ASP, an acronym that stands for Application Service Provider, is one of the most discussed concepts in the connected Internet environment. Simply stated, an ASP is a technology provider company that provides a software or service “application” through the Internet directly to your computer. Instead of the software or service application residing on your computer or network, it resides on a “mainframe” computer at a remote location and you connect to the software application or service through the Internet. An ASP develops application software and data, and rents it to you directly or to another company that in turn rents the application to you. The model is already well used in the legal industry. On-line research services have been around for years, and services and software have been purchased on a per usage basis. Law firms are not interested in owning books or building libraries, but instead, in having access to the content of the books. Eventually, with the emergence of virtual private networks, document management systems, litigation document depositories, and word processing, software itself will be rented on-line. Ownership and maintenance of tools for lawyers will be replaced with on-line, on demand services for a fixed fee.

The benefits of ASPs to a computer user can be significant. The user does not have to buy the software, install it, or update the software, and is generally offered 24X7 (24 hours a day seven days a week) support to use the product or service. It eliminates the personnel needed to maintain internal networks with the myriad of software and hardware network problems. An example of an ASP is when a firm contracts with an independent provider to host a time and billing application. The firm pays a monthly fee based on their number of users. In return, the ASP provides access to the software while hosting the data on their own secure servers. This allows a firm to access the software they need without the expensive costs associated with establishing a proper IS infrastructure, such as servers, workstations, licensing, maintenance, upgrades, security, staffing, and administration.

There are two forms of ASP. There are browser-based applications and windows-based applications. Browser based applications run strictly from a web site. All data and software applications are on the web server, and are downloaded as needed to run the application. Your PC is essentially a dumb terminal that does not store any software. The other ASP type is a Windows Terminal Server (WTS). This is essentially the same type of system used in a networked law firm today, except the server software is located on a server outside the office. It generally requires client software to be loaded on your computer.

For example, an online litigation ASP can provide several benefits.  These may include:

• A single repository for all case files, documents images, transcripts, etc.,
• Allows your clients access to part or all of the information about their cases,
• Provides communication with e-mail,
• Bulletin board conferencing of issues,
• Customizable databases to store information about documents,
• A deposition and transcript manager,
• Hyper linked images of evidence and document productions,
• Full text indexing with Boolean search and retrieval,
• Hypertext case calendar,
• Court docket featuring the ability to upload and view docket items,
• People directory, and
• A research section.

It provides the litigation management tools necessary to manage your case digitally over the Internet with other co-counsel or clients who are located in different parts of the country.

An ASP provides an alternative to making capital investments in the hardware, software, network infrastructure and skilled employees necessary to support the software applications. For a fixed monthly fee, ASPs’ get the software up and running and maintain it. Most offer performance guarantees for meeting minimum levels of response and uptime. Some questions to ask:

• Is it cheaper to rent then to buy?
• Is it worth it not to have the installation and upgrade issues?
• Will your organizational structure fit easily with an ASP?
• Will it accommodate your legal and business processes?
• What about system failures?
• How much time will it take to train your personnel on the ASP’s software?
• How many different ASPs’ do you have to deal with?
• Will I be able to collaborate effectively?
• How long will it take to be up and running compared to installing my own software?
• What is the service history with other users?
• Can I customize the application for the firm’s workflow process?
• Do I jeopardize the attorney client privilege and confidentiality requirements by choosing an ASP?
• Do I have the resources to build redundancy, firewalls etc. into our systems?

Security is of utmost concern to law firms in dealing with ASP’s. Most law firms are cautious about storing their sensitive data on someone else’s computers. Most ASPs have better security then what a law firm can afford on its own. However, there are several security and reliability issues to consider when considering an ASP:

• Secured Socket Layer (SSL) connections is one of the most common protections on the web. This system sets up an encrypting system between the ASP server and the user’s computer. When data is sent from the user’s computer it is encrypted and can only be read by the decrypting software of the ASP’s computer. The data cannot be “hacked” between your computer and the host server.
• Dedicated lines are some of the most secure protection since there is a dedicated network connection between the user’s computer and the ASP server. This is the best security, but also the most expensive, unless you have more than one user who can share the cost. Telecommunication frame relays are oftentimes used to set up dedicated lines.
• Firewalls is a virtual wall between the user and the data. Does the ASP server have a firewall and to what extent does it protect from outside hackers getting to your data?
• Can the ASP offer virtual private network connection to your data?
• In what type of physical building is the ASP located?
• Does the ASP have system redundancy? Redundancies are systems that have been designed with extra systems in place, which act as a backup in case the first system fails.
• What power redundancy does the ASP have? What are the backup power systems in case the power goes down?
• Does the ASP have network redundancy? Will another provider automatically initiate if the main provider’s Internet connection goes down?
• Will I be able to work offline on the application?
• What is the bandwidth connection that you will be using to access the ASP? Your Internet connection can have a major impact on the performance of the software. Most ASPs’ are streaming specifically for the web, so a dial-up connection may be sufficient. However, some applications require a lot of bandwidth such as a T1 line or high speed DSL connection. That is why it is important to test the application at all Internet connection speeds your firm employees are likely to use. Some ASP’s allow you to work offline, which comes in handy for mobile workers.
• Read the fine print regarding data loss and downtime in your service agreement before signing up. Make sure that you only have one number to call for all service problems related to the application - software, hardware or communication connection.
• What happens if you decide to leave one ASP and go to a competitor? Who owns the data and can you export to a new format for easy importing into another ASP? How easy is it going to be to transfer data to another ASP who is a competitor?
• Pricing can also be deceiving, make sure all the charges,are clearly stated.
  
• How are application and data stored? Is your information on a dedicated server or a shared server? Shared servers are less inexpensive but also potential security threats.
• What is covered by the service agreement? What about maintenance schedules, bugs etc. if some of the software is on your site?
• What support options are available? Are there telephone, web, and e-mail support? Are there extra service fees? Is the ASP or a third party providing the support?
• What do I need to access my data? If the ASP requires you to buy software or hardware to run the application, it defeats the purpose of an ASP.
• Can the program be integrated with other applications? Can a case management ASP integrate with your word processing software?

Below is a listing of various ASP’s and their particular service area.

• www.lextranet.com - litigation case management and support.
• www.netledger.com - accounting and other functions over the Internet.

Knowledge Management

“Knowledge is power” - Sir Francis Bacon Knowledge management (KM) is formalizing the collection of valuable knowledge gained from experience and then organizing the knowledge in a way that benefits the entire law firm. Information technology advances and high-speed networks provide an opportunity for firms to formalize the collection, protection, and use of legal knowledge. New software systems and processes are available to integrate with existing networked information to make it available to others inside or outside the firm. This approach is referred to as knowledge management. Knowledge management is already being incorporated in businesses. “Already an estimated two-thirds of U.S. employees work in the services sector, and knowledge is becoming our most important product . . . .You think you understand the situation, but what you don’t understand is that the situation just changed . . . knowledge is the essential raw material of a new economic era . . . The classic example is Bill Gates. . . There’s no way you can explain Bill Gates’ wealth based on conventional theories of building wealth as they existed in the ninetieth and twentieth century.“ - Lester Thurow. Building Wealth: The New Rules for Individuals, Companies and Nations in a Knowledge-Based Economy. In one form or another, law firms have practiced knowledge management for years. In a way, lawyers are already the ultimate knowledge workers. For years, they have sat in their offices, talked on the phone, and rummaged through huge knowledge bases. Attorneys constantly reuse past pleadings, settlement documents and other work product. The problem has been that the past knowledge has never been easy to find and has not been electronically accessible. Knowledge is useful if it can be found easily and in a form to incorporate its use. It must be relevant and what is needed. Time and distance are two key obstacles to the use of knowledge anytime and anywhere. It must be immediately available for use and reuse. The goal is how can you turn today’s solution into an artifact of knowledge that they can use later? The purpose of knowledge management is to:

• Collect valuable knowledge gained from experience;
• Avoid wasting resources by re-inventing the wheel or knowledge;
• Avoid spending excess time locating prior knowledge;
• Absorb the growing volume of new knowledge.

Legal “knowledgebases” need to be set up for firmwide use. A knowledgebase would be a collection of case specific or area of practice specific documents, discussion sites, and databases that support the day-to-day work processes for that case or area of practice. Some suggested steps to implementing a knowledge management system:

• Admit that past firm knowledge is inaccessible.
• What is the law firm problem to solve?
• Identify your audience - other attorneys, clients, etc.
• Keep it simple, keep people involved, integrate sharing into the culture, and build incentives.
• Use visualization software tools.

Lawyers and other legal professionals may be disinclined to share knowledge with co-workers, since they may believe that their worth to the organization is measured in terms of accumulated intellectual capital or knowledge about the firm or cases. They may resist discarding private libraries of “necessary” documents even though the documents are on-line. Or, they may encounter managing partners who believe that knowledge management systems will enable them to fire associates, other partners, or paralegals. In firms where these ideas persist, any attempt at knowledge management will grind to a halt. It is important to find team players, provide open access to information, offer tangible benefits, demonstrate to the individual and group the value of shared knowledge, make sure management is enthusiastic and involved, and ensure access to needed technology. Some of the main technological issues:

• How do we access existing knowledge?
• What are some simple knowledge search techniques?
• Can we set up automatic categorization classification systems for present and future materials?
• Can we build a knowledge warehouse and make it widely available?
• How do we encourage the end user to contribute by updating the documents and increasing the knowledge flow?
• How do we increase the use of indexing and taxonomies for effective categorization of knowledge without taking up to much time?
• How do we accumulate information and set up experts in the organization for a knowledge directory?

Some of the technology tools available to assist in managing knowledge include:

• Intranets;
• Document management systems;
• Information retrieval engines;
• Groupware and workflow systems;
• Push technology and agents;
• Brainstorming applications.

There are some interesting tools already developed to assist in the instant access to knowledge.

• GuruNet software analyzes the words surrounding a word in an e-mail, word processor, or a spreadsheet and then searches through its on-line databases, which include dictionaries, encyclopedias and company news and information, and delivers sharply pointed results. GuruNet (www.gurunet.com).
• Autonomy enables one to access knowledge without stopping whatever else you are doing to add to or draw from the knowledgebase. As users create a document, Autonomy’s technology provides real-time links to relevant knowledge. Autonomy (www.autonomy.com).