News.com.au reports that, according to research conducted by Australian firm Deacons, almost half of those of the 700 “workers” it surveyed who use MySpace and Facebook during work hours say they would refuse a job where they were not allowed access to social networking sites. The study found 62 per cent of respondents (that’s 434 […]
Just came across Tell Them What You Think, an extremely handy site which aggregates government consultations and enables you to: search all current government consultations for words and phrases browse all latest consultations by department set up alerts via email or RSS to tell you when consultations of interest are published There are several departments […]
A chain of people in my orbit seem to agree that a simple test as to when to use a blog and when to use a wiki for collaboration is: one or two people providing content, use a blog; many people providing content, use a wiki (Mark Miller > Doug Cornelius > KnowledgeThoughts > James […]
First published in Legal Executive Journal, April 2008 Law blogs (aka “blawgs”) are still unfamiliar territory for many lawyers. Though not a new phenomenon, blogging itself and even reading blogs is definitely not yet normal for lawyers. Space does not permit coverage of basics such as what a blog is and the mechanics of blogging; […]
When Google launched it’s Custom Search Engine service 18 months ago, I expected thousands of CSEs to pop up all over. That’s happened, but I’m not aware that any in the areas I monitor have made a mark. Why so? In the UK legal arena I know of only a few CSEs: I put together […]
The folks at mySociety are really moving on Society 2.0. mySociety is a charity which builds natty Web 2.0 sites that give people simple, tangible benefits in the civic and community aspects of their lives. It also aims to teach the public and voluntary sectors, through demonstration, how to most efficiently use the internet to […]
We’re fortunate to have a new encumbent as Minister for Transformational Government at the Cabinet Office who really gets it – Westminster über-blogger, Tom Watson. His vision is encapsulated in his recent speech at the Transformational Government Event. And his plans for the immediate future are ambitious: I see my job as helping you to […]
Fred Cavazza has an extremely informative primer for those interested in applying Web 2.0 within their organisation.
A long-awaited private study by Cambridge University into the pricing of public sector information (PSI) by trading funds (Ordnance Survey, Met Office, Companies House, Land Registry et al) was published on the side with the 2008 Budget Report. The study was commissioned by BERR following the OFT’s market study into the commercial use of PSI […]
Law librarians were quick to comment when Carolyn Elefant on Legal Blog Watch posed the question Are Law Libraries Becoming Obsolete? Steve Matthews was first up: “it does bug me that every other department in the law firm can evolve, but when Libraries do, they’re suddenly obsolete”; and the next: “this posting does take a […]
Time to mention Jordan Furlong’s Law21 blog – dispatches from a legal profession on the brink: In the 21st century, the practice of law is shaking loose from its traditional moorings and heading out into uncharted territory. Opportunities abound, but so do pitfalls. Most of the old rules won’t apply anymore, while some will matter […]
Further to my suggestions for keeping your inbox in check, Jordan Furlong has a few suggestions to add: Clients. Set up an extranet for each client; add an RSS feed. If you need to ask your client a question, call her. Colleagues (down the hall). Something wrong with your legs? / use the phone. Cooperation. […]
John Bolch on Family Lore relates the sad tale of local (Kent) firms who are shedding staff by the dozen due to the property slump. And following their conveyancing business may well be their whole business. Anecdotal evidence is that HIPs are as much to blame as the sub-prime crisis. Who agrees? Who disagrees? Who […]
A 2008 Workplace Productivity Survey (pdf), commissioned by LexisNexis reports that: more than seven in ten American white collar workers feel inundated with information at their workplace, while more than two in five feel that they are headed for an information “breaking point.” The survey of 650 white collar and knowledge workers found that employees […]
A partner in a Silver Circle firm comments: Was noticing that while your site is very detailed in some areas, your discussions, views etc on LPO [legal process outsourcing] are very light. Although you could say that Susskind’s views overlap here? But is this deliberate from you? It seems to be finally moving and I […]
