Multiple Monitors Increase Productivity
The New York Times has an article regarding “The Virtues of a Second Screen.” It might seem obvious, but the article works hard to establish the fact that increase screen real estate increases productivity.
I wonder how this might apply specifically to law students and attorneys. Just from my own experience, I know it would be very helpful to have multiple monitors, especially when doing research and writing. Thus, you could have Westlaw or Lexis open on one screen and your working document on another.
Do any of you have the luxury of a second monitor? If so, has it helped your productivity? Please leave a comment and let us know what your experience has been.
The New York Times: The Virtues of a Second Screen
[tags]legal andrew, monitor, screen[/tags]
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Kill Your Mouse: Your Legal Career Will Thank You
Why do we tolerate mice on our desk, but not in the rest of the house? People seem to think they need their computer’s mouse at all times. My argument in response is quite simply that this is not true. Sure, mouse manufacturers want you to think you have to have a mouse to use a computer, but they have a financial incentive to do so.
Maybe people are just so attached to their little oblong friend that they cannot let go of it, for fear that they will be all alone in the computer wilderness. Honestly, if I was going into unknown territory the last companion I would pick to go with me would be a mouse. I would pick a horse, a dog, a cat, even a pig before I would pick a mouse.
This is the beginning of a series I intend to write on killing your mouse. I was prompted to write this by sitting in my law school classes and watching my classmates plug in their various mice to their laptops. Some people bring the corded variety, while others opt for the admittedly nifty wireless kind. Needless to say, everyone one of these people have TWO excellent input devices that trump a mouse any day: keyboard and touch-pad (or track-stick).
What are the benefits of killing your mouse? Indeed, there are many, but here are a few:
- Less equipment to carry around
- Fewer cords to be tangled up
- Increased productivity
- Decreased arm movement = less tiring computer operation
My Mousey Story
Before writing any more, I must confess that I am a former mouse-lugger. I have been using a laptop to take notes in class since my undergraduate days. I lugged a mouse to and from school for years. That is, until I became FREE.
Eventually I got tired of carrying around my mouse, and since I was not lucky enough to have a wireless one, I decided to start leaving it at home. All I did at school was type notes, check email, etc, so I figured I could manage with the keyboard and touch-pad. It was a pain at first, but eventually I learned to manage and saved myself time and trouble at school. However, I still plugged my mouse into the laptop every day when I got home. Finally, last fall I wrapped the mouse cord up and put it away. I am proud to say that I have been mouse-sober since that time.
What Will You Learn Here?
Through the course of this series, I hope to show that you can operate a computer without a mouse (even if you don’t have a touch-pad). Here are just a few of the things we will go through:
- Keyboard shortcuts
- Keystroke automation
- Computer add-ons to make these quicker and easier
After the completion of this series you will be much more proficient at a computer, increasing your productivity and speed on tasks ranging from browsing the web to doing legal research to writing. Your legal career will benefit from these tips.
Personal Challenge
It is an interesting exercise to take away your mouse for even 15 minutes and see how things go. If you are not familiar with keyboard shortcuts, you will probably feel like you are in computer Hell without your trusty sidekick. However, take the challenge anyway and see if you can make it 15 minutes without your mouse.
Once you have done the challenge, you’re ready to begin reading the rest of this series. My personal goal is for you to be keyboard proficient by the end of the series. Then when you try the 15 minute mouse-less exercise again you will hopefully not want to re-connect the mouse.
[tags]legal andrew, mouse, keyboard[/tags]
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Free Your Inner Creativity With a “Brain Rain”
This is an interesting exercise for your mind that might help with writer's block on that term paper or brief, or it might even help come up with some great lines for your closing argument.
James Ledoux explains a method of setting aside a few minutes every day for a "brain rain." The basic idea is to clear aside any distractions, have pen and paper ready, and just let your thoughts pour out. He explains it best:
Keys to catching the brain rain:
- set aside 10 minutes, each and every day
- have pen and paper handy
- allow yourself the freedom to think crazy thoughts
- don’t worry if nothing really productive springs to mind right away
- periodically scan over your notes from these sessions as things may pop into your mind after they have “marinated” for a while
- if no ideas pop into your head pick a fun topic and doodle a bit
- use word association to get things rolling if you feel stuck e.g. thinking -> thoughts -> mind -> brainstorm -> brain rain
This would be a great way to clear your thoughts at the end of the day. In my opinion, the emphasis should not be on coming up with something great but rather on freeing your mind. Since we only use a tiny portion of our brains at any one time, maybe one of those dormant sectors will spew out something spectacular.
I have not tried this yet, but I plan to soon. I am actually kind-of scared what might fall out of my brain in one of these sessions. Does anyone do anything like a "brain rain" during their daily routine? If so, drop a line or leave a comment.
Warm, Partly Cloudy, 100% Chance of Brain Rain [via 43 Folders]
[tags]legal andrew, brain rain, 43 folders[/tags]
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Save Writing Time with Footnote Hotkey
For those Microsoft Word users out there, first let me say, I’m sorry. But, I am in the same boat as you. However, maybe my little tip today will help make your end-of-term papers just a little bit quicker to get through.
As anyone in the legal field (be it school or practice) knows, legal writing entails fun footnotes. I suppose that applies more to school, since law review format calls for footnotes. So when you are typing along on your research paper or note, why take all that time to click Insert, Reference, Footnote? Word provides a handy little hotkey that will insert a footnote wherever your cursor sits, then automatically put the cursor in the footnote, ready for your citation. Simply press CTRL+ALT+F, and voila! Instant footnote!
For a comprehensive list of Word keyboard shortcuts, go here [Microsoft Office Assistance]. If you do not know many hotkeys, you should seriously start learning them. They are huge time savers.
Ok, that is enough of a distraction for me today. I better get back to my research paper. It will be done eventually.
[tags]legal andrew, microsoft word, word, footnote hotkey, footnote, hotkey[/tags]
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ScrapBook speeds up legal research
My first legal “tip” is about a nifty Firefox extension called ScrapBook. Not only will it speed up your legal research, but you can also use it for a myriad of other purposes.
First of all, I should mention that I am a die-hard Firefox fan. If you are not on the band wagon, you should hop on.
Back to ScrapBook. This extension (free plug-in module) allows you to save and edit any web page by selecting a simple option in your right-click context menu.
Here is quick feature list from the developer’s website:
- Save Web page
- Save snippet of Web page
- Save Web site (In-depth Capture)
- Organize the collection in the same way as Bookmarks
- Highlighter, Eraser and various page editing features
- Full text search and quick filtering search
- Text edit feature resembling Opera’s Notes
The benefit for research of any kind should be obvious, especially for online research systems like LexisNexis and Westlaw. Instead of taking the time and steps to print your research materials (or download them somewhere and organize them), you can simply right-click, select “Capture Page As…” and then give it a title. ScrapBook has a handy sidebar option that allows you to manage your documents, create folders, etc.
The BEST part of all this is that you can then highlight, erase, edit, and annotate the pages, just like you could if they were hard copies. Plus, all of your research materials are at the tip of your mouse pointer, instead of in a huge pile of mess on the floor.
Firefox Extension Site: ScrapBook
Does anyone have other handy and easy ways to organize their research? Leave a comment and fill us in.
Now I better fire up ScrapBook and get to work on my research paper.
[tags]legal andrew, firefox, scrapbook, research[/tags]
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About Andrew Flusche
Lawyer, bicyclist, husband.
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