The Kennedy-Mighell Report

Notifications and reminders are useful when they remind you about your daughter’s soccer game, an upcoming meeting, or a software update. But are lawyers (and everyone else) being bombarded with too many notifications all day long? There is a difference between a calendar alert and having Omnifocus remind you what you haven’t accomplished today. Furthermore, with the development of smartwatches, notifications can constantly distract you all day long. Are we as lawyers using reminders and notifications on our programs and devices as effectively as we can? Where do we draw the line? In this episode of The Kennedy-Mighell Report, Dennis Kennedy and Tom Mighell discuss the life-encompassing emergence of reminders and notifications, how to control them effectively, and their benefits to lawyers’ personal and professional lives. Dennis discusses personalizing notification settings and mentions that the default settings on most apps are overkill, yet many people never modify them. Tom talks about the changing mobile platform, how email notifications can distract and drain lawyers at work, and the difference between necessary reminders and optional notifications. They finish the section with recommendations for trimming down and properly filtering your notifications so that they work for you rather than distract you unnecessarily. In the second half of this podcast, Dennis and Tom go over the subject of application updates; should we install them the day they come out? They discuss the benefits (security) and downfalls (bugs) of automatically updating your apps and other software. Stay tuned for a Parting Shots segment with several useful podcast recommendations. Special thanks to our sponsor, ServeNow. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Even lawyers start the new year with at least a few resolutions. Some are predictable, falling into the usual categories like exercise or diet. However, creating legal technology based resolutions can really help your practice and overall happiness. Have you been thinking about trying a new app or learning to use one you’ve already downloaded? Does the idea of starting a blog or finding a new podcast interest you? Do you need some ideas? To help listeners with some ideas, Dennis Kennedy and Tom Mighell discuss their 2016 technology resolutions in this episode of The Kennedy-Mighell Report. They contemplate the usefulness of resolutions in general, examine their 2015 goals and whether they were completed, and make a new set of legal tech resolutions for the upcoming year. Using a system of threes, Dennis and Tom set up general and specific resolutions including online content and engagement, learning to use new tools, digital organization and pruning, and collaboration with other lawyers. Tune in and compare your goals with theirs; maybe you’ll decide to add one more! In the second half of this podcast, Dennis and Tom recommend previous Kennedy-Mighell Report episodes that new listeners might want to try. Sometimes legal technology discussions don’t stand the test of time, but many of their previous podcasts are still applicable today. As always, stay tuned for Parting Shots, that one tip, website, or observation you can use the second the podcast ends. Special thanks to our sponsor, ServeNow. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In 2015, we were introduced to a plethora of tools designed to make lawyers’ lives easier. However, not every legal professional has the same technological needs, and not every lawyer knows how to find the most useful tools for him or herself. In this episode of The Kennedy-Mighell Report, Dennis Kennedy and Tom Mighell ring in the new year by sharing their favorite apps, websites, gadgets, and technology advice of 2015. They cover their favorite task management tools, cloud and Dropbox service options, search tools, news sources, VPNs, password managers, polling software, and much more. Tune in for a debate on whether the Microsoft Surface Pen is better than Apple’s Pencil and website suggestions for any lawyer who wants to use technology better. In the second half of this podcast, Tom and Dennis discuss where they discover their best legal tech tips. Their sources include Twitter, panels they’ve attended like ‘30 Legal Tech Tips in 30 Seconds,’ and RSS feeds where they can get links from colleagues and friends in the legal tech world. The hosts wrap up their inaugural 2016 podcast with Parting Shots, the section that always includes tips that you’ll be able to start using as soon as you’re finished listening to the podcast. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

With the introduction of the iPad and other tablets and now touch screen computers like the Surface Pro and the Apple Pro, we seem to be moving further away from an exclusively keyboard/trackpad existence. Furthermore, with the introduction of Stylus Pens for tablets, is the keyboard on its way out completely? With an increase in the use of keyboard shortcuts and the average typing speed, maybe not. But with a new generation of children being raised with touchscreen devices, the keyboard-exclusive landscape of computer use is bound to change. In this episode of The Kennedy-Mighell Report Dennis Kennedy and Tom Mighell speculate on whether the pen or the finger is mightier than the keyboard. Is using a keyboard and mouse trackpad “normal”? Do you have to be a good typist to use a computer efficiently anymore? Why hasn’t the stylus replaced the legal pad? Is dictation the inevitable replacement for the keyboard, stylus, and finger? Tune in for Tom and Dennis’s take on the future of lawyers' interactions with computers. In the second half of this podcast, Dennis and Tom discuss "cord cutting” or the practice of canceling cable subscriptions and replacing them with app consumption products like Apple TV, Google Chromecast, Roku, and Amazon Fire. Although neither host has “cut the cord,” they analyze the benefits of individual subscription based networks like Netflix, Hulu, or HBO Now and whether they offer a replacement or simply a supplement to traditional television. As always, stay tuned for Parting Shots, that one tip, website, or observation you can use the second the podcast ends. Special thanks to our sponsor, ServeNow. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On the Internet, content may be king, but monetization through advertising runs a close second. But today’s ads seem more aggressive, intrusive, and annoying than ever. We’ve recently seen a return to a category of tools long known as ad blockers. What are the implications of ad blockers to lawyers and will they change the consumer’s Internet experience? In this episode of The Kennedy-Mighell Report, Dennis Kennedy and Tom Mighell discuss the return of ad-blocking technology, whether advertisements are still important in the online marketplace, and what this might mean for lawyers. They discuss the different types of ads from full page overlays, hard to find automatic sounds, Twitter or Facebook promotions, and the many pop-ups that are easy to accidently click on and hard to close. In the past, Dennis says, pop-ups became excessive and many people were using ad-blocking technology, but as browsers adapted, the need for ad blockers was reduced. Dennis also talks about the effect on bloggers, malware and security, and the alternatives he would like to see in the increasingly personalized Internet of 2015. Tom explains how YouTube, Google, and Apple are effectuating change and how he would like the option to pay for no advertisements, like in free versus paid apps. Finally, they discuss significance for lawyers with regard to ethical rules and technology competence and potential evidence for court. In the second half of this podcast, Tom gives an early report on his new Windows Surface Book. Dennis chimes in to mention the similarities and differences of his Macbook. As always, stay tuned for Parting Shots: that one tip, website, or observation you can use the second the podcast ends. Special thanks to our sponsor, ServeNow. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Dennis Kennedy and Tom Mighell examine the features of the iPad Pro and the Microsoft Surface Pro, leverage Tom’s expertise on both platforms, and help listeners determine which choice might make the most sense for them. Special thanks to our sponsor, ServeNow. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The 2015 ILTA/InsideLegal Technology Purchasing Survey and the 2015 ABA Legal Technology Survey results are in! Listen to Dennis and Tom discuss key results from these important legal tech surveys, highlight the most interesting trends, and discuss ways that lawyers can use these results to inform and tailor their technology plans for the coming year. In the second half of this podcast, the hosts talk about their experiences with the Amazon Echo personal digital assistant. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

From Fitbits and Apple Watches to robotic exoskeletons, we have entered the age of wearable technology. While this development has definite implications for a lawyer’s ethical duty of technology competence, it will also change how lawyers use technology in their practices. Dennis Kennedy and Tom Mighell discuss the increase in development of wearable technologies, the benefits for early adopters, and how the nature of legal practice will change. Special thanks to our sponsor, ServeNow. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Dennis Kennedy and Tom Mighell discuss the changing nature of reading (or listening to) books, talk about modern ways of reading, and share summer reading lists and ideas. In the second half of the podcast, Dennis and Tom discuss how The Florida Bar has dramatically changed their stance on technology. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Dennis Kennedy and Tom Mighell discuss the popularity of podcasting due to improving quality, popular podcasts like “Serial,” similar content intake forms like Netflix, and the ability to consume them on your own timeframe. They also examine the concept of “The Golden Age of Podcasting”; is this just a buzz phrase or are we really reaching a peak in podcast popularity? In a very flattering way, they suggest that their lawyer listeners try more Legal Talk Network podcasts and recommend ways of searching for new ones. Special thanks to our sponsor, ServeNow. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices