Today the new Windows Phone 7 launches in the US and Canada.  It is time to see how Microsoft's newest entry stacks up against the current generation of smartphones.  I know that I and many others have been waiting for this one.  Learn more here.

Client: "Should I get Time Matters or PCLaw?"

David: "If you have to go one or the other, go PCLaw first.  You can't afford Time Matters if you're not getting paid."

Client: "Ok, so what do I do about contact and case management?"

David: "PCLaw."

Client: "I thought PCLaw was a billing and accounting program?"

I can't tell you how many times one of our user's PCs crash, fail or get infected by a virus and need "regen'd" (what we call formating the drive and reinstalling).  When this happens the first thing we always hear is, "can you get back my data?"  In some situations the answer is yes, in others - no such luck!  Want to know how you can minimize the sleep you lose each night in these situations?  Don't save stuff to your PC!

Over the next few weeks, through this blog series and our TechLect series (free training) on the same topic, I'm going to give you some tips on things you can do to make saving stuff to your network more automatic.

I find that typically users save things to the locations they do b/c...

We have seen a lot of different methods people use for backing up their important data.  So, I figured it would be  nice to compare some of these methods.  This post looks at the pros and cons of each method.

Tape Drives

For years, we have recommended tape as the medium of choice for backups.

You rely on your legal applications to help you run your firm.  What would happen if you lost the data in these applications?

• Downtime?
• Lost Productivity?
• Lost Opportunities?
• Need for Rework?
• Malpractice Claims?
• Bar Sanctions?

It is a fact that backups of your legal applications are essential.

Many of our clients back up their entire server nightly, including the databases containing their legal application data.  This is, of course, a great way to ensure proper backups.  But did you know that you can make standalone backups from your legal applications in addition to the server backup?

In April, we introduced our newest service offering, SpliceNet Protect.  We detailed how it can protect you data and decrease downtime in the event of a server failure.  We have had a lot of interest in this service and several firms have already signed up and have SpliceNet Protect working in their office.

Most firms are especially excited about the day-to-day benefits they enjoy with SpliceNet Protect:

1. SpliceNet Protect lets you ditch your tapes
2. SpliceNet Protect is monitored and regularly tested by SpliceNet techs
3. SpliceNet Protect is charged monthly instead of incurring a large upfront cost

Trade switching tapes everyday for a minimal intervention system.  Trade your need to monitor your backups for professional monitoring.  Trade large upfront costs for easily budgeted monthly payments.  Sound like a winner?  Many other firms think so.

I just read this article on "how to make a good home office great."  I want to make three comments.

I ran across this great slideshow covering some of the amazing new features of Office 2010.  My favorites:

Tape backups have been the backup method recommended by sophisticated consultants for the last decade.  Tape media is extremely resilient, and can last for years without degradation of backup integrity.  But tape backups have been facing stiff competition from other backup methods.  Tape backups have a higher up-front cost than disk-based solution.  Even more importantly, both tape and disk-based solutions require daily switching of tapes (or drives) and ensuring that copies are kept off-site in the event of a disaster.

Next came the off-site backup solutions.  Not the consumer-oriented ones you hear about on the radio, but true, business-class off-site solutions.  But these can present a problem if a failed server requires you to restore from an off-site backup, as the restore can take a long time (your internet connection speed being the bottleneck).  They also don't give any failover functionality.

So, we decided we needed to look into something more comprehensive.  After months of planning and debate, we have just begun offering our newest service, SpliceNet Protect.

Since I'm the TechGuru in our family, I keep all of our family pics, important docs, videos and music on my PC.  Without question, I keep them more organized than my wife would (don't tell her I said so or she'll have my head).  The problem is that when she needs them I have to give up my notebook for what seems to be an eternity (and I'm always worried she's messing up my stuff -l ol).  It also always seemed that she needed something when I'm at work.  Needless to say, I had to find a solution to keep her happy and my sanity.

A good friend turned me onto Microsoft Live Sync, part of the Microsoft Live suite of free products found at sync.live.com.  This cool tool not only keeps the files you choose sync'd between 2 or more PCs, it also helps you Remote Access any of your Sync Devices.

Short of subscribing to an online backup service, this is a great solution for redundancy (NOT backup).  Think of it; if your PC crashes and/or your burned CD/DVDs are scratched you're out of luck (you know your wife/husband will have a heart-attack).  With WIndows Live Sync, you're good (or at least somewhat better off) as you can have copies on multiple systems.

If you don't already have a Microsoft Live account, you'll need to setup one first.  Then download the Sync app on the PCs you want to keep sync'd.  When you install, you'll be asked for the user/pass for Live ID.  After the app is installed, right click on it from the systray (by the windows clock) and visit the Sync Website.  This is where you will setup the folders you want to keep sync'd up.

Since I set it up, Nicole doesn't nag me any longer about her pics and music.  Fear not though, she's moved on to something else that'll probably take me a couple of months to get around to fixing.  Just kidding honey (just in case she reads this).