Quick Tip: Collecting Outlook Email Addresses

August 26, 2010

Let’s face it, not everyone keeps their outlook contacts up to date.  It takes time to enter everyone’s contact information and it seems like there is never enough time.  If you are faced with the challenge of needing to collect all the email addresses you have sent or received from, Outlook provides an option that will allow to do just that.  No email harvesting software necessary, just follow these simple steps:

• In Outlook click on File, Import and Export and the Wizard opens up
• Select the option to Export to a File and click on Next
• Select Microsoft Excel 97-2003 (or a CSV file) and click on Next
• Select the folder you want to collect from and click on Next.  For starters, try you sent mail and inbox.
• Click on Browse to select a location and then type the file name that you want to export the information to and then click on Next
• Here is the important bit – click on Map Custom Fields. This will bring up a list of all the available fields that are available in that folder.
  If you are only interested in Email address, click on Clear Map and then from the Left side click on From: (address) and To: (address) and drag that to the Right list
• Click on OK
• Click on Finish

The file it exports may look kind of crazy, but it is simple to clean up.  If you want to delete personal emails (hotmail, gmail, etc), just find and replace *hotmail.com and *gmail.com with nothing and delete the blank lines in excel.  Now, that wasn’t as hard as you thought it would be, right?

NeedleFinder Analysis & Early Case Assessment Demo Available

August 10, 2010

 

NeedleFinder®’s powerful e-discovery analysis technology enables legal teams to reduce costs and increase productivity by culling documents to only the relevant dataset while protecting from inadvertent production of privileged information.

The searching and culling tools are populated with the facts that have been extracted from the metadata contained in the evidence provided by the case’s custodians. Using these tools, you can quickly sort and categorize documents as privileged, responsive, non-responsive, or confidential; or customize the categories as your case dictates. The software’s unique Analyzer tool enables you to view all custodians’ direct or indirect email threads and expose individuals you previously did not know about to mitigate risk.

More Than Search

NeedleFinder’s technology goes beyond search to provide a comprehensive assessment of the evidence to protect your client or organization.

•  Filter documents by custodian, date range, file type, search terms, tags, document status, and more.
• Tag documents, emails, attachments, and conversations on the fly.
• Filter emails by domain, sender, recipients, subject, time, and many other fields; and choose whether to include duplicates, attachments, or email threads.

One Platform

Because it is an end-to-end e-discovery platform, documents reside in NeedleFinder throughout the life cycle of the case. The Send Documents to Review button immediately transfers documents from Analysis to Review. It’s our version of an “Easy Button.” 

If you are interested in learning more about how NeedleFinder can help you reduce your review data set, contact us for a demonstration today at 512-472-9911.  Or, for a quick 7 minute video demo, click here to be taken to the EQD NeedleFinder demo site.

The Electronic Discovery Reference Model

June 7, 2010

The Electronic Discovery Reference Model (or EDRM) may be old news to some but it really is a great visual tool when starting an eDiscovery project.  According to EDRM.net, the EDRM diagram represents a conceptual view of the eDiscovery process and each box represents a major stage of the process.  Intended as a basis for discussion and analysis – and not as the ONLY way to do things – it can help both the legal team and service providers assess the scope & timeline for a case and provides a logical path for collection, review & processing of ESI.

 

Below is a basic explanation of each of the EDRM steps and where Rainmaker fits into the process:

1.  Information Management – Getting your electronic house in order to mitigate risk & expenses should e-discovery become an issue, from initial creation of electronically stored information through its final disposition.

• Creating a data mapping plan and knowing where your data resides is an essential step to take BEFORE litigation occurs.

 2.  Identification – Locating potential sources of ESI & determining its scope, breadth & depth. 

• Rainmaker’s partnership with the experts at Digital Discovery allows us to assist clients in gathering ESI from all potential sources, not just the obvious ones.  We can also help identify custodians and relevant sources of data, which in the long run can save costs by reducing the amount of data that needs to be reviewed.

 3.  Preservation – Ensuring that ESI is protected against inappropriate alteration or destruction.

 4.  Collection – Gathering ESI for further use in the e-discovery process (processing, review, etc.).

•  Proper forensic collection is essential  and we can provided the knowledge and tools necessary to collect data the right way the first time, using defensible methods. 

5.  Processing – Reducing the volume of ESI and converting it, if necessary, to forms more suitable for review & analysis.

•  Known file identification, date range and keyword searching all help to reduce the amount of data to review. Searching capabilities are available by file type, file extension, date range, keywords and other metadata fields. Once the relevant documents are identified they can be tagged for production or further review.

6.  Review – Evaluating ESI for relevance & privilege.

•  One popular option for this stage is an E-load, which allows our clients to review their data natively before they produce. E-Loads can lead to a significant reduction in the number of relevant documents and can reduce clients’ review workload and save them thousands of production dollars.

7.  Analysis – Evaluating ESI for content & context, including key patterns, topics, people & discussion.

•  This stage is performed by counsel.

 8.  Production – Delivering ESI to others in appropriate forms & using appropriate delivery mechanisms.

•  Rainmaker’s EDD solution supports dozens of file types, easily converting your native documents to black and white or color images, capturing full text from text based files and all document metadata from the electronic files.  We offer a variety of electronic labeling options, as well as OCR.
• Our technology makes load files effortless so they work perfectly the first time. We support all popular formats including, but not limited to, Summation, Concordance, IPRO, CaseLogistix, Introspect, CaseMap, Ringtail, Sanction, Trial Director, iCONECT, OmniDox, JFS Litigator’s Notebook, Doculex, BlueTrace, DocuMatrix, LaserFiche, TotalVzn, PDF’s and PDF files with bookmarks. We can provide standard load fields or customize them to your exact specifications. 

9.  Presentation – Displaying ESI before audiences (at depositions, hearings, trials, etc.)  to elicit further information, validate existing facts or positions, or persuade an audience.

•  We can assist you in creating and labeling images for use in the courtroom, as well as preparing visual aids such as presentation boards.

 For more information on how Rainmaker can assist you and your team with the EDRM process, please contact us at 512.426.9911.

Note: Except where otherwise noted, content posted at edrm.net is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 United States License.

Webpage to PDF Conversion

May 12, 2010

Have you ever tried to print a web page only to have what prints out look NOTHING like what you see in your browser?  Websites and pages are generally not set up to print exactly like you see on your monitor and often times things move around and graphics don’t print out, which can be incredibly frustrating. 

I ran into this problem when I was re-designing the Rainmaker website and I wanted to print sample pages to share with our team.  The paper version shifted and didn’t look the same as it was on the screen so it was totally useless when trying to share the layout and discuss different graphic options. 

Luckily, at an Austin LSA meeting yesterday, I learned of a few solutions that I thought might come in handy.  The website web2pdfconvert.com allows you to type in the web address and bang – 3 seconds later you have a perfect picture in PDF form.  They do put their logo at the bottom, but that can removed later if need be. 

If you happen to have Adobe Professional you can use it to do your conversion, logo free.  Just open Adobe on a computer with Internet access and click file, create PDF, from web page.  Enter the URL you want and after the status box closes, you will have a PDF complete with URL and date and time stamp at the bottom.  If the create date and time are important, be sure to check that your computer’s date and time stamp are accurate before you create the PDF. 

Both of these are useful solutions for personal, profession or attorney use.  Sometimes it is essential to have a picture of a webpage exactly as it is, before someone has a chance to change it.  Hopefully these solutions will make it easier on you!

Rainmaker Sponsors Bench Bar Conference

April 29, 2010

This Friday and Saturday the Austin Bar Association is hosting the 20th Annual Bench Bar Conference.  The Bench Bar is designed to encourage discussion between the bench and bar regarding practice in Travis County through panel presentations with audience participation and an afternoon session of collaboration.  The team at Rainmaker has been involved in the conference since its inception and we are proud to be printing the course materials and sponsoring again this year.

Rainmaker will be in attendance on Friday during the day sessions to greet clients and share our services with those in attendance.  Friday night speakers and attendees are invited to a wine tasting, buffet dinner and “game night”, including Guitar Hero!  The always-fun golf tournament portion of the conference will be held on Saturday at Star Ranch in Hutto.  Good luck to all the teams participating – especially ours – and thanks again to the Bar Association for bringing together the bench and bar for this important conference.

Happy Earth Day!

April 22, 2010

Today is the 40^th anniversary and celebration of Earth Day.  With individuals, organizations and companies participating from all over the world it is a day to stop and think about our planet and what we can do to make environmental protection a part of our daily life.

Unfortunately, discovery is a paperwork-intensive process and that’s why Rainmaker is committed to conducting business in the most eco-friendly manner possible: 

• We use copy paper certified as part of the Sustainable Forestry Initiative, which means it is from well-managed forests, backed by a rigorous, third-party certification audit. 
• We use file folder tabs and redwells made from recycled material.
• We recycle 99% of all paper generated in our office using a secure confidential document shredding company.
• Since 2003 our business has evolved from one which annually generated tens of millions sheets of paper to a company which produces 85% electronic images.
• As of 2008, 99% of all administrative tasks once involving the generation of paper and storage of boxes have been converted to electronic images.
• We use motion sensitive light switches that allow us to reduce our energy consumption when employees are out of the office. 
• 100% of our website server power comes from renewable energy such as wind power. 
• 90% of all waste produced by our building at 111 Congress Ave. is sorted and recycled

Wondering how you can get involved?

• Commit to take action and reduce, reuse and recycle by picking 5 simple steps that make a big impact.  Visit the Environmental Protection Agency’s website for information on their Pick 5 program.
• Did you know that according to the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA), Americans own approximately 24 electronic products per household?  For information on reducing your electronic waste and eCycling, click here.
• Need a daily reminder to go green?  Sign up for this daily green tip email and get real life ideas from people that are committed to helping the environment.

The Downside of DIY Data Collection

April 6, 2010

In today’s cost-conscious legal environment more and more attorneys are being faced with clients that insist on collecting electronically stored information (ESI) themselves.  While it might seem like a good idea in the beginning, there are some challenges that arise from the DIY method of collection. 

While they are wonderful at their job, IT departments and support staff might not have the legal knowledge and tools necessary to collect data using defensible methods and could end up costing the firm more money in the end.  Possible pitfalls include: 

• Collection not being done by an independent third party
• Clients’ collecting their own data without a proper data mapping plan may overlook key sources of data such as deleted files
• Improper collection can alter or change valuable metadata – for example, Modified Date and Date Last Opened
• Individuals might not be experienced with forensic applications and damage source data
• Chain of custody requirements might not be observed, invalidating evidence
• Opposing counsel could argue about methods and tools used for collection at trial
• Inadvertent spoliation that would be harder to defend against
• Individual performing collection might not be recognized as an expert witness to testify

 

Involving a trained forensics company in the early phases of the Litigation Cycle starts the case off on the right path and can actually save you money in the long run.  Rainmaker has partnered with Digital Discovery to serve our client’s collection, preservation and investigation needs.  Since 1998, Digital Discovery has combined the science of computer forensics with the blend of technology and art to turn back time and paint a vivid picture of what a system was used for yesterday, last week, last month or last year.  Digital Discovery will track down data that was moved, copied, deleted or compromised while adhering to strict rules of evidentiary preservation to avoid spoliation and maintain the chain of custody.  Their certified investigators and practitioners bring a broad range of experience in information technology, information security and forensic investigation in both civil and government matters. As a result, they are recognized as subject expert witnesses in US State and Federal Court proceedings.

Have a new case that involves eDiscovery and not sure where to start?  Rainmaker and Digital Discovery can help you create a data mapping plan and locate potential sources of information that may otherwise be overlooked.  Working together we can collect, preserve and process your data for further review.  After filtering and searching we can provide you with a production set that meets your exact specificaitons.  Our partnership results in an end-to-end solution from a staff that are experts in their field.  If you are interested in learning more about how Rainmaker can help you, please contact us at 512.472.9911.

Women in eDiscovery

March 10, 2010

As a service provider in the legal industry, Rainmaker is a member of several organizations and associations that support industry professionals but one of the organizations that I personally enjoy the most is Women in eDiscovery.  Founded by three women in the industry, the organizations seeks to bring together women interested in technology related to the legal industry and to provide opportunities for them to help themselves and other women grow personally and professionally through leadership, education, networking support, and national recognition.

 The organizations goals are:

• To create leadership and networking opportunities among women who are interested in helping themselves and other women grow personally and professionally.
• To advocate the viewpoint of professional women in the legal industry especially on issues affecting the application of technology in their roles at work and at home.
• To bridge the knowledge gap for women between old technology, traditional technology, and future trends.
• To offer educational and certification opportunities for women who are interested in furthering their education in legal and technology fields.
• To establish a strong communication network among women focused in the legal and technology industries.

The technology side of this business is often male-dominated and it is nice to have a group of women to learn and grow with.  The Central Texas chapter is experiencing growth and we hold monthly meetings with a vendor-sponsored lunch and presentation.  Our membership includes paralegals, litigation support professionals and vendors from a variety of companies.  If you would like to be included in the monthly meeting you can email wiedaustin (at) gmail.com.

If you are interested in joining your local chapter, please visit their website.  Membership is free (yay!) and there are no special requirements to join.

Updated FTP Now Available

March 2, 2010

Our customers asked for it and we listened!  Our updated website also includes a new FTP  – File Transfer Protocol – section that allows our clients to quickly and easily upload files for us to print, label, manipulate and process.

In addition to sending files to us, the new FTP allows your Account Representative to easily email your finished product directly to you.  Much like YouSendIt or SendThisFile, we can generate a link that allows you to download your file – no password or log in required.  Its completely secure and works great in deadline intense situations.  If your Litigation Support department is located in another office, we are happy to send them load files directly for uploading.

To Get Started:

• If your file is under 10 MB, you may email it to your Account Representative
• For files over 10 MB, our new FPT makes it quick and easy to transfer them to us for processing

 Step 1: Go to www.gorainmaker.comand click on Client Login at the top menu

 Step 2:Enter your provided Username and Password – if you do not have one, please contact your Account Representative and they will be happy to set one up for you.

Step 3:  Click on “Upload” in the top right hand corner just below the blue bar that says Logout

Step 4:  Select “Browse” and locate the file you would like to upload on your computer

• Follow the step above to add a single file
• If you have more than one file, you can upload one at a time this way or
• If you would like to send several files together, you will need to create a folder on your computer and put all your files in it.  Then you will need zip that entire folder and upload the single zip file as pictured above 

Step 5:  Once your file is selected and the filename appears below, click the Upload button

• If it is a very large file or folder, it may take some time to upload and please note there is no progress or “time remaining” bar

Step 6:  Email your Account Representative with the following information:

•  The Username you used to upload the files
•  The name of the file(s) you have uploaded
• If you uploaded a zip folder, the number of files it contains
• Your billing number
• The copy/print instructions
• When you would like the project completed and delivered

Questions?  Problems?  Want to learn more about what Rainmaker can do for you and your company?  Give us a call at 512-472-9911.

To print a step-by-step tutorial with screen shots, please click here.

Blogging About Blogging

February 26, 2010

This week was the monthly Capital Area Paralegal Association meeting and I had the pleasure of hearing John Heining from the Texas Legislative Council speak on “An Overview of the Law and Ethics of Blogging.” As the Rainmaker Document Technologies resident blogger, I was very interested to hear what he had to say about the topic and any potential issues that could arise regarding my blog posts. It was a very interesting presentation with humorous real life examples of what could and has gone wrong for others.

Before I go into the take-away’s from the lunch, lets first take a quick look at why people blog in the first place. Blogs are a great way to share information with friends and family about your personal life. They allow you to express feelings and opinions, share funny stories and even pictures. Blogs like this one are also used as a business tool. Google loves fresh, new content so to assist with SEO (Search Engine Optimization) businesses create new information on their website using blog posts. The trouble arises when people, business and public figures start sharing personal opinions that could be considered controversial.

While most of the information in John’s presentation pertained towards those actually in government or practicing law, there were some key points that I found very interesting:

• While you may be posting your articles from your desk in Texas, blogs and websites can be read all over the world and are therefore also subject to the laws of other states and countries. For example, in the US it might be ok to say something defaming about a celebrity as long as it is true, but, in England, newspapers and tabloids can get in trouble for printing even true negative statements. Just ask Madonna about this one.
• Just because something is deleted from the web doesn’t mean it is really gone. Websites such as Google and Archive.org use a “wayback” machine that takes pictures of websites at certain points in time. Deleting something may help you get in less trouble, but it doesn’t make it go away or change the fact that you posted it.
• Disclaimers never hurt. You know that language you see at the bottom of your tax accountant’s email? The one that says “Any tax advice contained in the body of this material was not intended or written to be used, and cannot be used…blah blah blah.” Well, that is so they are covered. Links, referrals and endorsements should be handled with care especially if you are in a business partnership with someone and they are profiting from your referrals. For example, if you are and attorney with a specialization and you refer a client you can not personally assist to someone that pays you for referrals, you need to make that relationship known.
• What you say can and will be held against you. Be careful what you say about the company you work for, your boss or any controversial topic. What you say is permanent and although it may sound like a good idea at the time, you never know how it could affect your future. Potential employers have started searching blogs and social media sites from information about applicants and its better to be safe than sorry.

The moral of the story is this – blogs are not anonymous so it’s best to stay away from upsetting things that could get you in trouble. Everything is permanent so think about the effects of your opinion on your future. Oh, and expect a disclaimer post on this blog in the very near future…….

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