Category Archives: Technology

Siri vs. Google Now – Which Do You Prefer?

By J. Benjamin Stevens on May 22nd, 2013 Posted in iOS, Technology

Which do you prefer – Apple iOS’s Siri or Google Now? My friend Jeff Richardson took an in-depth look at the two and discussed the pros and cons at iPhone J.D. I’m curious to hear which my readers prefer and why. Take a look at Jeff’s excellent article and let me know your thoughts in… Continue Reading

Which Web Browser Do Lawyers Prefer?

By J. Benjamin Stevens on April 25th, 2013 Posted in Online Resources, Technology

A few years ago, I conducted a similar poll, and I am curious to see which browsers my readers prefer in 2013. Please take a moment to vote below, and I invite you to use the Comments below to state the reasons for your preference. Thanks. Blog Polls

Learn How Lawyers Can Use Circus Ponies NoteBook in Trial

By J. Benjamin Stevens on April 22nd, 2013 Posted in Guest Posts, How Do I ... ?, Office Management, Online Resources, Software, Technology

Circus Ponies NoteBook is a unique productivity tool that can be used in many different ways. My good friend, Kern Lewis, a trial attorney in Grapevine, TX, has used this program for several years to help organize his cases and present them at trial. Kern recent conducted an hour long webinar to demonstrate his techniques, and… Continue Reading

How Many Lawyers Use Mobile Technology Today?

By J. Benjamin Stevens on April 18th, 2013 Posted in iPad, iPhone, Office Management, Technology

It’s no secret that attorneys are sometimes slow to embrace technology. However, the rise of mobile technology appears to be lessening the “resistance.” An ever-increasing number of lawyers are using iPhones, iPads, and other mobile devices, and most of them are integrating this technology into their practices, as shown in the following infographic: Thanks to… Continue Reading

Resources for Lawyers Interested in iPads

By J. Benjamin Stevens on April 15th, 2013 Posted in iPad, Technology

More and more lawyers today are realizing that iPads can increase their productivity. I use my iPad mini in my practice on a daily basis. In fact, it’s become such a useful tool that I cannot even imagine practicing without it. The attached photo shows the home screen on my iPad mini, so you can see… Continue Reading

When’s the Best Time to Purchase Apple Products?

By J. Benjamin Stevens on April 12th, 2013 Posted in How Do I ... ?, Online Resources, Technology

Have you ever struggled with when to purchase a new product from Apple? Should you hold out for the latest and greatest iDevice in hopes that it might be released in the very near future? Should you hold out for a deal, or does it make sense to go ahead and purchase now while prices seem… Continue Reading

A First Time Attendee’s Thoughts About ABA TECHSHOW

By J. Benjamin Stevens on April 11th, 2013 Posted in Guest Posts, Offline Resources, Technology

In the following post, my law partner, wife, and better half, Jenny Stevens (a/k/a @MrsMacLawyer), shares her experiences and reflections as a first-time attendee at ABA TECHSHOW: I am quickly approaching my three year anniversary of practicing law, and I finally had the opportunity to attend the much acclaimed ABA TECHSHOW at the Chicago Hilton last… Continue Reading

Reflections on ABA TECHSHOW 2013

By J. Benjamin Stevens on April 9th, 2013 Posted in Offline Resources, Presentations, Technology

There are some conferences that are just too good to sum up in a few words (or even a few paragraphs), and ABA TECHSHOW 2013 is one of them. Nevertheless, I will try to relay some of my thoughts for those who were not able to make it. There are basically three things that make… Continue Reading

Rocket X1 Is The Game-Changing Internet Marketing Service for Lawyers

By J. Benjamin Stevens on April 2nd, 2013 Posted in Office Management, Online Resources, Product Reviews, Technology

Marketing your law firm is an essential part of being successful in today’s fast-paced, information-based world. Unfortunately, far too many lawyers are really really really bad at marketing – and that’s far from a secret. Therefore, rarely a day goes by that some company doesn’t contact our firm with an offer to “help” our efforts in… Continue Reading

Do You Have A Social Media Will?

By J. Benjamin Stevens on March 25th, 2013 Posted in How Do I ... ?, Miscellaneous, Online Resources, Technology

Social media is everywhere. Each of us will die one day. We would be well served to prepare for the convergence of those two realities. The following article from my friend, Tim Baran, does an excellent job addressing this topic, and he’s graciously agreed for me to republish it here. I hope that you not only read… Continue Reading

Reasons Mac-Using Attorneys Should Attend ABA TECHSHOW 2013

By J. Benjamin Stevens on February 27th, 2013 Posted in Presentations, Technology

If you need a quick legal-tech fix, or if you’re looking for more legal-tech knowledge, or if you need some massive CLE, you should consider attending the American Bar Association’s TECHSHOW 2013, which will be held in Chicago at the Hilton from April 4 – 6, 2013. Why? There’s so much to mention, but one of the… Continue Reading

Rocket Matter Celebrating 5th Anniversary and Giving Away Prizes

By J. Benjamin Stevens on February 20th, 2013 Posted in Office Management, Online Resources, Software, Special Offers, Technology

Rocket Matter, the world’s best law office management program, has announced that in celebration of its fifth anniversary, it is kicking off a year-long celebration and giving away iPads, Android Tablets, and Kindle Fire devices to celebrate the occasion and their commitment to mobile lawyering. I remember the first time I ever spoke with Rocket Matter’s CEO Larry… Continue Reading

Rocket Matter – Now With E-Mail Integration

By J. Benjamin Stevens on November 19th, 2012 Posted in Office Management, Product Reviews, Technology

Today, Rocket Matter, the leading online legal practice management software, released their e-mail integration feature, code-named ”Spock”. Users with IMAP protocol can now automatically populate e-mail into related their related client matters. Attorneys can now quickly associate an e-mail folder with a specific matter, which instantly creates a list of all e-mails, giving every user the ability to… Continue Reading

Guest Post :: Lawyers Should Use Siri in Their Day-To-Day Practice

By J. Benjamin Stevens on November 5th, 2012 Posted in Guest Posts, iPhone, Office Management, Software, Technology

One of the truly innovative programs on Apple’s iPhone is Siri, a sophisticated voice-controlled personal assistant that helps you accomplish important tasks just by asking. With Siri, you can use your voice to make calls, send messages, create reminders and enjoy a nifty speech-to-dictation feature. As you can imagine, this feature is highly useful in a… Continue Reading

I Am TechnoEsq – Are You?

By J. Benjamin Stevens on April 3rd, 2012 Posted in Miscellaneous, Special Offers, Technology

ABA Techshow was last week. It was a great show and I had a good time, but there was a glaring absence this year. My buddy Finis Price was not there. Well, he was not physically there, but he was certainly there in spirit and on the minds of the attendees. In an effort to raise money… Continue Reading

Rocket Matter Launches API and Integration with Automatic Time Tracking Tool Chrometa

By J. Benjamin Stevens on March 27th, 2012 Posted in Office Management, Online Resources, Software, Technology

Rocket Matter, the leading cloud-based legal practice management and time and billing software for small to mid-sized law firms, has announced a publicly available application programming interface for Rocket Matter (RMAPI) and one-click integration with Chrometa, an automatic time capture technology for Macs and PCs. RMAPI allows other software companies to seamlessly and securely retrieve… Continue Reading

Guest Post :: Implications of iCloud on the Legal Field

By J. Benjamin Stevens on December 14th, 2011 Posted in Guest Posts, Mac OS X, Online Resources, Technology

Cloud computing technology has been making serious headway in the past few years. Most of those endeavors have been on the “back end,” allowing businesses to create and implement scalable solutions that rely on third-party, Internet-based providers. The legal field, however, has sometimes been resistant to these technologies. A variety of concerns – primarily those… Continue Reading

The Mac Lawyer Discusses Steve Jobs’ Impact on the Legal Profession

By J. Benjamin Stevens on October 20th, 2011 Posted in Mac vs. PC, Podcasts, Technology

My good friend / techno-genius, Finis Price, and I were recently the featured guests on the nationally renowned legal podcast, Lawyer2Lawyer, to discuss the impact Steve Jobs had on the legal industry. The description of this episode is listed below, as are the links to listen to it. Steve Jobs and Apple changed the way we communicate,… Continue Reading

The Mac Lawyer Discusses Apple’s Impact on Law Offices

By J. Benjamin Stevens on October 18th, 2011 Posted in Mac vs. PC, Office Management, Technology, This Blog

I was recently interviewed by Colin O’Keefe of the LexBlog Network about the impact of Steve Jobs and Apple on the law and the legal workplace. In this interview, I discuss Why my firm, The Stevens Firm, P.A., made the switch to a completely Mac-only office in 2005. Whether or not Apple’s perception in the legal workplace… Continue Reading

Guest Post :: The Law Firm of Tomorrow, Part Three

By J. Benjamin Stevens on October 12th, 2011 Posted in Guest Posts, Office Management, Technology

I am pleased and honored to publish the following Guest Post, “The Law Firm of Tomorrow, Part Three – Why We Decided to Write This Book and How We Made Publishing History“ by Larry Port: I’m a productivity junkie. I enjoy reading books about how to be more streamlined, more efficient. My idea of a good time… Continue Reading

Steve Jobs (1955 – 2011)

By J. Benjamin Stevens on October 5th, 2011 Posted in Miscellaneous, Technology

Steve Jobs passed away earlier today. I am deeply saddened by his passing for many reasons. I believe that he was a genius in almost every sense of the word – and those who know me are well aware that I use that very rarely and very carefully. Mr. Jobs led an extraordinary life, and… Continue Reading

Legal Technology Seminar in South Carolina

By J. Benjamin Stevens on September 20th, 2011 Posted in Offline Resources, Presentations, Technology

The South Carolina Bar is sponsoring a “Technology for Small Firms” seminar in Columbia, SC this Friday, September 23, 2011, as part of its 2011 Solo & Small Firm CLE and Annual Meeting. The technology topics and speakers are listed below: How Not to Commit Malpractice with Your Computer Laura A. Calloway – Alabama State Bar Courtney G…. Continue Reading

A Tribute to Steve Jobs

By J. Benjamin Stevens on August 26th, 2011 Posted in Miscellaneous, Technology

“Steve Jobs, who as we all know stepped down as CEO of Apple Inc., is Hemingway, Picasso, and Edison all wrapped up in one bundle.” So writes my good friend, Larry Port, who earlier today published a tribute to Steve Jobs and his profound impact on each of our lives. I hope that you will take… Continue Reading

Guest Post :: 3 Great Podcasts for Attorneys Wanting to Keep up With Changes in the Field

By J. Benjamin Stevens on August 15th, 2011 Posted in Guest Posts, Technology

The following Guest Post is from Donna Reish: Are you an attorney who is always on the go? After reading and writing all day at the office, the last thing you want to do is read updates and briefs at home! Do not fear, you can download podcasts onto your Mac computer or iPhone to save yourself from… Continue Reading