Comments on: Extranets for Law Firm and Client Collaboration – Moving Beyond Email http://www.compliancebuilding.com/2009/04/05/extranets-for-law-firm-and-client-collaboration-%e2%80%93-moving-beyond-email/ Doug Cornelius on compliance and business ethics Mon, 15 Mar 2010 17:04:59 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9.2 hourly 1 By: Sri Chilukuri http://www.compliancebuilding.com/2009/04/05/extranets-for-law-firm-and-client-collaboration-%e2%80%93-moving-beyond-email/comment-page-1/#comment-822 Sri Chilukuri Tue, 12 May 2009 02:15:59 +0000 http://www.compliancebuilding.com/?p=2191#comment-822 Doug, I didn't mean to be a sales person. I really thought you brought up some very interesting issues which we have grappled with in the past. We put all of our experience into building Content Circles and I thought you should try it. I'm more interested in your feedback on the product than you buying it (of course, we don't mind if you buy it as well). I hope you Content Circles a try. You can download and try it out for free at www.contentcircles.com. Sri Doug,

I didn’t mean to be a sales person. I really thought you brought up some very interesting issues which we have grappled with in the past. We put all of our experience into building Content Circles and I thought you should try it. I’m more interested in your feedback on the product than you buying it (of course, we don’t mind if you buy it as well).

I hope you Content Circles a try. You can download and try it out for free at http://www.contentcircles.com.

Sri

]]> By: Doug Cornelius http://www.compliancebuilding.com/2009/04/05/extranets-for-law-firm-and-client-collaboration-%e2%80%93-moving-beyond-email/comment-page-1/#comment-587 Doug Cornelius Fri, 17 Apr 2009 22:30:54 +0000 http://www.compliancebuilding.com/?p=2191#comment-587 Sri - You point out a few things that are a challenge to extranets. In moving beyond email, that means you also need to move past attachments. Those word documents need to be converted to wikis so everyone can edit and add to the content. We are still in a Microsoft Office world, so SharePoint's integration with the Office desktop applications is very enticing. It also makes it more complicated. <i>I am not familiar with your product and offer no endorsement. I normally delete sales pitches like this in the comments, but you started off with some interesting discussion points.</i> Sri -

You point out a few things that are a challenge to extranets. In moving beyond email, that means you also need to move past attachments. Those word documents need to be converted to wikis so everyone can edit and add to the content.

We are still in a Microsoft Office world, so SharePoint’s integration with the Office desktop applications is very enticing. It also makes it more complicated.

I am not familiar with your product and offer no endorsement. I normally delete sales pitches like this in the comments, but you started off with some interesting discussion points.

]]> By: Sri Chilukuri http://www.compliancebuilding.com/2009/04/05/extranets-for-law-firm-and-client-collaboration-%e2%80%93-moving-beyond-email/comment-page-1/#comment-586 Sri Chilukuri Fri, 17 Apr 2009 22:06:36 +0000 http://www.compliancebuilding.com/?p=2191#comment-586 Great article. But I doubt any purely web-based centralized extranet solution, including SharePoint, will work well unless all participants in the collaboration projects strictly adhere to a rigorous file upload/download discipline i.e., upload a file after it changed and download a file before changing to/from the centralized location. This requirement is by far the biggest reason why people stop using these systems even if they have access to one. Another reason, of course, is the need for all participants in a project to agree on a common extranet solution, and most importantly, be willing to share all of their confidential documents on that extranet solution. Lastly, the cost of setting and maintaining these systems can be very expensive as well. Instead, I think what you need a solution that: 1) does not require the rigorous file upload/download discipline. 2) does not require everyone to put their confidential documents outside their firewalls. 3) allows them to work on their documents on their own desktops with their own desktop applications such as Word and Excel. 4) is quick to setup, absolutely secure, and can be used on a pay-per-use basis. This is the exact problem Content Circles solved. Content Circles is a content management software-as-a-service (SaaS) for distributed team collaboration. Unlike other players in the market who use a pure web-based approach, Content Circles uses a hybrid web/p2p approach to address this need. The hybrid web/p2p approach makes Content Circles the most cost-effective, secure, and easy-to-use solution on the market today, and guarantees that all members of a distributed team are always on the same page. It eliminates all file size, storage and bandwidth limitations common to pure web-based solutions. Please give Content Circles a try (www.contentcircles.com) and let us know what you think. Sri CEO Content Circles, Inc. Great article. But I doubt any purely web-based centralized extranet solution, including SharePoint, will work well unless all participants in the collaboration projects strictly adhere to a rigorous file upload/download discipline i.e., upload a file after it changed and download a file before changing to/from the centralized location. This requirement is by far the biggest reason why people stop using these systems even if they have access to one. Another reason, of course, is the need for all participants in a project to agree on a common extranet solution, and most importantly, be willing to share all of their confidential documents on that extranet solution. Lastly, the cost of setting and maintaining these systems can be very expensive as well.

Instead, I think what you need a solution that:
1) does not require the rigorous file upload/download discipline.
2) does not require everyone to put their confidential documents outside their firewalls.
3) allows them to work on their documents on their own desktops with their own desktop applications such as Word and Excel.
4) is quick to setup, absolutely secure, and can be used on a pay-per-use basis.

This is the exact problem Content Circles solved. Content Circles is a content management software-as-a-service (SaaS) for distributed team collaboration. Unlike other players in the market who use a pure web-based approach, Content Circles uses a hybrid web/p2p approach to address this need. The hybrid web/p2p approach makes Content Circles the most cost-effective, secure, and easy-to-use solution on the market today, and guarantees that all members of a distributed team are always on the same page. It eliminates all file size, storage and bandwidth limitations common to pure web-based solutions.

Please give Content Circles a try (www.contentcircles.com) and let us know what you think.

Sri
CEO
Content Circles, Inc.

]]> By: Corresponding with Cornelius | Compliance Building http://www.compliancebuilding.com/2009/04/05/extranets-for-law-firm-and-client-collaboration-%e2%80%93-moving-beyond-email/comment-page-1/#comment-584 Corresponding with Cornelius | Compliance Building Fri, 17 Apr 2009 11:02:00 +0000 http://www.compliancebuilding.com/?p=2191#comment-584 [...] Gary looks at some of the ways law firm client information is moving into the cloud, including my post on extranets. [...] [...] Gary looks at some of the ways law firm client information is moving into the cloud, including my post on extranets. [...]

]]> By: Compliance Building · Corresponding with Cornelius - a new series of blog posts http://www.compliancebuilding.com/2009/04/05/extranets-for-law-firm-and-client-collaboration-%e2%80%93-moving-beyond-email/comment-page-1/#comment-517 Compliance Building · Corresponding with Cornelius - a new series of blog posts Fri, 10 Apr 2009 16:01:53 +0000 http://www.compliancebuilding.com/?p=2191#comment-517 [...] A follow up to my earlier post on Extranets for law Firm and Client Collaboration [...] [...] A follow up to my earlier post on Extranets for law Firm and Client Collaboration [...]

]]> By: Compliance Building · Martindale-Hubbell’s Counsel to Counsel Forum http://www.compliancebuilding.com/2009/04/05/extranets-for-law-firm-and-client-collaboration-%e2%80%93-moving-beyond-email/comment-page-1/#comment-484 Compliance Building · Martindale-Hubbell’s Counsel to Counsel Forum Wed, 08 Apr 2009 11:00:29 +0000 http://www.compliancebuilding.com/?p=2191#comment-484 [...] of the ways to build a better legal team is to build better ways to communicate. My earlier post on Extranets for Law Firm and Client Collaboration – Moving Beyond Email embodied most of my points. As Jessica Lipnack taught me, I tried to get around the room and have [...] [...] of the ways to build a better legal team is to build better ways to communicate. My earlier post on Extranets for Law Firm and Client Collaboration – Moving Beyond Email embodied most of my points. As Jessica Lipnack taught me, I tried to get around the room and have [...]

]]> By: Luis Suarez http://www.compliancebuilding.com/2009/04/05/extranets-for-law-firm-and-client-collaboration-%e2%80%93-moving-beyond-email/comment-page-1/#comment-473 Luis Suarez Tue, 07 Apr 2009 18:08:05 +0000 http://www.compliancebuilding.com/?p=2191#comment-473 Hi Gil! Yes, indeed, you were not the only one who couldn't get some sleep last night! Plenty of excitement going around the announcements from today. too bad *real* work has gotten in the way and have been offline for most of the day, but re-surfacing now... So if you guys want to check out LotusLive, let me know about your e-mail addresses through a private DM in Twitter and I will invite you both over... Then after you play a little bit with it, perhaps we could get together and I could walk you around on potential scenarios on how the application could be used for this Extranet use cases ... I will reach out to you both on Twitter as well to get things going ... PS. Oh, long long time ago I used to be a big fan from Groove as well; thought the potential was amazing; but perhaps too bad at the time many businesses were not into P2P collaboration and why I have moved forward from there. Perhaps time to revisit again? Hi Gil! Yes, indeed, you were not the only one who couldn’t get some sleep last night! Plenty of excitement going around the announcements from today. too bad *real* work has gotten in the way and have been offline for most of the day, but re-surfacing now… So if you guys want to check out LotusLive, let me know about your e-mail addresses through a private DM in Twitter and I will invite you both over… Then after you play a little bit with it, perhaps we could get together and I could walk you around on potential scenarios on how the application could be used for this Extranet use cases …

I will reach out to you both on Twitter as well to get things going …

PS. Oh, long long time ago I used to be a big fan from Groove as well; thought the potential was amazing; but perhaps too bad at the time many businesses were not into P2P collaboration and why I have moved forward from there. Perhaps time to revisit again?

]]> By: Gil Yehuda http://www.compliancebuilding.com/2009/04/05/extranets-for-law-firm-and-client-collaboration-%e2%80%93-moving-beyond-email/comment-page-1/#comment-469 Gil Yehuda Tue, 07 Apr 2009 01:56:58 +0000 http://www.compliancebuilding.com/?p=2191#comment-469 Doug, Groove's roots are Lotus, but Microsoft acquired it. It's now part of the Microsoft Office suite. http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/groove/FX100487641033.aspx Groove supports peer-to-peer file sharing. If I put a file in my Groove folder A, then anyone in group A will get that file. It has a bunch of special features to handle many off-line, real time, and security concerns. I found it easy to use. But I have a high tolerance. I agree, Luis's excitement is not to be ignored. Doug,
Groove’s roots are Lotus, but Microsoft acquired it. It’s now part of the Microsoft Office suite. http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/groove/FX100487641033.aspx Groove supports peer-to-peer file sharing. If I put a file in my Groove folder A, then anyone in group A will get that file. It has a bunch of special features to handle many off-line, real time, and security concerns. I found it easy to use. But I have a high tolerance.

I agree, Luis’s excitement is not to be ignored.

]]> By: Doug Cornelius http://www.compliancebuilding.com/2009/04/05/extranets-for-law-firm-and-client-collaboration-%e2%80%93-moving-beyond-email/comment-page-1/#comment-468 Doug Cornelius Tue, 07 Apr 2009 01:40:49 +0000 http://www.compliancebuilding.com/?p=2191#comment-468 Gil - I will profess my Groove ignorance. The key is creating something that is as easy to use and as easy to access as email. That means 5 minutes of training for the basics and access through a mobile device. I also defer to the rule that I heard from Dion Hinchcliffe. The new tool has to be at least ten times better than the existing tool. http://kmspace.blogspot.com/2007/06/e20-conference-intro-to-social.html If Luis is excited about LotusLive, then so am I. Gil -

I will profess my Groove ignorance. The key is creating something that is as easy to use and as easy to access as email. That means 5 minutes of training for the basics and access through a mobile device.

I also defer to the rule that I heard from Dion Hinchcliffe. The new tool has to be at least ten times better than the existing tool. http://kmspace.blogspot.com/2007/06/e20-conference-intro-to-social.html

If Luis is excited about LotusLive, then so am I.

]]> By: Gil Yehuda http://www.compliancebuilding.com/2009/04/05/extranets-for-law-firm-and-client-collaboration-%e2%80%93-moving-beyond-email/comment-page-1/#comment-467 Gil Yehuda Tue, 07 Apr 2009 01:05:44 +0000 http://www.compliancebuilding.com/?p=2191#comment-467 Arggg. Luis, I'm now sitting on the edge of my seat wondering about LotusLive. I can't wait till tomorrow. Now I won't be able to sleep. Will Lotus "take back" Groove? ;-) Arggg. Luis, I’m now sitting on the edge of my seat wondering about LotusLive. I can’t wait till tomorrow. Now I won’t be able to sleep. Will Lotus “take back” Groove? ;-)

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