We here at the Geeklawblog discuss a lot on the topics of Knowledge Management, Marketing, Research and Competitive Intelligence.  On the surface, these ideas tend to mean the “repackaging of existing data into usable information for the benefit of those in our firm.”  In other words, we attempt to create a way to make our “results” greater than the sum of our “parts”.But, when I started thinking about it, perhaps the key word in the previous sentence isn’t “results” or “parts”, but rather it is the word “create.”  To me, it is the creativity part of my job that most inspires me.  Being able to look at a problem and come up with a unique solution, and implementing that solution makes me want to come in to work much more than the paycheck at the end of the week.  And, I’m guessing, that for those of you that have jobs that ask you to be creative, you also value that creative reward more than the financial reward.I watched a talk by Sir Ken Robinson where he discusses creativity, and how something so important tends to be discounted in our educational system.  My absolute favorite portion of the talk was when Robinson defines creativity:

  • Creativity  – “The process of having original ideas that have value.”

Simple, but inspiring for those of us lucky enough who are asked to be creative in our day-to-day functions. 
When we look around at our peers, which ones stand out to you?   Is it the KM director that has installed and supports a dozen applications?  Or, is it that one KM person that created a way to use applications in a unique way, thus creating something of value??  Is it the librarian that billed 2000 hours of research work, thus making money for the firm?  Or, is it the librarian that created a system to monitor what the competition was doing, and made sure that the lawyers in the firm got that information in their hands in order to be better prepared and to make proactive decisions?  
You get the idea….  All four of these samples are “valuable”, but the creative samples are “original ideas” that not only provide value, they also generate a competitive advantage that can spur additional value on down the line.  Take a look and see if your creative side needs a little nourishment.

CBS and YouTube are petitioning the folks at Pulitzer to create a prize for video news. . . . maybe I will be able to get that Pulitzer that I’ve always dreamed about . . .

YouTube Partners With Pulitzer Center For Contest By Doug Caverly – Mon, 09/08/2008 – 2:52pm.

Poor video quality, the pointlessness of many clips, and the fact that the site isn’t profitable have all kept YouTube from earning much respect. But a new contest called Project: Report may go a ways towards changing that.

The contest is being backed by Sony VAIO and Intel, so the prizes are sure to create some excitement. More important is YouTube’s partnership with the Pulitzer Center, which lends quite a bit of authority to any matter and leads to Project: Report’s journalistic focus.

“[N]on-professional, aspiring journalists” are being encouraged “to tell stories that might not otherwise be covered by traditional media.” In the first of three rounds, participants should “profile someone in your community, in three minutes or less, highlighting a story you think deserves to be heard by a wide audience,” according to a post on theYouTube Blog.

Then, following the October 5th end of the submission period, judges will narrow the field to 10 finalists, and more information about the second and third rounds should be released. The overall winner will get grants, gear, and the opportunity to work with the Pulitzer Center on an international reporting project.

Project: Report won’t turn YouTube into some beacon of truth overnight, and to be honest, such a beacon probably wouldn’t be half as popular. YouTube’s at least demonstrating a sort of ability to be mature, though, and taken in conjunction with all of its recent political coverage, this development may be part of a trend.

Tomorrow, version 5.6 of InterAction will be released. On Friday, I was able to preview a demo of one of its new features. 5.6 has an optional LinkedIn function set. The default on installation has this turned off, but a simple admin effort will turn it on.

Once enabled, the function set takes the contact names and company names in InterAction and runs them against LinkedIn’s list. Matches are then given a LinkedIn icon which allows users to see their LinkedIn connections with the contact. The first time you click a LinkedIn icon, you are asked to allow access. This is a one-time effort which is reversible from the LinkedIn account management menu.

Once access is granted, LinkedIn then provides you connection lines with the contact record. In the demo, I saw the LexisNexis reps connections to me (3rd level) and how he could connect through his own connections to contact me. This is just the LinkedIn functions we’re used to.

The LinkedIn icon will also show in an Outlook view, if you have the Web client and open a contact through the InterAction access button.

In talking with the rep, LexisNexis is planning further integrations, like co-mingling InterAction “Who Knows Whom” with the LinkedIn connections. They are looking for ideas on how to expand these functions, so feel free to contact them.

As previously posted here, this new tool-set appears to be moving LinkedIn into a higher value category. LinkedIn is interesting and has potential, but now we’re actually seeing some of this potential in action.

A nifty tool for reporters, writers and news junkies, Google is cooking up a new tool that lets you compare quotes on people of interest on a variety of topics. Right now, you are limited to 20 political figures in the U.S. Edition (other people of interested are selected for Canada, UK, and India).

They have some popular issues already defined but you can also run a search on any topic you choose. It pulls the quote, cites the sources and gives a link. There is also a “spin” feature which randomly selects other results on your search.

As my esteemed colleague has commented on some Ike IT frustrations, I feel compelled to comment on some Ike IT stars.

My firm’s IT group road out the storm and kept our systems up and running. As the ‘main’ office for our firm, all of our critical systems reside here in Houston. Of course we have an off-site backup, as all firms should.

Even though our building sustained some damage, our systems never went down. IT staff was on-site and at our backup location monitoring things and making sure we stayed live.

The result, I never stopped getting emails (and working) and we had critical infrastructure available for lawyers and staff that needed it.

Kudos to our IT group!

The writing was on the wall for this one.  Heller Ehrman is going to dissolve on Friday.  Legal Times posted it, and additional information was published by Cal Law.

Some of the background information is found on the Heller Highwater blog.

There are RUMORS, that Thacher Proffitt and Seyfarth Shaw are looking to merge with someone to prevent the same fate.  

First off, I’m going to let you know that I am very biased on this topic, and believe that it is the goverment’s express duty to make its laws known to the people they affect.  So, when I was at the Oklahoma Supreme Court, and managing the court’s public website, OSCN, we made every effort to make whatever writings came out of the court available online.

But, there are a number of governments, from local to state, that attempt to put a copyright on any and all of their publications, and use that as leverage to either sell access to the information via their own publications or through publishers like Westlaw and Lexis.  Oregon just recently backed off of their attempt to sue for copyright protection once there was a public outcry against them.  My good friend Bonnie Shucha, up in Wisconsin, blogged about that case back in July.
I read today on CNET that Carl Malamud is trying to take on any government that he can by copying their published works and making it available on public.resource.org.  Great idea, but pretty hard for one man to do.  But, I do like how he is putting the web to use by also hosting the Pacer Recycling website where you can upload your old Pacer documents to his site, and others can then use them rather than going back to Pacer.
Getting governments to contribute to the public domain shouldn’t be a difficult task, but it can be.  Even when I was at OSCN, we offered the free use of our database to house the court decisions and statutes of other states.  We only had one state to take us up on the offer (good ol’ Wyoming!!)  We even helped digitize some of their older cases and put the whole thing in Universal Citation System format, so that the big boys at the major legal publishers didn’t try to sue for the pagination rights.  I was truly surprised when other courts didn’t take us up on the offer to house their cases.  There were actually a couple of them (who shall remain nameless Western Mountainous States) that were actually pretty hostile to the idea because they thought it would cut a revenue source for them.  
I wish Carl the best of luck, and will be watching to see if he finally gets under the governments’ or publishers’ skin and they sue him for copyright enfringment.

This looks like a very hip, highly functional cool new tool that I would seriously consider owning. Depends upon how it looks, ‘tho . . .

Sony Ericsson Announces Bluetooth Watches For Women

London, UK – 24th of September, 2008 – Convenient, good looking and distinctive, the Bluetooth ™ MBW-200 range of Bluetooth™ watches is an expansion of the highly successful Bluetooth ™ MBW-150 range. With three different sophisticated designs to match your personality, be the first among your friends to control your phone with your watch.

Missed an important call or SMS because you couldn’t hear or find your phone at the bottom of your handbag? With the MBW-200 this is now a thing of the past. Using innovative Bluetooth™ technology, the watch displays the caller ID and vibrates as your phone is ringing or when you receive an SMS. Reject or mute the call with a button on the watch or use the Bluetooth™ headset or mobile phone to answer the call and start chatting.

“The MBW-200 series is the next step in the development of Bluetooth™ wireless technology.” said Karmen Mandic, Product Business Manager, at Sony Ericsson. “Now women can buy a Bluetooth™ watch that gives them both wireless functionality and an opportunity to express their personal taste. We’re all looking for products that make our lives more convenient. With a glance at your watch you can see who is calling, what the time is and with a push of a button you can change your music or use it as a music remote control when your phone is on the other side of the room– all in one stylish device.”

Designed in partnership with watch industry leader Fossil and the Bluetooth™ knowhow of Sony Ericsson, the MBW-200 series comes in three distinct designs; Sparkling Allure, Contemporary Elegance and Evening Classic. The Bluetooth™ Watch Collection features scratch resistant mineral crystal glass with an anti-glare coating for optimum readability and glow. The discreet, yet stylish and clear monochrome OLED display is invisible when not in use and clearly visible on a bright day so that you can see who is calling or which track is playing with ease.

Can’t decide which stylish Bluetooth™ Watch is for you? Sony Ericsson has teamed up with three leading female tennis players to show how each MBW-200 watch has a distinct personality to match anyone’s personal style and fashion tastes.

The Sparkling Allure Edition, as modelled by 19-year-old Slovakian Dominika Cibulkova, is glamorous, yet strong and sporty – created for the ultimate young and funky fashionista. With its on trend white leather strap and display with crystal décor stones, this stylish number is perfect for making a fashion statement while being practical and convenient.

The Contemporary Elegance Edition, as modelled by 18-year-old Danish ‘Princess of Tennis’ Caroline Wozniacki, is perfect for the young professional who wants to stay focussed on the job at the same time as staying connected. Enjoy the benefits of the stainless steel watch with its efficient call handling and make a dazzling impression wherever you are.

The Evening Classic Edition, adorning 19-year-old Hungarian superstar Agnes Szavay, has a classic yet casual profile. The stylish leather strap and discreet black face can be worn in any environment, whether at home, in the office or on a weekend away. For those who are always on the move the vibration alert of an SMS, or out of phone range, means that never again will you miss an important message.

Bluetooth™ Watch MBW-200 collection features:Bringing together contemporary design and cutting edge Bluetooth™ technology
Reject or mute call through the watch
Vibrates on new SMS/MMS – and an out of range warning – when 10 m away from your phone
Discreet yet clear caller ID – OLED display
Play, pause, stop or skip a track on your phone’s music player
Quartz movements for exact time keeping – both digital and analogue
Auto pairing™ – easier to connect the watch to your phone
Water resistant up to 3 ATM
Allergy safe stainless steel
Mineral crystal scratch resistant face with antiglare coating
The MBW-200 range is available in selected markets in Q4.
Sony Ericsson will also expand the MBW-150 range with yet another design. The MBW-150 Classic is a sporty edition with a brown leather strap and white face that will be available early next year in selected markets.
The Sony Ericsson MBW-200 at a glance
MBW-200Time indicator
Analogue
Digital from mobile phone
Discreet call handling
Caller ID in display
Reject/mute call through watch
Change volume
Music player control
Play, pause, stop, next track skip
Change volume
SMS/MMS message alert
Vibrates on new SMS/MMS
Out of range warningVibration alert at 10m from phone
Standby time
Battery indicator
Bluetooth functionality for up to 7 days
Analogue time keeping for up to 7 days
SpecificationsIn-Box:
Bluetooth™ Watch
Charging clip
Standard charger CST-60
User guide
Exclusive box
3 different variants

Evening Classic
Black dial with crystal décor
Black detail on crown
Black leather bracelet
Stainless steel clasp
Stainless steel case
60g weight
Contemporary Elegance
Display with crystal décor stone
Red minute hand
Pattern detail on dial
Brushed stainless steel bracelet
Double security clasp with stainless steel folding blade
Stainless steel case
60g weight
Sparkling Allure
Rose gold rim with crystal décor stones
Rose gold hands with white fill
Mother of pearl look ‘carbon fiber’ texture display
White crocodile leather bracelet
Chrome finish polish on case
Rose gold clasp
Weight 60g
Size: 37.3 x 39.6 x 14 mmAvailability and versionsAvailable in selected markets from early Q4 2008.

While at the AALL annual meeting, I met Stephen Foley, the Chief Tech Officer of a new company called iCyte.   iCyte is beta testing its product which is designed to help the researcher better compile the information he or she gathers on the web, and to house copies of the original version of the web pages where the information was gathered.  I remember using a similar product like this years ago (pre-1999 because I was still working at Oklahoma City University’s School of Law at the time.)  But for the life of me, I cannot remember what the product was called (if you remember it, please tell me!!)  That product, however, only allowed you to save the information locally.  With iCyte, it actually stores the information on the iCyte server, allowing you to access the saved information from any computer with an Internet connection.

Here is what the service includes:
  • a browser plug in – the software to be installed on your personal computer (“Client”); and
  • access to and storage of annotations on an iCyte server (“Server”); and
  • The Client enables you to annotate relevant portions of web-based documents (including web pages and PDF documents). The annotations and the web-based document are then saved as part of a project on the Server (“Annotations”), allowing extraction, publication, sorting, searching and editing at a later date
And there are some service options available as well.
  • Public – a Public setting will allow other users and members of the public to view and access (but not edit) all of your Annotations in that project.
  • Private – a Private setting will allow only those users who have been explicitly been given privileges by you to access, view and/or edit (as specified by you) your Annotations in that project.
  • Enterprise (for users subject to an Enterprise End User Licence Agreement) – an Enterprise setting will allow only those users who are a part of your enterprise to access, view and/or edit (as specified by you) any of your Annotations in that project.
If you are like me, you tend to research by doing the following:
  1. Find the information you need online using your web browser (I’m still testing Chrome and liking it…)
  2. Copy the information to a MS Word document
  3. Analyze the information and then reformat it in the standard research format.
  4. Proof, proof, and re-proof.
  5. Hand it over to the requester (reluctantly, because you just know there was something else out there but you didn’t have enough time to find it because the associate waited until the last minute to ask for your assistance…..  oh, I’m getting off topic … )
The value of a product like iCyte allows you to work in the same manner, but the copying and pasting is much better because you can now save your research process online, keep a copy of the original web page, and use tags to mark-up the data so you can better review the information at a later time.
I’m looking forward to testing this to see if it really matches my expectations.  I’m not sure if the beta test is open to everyone, but if you’re interested, you should contact Stephen and ask to be included in the beta testing.

In a week and a day, Nevada steps up with a new law requiring encryption of electronically transmitted personal information.

NRS 597.970 Restrictions on transfer of personal information through electronic transmission.
[Effective October 1, 2008.] 1. A business in this State shall not transfer any personal information of a customer through an electronic transmission other than a facsimile to a person outside of the secure system of the business unless the business uses encryption to ensure the security of electronic transmission.

Leaving the discussion of the technical and legal aspects of this new law to others, I find this new law refreshing in a number of ways. Lawyers and regulators love to ramble about protecting clients’ knowledge but balked when it comes to actually imposing defined methods and duties. Where state bars and courts soft-peddle the duty, the State of Nevada has taken a much stronger stance.

More importantly, this new law recognizes the unsecure nature of the Internet and looks at knowledge (personal information in this case) as an asset to be protected. I like this angle. We talk about KM but do not usually recognize that the “M” is management and good management means good protection.

I predict the Nevada law will see various challenges in the near future, but welcome dialogue on this vital KM issue.