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Awards, Honors, and Achievements
 For the 4th consecutive year, Affinity Consulting Group earned the LexisNexis Platinum Achievement Award for top PCLaw sales.
 Affinity consultant Derek Marr, J.D., earned his certifications in both Amicus Attorney and Time Matters. Derek works in our Columbus office.
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Visit Our Blog
|  The Affinity Consulting Group Law Office Technology Blog has up-to-date information on hardware, software, and tips for using technology in your practice. Click on the icon above to visit now.
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Current Versions of Law Office Software
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Make sure you stay current by checking out the
Current Versions list on our web site.
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Giving Thanks
- Law Office Technology For Which We Are Grateful
 Some of us (including the editor of this newsletter) are old enough to remember practicing law in the era before personal computers became standard equipment in law offices and before (almost) every lawyer carried a smart phone.
 In those dark days, we dictated into temperamental analog tape machines and our secretaries listened to the often poor quality recording (if the tape didn't get tangled in the process) and typed our documents onto paper using an IBM Selectric typewriter. If you were lucky and your firm was particularly advanced, your secretary might have an IBM Mag Card typewriter so documents could be saved and edited without retyping from scratch.
 Without smart phones that sync continuously via the Cloud to our office calendar (not to mention the rest of the information in our practice management software), we had to wait in line for a pay phone at the courthouse to call the office and check our schedule before we could tell the judge that, yes, we are available next Wednesday for a continued hearing.
 Without time/billing/accounting software, we hand-wrote our time entries on sheets of paper that someone in the office then had to type - often into a Word or WordPerfect document. If a client called and asked about his/her fee balance, it would take all day to figure out by compiling those manual records. It also took a good week just to get bills out.
 Without scanners to create digital (as well as searchable) versions of the stack of paper that comes into our offices each day, we employed file clerks to go through the growing pile of unfiled documents and hopefully get them into the case file before the next court date. We also bought more file cabinets to hold the documents and leased more office space to hold the file cabinets.
For this month's feature, we highlight several law office technology products and services for which we are thankful. Read the full Giving Thanks article.
P.S. If any of the above sounds like how your firm operates today, call us. We can help!
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Register Now for Ohio Bar Legal Tech Conference in December
 One of the most anticipated legal technology events each year in Ohio is the December Legal Technology Conference. This year's conference will be held on December 20 and 21 at the Embassy Suites in Dublin, OH, near Columbus. Several Affinity Consulting Group partners and consultants will be speaking at the Conference. Topics at this live seminar will include:
- Legal tech tips, gadgets and cool stuff
- Day in the life of an iPad using lawyer
- On the trail of the Craig's List killer: a case study in digital forensics
- Time management for lawyers: is it 5:00 already?
- How to grow your practice with social media
- Cloud-based litigation support
- Voice recognition
Ohio lawyers can earn up to 14.25 CLE credits for attending this Conference. Register now here.
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Amicus Attorney Cloud Edition Launched
- Web Based Practice Management Released from Amicus Software  Amicus Attorney officially launched its browser based Cloud Edition effective Monday October 29, 2012. The Amicus Cloud version will allow access to case management information from anywhere you have an internet connection, and from almost any device including your iPhone and iPad. Affinity Consulting Group is excited about the new offering and would be glad to answer any questions you may have about the product. If you would like more information about moving to this version of Amicus, contact your Affinity Amicus consultant today for more information and advice If you would like to see Amicus Cloud in action, register for a FREE 30 minute webinar to take place starting at 1 p.m. on November 16. Space is limited. Register HERE.
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Affinity University - Classes in November
Affinity University is the go-to resource for online training on the legal software you and your team use every day. Focusing specifically on real world tips and tricks, our certified experts provide training on popular Practice Management, Time/Billing/Accounting, Document Management, Productivity Software and even Microsoft Office. If you "attend" a live AU webinar, you can watch it again within 30 days of the original live date at no additional charge.
November 7, 11 a.m. - Amicus Attorney Premium Edition Advanced Tips and Tricks with Jennifer M. Ramovs, Esq.
November 7, 3 p.m. - Amicus Attorney Small Firm Edition Advanced Tips and Tricks with Jennifer M. Ramovs, Esq.
November 8, 11 a.m. - Outlook Email Management with Jennifer M. Ramovs, Esq.
November 9, 1 p.m. - Worldox GX3 with Greg Bray
November 12, 11 a.m. - PracticeMaster Calendar & Contacts with Jennifer M. Ramovs, Esq.
November 16, 11 a.m. - PCLaw Year End Essentials with Cindy Emmerson
November 19, 11 a.m. - iPad for Legal Professionals with Paul J. Unger, Esq.
November 19, 1 p.m. - Word Basics with Barron K. Henley, Esq.
November 19, 3 p.m. - PracticeMaster Clients & Matters
November 20, 11 a.m. - Outlook Contacts & Calendar with Jennifer M. Ramovs, Esq.
November 20, 1 p.m. - PCLaw Front Office with Jennifer M. Ramovs, Esq.
November 20, 3 p.m. - Adobe for Legal Professionals with Jennifer M. Ramovs, Esq.
November 28, 1 p.m. - Word Introduction to Styles with Barron K. Henley, Esq.
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 Affinity Welcomes Jody Liles
-IT Client Relations Coordinator, Affinity's Roanoke VA Office
Jody Liles joined Affinity's Roanoke office in July of 2012. As IT Client Relations Coordinator, she is responsible for communication between the IT department and clients on projects, as well as day to day calls for assistance. A technically inclined Business Analyst, Jody easily interprets for end users the technical jargon and subscribes to the theory that communication is key to any successful implementation or client relationship. Jody received her PMP Certification from the Project Management Institute in July of 2005 and has a history of successfully completed IT projects involving all aspects of business management including process flow, user experience and logistics. She has been helping businesses to reach their full potential using all available technologies for over 15 years. |
 Free Educational Webinars in November
- Register, Log-in, Learn
During November, Affinity is presenting a series of FREE educational webinars covering important law office technology topics. Here is the schedule:
Cloud 101: What it Is, Who It Is, and When It's Right for YOU Social Media - Networking or NOT Working? Worldox GX3 PCLaw Year-End Essentials Don't Let Your IT Stress You Out. Learn How to RELAX with Managed Services. |
 Upcoming Events & Speaking Engagements November 2 - 2012 Bench Bar Conference, Gulfport, FL, sponsored by St. Pete and Clearwater Bar Associations - Affinity will be an exhibitor.
November 6 - The Technology You Need To Start A Law Practice Or Overhaul The One You Have, Vancouver, BC - Barron K. Henley, Esq. November 6 - Adobe Acrobat for Lawyers, Columbus, OH - Paul J. Unger, Esq. November 7 - Adobe Acrobat for Lawyers, Cleveland, OH - Paul J. Unger, Esq. November 7 - Microsoft Word: Advanced Techniques For Making Word A Legal Word Processor, Vancouver, BC - Barron K. Henley, Esq.November 7 - Law Office Paper Reduction And Document Management: Strategies That Work, Vancouver, BC - Barron K. Henley, Esq. November 8 - Head In The Clouds, Hands In The Dirt: The Mobile Practice Of Real Estate Laws, Cleveland, OH - Paul J. Unger, Esq. November 12 - Building Document Assembly Systems for Complex Legal Documents, Columbus, OH (live simulcast to Akron and Perrysburg, OH) - Barron K. Henley, Esq. November 13 - Facebook, LinkedIn & Social Networking, Merrillville, IN - Paul J. Unger, Esq. November 13 - iPad for Litigators (and Everyone Else Too!, Merrillville, IN - Paul J. Unger, Esq. November 16 - Slam Dunk Tips & Tools for More Efficient Law Practice, Oklahoma City, OK - Paul J. Unger, Esq. November 16 - Dragon NaturallySpeaking, Calgary, Alberta - Barron K. Henley, Esq. November 17 - A Lawyer's Guide to Adobe Acrobat, Calgary, Alberta - Barron K. Henley, Esq. November 20 - iPad for Legal Professionals, Pittsburgh, PA - Paul J. Unger, Esq. |
The Golden Rules of Word Every Lawyer Needs to Know
- Barron K. Henley, Esq., Affinity Partner
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Get $50 When You Trade-In Your Old Portable Recorder for a State-of-the-Art Philips Digital Pocket Memo
If you are still using a clunky old analog tape recorder for your dictation, or if you have one  of the earlier difficult-to-use digital recorders, you can trade in your relic (must be in working order) on a new Philips Digital Pocket Memo 9600 or 9500 series recorder and get $50 back. This offer is valid from November 1 to December 21, 2012. For details and to order your new Philips Digital Pocket Memo, contact our speech recognition specialist, Phil Metcalf, at (540) 767-7633 or via email at pmetcalf@affinityconsulting.com. |
 Affinity Offers Managed IT Services
In addition to our expert consulting services in the area of law office software, Affinity Consulting Group offers a fu ll range of Managed IT services. Small and medium-sized law firms can rarely afford a full-time IT staff. Let Affinity serve as your IT staff - we can manage your technology resources for you and correct any problems, often before you know anything is wrong. Join us on November 30 for a free educational webinar describing our Managed IT Services. Register Here. For information on the many IT services we can offer your firm, contact your Affinity Consulting Group office. |
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Affinity and the ALA
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News Updates
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Affinity University Live Webinars Qualify for ALA CLM Credit 
Whether you are in the process of applying or re-certifying to become a Certified Legal Manager (CLM), Affinity University Live Webinars are a great way to get relevant training on the software you use every day. And the best part is - you get CLM credit. New Applicants may use any Live Webinar towards their Information Technology education requirement, and CLMs going through recertification can use any Live Webinar towards their Operations Management education requirement. And remember, ALA members receive a 25% discount on al AU courses. Contact Jennifer M. Ramovs, Esq., our Director of Education, to find out how. |
| Affinity at ALA Suncoast Chapter Event November 8
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| Thanks to ALA Members
Now that the ALA Regional Conferences are completed for 2012, we want to thank all the ALA members who visited our booths at the Regionals this year. We are looking forward to continuing our great relationship with ALA and will see you at next year's National Conference as well as at many local and Regional ALA events.
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Green Corner - Paper is Your Enemy, PDF is Your Friend
We hear much about taking your law firm paperless. Why is there a consensus that storing information digitally, particularly in the universally accepted PDF format, is so much better than paper? Here are a few reasons:
- Paper takes up expensive storage space in your office or at an off-site facility.
- Paper is heavy, easy to damage, and not nearly as portable as digitally stored information. Think of how many books, or client files, you can store on an iPad vs what you can carry in your brief case.
- PDF files, if properly created, can be full-text searched in a few seconds. Try that with paper.
- Multiple users can access the same digital data at the same time. If you have the paper file sitting on your desk, no one else can use it.
- Digital records can be instantly transmitted over long distances via email or other web-based transfer. We have nothing against FedEx or UPS, but sending paper than way costs money and takes time.
- Digital records can be much more easily backed up to multiple secure locations, assuring that important information will not be lost.
Take the first step toward becoming a paperless office. Contact us today for information on how to accomplish this goal.
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There are some golden rules of Word to help you know when you're not using the program properly and/or you're missing a feature that would make your life easier.