David Sparks (aka MacSparky) Releases an Excellent Video Field Guide Covering the Hazel Software

The indubitable David Sparks has released yet another “Field Guide” this time covering Hazel.

I actually don’t use Hazel but I know David, and therefore I know that I am missing out on a lot of automation in my computing life.

Plus Hazel comes from one of the best named software developers: Noodlesoft.

I’ve seen David present many times in person and heard him speak many times on the Mac Power Users podcast and I ALWAYS take away something new and useful.

Watching the Hazel Field Guide is like sitting next to David at a Starbucks and just having him walk you through all the cool things you can do with Hazel on your Mac.

You can get a taste of the Hazel Field Guide from the sample video on MacSparky. The sample is a juicy 35 minutes long, but you’ll be able to decide if it’s something you need after the first 3 minutes.

The full Hazel Field Guide is 2.5 hours and it’s one big-falutin’ QuickTime file. But the best part is that David included Chapter Markers for each section – you can see the list of sections on the MacStories write up. Each Chapter is clearly labeled so you can jump to whatever section you need to see.

You can read more about the Hazel Field Guide at MacSparky.com and watch the sample video. Happy Hazel-ing!

Mac Training from the ABA Legal Technology Resource Center

ABA Legal Technology Resource Center for Mac Training Session

If you’re an ABA member and you’re not taking advantage of the Legal Technology Resource Center (easy to remember at www.lawtechnology.org), you’re missing a lot.

I’ve long been a fan of the Legal Technology Resource Center (LTRC), even when David Whelan was at the helm. Catherine Sanders Reach took over from David several years ago and the Center has continued to produce top-notch articles & blogs & webinars & surveys (see the just released 2010 Legal Technology Survey Report).

And it keeps getting better. Catherine’s staff amazes me with the amount of helpful information they consistently pump out, all on top of being an “on-call” resource for any ABA member that has tech questions.

ABA Legal Technology Resource Center TechEZ Training Library for Mac SessionsOne of their many resources is the TechEZ Training Library where the LTRC posts recordings of their live training events. A lot of the sessions on their page are applicable to both Windows and Mac users, but they actually offer two sessions (so far) that are specifically geared to Mac users.

LTRC staff member Josh Poje is a Mac-fan and has recorded the two Mac-focused sessions entitled:

Mac Users: Boost Productivity with Spaces (10mins)

Mac: Introducing Mac OS X’s Built-In PDF Tools (13mins)

You need to be an ABA member to access this fantastic resource, but it’s worth it.

The LTRC just recently released two more training sessions entitled “Trust Accounting Simplified with Clio” (hosted by Clio co-founder Jack Newton) and “Gathering information online with Google Docs Forms.” Both of these recordings are absolutely applicable to Mac users, and they’re great.

I highly recommend you check out the LTRC’s website and definitely take the few minutes required to view their TechEZ Training Library.