The Mac Lawyer | Author Archives | Page 82Ben Stevens, Author at The Mac Lawyer

Apple Laptop Battery Recall

Posted on August 24, 2006 by Ben Stevens Posted in Hardware 2 Comments

In case you haven’t already heard, Apple issued a recall today for 1.8 million notebook batteries because they pose a fire hazard. Although none of the affected batteries have exploded (as was reported with a Dell (PC) notebook), there have reportedly been nine reports of batteries overheating, including two reports of minor burns, but no serious injuries.

The affected lithium-ion batteries were manufactured by Sony and were used in 12-inch iBook G4, 12-inch PowerBook G4, and 15-inch PowerBook G4 notebooks sold between October 2003 and August 2006. Apple issued the following statement: “Consumers should stop using the recalled batteries immediately and contact Apple to arrange for a replacement battery, free of charge. After removing the recalled battery from their iBook or PowerBook, consumers should plug in the AC adapter to power the computer until a replacement battery arrives.”

To find out if your battery is affected by the recall, request a replacement battery, or get more information about this situation, you can visit the Battery Exchange Program webpage Apple has created.

Source: “Apple Recalls 1.8M iBook and PowerBook G4 Batteries” published at AppleInsider.

Create Custom eBooks for Your iPod

Posted on August 24, 2006 by Ben Stevens Posted in Online Resources Leave a comment

Would you like to have the ability to turn a web page or a text file into an eBook to use on your iPod? The iPod Notes Packager will handle this transformation for you quickly, easily, and free. You can choose any website or any text file, upload it to this site, and within a few seconds have your very own eBook.

This site could be used for Court rules, statutes, legal outlines, “to do” lists, client names and addresses, or many other uses for attorneys. Even better, it can serve as a legitimate reason to justify purchasing an iPod through your firm. And did I mention that it’s free? You can check out The iPod Notes Packager website by clicking HERE.

Source: “Make eBooks for Your iPod” published at LifeHacker.com

Reviews of Apple Mac Pro

Posted on August 23, 2006 by Ben Stevens Posted in Hardware Leave a comment

Apple recently released its Mac Pro desktops, which feature two Intel Dual-Core Xeon processors running at speeds of up to 3.0 GHz. With this release, Apple has completely transitioned its line from Power PC chips to Intel chips.

The reviews have generally been positive, and you can read several reviews of the new Mac Pro at the following sites:

Source: “Apple Mac Pro Review Roundup” published at Engadget.

Blogging Software: MarsEdit

Posted on August 22, 2006 by Ben Stevens Posted in Software Leave a comment

I believe that MarsEdit is the premier weblog editing software for Macs. Before beginning to use this program over a year ago, I did a good bit of research into all the available options and concluded that it best fit my needs.

One of the main things that I like about MarsEdit is that it resides on your harddrive, not online. This gives you the ability to draft and edit posts at your convenience, whether you are online or not. The other key features that appealed to me (then and now) are:

Ease of use — both novice and advanced users can use it without a steep learning curve.
Importing — easy importing of information from web browers and/or newsreaders to use in your posts.
Uploading — files and images can be easily uploaded to your blog.
Preview — ability to see in real time what your post will look like on your blog.
Other — assign one or mulitple categories and sends pings with each new post.

MarsEdit runs on Intel and PowerPC Macs, and a single license costs $24.95. The developer offers a fully functioning 30 day demo, and I urge you to check it out if you’re interested in blogging software.

Built-In PDF Options

Posted on August 21, 2006 by Ben Stevens Posted in Mac OS X Leave a comment

Mac OS X (Tiger) contains many useful PDF functions as a core component of its operating system. On the print menu in every program is a PDF drop down menu that gives you options to save, fax, and/or email any document in PDF format. This option is available with word processing documents, photos, and web pages (full or partial). Here is a screenshot which shows the PDF drop down menu and the various options it offers:

I use the “Mail PDF” function all the time, as it makes it extremely easy to email a copy of any documents to my clients. One nice feature is that when you select that option, Mail automatically opens with the PDF inserted, saving time and energy. Also, the PDF that is created is sort of a “temporary” type file, in that it can be emailed and used by the recipient, but you do not have to save it anywhere. Clients love being able to receive updated information so frequently, and I love being able to do so so quickly.

Summarize Text Automatically With “Summary Service”

Posted on August 17, 2006 by Ben Stevens Posted in Mac OS X 3 Comments

Wouldn’t it be nice to have a lengthy section of text automatically summarize itself for you? Mac OS X (Tiger) has this capacity built right in, called “Summary Service” — although for some reason, it receives little fanfare.

This function is found under the “Services” menu, and it is therefore available in most programs. Summary Service allows you to automatically summarize any selected text in most software programs. It works in all Apple products (Pages, Keynote, Safari), most web browsers, but not Word.

Better yet, you have the ability to adjust the length of the summary on the fly to make it as long or short as you want. You also have the option of displaying the summaries in either paragraph or sentence mode, which can be particularly useful with longer summaries.

I have found this feature to be particularly helpful for summarizing affidavits, online appellate decisions, and even medical research. While not perfect, it does a surprisingly good job of including the most important content in its summarization.

The Mac Lawyer Now Online

Posted on August 14, 2006 by Ben Stevens Posted in Other Leave a comment

After several weeks in development, I am pleased to begin publishing this new blog, The Mac Lawyer. While there are many excellent legal technology blogs online, none are specifically devoted to using Macs in the law office. I hope that this blog will become a useful resource for its readers, and I look forward to bringing it to you. If you have any comments, tips, suggestions, etc. that you would like me to address in future posts, please don’t hestiate to contact me. Thanks.