Bloomberg Law has announced the release of a new app that works in conjunction with your Bloomberg Law subscription. The app is available both for the Apple iOS (via the App Store) and the Android operating system (via Google Play). Continue reading “How is Bloomberg Law’s New App?”
Tag: iPhone
What the ILTA Technology Survey Says About Mobile Legal Research
Recently released, the ILTA Technology Survey offers information professionals great insight into how lawyers are interacting with technology at their firms. The organization, made up primarily of firm IT and KM professionals, produces an annual technology survey, and, thankfully, releases it for free (the AmLaw Tech Survey and the ABA’s Legal Technology Survey Report will run you a few dollars).
Notably, among the many topics it covers, the survey focuses on attorneys’ use of tablet pcs and apps.
The results for the question “to the best of your knowledge, which non-native tablet/iPad apps are most used at your firm for business purposes (choose up to five apps)” are as follow, with a brief/not-all-encompassing description from me on what these apps do:
1. Citrix Receiver – enables access to Citrix environments from mobile devices
2. LinkedIn – social media platform for business professionals
3. Dropbox – cloud-computing storage service
4. Adobe Acrobat – .pdf viewer and editor
5. Skype – remote video and voice or instant messaging platform
6. FaceBook – social media platform
7. Documents to Go – enables users to view Microsoft Office and Adobe files in the iOS environment.
8. Evernote – enables users to take electronic notes
9. GoodReader – annotate and read .pdfs
10. Mimecast – enables access of Mimecast email environment
Interesting results:
14. TrialPad – presentation tool tailored to attorneys
15. Westlaw Next – legal research system
27. iTimeKeep – time tracking utility
39. iJuror – jury selection app
Westlaw Next’s inclusion is notable, in that it signifies tablets are being used for legal research, but its location on the list shows the strong popularity of the more well-known productivity-oriented apps (dropbox, evernote, documents to go, etc.). The answer to the overarching question how much traction is there for tablets and mobile devices to be used for legal research is still a little nebulous. Will user behavior change to where tablets and mobile devices are commonly used to conduct legal research? It’s hard to say. Is there a legal research platform that could really exploit the unique characteristics of tablets or mobile devices, to the point where the mobile-version would offer something valuable that would distinguish it from the desktop version?
Also notable is that attorneys themselves are typically not the respondents to the survey questions–rather, it’s the membership of ILTA who are queried. And, it is important to point out, once again, that those queried were to only chose 5 apps, and not every app they have observed/encountered their attorneys using.
Review: SCOTUSblog’s New iOS App
Everybody’s favorite U.S. Supreme Court blog, SCOTUSblog, recently released an accompanying iOS app. At this point, the app’s main feature is to display the blog entries from the SCOTUSblog site, enabling on-the-go attorneys an easy method of staying abreast of the latest happenings at our nation’s court of last resort. Users have the ability to turn on iPhone push notifications, so, whenever a new blog entry is posted to SCOTUSblog, app users will be instantaneously alerted. The app also enables users to sort and view SCOTUSblog entries into the following categories: featured, round-up, breaking news, and editor’s notes. Lastly, users can use the app as a middleman to jump into SCOTUSblog’s twitter feed. To be clear, this app doesn’t contain content beyond what can be found on the SCOTUSblog site; rather, the point of the app is to quickly connect SCOTUSblog fans to the content of the blog via their mobile devices. With that said, Andrew Hamm of SCOTUSblog has stated new improvements and features will be regularly rolled out to the app, so it’s definitely worth keeping an eye on.
My Library app puts your catalogue in your pocket!
Looking for an easy, convenient way to take your personal catalogue on the road with you? Look no further than My Library by Josh Pressnell. This powerful and handy app for the iPhone lets you catalogue your home collection and then carry it in your pocket.
We do not often review smartphone apps here on iBraryGuy, as we know our readers use a plethora of different models and that any discussion as to which one might be better leads to some serious controversy. Every once in a while though, a smartphone app comes along that is just too cool to ignore. So we don’t. My Library is definitely an app worth courting a wee bit of controversy for. Have you ever wanted a quick and easy way to catalogue your home library and then have that information at your fingertips when and where you want it? My Library does all of this and more. Creating a personal catalogue is as simple as entering an ISBN or even scanning the barcode with your iPhone’s camera. The app does the look-up and download of the book’s information for you. You can organize your collections, back them up, and even share them right from the palm of your hand. We loved how easy it was to use and how quickly we were able to catalogue our entire home collection.
But My Library is not just for cataloguing your books. No, it is much more versatile and powerful than that. You can use this app to also organize your movies and CDs. Beyond creating just a catalogue, My Library actually lets you search, track, and rate the items in your collection. Mark your books as having been read, in the process of being so, or even loaned out to a friend. Make notes on what you thought about a particular book or movie. Go ahead, librarians, have at it. My Library is an OPAC in your pocket. And you do not have to be a librarian to use it. It is just that easy.
One of the coolest features of My Library is the interface. You can actually view the covers of your books and CDs. If an image is not available in the info that the app downloads from the internet, you can simply use your phone’s camera to snap your own. For a really eye-popping experience, turn your phone to landscape position to browse your items in shelf format!
As of now, My Library is only available for the iPhone. We hope to see it on other platforms soon. As iPhone users, the iBraryGuy team have become eager and enthusiastic adopters of this app. We highly recommend it!