The quarterly publication of the International Legal Technology Association
Issue link: https://epubs.iltanet.org/i/163881
There are plenty of technical reviews and reports available with a quick Internet search if you are interested in Windows phone app development, security and phone management at an enterprise level. What I can share, however, is my personal end-user perspective on what's great and what's to hate about the Windows Phone 8. WHAT'S GREAT? • Integration. The number one reason I bought the Windows Phone in the first place was integration, and that remains the number one reason I've stuck with it. The integration with Microsoft applications (namely Word, Excel, PowerPoint and OneNote) remains far more valuable to me as a business user than most of the iOS and Android apps the Windows Phone lacks. I can access files seamlessly on SharePoint (or SkyDrive for personal use), edit them on either my laptop or my phone, and have them sync, allowing me to work on them even when I'm offline. With Windows Phone 8, the OneNote app has been pulled free from the Office Hub and has its own Live Tile on the Start screen. I can take quick voice notes that are transcribed into a OneNote notebook, which is then synced to the cloud. My work teams use OneNote heavily for collaboration, project work and research, so I find it extremely helpful to have easy access to SharePoint-stored notebooks on my phone, even when I'm offline. • Interface. As with the WP7, the interface is one of my favorite selling points. The Live Tiles, which now come in more customizable colors and sizes, surface information in an eye-catching but simple view. The "Modern" (formerly known as "Metro") interface is designed to provide fast access to information, and for me, it meets that objective. On a single screen and without much scrolling or searching, I see everything I need to access on a regular basis, including live updates such as current weather, upcoming calendar appointments, number of new email messages and even my family members' Facebook statuses and Twitter feeds. • Outlook Experience. I find just about all the native email, calendar and task features I expect in a phone from Microsoft. Email is presented in conversation view and allows for flagging and searching messages. Opened email attachments are stored automatically in the Office Hub for easy access, and frequently accessed email folders can be saved as Live Tiles on the main phone screen. My Calendar and Tasks are offered in a variety of views. The Agenda view presents both tasks and appointments for the day, the Day view graphically shows the calendar for the day, and the To Do view shows just a task list with multiple sort and view settings. One feature I miss from the BlackBerry days, which still isn't offered on the Windows Phone, is the 62 Peer to Peer ability to check other people's availability before scheduling an appointment. However, there are a few other calendaring features I find particularly helpful: • If I'm running late to a meeting, I can notify all participants with just a couple of taps. A pre-scripted email message is sent automatically to everyone letting them know. • I'm able to view multiple calendars — personal and work — color-coded and on the same screen. I often find it's easier and more accurate to check my availability on my phone calendar than with Outlook on my laptop. • When I receive an appointment request, the phone lets me know if I have a conflicting or adjacent appointment, and it gives me a link to see the conflict. This has saved me time and grief over and over again. • People Hub. One of the coolest features on the Windows Phone is the People Hub, which compiles everything I need to know about my contacts in one place, including contact information and updates from multiple social media accounts. Duplicate contacts across Outlook, LinkedIn, Facebook and Windows Live are consolidated automatically into a single People record on the phone. With a few swipes, I can see what my recent or specific contacts are posting, including their photos and status updates (assuming I'm connected with them on Facebook and/or LinkedIn). I can even save my favorite people as their own Live Tiles, giving me instant updates on their activities. WP8 also offers Groups, enabling a user to create a group of people, see their combined information and communicate with them as a group. A new WP8 feature I'm eager to try is called Rooms. Similar to Groups, the Rooms feature also allows members to share a common chat, calendar, notes and photo/video albums. The trouble is that for most of these shared features to work, the room members all need to be WP users, and we are few and far between. OTHER GOLDEN NUGGETS FOR BUSINESS USE • Enterprise Security and Phone Management. WP8 offers much more in the areas of enterprise security and phone management for business users than previous WP versions. Learn more by reading what Microsoft has to say about it. • Company Hub. Though it requires a company to fully embrace enterprise use of WP8 (which is highly unlikely at this point), the Company Hub is a cool concept that enables a business to publish custom apps for employee use as well as