At conference last August in
Nashville, I was blown away during one of the session in seeing all of the
capabilities and benefits of the Surface Pro 3 and left the session asking
myself one question: “Why aren’t we supporting
the Surface Pro 3?”
All of us in legal technology
know that attorneys want the ability to work from anywhere at any time and that
mobility is essential to serving our client’s needs. As more attorneys move away from laptops and
want a single device that provides a similar interface with ease of use and portability,
the Surface Pro 3, in my opinion, deserves a hard look as the go-to device for our
attorneys and a cost and resource effective tool for our firm and the IT
department.
My firm has purchased a few
Surfaces Pro 3’s so that the IT department can test and explore the benefits and
administration of the Surface Pro 3. Due
to pending and ongoing projects and needed upgrades, we haven’t gotten as far
as I would have liked to by this time; but from this point forward, we will be
able to move along with proving that the Surface Pro 3 is the tool that will be
most effective in creating the best mobile environment for our attorneys and
staff.
My first objections were from our
IT Security department. But, my response
is -- since the Surface Pro 3 can be joined to active directory, it can be
managed just like our other machines with group policies and other security
tools. So, I should have that debate
wrapped up soon as I begin testing and configuring our proof of concept.
I know it will be a journey to
test and setup this proof of concept, but I’m certain that I can demonstrate that
we can and should be supporting the Surface as the best and most effective
mobility tool for our attorneys. The
pros of supporting the Surface Pro 3 are many, but the following is just a highlight
of positive points of deploying the Surface:
· The Surface Pro 3 will support the same
applications that we currently deploy on our firm desktops. So, mobile users will not have to learn
different applications to perform work while away from the firm as they do on
other tablets (i.e. iPads, etc.). With
the Surface, all of the same editing tools, comparison tools, and communication
tools with which our attorneys are already familiar can be used. This should save time and resources for both
our mobile users, as well as, our support and training staffs.
·
The Surface can be managed the same as our
desktops with the same group policies and security tools that current laptops
use.
·
We can employ the same software deployment tools
and patching tools as we currently use.
·
Yes, the Surface Pro 3 has a newer operating
system (Windows 8.1) than we currently support and train our users, but that should
be a small learning curve for most users.
·
The Surface Pro 3 has several features that will
assist in users learning Windows 8.1 and also aid in using the device. These include touch screen and the Microsoft
Pen. There are also accessories that
will contribute to ease of use when in the office, such as the docking station
which allows for dual monitors, as well as the ability to connect a standard
keyboard, mouse, etc.
To me it is a no-brainer to suggest that the
Surface Pro 3 will be the best choice for a mobile user at our firm. Just the fact that I can use full-blown
versions of Outlook and Word (and not a pseudo app) makes me happy and more
efficient. As with all new technology,
we have a lot to learn, but I am excited to setup the test environment at our
firm. In the coming weeks and months, I
will be working on creating an image for my firm to use with Surface Pro
3’s. Also, in the coming months, I,
along with other members of the Applications & Desktop Coordinating Team, will
be posting more discussion of our adventures in testing, deploying and administering
Surface Pro 3’s in our firms. Stay tuned
for many additional discussions that will
share what we are learning as we go down this path.