I'm always striving to stay ahead of the curve in my law practice. It's more than simply reading law periodicals - I subscribe to E Week, which by the way is free and has as a focus, "Breaking technology news including hardware, security, networking, software, reviews, and research." I also regularly read items on Lifehacker and read C|Net on a daily basis.
I've been going back to an article posted on C|Net the past week. It is titled, "Top 10 Research Tools" and can be found here.
To me, that article highlights pertinent tools for your lawyer toolbox. Of the "top 10" we now regularly use here at the office Google Earth, Google Scholar, and Diigo. The first two you know. Here is what C|Net says about Diigo:
Diigo is an online bookmarking tool with a twist. Sometimes, merely saving a bunch of tagged Web sites to a list of favorites is not enough. Ever wanted to highlight one cool corner of a Web page? Do you wish you could scribble on various Web sites to collect recipes, plan a vacation, or write a big research paper, then share your notes? Diigo can help you do that.
I have been using Diigo for about ten days and like it more than Del.icio.us, which is another bookmarking tool.
I have been able to use Google Earth for demand packages, mediations, and in preparation for trial (I have not used it in a trial yet). It's incredibly useful.
With Google Scholar, the choices are limitless. One late evening I wanted to brush up on joint and several liability. I typed those words in, and the first journal article was, "Settlements Under Joint and Several Liability." G.S. can help in a pinch.
The article is worth a read.
