Jan. 4, 2012 – Increasingly, lawyers must turn to technology to gain needed efficiencies for their law firms, employers, and clients who demand affordable legal services. They can start by getting the most from the software already on their computers.
Using essential office tools like Microsoft Office and Adobe Acrobat, lawyers can increase their productivity by putting into use the following 10 technology tips.
1. Create a digital image of your signature with Adobe Acrobat
With the increased use of electronic documents, create a digital image of your signature for signing electronic documents. This eliminates the need to generate paper documents for physical signatures, saving paper and time. Here are some useful sites that can help you create a digital image of your signature:
Once you have your signature in Acrobat, you will create a "stamp." When you need to use your signature, you will simply use the Acrobat stamp that you have created.
2. Create a digital signature for PDFs using Adobe Acrobat
A digital signature is different from a digital image of your signature in that it may or may not include an image of your actual signature. The digital signature (and its digital certificate) is a way for others to verify the document is from you, and whether any changes were made to the document since the time your digital signature was affixed. Adobe gives lawyers the ability to create a self-signed digital certificate, which is sufficient for most situations. You can also purchase a certificate from an authorized provider or use a document signing service when a self-signed certificate isn't accepted. This tutorial will show you how to create a digital signature for PDFs:
3. Use Adobe Acrobat to archive MS Outlook email in searchable files
Outlook stores messages in a Personal Storage (PST) file, but the PST file isn’t infinitely expandable. If the PST file gets too large, it could crash, and you may not be able to recover all of your email. While there are a number of ways to move messages from Outlook, a better solution may be to use Adobe Acrobat to create a searchable PDF of your Outlook messages. Not only does it create a searchable PDF file, it also keeps attachments with their email messages in their native file formats. For example, if you have an Outlook message that has an MS Excel spreadsheet attached, you can open the message in Acrobat and the native MS Excel attachment will appear. In addition, the PDF archives are fully searchable, and emails and attachments can be indexed and organized to suit your needs. These sites show you how to do this:
4. Use snipping tool for MS Windows 7
A “snipping tool” allows you to extract and highlight portions (or snippets) of electronic documents and computerized images, or capture full computer “screenshots” and incorporate them into working documents. Previously, Windows didn’t provide any useful tools to do this. But Windows 7’s snipping tool does. The snipping tool allows you to grab a portion of your desktop and then copy it to the "clipboard" or save it. See the links below for details:
5. Manage libraries using MS Windows 7
Windows 7 has a new “libraries feature.” You can keep all your information, such as photos and documents, in the library independent of the folders in which they are stored. Essentially, it’s a centralized index that exists without having to physically move the files. Libraries also offer more advanced search options. For instance, the library allows you to search documents or records by author, tag, or subject. This gives you more options to organize files. Visit these resources to learn about libraries:
6. Search on MS Windows 7
Anyone attempting to use the Windows search function prior to Windows 7 most likely didn’t stick with it. Not only is the little cartoon dog annoying, the search function itself was inadequate. Third-party products like Google Desktop Search, Copernic, or X1 were required to get a useful search capability. Windows 7 now includes a powerful and easy-to-use search tool that works very well. Learn more from these resources:
7. Clip screenshots in MS Office 2010
Microsoft has improved its ability to do screen captures to MS Word and MS PowerPoint 2010, which makes creating documents and presentations much easier. For instance, you can use this tool to embed screenshots automatically into PowerPoint presentations. Here are some resources to show you the process:
8. Translate text in MS Outlook
If you receive messages in a foreign language, you can use Outlook’s built-in translation tool to translate the text into English. Or, if you need to translate your email into a foreign language, you can do that as well. However, there is no guarantee that translations will be completely accurate. Visit these resources for more information:
9. Switch between open programs in MS Windows with Alt + Tab
This trick has been around for years and yet many still do not know about it. Quickly move between open programs by using the Alt and Tab keys. If you hold the Alt key, you will see thumbnails of the open programs and you can use the Tab key to move between them. If you quickly depress the Alt and Tab key, it will shift between the two most recent programs you were in. Here’s more:
10. Redact MS Word documents with add-in
Improper redaction can be a problem, especially when PDF files are created from MS Word. Too often, lawyers try to redact the document in Word by drawing a black box over the text or making it white and then creating the PDF file. The issue is that the underlying text still exists; drawing an opaque box over the text or changing the color doesn’t actually remove the text. Proper redaction requires that the text be removed prior to creating the PDF file or by using a proper redaction tool in your PDF editing software. However, you can now redact in MS Word 2007 and 2010, using an add-in tool, which eliminates the underlying (redacted) text before the PDF is created. Prior to this add-in, redaction was not included in MS Word so you’ve had to rely on other programs such as Adobe Acrobat, RedactIt, Redax or others for this capability. Here are the resources that will show you how to add the redaction tool to MS Word 2010:
Bonus tips
11. Create standard language for letters and forms with Quick Parts
If you use MS Word 2007 or 2010, you have a basic document assembly tool at your fingertips in the form of MS Quick Parts. Quick Parts allows you to save text and images for reuse in other documents. You can create libraries of different clauses and reuse them by simply selecting the Quick Part you wish to insert. Creating a Quick Part is as easy as highlighting the text you want to use, clicking the Quick Parts icon and then clicking “Save Selection to Quick Part Gallery.” Here’s more information:
12. Type on PDFs in Acrobat & NitroPDF Reader (Free)
Lawyers may encounter PDF forms that aren’t enabled to accept text. For years, Adobe Acrobat has included a “Typewriter” tool that allows you to type directly on a PDF much as you would if you were using a paper form and a typewriter. This can be an invaluable capability, but what if you really do not have the need or can’t afford Acrobat? The free NitroPDF Reader gives you this capability as well, in addition to allowing you to create a PDF, convert a PDF to plain text, extract images, add notes, and more. Here’s more information about this tool:
About the author
Nerino J. Petro Jr., Northern Illinois 1988, is the advisor to the State Bar of Wisconsin Law Office Management Assistance Program (Practice411™). He assists lawyers in improving their efficiency in delivering legal services and in implementing systems and controls to reduce risk and improve client relations. You can reach Petro at (800) 444-9404, ext. 6012, or email practicehelp@wisbar.org.
