‘‘Twas the Night Before #ABATECHSHOW & All Thru the House…

Tomorrow is a new day. A time for reconnecting with friends and acquaintances. A time to learn new things. A good reminder not to talk about politics, nor religions, or even take on controversial topics like “Who Shot J.R.?”

It’s more than that of course, but I will do my best to plan ahead. I have started picking out my sessions, marking the “must attend” blocks and the “backup” sessions, and of course trying to figure out which ones are for beginners and which sessions are for full immersion.

My camera is loaded with fresh film (kidding,) and I’m packed. Now I just need to source a decent whisky when I’m there and a few people to share with and all will be well in the universe.

The most important thing is for everyone to stay positive, remember in most cases you’re a guest so play nice, and even though you’re in a big city think ecological and leave no footprints.

Stay tuned, there may be mayhem.

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#portraits Nikon D4 as driven by children #justme

My kids understand light. They’re all artists in some fashion. They know what they like and if there’s something they want to try they just try it. They go though a lot of different media, currently they’re hooked on pencils, paint, 3D cutouts with paper, popups, and anything they can do with glitter. I’m not sure I ever had their imagination artistically. I’m more of a “tell me what you want exactly and I will do my technical best to achieve it” kind of person. My art is straight ahead with occasional flashes of something. Their art is all brilliance and flash.

This is how my 11 year old sees me. I’m often told I don’t smile. I’m not totally surprised, most people who take photos don’t like to be in them and I’m one of those people. Look at me smile in a photo and it’s almost identical in every shot. It’s not an effusive grin.

Random photo for the day.

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#ABATechshow My Survival Guide 2018

I have tried this during other years and I thought I would take another crack at it this year hoping I can add a few useful tips for any first time attendees. I am attending this year for the 9th time and each year I learn something new and it has evolved (at least for me,) over the years. I remember the shock a few years ago when the Blackberry “tips” session had two people in the room. . .that indicated all was not well in the RIM world. Now Blackberry doesn’t make actual phones anymore. . .times have changed.

As always you can SKIP ALL OF MY RAMBLING by going to the official First Time Experience Guide. I’d like to think mine is a little fun.

Speaking of change, the venue has changed for the first time in ages! This year its at the Hyatt Regency at 151 East Wacker (at least I hope I got that right.) If you register for ABA Techshow there is a discount offered for USD$189 but you have to book the conference first and then your hotel if you want the special rate. Don’t despair if you can’t book a room at the venue because there are lots of other options like the Chicago Hilton, Chicago Athletic Association Hotel, Radisson Blue Aqua and too many more to mention. I would have suggested the Hard Rock but they are in the midst of a makeover and won’t re-open until August as the St. Jane so stay tuned. None of the options I suggested are inexpensive and the Radisson Blue is the closest but I just thought I would mention a few to get you started in your search.

OK, so you are in the legal business so do some research of your own before you go. There are a million things to do in your downtime (if you can find any,) and a lot of it is related to food and drink. See the Bean, see the Art Institute of Chicago, see the Field Museum, Adler Planetarium and Shedd Aquarium. I still haven’t made it to the Museum of Science and Industry but hope to this year. They don’t have much of a write-up but they got me at “take a run in a human-sized hamster wheel.” If that doesn’t describe the practice of law I don’t know what does! All this to say, plan your trip and decide what you want to see. I think it’s too early for an official architectural boat tour but Chicago is great to walk around along the Magnificent Mile so don’t forget to look up. Remember it is March so dress in layers. It comes naturally for Canadians and Americans in East and Central locations but I feel sorry for the Texans and Floridians who wander into Chicago in March. It can be. . .cool.

People. You have to talk to everyone. Introduce yourself to strangers. Corner speakers and ask questions you didn’t think of during their session. Talk to speakers if you missed their session and there’s something you wanted to know. The speakers are very approachable and knowledgeable and I can’t say this enough, talk to them!

I can’t say enough about the folks at the Legal Talk Network! Talk to Laurence Colletti @LaurenceEsq and Adam Camras @AdamCamras because these guys will have their finger on the pulse of Techshow. You can watch them interview speakers, they can give you tips on things you don’t want to miss, and they have a grasp of what’s going on in the world of technology. Drop in an say hi to them!

There are lots of craft beer opportunities in Chicago so don’t be afraid to explore. There is a map here from Guys Drinking Beer as a starter but explore on your own. Monk’s Pub is reasonably close to the Hyatt and seems to have a pretty good selection. Might not be a bad place to start. There is usually a Beer for Bloggers event and I don’t have information yet but keep your eyes open for this. It is a great place to meet Tweeters, Bloggers, Media from the ABA, and if you’re lucky you will find Victor Li @victorli2000 the Asst Managing Editor of @abajournal – I should mention all tags I’m using are Twitter handles if you’re looking for someone in particular.

Au Cheval always seems packed and their burgers are worth the wait if you want to slow your heart down a little from all of the conference excitement. Feel free to add your own links of “must eat” places.

There are other must attend gatherings. @goclio and @mycaseinc usually have big parties at ABATechshow but you have to register with them at the show to attend. These are fun events run by vendors and although I don’t endorse any particular vendor it is a great way to relax and hang out with some of the decision makers of the practice management software you use.

I can’t stress this enough. Get out of the hotel once in awhile. ABATechshow is a vortex and there are usually too many interesting tracks that you want to attend simultaneously. Pick the ones you really want to go to and get out once in awhile. Don’t be afraid to leave a session if you decide it is too entry level for you. It happens. I have switched sessions two or three times in one time slot until I found the right fit. If you think that might happen sit near the back so your disturb anyone else when you leave.

If you’re going to tweet keep an eye on the #hashtags. If you aren’t fast enough there’s a good chance you will be the 4th person tweeting exactly the same quote as someone else. It is not a big deal and lots of people take notes for themselves on Twitter but someone may have made the point for you already. Its a great way to find out what’s going on in other sessions you can’t attend.

Find the Canadians! Look for Jack Newton @jack_newton & Rian Gauvreau @RianGauvreau from Clio! Look for Andrew Arruda @AndrewArruda from Ross Intelligence. Talk to Dan Pinnington @DanPinnington & Ian Hu @IanHuLawpro from LAWPRO/PracticePro. I’m not sure who else will be there but look out for Julia Cornish @archjules1, Dave Bilinsky @david_bilinsky , and Rick Ferguson because they have all attended many times, (and they’ll even say “sorry” for you if you like.)

OK pay attention. You also have to meet some of the Americans if you don’t know them already. I sprinkled a few throughout but find Bob Ambroji @bobambrogi , Ed Walters @EJWalters and Kevin O’Keefe @kevinokeefe for a chat.

As always Social Media should be hopping. Use the official hashtags if you want to be seen/heard, and not sure what will be in use this year. Twitter always, maybe Snap, I guess LinkedIn, and maybe Periscope will break out in the law crowd this year. I’m curious to see what will happen.

Vendors. They are worth stopping in to chat with at Techshow. Its a different vibe than almost any other conference and there is a lot to see and hear. Find out what’s going on with them and what their plan is, how long have they been around and what are they offering besides swag. Some will be stalwarts that you’ve seen before but if ABAtechshow is like other years there will be some exciting new players and even the ones you’re familiar with often make big announcements during ABATechshow. This is your big chance to find out what’s really in the cloud!

TASTE OF TECHSHOW – This is really worth going to and its a chance to have dinner with some of the speakers to continue your discussion after the sessions. The spots are going fast so I would suggest you sign up today! I think half of the sessions are already full and Techshow is still 23 days out! I remember when I first started going to techshow there were binders with lists that you signed up for and they were all tabulated at the end. These dinners (you pay your own way,) will be full soon but if you have never done one please signup!

Music – there is a tonne (metric) of music in Chicago. I can’t stress this enough. There is something for everyone so explore and find your jam. Whether its something at Buddy Guys Legends, the House of Blues (which is very close to the venue,) or someplace grittier like Bub City at 435 N Clark Street, or Kingston Mines farther out.

The Lake or more accurately, the third largest Great Lake. Don’t forget there’s a lake close to the hotel. Sure you can go down to Navy Pier and be touristy but take a walk along the waterfront and freeze yourself to the core. It really is worth it. Hey, you can feel like a Canadian for a few minutes, (and yes, I know there are cold spots in America as well.)

Some random thoughts about food and booze. Not sure if you’re a foodie or a drinker but there are too many options to mention. Try Eataly, Shake Shack (there are a few locations,) Shaws Crab House for Seafood (its expensive,) The Purple Pig, and of course The Billy Goat Tavern. I mention that because you have to try it once, just once possibly, best if you’ve had something to drink…you’ll know what I mean if you go.

One place I’m curious about this year is Band of Bohemia…OK OK, I admit, its the sous-vide coffee that I find interesting but…well, I guess I’ll see if I get there. There are some distilleries in Chicago including CH Distillery, Koval Distillery, and others. One of my favourite stops is Warehouse Liquors. Sure you can buy alcohol almost anywhere in the USA but this place knows their stuff and if the person you talk to doesn’t know about mezcal they will go get the mezcal guy to come and talk to you! They’re at 634 S Wabash if you want to drop in.

The key to enjoying ABATechshow is plan your tracks in advance, talk to everyone you can (especially Canadians,) see every vendor you can possibly find, and get out of your comfort zone. This year should be spectacular and anyone who bumps into me say hello and I hope this small summary is helpful in some way.

My last years Guide is here, feel free to check that out too!

I forgot to mention the App. It might be worth a download this year, certainly worth checking out to see if it is useful. I’m looking forward to seeing everyone!

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#ABATechshow Survival Guide 2017

OK, here is my attempt at shedding some light on ABA Techshow for this year. I did a similar rundown in 2015 but I thought I would update as best I can with a few personal photos this time around for my own amusement. I’m not sure I’m going this year but a few people found this useful last time I sent out one of these so here goes:

First, you can skip this entire post and just read the ABAs official First Time Experience Guide. You should also read Victor Li’s article about this year’s even HERE.

Planning on Chicago for the first time? Do some research before you go so you don’t arrive home after the conference and find out you missed something like the Art Institute of Chicago.

It is just down the street from the Hilton and you have to plan a little time there to see paintings you have only seen in books. They currently have a Japanese photography exhibit (and other amazing things too!)

Second, you must get out of the hotel!

Stop and say hi to Rufus. He has been there for years and knows what you need before you need it. Ask him for a local tip, where to grab a late night meal, where to see the hidden sights, or what’s currently a hot location in Chicago. Be nice, and tip well.

Don’t be shy. You came to ABATECHSHOW to learn sometime, or possibly just to get your state required learning for the year, either way, live a little. You should/must talk to people you don’t know. Chat up people on the elevators, at lunch, before sessions start and after sessions are finished. If you go to ABATECHSHOW and leave without meeting new people you have lost out on some of your investment and some great opportunities! I can’t state this enough. This is your opportunity to chat with the luminaries of the legal profession. Want to speak to Kevin O’Keefe from Lexblog for some personal tips? He’s probably there. Maybe you want a tip on podcasting from this guy:

OK, so he doesn’t always look like that but Adam Camras, the CEO of Legal Talk Network is a speaker and no doubt they will be cranking out high quality podcasts from the exhibitor’s floor during the conference and asking questions that weren’t asked of speakers when they were part of a panel.

Social Media – If you don’t know what social media is, well, that’s OK too, but a lot of info is zooming around during the conference on Twitter, LinkedIn, and Periscope too. Periscope is doing some cool things in 360 right now. I’m interested to see if there is anything in “surround” at Techshow this year. Find out what a hashtag is (this # is a hashtag,) and follow what people are saying about techshow and where the parties/gatherings are right now (in plain language, get a Twitter account and follow the #ABATECHSHOW feed.) Last time around I was tagging people during sessions they were speaking at and watching them look at their Apple watches and then reply (I”m looking at you Adriana!

Speaking of Adriana Linares, find her. There’s no prize or anything (at least not that I know of,) but she will be everywhere and is this year’s Chair. If there is something going on at Techshow, she will know about it. She will know where the hot spots are for going out, where the new restaurants are, which sessions are “must attend” and she can tell you if you’re missing anything! If you find Adriana you have found the conference grail.

Vendors – Wander around the vendor floor/area more than once. Sure some of them will want your soul (or at least your business card so they pester you into the afterlife). . .but you can see lots of cool things and some of them might be right for your office, (or you will find out which ones you want to avoid in the future.) The other thing is you can’t necessarily figure out what the product is from the banners or signage as you walk past a booth so talk to someone, make eye contact and find out what it is they do! Some of the vendors give away great gifts in a draw which takes place at the end of the show. . .you can’t win it if you’re not in it (as they say.) Want to know the differences between Clio, Rocket Matter, MyCase and Firm Manager? Well this is your chance to find out! Talk to all of them, get a demo, find out about the nitty gritty costs and have them explain the Terms of Usage agreements. Ask them if they will modify them. Ask them where their cloud servers are located. Ask them what the heck the cloud is!?

Ever wonder how Clio gets such great employees? (Full disclosure: I am friends with Rian (L) and Jack (R) and first met them just before attending techshow for the first time. They go with my next tip:

The Canadians – Find us. . .we are friendly, we know a bit about tech, and most of us will give you the shirts off our back. If we don’t know how to get someplace we will probably stay with you until you complete your journey. We will talk your ear off. We know a lot about beer (some of us,) and there is a special contingent who know a lot about scotch and sometimes arrange a scotch tasting at a nearby purveyor of spirits…seek them out if you’re interested. We are usually ridiculously polite (annoyingly so for some people.) Some of the Canadians (not me) are ABATECHSHOW insiders and know everything. Find a Canadian and hold tight…possibly more important this year than other years if any of us make it across the border.

Taste of Techshow – I have been to one of these and I would recommend going at least once. It’s hard to pick one ahead of time so I would say forget about who the hosts are and decide which restaurant you want to go to and sign up. You pay for these ones yourself so watch your budget, oh, and you’re away from home so live a little. I have added the link for the 2016 Taste but stay tuned and you will eventually see some online signon I think.

Music – Its Chicago, go find some live music on one of the nights. . .seriously, just do it. The above snap is Shawn Lacy from Nashville. If you get a chance to see him, see him! Bub City is part of the Lettuce Entertain You group and have a series of restaurants all over the country and lots of variety in Chicago. If you don’t want to venture too far, the Hilton is next door to Buddy Guy’s Legends and there is always something going on there!

Food – I’m not going to give any real tips here except to say if you sit in your room and eat room service alone you might as well have stayed home. Tag along with some of the people you just met and go someplace fun and eat something you might not have a chance to eat again. OK, I will make a few suggestions even though I said I wouldn’t. . .eat one of the “Chicago hot dogs” just for the fun of it. They put fluorescent green relish and sport peppers on it. . .its strange…but just go with it. Find a deli and have some brisket or smoked meat or pastrami or even a place that brews their own root beer. There are places. . .use the Google! If you want to know what is supposedly hot right now in Chicago, check here

THERE’S A LAKE. . .its big…walk down to the lake…take a long walk…you will feel better…dress warmly. It is a six minute walk (East I think) to the Lakefront Trail and Lake Michigan. . .take a camera.

Alcohol – OK so be responsible but there is a lot of alcohol in Chicago…something about the post-Prohibition recovery!? Check out the nice guys at Warehouse Liquors about a block from the Hilton. These guys really know their booze and are patient if you have a lot of questions. It’s also next door to a chicken place but as I recall, when I asked, they said they eat someplace else…just sayin’.

The conference concierge desk/genius bar-like oblong shaped holding pen of speakers – This is a resource that is hidden in the open. You might stop just to ask the person behind the counter how to get to a particular conference room and then move on. . .that would be a mistake! Engage the people behind the counter, they are the synapses firing behind the scenes that really make techshow do it’s thing. Talk to Lincoln Mead, or Ben Schorr or Adriana Linares and find out something about the conference that you would never discover otherwise. They can tell you where the best Wifi spot is in the hotel. They can fix your wifi if you can’t connect in the hotel. They can tell you where to eat. Want to know what’s going on with the Cubs, ask them (OK, so really just ask Lincoln! Want to know where someone bought a cool bit of tech, ask them. Curious about Ben’s last triathalon, ask him. They can tell you which vendors have the best swag. Its like having access to a supercomputer.

Pick the sessions you want to go to in advance, and then pick an alternate session at the same time. I have been to a few sessions that looked great on paper and then the presenter just didn’t “bring it.” It could be they didn’t have enough coffee, or had too much coffee, or they didn’t prepare, or they over prepared, or there is some technical glitch. . .but just in case have another choice up your sleeve and be prepared to get to another session if your first choice is a dud.

Don’t be afraid to have a “spare.” In other words, you don’t have to go to every session. Take some time to absorb some of what’s going on, maybe sit down and chat with someone and do a little quiet networking. It’s also a slower time (during sessions) for vendors and now you can get close to the vendor you wanted to corner.

Usually there is a “Beer for Bloggers” session in the hotel with Kevin O’Keefe and it’s worth checking out if you blog, vlog, send out a newsletter, or can spell Tweet. Also a great place to meet other drinkers….oops, I mean bloggers. Seriously though, you can usually spot Bob Ambrogi, Ernie the Attorney, Sam Glover and Molly McDonough there.

Talk to the ABATECHSHOW Planning Board members. Tell them what you like, don’t like, or give them some ideas for the next year. Engage people, don’t just be a bystander.

There are lots and lots of parties going on in the background – find one. . .ask someone what’s going on and you can be one of the cool kids (I have never attained that status but I think it’s possible for others.)

Plan ahead. This is a show packed with vendor/exhibitors. Is there some service you always wondered about? Have a look at past exhibitors and find the one you want to know more about.

Last words, bring something warm to wear. . .you will need it on at least one of the days or nights. . .microfleece is light and will keep you warm – ask someone from Minnesota (maybe even this guy) or anyone from Canada.

Go have fun, meet new people, say hi if you run into me. . .I’m easily recognized from my bewildered look. Look for a gaggle of Canadians and I am probably there. At a minimum you will recognize me by the chunk of camera around my neck (look for the D4.)

Oh wait, last word – if you haven’t been to Canada, it is a very quick hop from Chicago. You can fly out of Midway and be in downtown Toronto (4th biggest City in North America,) via Porter Air in less than 2 hours!

Very last word: I don’t think I said anything bad about the ABA app. I don’t know if there is one for this year (it’s not there to download yet,) but it has improved over the years. Biggest tip I can give is reach out and meet new people. I can’t say it enough. One year I met a guy from Canada who won two of these crazy races! You can’t judge an ebook by its ummm…never mind!

These are my own opinions. not the opinions of anyone affiliated with ABATECHSHOW nor are they the opinions of my employer.

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Landscapes in the wild

This is a snap from a trip to Awenda Provincial Park in Ontario. It was just before sunset on a windy late summer evening and I was trying to capture the mood as the winds swept sands across the beach.

The D4 was cranking along with the Nikkor 50 f1.4 at f16 with an ISO 100. The shutter was a full one second, hand-held and I guess I’m a little steadier than I thought I was given the winds.

 

There is lawyer advertising and then, there is lawyer advertising. . .

Not long ago, I attended the Clio Cloud Conference in Chicago. For anyone who doesn’t know, it is a user conference and it is spectacular as conferences go. Full disclosure here, I have known Jack Newton and Rian Gauvreau the founders of Clio, for more than 8 years and I have seen them go from nursemaids tending to a bold new startup…to commanders of a serious cloud-based practice management empire.

I have attended a lot of conferences in the last 8 or 9 years, often speaking on the doom and gloom topic of internet security and preserving client confidentiality, but I love attending the Clio Cloud Conference. There is such an energy created by the whole Clio team, but even more so by the wide-eyed attendees, many of whom return year after year. The last years have been in Chicago but in 2017 moves to the Birthplace of Jazz, New Orleans. I hope to attend, but first, more about the energy.

There was one speaker there, a young man named Bryan E. Wilson. You may have seen his advertising on YouTube before. He occasionally masquerades as the “Texas Law Hawk!”   and that linked video, his 3rd commercial, has more than 1.6M views! I remember Bryan talking about his video budgets and I don’t think they went over $1500, including beer for his friends/actors. To say Bryan is always “on” is an understatement. The dude is loud and he hardly ever abandons his persona of screaming, “I’m the Texas Law Hawk!” Its in your face full-time marketing and I know a few people I spoke to at an afterparty were pretending they were not from Texas. Bryan is that “crushing empty beer cans on the head” kind of party-goer. . .he is youthful I guess.

Before I say anything more about advertising, I should make it clear that any of my comments about advertising are my own views and NOT the views of my employer. In Ontario, advertising for lawyers is a new endeavour and the rules surrounding it are focused on truth, verifiability, and there is a more vague requirement not to cast the profession in a bad light. The regulator has started reviewing lawyer advertising/marketing in Ontario to see if it should be…tweaked, and there is nothing approaching the decibel levels or showmanship of Mr. Wilson. He is not unlikeable. I’m not sure I would approach him for my DUI but hey, I’ve never been to Texas, (and just to be clear, I don’t drink and drive…and to be even more clear, I don’t have a car.)

Anyway, I hope this portrait captures some of the energy, some of the fun, and the fundamental spark of life Bryan E. Wilson seems to possess:

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Once in awhile I get an idea. . .

I realize I have vanished from the face of the blogosphere and once again will make an attempt to humbly mumble some thoughts…some random, some planned, into/onto this medium for all to ignore.

Usual themes of law and photography, not necessarily together as I wind down my role at the Criminal Lawyers Association as the photo editor and fire up another year of more fun portrait work with just some natural light and the amazing computer innards nestled in my trusty Nikon D4.

I have to say that my iPhone 6 has made me lazy and I look to the Light L16 longingly and wish I had one in my back pocket most days. I’d like to try one out to see what I could craft with that kind of camera stitching power at my fingertips!

So here is my toe in the water today, hopefully back tonight or tomorrow with something to say/show.

 

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Dressing the naked oyster

oyster dressing, originally uploaded by psuba98.

This is not the way I enjoy my oysters. I suck my oysters back raw, unadulterated, naked, freshly shucked, and still screaming their pathetic oyster wail. . .this woman was into the sauce (for her oysters.)

Fun evening at Oyster Boy in Toronto, a variety of bivalvery. We consumed oysters, scallops on the shell, clams, and anything that was put in front of us. We were well taken care of by Chris, Luke and Tyler and the whole evening was fun and they were fairly relaxed considering I was poking a camera at them out of the evening, recording their every move of the oyster ballet.

I give full credit to my D4 (as always) and its phenomenal ability to figure out what I want to capture when I point it at something. The low light capabilities are unrivalled and it was a pleasure to shoot all night. At the end of the night I was happy…full, and inspired to go back for more oysters…Chris is a serious shucker!

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ABA TECHSHOW Day 2

Ben Stein was kind enough to pause before dashing –

So yesterday was Day 2 at Techshow in Chicago. It was fun and the highlight had to be Ben Stein’s inspiring speech about access to law and the general state of economics in the USA. There were many other messages and lots of shout outs to Canadians in general but I wanted to comment about another message that wasn’t necessarily meant to be there but seeped through to me anyway – if you’re a litigator, learn to be a dynamic public speaker.

He was engaging, told a few jokes, was self-deprecating and knew his audience. He had everyone leaning forward in their seats and it made me think how could go much smoother if you had a Judge and jury leaning toward you in spite of your message. He had notes but he was smooth – he read them over before he spoke, made the odd annotation, and sipped a Starbucks tea while he spoke, occasionally saying “Oh, this is very good” but it was hard to tell if he was speaking to us, or reminding himself that it was going very well, or possibly that it was just really great tea.

Ben had the audience (mostly lawyers/attorneys from Canada and the US) in the palm of his hand. I was reminded of listening to my Dad because of the easy delivery and someone familiar way in which he spoke. It was poetry.

After his talk he was very gracious, stopped for photos with people, made a point of asking people where they were from, and was infinitely patient with people as he was lined up for another photo…for many minutes. He seemed genuinely interested in each person who spoke to him and was a pleasure to speak with one on one.

He stopped for a moment before he made his getaway, made sure I had the shots I wanted and then just before he stepped into a waiting limo asked the driver his name. . .civility is alive and well in Chicago and his stopping along the way to speak with some tech-savvy lawyers was a highlight for me and reminded me its time to pay more attention to detail when addressing an audience and to engage the group as a whole….win them one by one.

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Tortious Conduct Rocks it Out!

Tortious Conduct, originally uploaded by psuba98.

There is a whole set coming for this one. Friday night was Rockin’ the Courthouse in aid of Lawyers Feed the Hungry. It was sponsored by McMillan Law Professional Corporation, The Law Society Foundation, Gardiner Roberts, League of Rock, Howie Sacks & Henry, and Paliare Roland