reason for calling, which will appear right on your phone’s screen,” according to this post on Lifehacker– Enable …
The legal world was already changing before 2020. But all businesses and industries are now looking at all sorts of change driven by the events of 2020. Eight Tips to Thrive in the Evolving Legal Landscape was recently published in Law Technology Today. This column was authored by Bethany Runyon of HighQ, a cloud-based secure file sharing and data services company. (In July 2019, Thomson Reuters announced their acquisition of HighQ.) The tips are from her team members. These tips are really directed to law firms rather than solo practitioners. I found this to be a very thoughtful and innovative…
A web presence is now considered to be a business essential. For small law firms, a website is an increasingly important component of obtaining new business. It may not be that a website itself draws in lots of business. For many potential clients, looking for the lawyer’s website is a qualifier. Even more important is your bio and whether the potential client trusts your abilities as their lawyer. Today I am recommending Gina Rubel’s 3 Keys to Crafting an Effective Professional Website Bio. Gina Rubel is the CEO of Furia Rubel Communications Inc. and is an expert in Public…
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One of your greatest digital security weaknesses is everyone who answers email in the law firm. So basically, that’s everyone. Lawyers need to ensure there is constant staff training and reminders on how to avoid being caught in a phishing net. The required use of two factor authentication will limit the damage from a successful phishing attempt. But that’s a topic for another day. Today’s tip is simple. Take some time to carefully read How to Identify a Phishing Attempt and Thwart It by the North Carolina Bar Association’s resident expert Catherine Sanders Reach. Then share the article with the…
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Lawyers deal with confidential client information and we have a duty to secure that information. But it doesn’t matter who you are or how you use your technology. No one would want to donate, sell or give away a computer or phone without making certain your personal information is wiped. There is just too much information, like remembered passwords and saved text messages. In the old days, I could confidently send lawyers off to Darik’s Boot and Nuke at https://dban.org/ after warning them to be cautious with whatever media they installed the tool on, lest they accidentally nuke something they…
As we all understand, much of face-to-face oral communication is driven by non-verbal cues. How many times have you expressed something to someone and knew that they disagreed before the person said a single word? While we are doing much more communication via videoconferencing today, we can understand why veteran trial lawyers sometimes prefer face-to-face communication, particularly if the witness may be motivated to not be completely truthful. Tips for Learning to Communicate in a Masked World is a short piece about learning to recognize some non-verbal cues from the unmasked part of the face. It is a three-minute read.…