The Mac Lawyer : Ben Stevens : Using Macs In The Practice Of Law

This is the final installment about Macworld's recent series of articles comparing Apple's iWork '08 and Microsoft Office 2008 to determine which is superior.  Here, we will take a look at Keynote '08 and PowerPoint 2008, as reviewed by Franklin Tessler.

Mr. Tessler found that Keynote's workflow and overall feature set remain superior to PowerPoint.  However, he did note that PowerPoint has caught up to Keynote in many areas and surpassed it in some.  Personally, I have used both and I believe that Keynote is one of those programs that makes it worth getting a Mac to be able to use.

Source:  "PowerPoint 2008 vs. Keynote '08" by Franklin N. Tessler, published at Macworld.

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Apple introduced its updated iMac yesterday.  The new version offers the latest Intel Core 2 Duo processors and the most powerful graphics ever available in an iMac. The ultimate all-in-one desktop computer includes faster processors with 6MB L2 cache, a faster 1066 MHz front-side bus across the entire line, and 2GB of memory standard in most models. The 24-inch iMac now offers a 3.06 GHz Intel processor and the high-performance NVIDIA GeForce 8800 GS graphics as options. The updated iMacs are available immediately, and they are priced starting at $1,199.

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This is the second article about Macworld's series of articles that comparing Apple's iWork '08 programs with their Microsoft Office 2008 programs to determine which is better.  Rob Griffiths conducted this analysis of Numbers '08 versus Excel 2008.

Mr. Griffiths concluded that while Numbers can create a prettier spreadsheet, Excel is simpler to use.  Specifically, he found that Excel offers more formulas, features, and tools to help with actually building the spreadsheet. 

He specifically cited the following concerns about Numbers:  its inability to simply show a formula's variables as you enter it; its lack of keyboard support in selecting ranges when you're entering formulas; its lack of custom number and date formats; and its limited conditional formatting abilities.

Source:  "Excel 2008 vs. Numbers '08" by Rob Griffiths, published at Macworld.

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Macworld recently published a series of articles that compared Apple's iWork '08 products with their Microsoft Office 2008 counterparts to determine which was better. In the word processing segment, it was Jeffrey Battersby's analysis of Pages vs. Word.

Mr. Battersby concluded that unless you are changing the way a text document looks (where Word's document themes offer a distinct advantage), Pages is equal to or better than Word for everything from basic word processing files to sophisticated page layouts.

Source:  "Word 2008 vs. Pages '08" by Jeffrey Battersby, published at Macworld.

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So I'm reading the April/May 2008 issue of the ABA's Law Practice magazine over the weekend, and what do I see on page 21 but the following:

TheMacLawyer.com is a must-read blog for anyone using a Mac in the legal environment.  It's written by ABA TechShow speaker Ben Stevens.

As it turns out, this blog was featured as one of this year's 60 Sites in 60 Minutes at TechShow.  As you probably know, this session by Craig Ball, Tom Mighell, and Reid Trautz is always one of the best and most anticipated sessions each year.  I attended this year's version in Chicago, but I missed the first few minutes when my blog was mentioned. I am flattered to have been mentioned, even though I am just now finding out!

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It's becoming somewhat "old news" nowadays.  Objective testing by yet another highly respected magazine has concluded that Macs are better than PCs -- in both desktop and laptop versions. 

This time, it was Popular Mechanics recently ran two comparison tests in its May 2008 edition.  The desktop competition featured the iMac vs. Gateway One, and the notebook version featured the MacBook vs. Asus M51SR.  You can read the full article HERE, but a summary is listed below, in Popular Mechanics' own words:

In both the laptop and desktop showdowns, Apple's computers were the winners. Oddly, the big difference didn't come in our user ratings, where we expected the famously friendly Mac interface to shine. Our respondents liked the look and feel of both operating systems but had a slight preference toward OS X. In our speed trials, however, Leopard OS trounced Vista in all-important tasks such as boot-up, shutdown and program-launch times. We even tested Vista on the Macs using Apple's platform-switching Boot Camp software--and found that both Apple computers ran Vista faster than our PCs did.

Source:  "Mac vs. PC: The Ultimate Lab Test for New Desktops & Laptops" by Glenn Derene, published in Popular Mechanics.

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According to an article published yesterday by Roughly Drafted, IBM's Research Information Services division is investigating the possibility of moving a significant numbers of its employees to Macs.  I believe that this information should make a bold statement to attorneys and law firms (particularly larger ones) considering the move to Macs.  The reasons IBM gave for this move are:

• Macs are less prone to security issues.
• Macs are widely used in the academic world with which IBM Research has close ties.
• Many new company hires have said they're more comfortable with Macs and would prefer to use them than their ThinkPads.

Initially, twenty-four MacBook Pros were distributed to researchers between October 2007 and January 2008 for use as their primary notebook, with the employees' existing ThinkPads acting as backups if needed.  Check out the following (not surprising) statistics:

• 86% of pilot users requested to keep using their Macs.
• 18 of 22 users said that the Mac offered a "better or best experience" compared to their existing computer, one rated it "equal or good," and three said the Mac offered a "worse experience."
• Seven reported having no or marginal prior knowledge of using Macs, while 15 reported having moderate or expert knowledge of the platform.

The source articles referenced below include many comments from the pilot program participants. Many of these statements are similar to the ones that are made by attorneys who have "seen the light" and made the switch themselves.  Consider the following comments:

• "I commend IBM on taking this bold step in providing an alternative to Windows.  It will definitely allow us to think different."
• "I have been a true PC stalwart for 2+ decades, but after trying Vista, I'm ready for a change."
• When presenting at customer or external meetings, I have been greeted with the 'wow factor.' 'Where's the ThinkPad, IBM uses Apples now?'"
• "This can free us from the Windows stranglehold."
• "It has been easier learning the Mac than learning Vista."
• "The ability to run Windows XP in a VM under Parallels is a great feature."

Sources:  "IBM Launches Pilot Program for Migrating to Macs" by Daniel Eran Dilger, published at Roughly Drafted Magazine; "IBM Launches Internal Pilot Program to Test Migration to Macs" by Katie Marsal, published at AppleInsider; "IBM Division Investigates Corporate Mac Migration Feasibility" by Jeff Longo, published at MacRumors.

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Several weeks ago, I posted about the first edition of the MILO Chat Podcast.  The second edition has now been released and is available for listening and/or download by clicking HERE.  This roundtable discussion features the following Mac-using attorneys: Ben Stevens, Grant Griffiths, Finis Price, and Victor Medina.  I hope that you enjoy listening to it as much as we enjoyed making it.

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I return from a brief family vacation over Spring Break to find that there has been a flurry of rumors about upcoming changes to several Apple's products. Some of the more interesting rumors are:

• The MacBook will move from a plastic cover to more eco-friendly materials such as aircraft-grade aluminum and stainless steel (per AppleInsider)
• The MacBook Pro line will receive a facelift, which is expected to include matte black on portions of the casings, oversized trackpads, and a thinner design (per AppleInsider)
• Walt Mossberg confidently predicts that the iPhone will have its long awaited 3G version available in 60 days (per 9to5 Mac)
• Kevin Rose predicts that the iPhone is getting a front camera for video conferencing (per 9to5 Mac)
• Apple may be negotiating to allow its customers to have unlimited access to the entire iTunes music library in exchange for paying a premium for its iPod and iPhone (per MacRumors)

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