Standing Committee on
Legal Technology
April 2002 Vol. 9, No. 2
Statements or expressions of opinion or comments appearing herein are those of the editors or contributors, and not necessarily those of the association or section.
Contents
| * | Formatting commands in word |
| * | Governor Ryan issues order for integrated justice |
| * | Do it yourself: computer maintenance tips |
| * | Use the Styles |
By Nerino J. Petro, Jr., Loves Park
The Windows latest operating system (OS) release is called Windows XP (Win XP) and comes in two versions: home and professional. Professional differs from the home version by providing support for running multiple processors, offline file synchronization, remote network management, and has the ability to join a Win NT domain and other features primarily used in an office environment. Win XP, unlike Win95/98/ME, has at its core the Windows NT kernel and is really the next edition of Windows 2000. This means that the OS is much more stable than Win95/98/ME, as it does not have its roots in DOS. This stability results from the fact that unlike Win95/98/ME, Win XP does not allow software programs to write directly to key memory areas, thereby reducing the system crashes that users of Win95/98/ME are accustomed to encountering. While programs can still crash, they can usually be shut down without terminating the OS, including crashes of such programs as Explorer. This is all directly related to the NT kernel. However, prior to XP, NT and Win2000 were directed primarily to business users as there was little or no backwards compatibility to DOS programs and games. Plug n Play support was also non-existent or not as complete for adding new hardware components. Win XP overcomes these limitations and represents the merger of the consumer and business operating systems, doing away with the need to maintain separate OSs for home and business use.
As with most Microsoft releases, there has been and continues to be, controversy surrounding Win XP, including Microsoft bundling program features such as basic CD burning options, multimedia editing and system restoration settings. However, the loudest deals with Windows Product Activation (WPA) require contact to Microsoft to activate the program and the need to reactivate with Microsoft if you change computer hardware components. Win XP also continues the tradition of software bloat-- i.e., the program keeps getting bigger and requiring more room on your hard drive than prior versions. However, neither product activation nor software bloat is restricted only to Microsoft.
Many software companies, especially in the legal software market, require a user to call in and obtain an activation code after a certain number of days or uses of the program. With Win XP, the program will not run after 30 days without the product activation code. This can be obtained either online or by calling Microsoft and providing them with information from your computer. Win XP takes a snapshot of the various hardware components of your computer, and by using their identification information and an algorithm, it creates a code used for system identification and associates this with your registration code. If you try to activate another system with this registration code, the alarm goes off and the guys in black coats and sunglasses come to get you for software piracy. WPA is different from registering your software in that Microsoft assures they keep no system information and that the activation code is merely a device to protect against unlicensed copies being placed on multiple computer systems and software piracy. What this means is that you will no longer be able to use one copy of the program on your home, office and notebook computers. I won't address whether this is right or wrong; as I state above, this is not uncommon among other software packages on the market. It is hoped that since this strategy protects against unauthorized copies of Win XP, resulting in more legal copies sold and reduced losses because of piracy, the price of the software should drop. Only time will tell if this happens
The other issue connected to product activation really only applies to people who are always swapping out hardware, doing a lot of upgrades or who use a notebook with a docking station and are adding new components. After a lot of public input, Microsoft has modified Win XP to allow the following changes (as reported by several mainstream PC magazines) during any 120-day period without requiring re-activation with Microsoft if:
1) Your system has a network card, you can change up to six monitored components except the network card without triggering the need to re-activate;
2) Your system has a network card and you change it for a new one, you can change up to four pieces of monitored hardware;
3) You use a notebook with a docking station, you can make six to eight changes without requiring re-activation; and
4) You change only one or two components during any 120-day period, you should not have to re-activate.
The bottom line is that for most people, this should not be a problem.
Win XP's size and operating requirements do place higher requirements on the hardware components needed to successfully run this OS than either Win98 or Win ME. Computers purchased within the last 24 months should be capable of running the OS without fear having too little hardware "muscle." Older systems may not have enough hard drive space, memory, or a fast enough processor to run Win XP. As with any Microsoft OS, I always like to take the minimum requirements and double them to ensure full performance. As such, I would recommend a minimum of a Pentium II 500 or faster processor and at least 128 (preferring 256) megabytes of RAM on the system if you want to use all of the new video editing features. You also need to check to see that there are software drivers available for all your system hardware if you are upgrading; a non-compatible driver can cause a lot of frustration and prevent Windows XP from properly installing or running, and can create other problems with the program. If no Win XP driver is available, you can try using a Win 2000 driver.
If you are upgrading an older system, you can now have XP check for hardware and software compatibility issues before installing the upgrade. This means that you can identify potential conflicts before installing the upgrade, go out and obtain, through download or purchase, the correct software drivers and/or program updates, or remove unsupported hardware. You can also transfer your settings from your favorite programs to a new hard drive, which you could only do previously using third party programs, if at all.
I really had no plans to upgrade to XP as my home and office run on mixed Win98 and Win2000 systems. I've been very happy with Win2000 and realized significant up time over Win98. However, I brought a new system home pre-loaded with XP Home edition, and in November and I took my first steps into the Win XP experience.
Startup and login are faster than prior versions. The initial login screen is also more user-friendly and easier to navigate. After selecting the user, XP takes you to the new desktop interface called Luna. I have to say that, quite frankly, I was pleasantly surprised by the new interface and consider it a positive step forward from the current Win95/98/ME and Win2000 desktop. The start button now displays a cleaner menu with logical groupings, those for the OS itself on the right side and the left side containing the five programs that you use most often. Navigation is much more intuitive and the taskbar is much less cluttered. For those who prefer the current Windows desktop, you can switch from Windows XP to Windows Classic by changing the theme of the desktop.
Wizards for setting up Internet connections, setting up or joining a network, or changing settings are also greatly improved. According to published reports, the ability to setup wireless networks is almost effortless and without the problems encountered in any other Microsoft OS.
For households or offices where multiple users share one computer, the ability to switch users is improved not only in the ease with which it is done, but also in the significant increase in speed of switching from one to another. Each user can save specific settings for connections, resources and interface appearance without impacting another user.
The ability to restore XP to the settings at a prior point in time is greatly improved over the prior version found in Win ME. This is very important if your system starts to misbehave after installing a new piece of software or upgrading software drivers. You can "turn back the clock" to a point in time where you were not experiencing any problems.
Basic CD burning software is now included, as well as video editing and multimedia software. These are "lite" programs for the most part and may not be sufficient for your needs; however, for many people these basic programs may be sufficient.
The downside to XP, as previously referenced include:
1) Windows Product Activation;
2) Resource requirements;
3) Windows' ability to approve or not approve software drivers for third party manufacturers; and
4) Privacy concerns.
Overall, the level of integration, ease of use and sophistication is impressive in XP, especially for an initial release. If you are currently running Win 2000, there is probably little reason to upgrade to XP at this time; however, if you're running Win 95/98/ME, XP is definitely a step toward a more stable and easier-to-use OS. You will need to upgrade or replace some programs such as anti-virus and utility programs, and you may also have to upgrade hardware components as well, but it should be worth the effort.
By Adrienne Albrecht
One of the most frustrating searches when learning Microsoft Word is for the commands and switches that set the desired format for words, numbers, and dates. For some reason, reference book authors see no benefit to providing instructions with regards to Roman numerals or ordinal text in fields so that the result will look the way that lawyers may prefer. These field switches allow the user to accomplish almost any desired result and can be used in combination. For example, many legal documents continue to provide a line for someone to handwrite the date of execution in ordinal text. The printed version often looks like: "This ______ Day of ____________, 200_. A cleaner and more professional appearing document can be produced by using fields and formatting switches to print the date that the document was last printed in ordinal text. To accomplish this, the document should look like the following in "show fields" mode: "Signed and sealed this { PRINTDATE /@ d /* ordtext /*caps } Day of { PRINTDATE /@ "MMMM, yyyy" }.
Another issue is the automatic numbering within a document in some form other than Arabic. There are formatting switches to accomplish this, also. For example, in a marital settlement agreement, each heading might appear like this: "CHILD CUSTODY". Another attorney may appear to use letters instead of numbers. In that case, the heading would appear: "{autonum /* Alphabetic}." Once these fields and formatting switches are incorporated into a document, the deletion of one section will no longer require the renumbering of all of the following sections.
Because formatting switches have not been a priority of the software venders and writers, the identity of these switches in Word is not always easy to locate. For that reason, it might be helpful to refer to the following table.
Governor Ryan issues order for integrated justice
By David Clark, Editor
On December 6, 2001, Illinois Governor George Ryan issued an executive order that may begin the process for an integrated criminal justice system. In what may be a first step in automating courtrooms, he created a governing board for the purpose of collaborating and integrating justice information.
Called the Illinois Integrated Justice Information System (IIJIS) Governing Board, the created entity brings together the following agencies:
* Department of Central Management Services;
* Department of Corrections;
* Illinois Juvenile Justice Commission;
* Office of State Appellate Defender;
* Office of the State's Attorney's Appellate Prosecutor;
* Illinois Conference of Judges;
* Illinois Association of Chiefs of Police;
* Illinois Sheriff's Association;
* State's Attorneys Association;
* Illinois Association of Court Clerks;
* Illinois Probation and Court Services Association;
* Chicago Police Department;
* Cook County Circuit Clerk;
* Cook County Sheriff;
* Deputy Governor of Criminal Justice and Public Safety;
* the Illinois Technology Office;
* Illinois State Police;
* Illinois Attorney General;
* Illinois Secretary of State;
* Administrative Office of the Illinois Courts; and
* the Illinois Criminal Justice Information Authority.
The board and two subcommittees, the Technology Committee and Strategic Planning Committee, have been charged will assessing all criminal justice systems statewide. This assessment will determine common data "exchange" points between these agencies in order to prioritize automation processes.
A strategic plan will be submitted to the governor and the General Assembly by December 31, 2002 and should include, but not be limited to:
* Recommending cost-effect solutions to standardize platforms reducing incompatibility;
* Making a recommendation regarding positive identification of individuals interacting with the justice system with new biometric identifiers;
* Enhancing the existing financial investment by applying for supplementary sources of revenue;
* Developing working partnerships between justice agencies while respecting individual independence; and
* Inculcating practices to safeguard privacy issues and civil liberties of all citizens while improving information exchanges within justice agencies.
The board is charged with looking at justice integration as a "whole pie" of component pieces and developing uniformity of technological standards that will provide for future growth with economies of scale and cost for the benefit of Illinois taxpayers.
This public effort, along with the efforts of several ISBA committees and the agenda of ISBA President-Elect Loren Golden, should serve as a positive springboard to achieve greater efficiencies. This may identify revenue streams from both public and private sources to allow electronic filing, electronic court docketing, and faster access to court documents.
The IIJIS subcommittees are meeting bi-monthly to work toward this ambitious goal. Lt. Col. Ken Bouche of the Illinois State Police chairs the planning subcommittee, while Steve Prisoc from the Illinois Criminal Justice Information Authority heads the technology subcommittee.
Do it yourself: computer maintenance tips
By David Clark, Editor
"Stick out your tongue and say 'Aaah!'" This phrase is unmistakably linked to a doctor's checkup. Checkups--great idea not only in your personal health, but to the health of your office helper, the computer.
I'm going to address checkups in a Windows 98 operating platform, but the procedures are similar in other PC environments. Checkups might be deferred in a human to an annual event, but in a computer the checkups should be more frequent. I personally do my maintenance on a monthly basis with my individual workstations and on a quarterly basis with my server.
First, let me acquaint you with some tools and some tips that are worth their weight in the proverbial precious metal. Go to your desktop. Go to your "start" button and left click once. Move your pointer up to "programs" and it will reveal another drop menu. Point to "accessories" and another drop menu appears. Point to "system tools" and a final drop menu becomes available.
Note now the options available. Of these, I will focus on three: disk cleanup, scan disk and disk defragmenter. I will address these in a particular order, as it is important to see that my maintenance is consistently applied and the uniformity in my efforts in keeping my computer drives in tip top shape.
First, a trusty tip: Using a product called Partition Magic®, I have taken my hard drive and partitioned it into smaller, more manageable, pieces. My workstation has a 40GB hard drive that I have partitioned into six different drives. I have devoted 10GB of storage for the system drive (drive C) where the operating system is written. The remaining 30 GBs is divided equally among the remaining five drives. Drive "D" is for applications software. Drive "E" is for my immediate work related materials. Drive "F" is for personnel records. Drive "G" is for additional data that is personal and drive "H" presently has nothing and is being deliberately reserved for future use.
Why do this? By dividing my data storage into smaller units, I can minimize my backup procedures and backup data. And because they are smaller, I can accomplish this in less time. The same goes for maintenance, which can be accomplished in a shorter period and make the maintenance less painful.
Another trusty tip: I try to do my maintenance the first thing in the morning of the first workday of the month. I could use the "maintenance wizard" (found under "system tools") to schedule the process and do it automatically, but I choose not to. This tip is to boot the machine in "safe" mode and eliminate all but essential operations