Does It Compute?

Expanded and Updated Worldox GX3 Cheat Sheet

I have just finished updating and expanding my Worldox GX3 Cheat Sheet. In addition to a few minor additions and clarifications, it includes:

●    All the Navigation Pane items are reorganized and grouped together
●    A new section deals with the Categories function, which firms are finding very useful
●    A new section lists some of the most useful keystroke shortcuts

It can be downloaded from the “Cheat Sheet” section of my web site, at www.heckmanco.com

Advanced Worldox Classes from Heckman Consulting

As clients have upgraded to Worldox GX3, and/or added or changed users, a number of clients have asked me recently for Advanced and/or Administration training in Worldox GX3.

Consequently, I have put together two classes, each of which will be approximately an hour and a half.  Both classes can be customized to meet specific requests, new features, etc.

Advanced Worldox
    Advanced Searching
        Boolean Options
        Searching by Date Range
        Finding by Doc ID
        Using Tags
    Customizing Displays
        Customizing the Worldox File Display
        Creating bookmarks
        Associating screen displays with bookmarks
        Adjusting colors & display
    Creating and using Projects and Workspaces
    Quick Profiles
    Categories
    Same Profile As / Saving Returned Attachments   

Worldox Basic Admin
    Indexer
        Options: Email, Excel
        Trouble Shooting
        Scheduling
    Best use preference settings
    Quick Profiles / defaults
    Adding New Users
    Audit Trails
    Document Retention
    Security Classification Groups
    Ethical Walls

Classes are specific to one firm, so that we can train using the firm’s actual data. They include a 20-minute review of the firm’s system prior to training. Additional customization performed after or outside of training will be an additional charge, although some changes can be made during the actual course of training. Classes will be conducted via webinar software, preferably in a conference room with the screen projected on a wall. Alternatively users can remain at their desks, although this is less desirable.

The cost is $300 per class, or $550 for both classes, payable in advance.

Quick Access Toolbar in MS Office

I have always found the ribbon bar in Word 2007/10 annoying and hard to find anything on. In addition, when you are using Worldox, the red “X” in the upper right corner is disabled in order to maintain the integrity of the audit trail.

So I always customize the Quick Access toolbar and encourage my clients to do the same. At present, I have the following little icons on my Quick Access Bar:
    New document
    File Open
    Save
    Save As
    Revert
    Go forward
    Exit
    Paste Special (with no formatting)
    Print

I’ve seen power users at clients with 20 or more icons on their Quick Access bar. It will make you much more efficient.

Now for the good part. I recently discovered, almost by accident, that the Quick Access Toolbar also exists in Outlook AND that you can put items from custom Tabs on it, in particular, Copy to Worldox or Save to Worldox. So instead of having to open up the Worldox Ribbon, I can save several clicks and do it right from the Quick Access Toolbar.

To add items to the Quick Access Toolbar, right-click on “File” and select “Customize Quick Access Toolbar.” The items you want may not be there, so select “All Commands”to find what you need.

Technolawyer Legal Billing Buyer's Guide

Technolawyer recently released 20+ page “Buyer’s Guide to Legal Billing Software.” The most useful aspect of this report is a discussion of the various criteria you might want to use in order to select a program, including on the merits of cloud-based vs. network-based (which they call “native”) software. It also examines at some time and billing length features that many law firms may need: Timers, Time Entry procedures, billing features (PDF/email generation), support for LEDES billing, Consolidated and Split billing, Trust Accounting (a deal-breaker feature), various productivity reports, and so on. This should let someone new to legal billing make a check-list of features they will need for their practice before trying to evaluate specific software.
   
The Guide lists 22 software programs, 12 network-based and 10 cloud-based, which shows the inroads cloud-based software has made. With so many programs it is obviously impossible to deal with any particular program substantively, although in some cases the report refers to reviews published elsewhere by Technolawyer.

The main omission is that these programs may or may not include accounting capabilities which are obviously closely related to time and billing. Thus there is virtually no mention of the 800 lb. Gorilla, QuickBooks. Bottom line is: QuickBooks is bad choice for legal accounting needs. Firms need a time & billing program that will do accounting as well.

Perhaps the most interesting aspect of the report is an attempt to estimate the cost of the various programs for 1, 5 and 25 lawyers over a 3-year period. Since Technolawyer relied on vendors for pricing, some of the prices listed are almost certainly too low, in some cases much too low. Further, since they took a three-year time frame and pro-rated it backwards, the price for the first year is lower than what your upfront cost will be. Lastly, the price is just for software, it does not include any associated hardware costs. But it does give you a good ballpark. It also validates what I have always said: over a three-year period, cloud-based software is likely to be more expensive than network-based software. Thus of the major programs the report lists with which I have some familiarity, the most expensive would be Houdini, Esq. (cloud), followed by Amicus Billing (network), Clio (cloud), Time Matters (network), Rocket Matter (cloud) and PCLaw (network) with the estimated cost ranging from $11,520 for Houdini to $4,361 for PCLaw.

In short, this report is a useful starting point, but you will have to examine specific programs separately once you have prepared your “wish list” of features you (a) absolutely must have, (b) need, and (c) would be nice to have.

You can get a copy of the report at http://www.technolawyer.com/tll/legal-billing-software.asp
You have to join Technolawyer to get the report, but that is free and Technolawyer is well worth joining anyway.