[arch-general] Arch Linux Law Office? (Was: Re: go-openoffice not opening templates - anybody else?)

[David C. Rankin]

On 12/23/2009 01:55 AM, Rene Rasmussen wrote:
> On Tue, 22 Dec 2009 19:08:40 -0500
> Denis Kobozev <d.v.kobozev at gmail.com> wrote:
> 
>> On Sat, Dec 12, 2009 at 7:12 PM, Logan Rathbone <poprocks at gmail.com>
>> wrote:
>>> David, are you running (Arch) Linux in your law office?  If so,
>>> could you describe your experiences?  What do you use for time and
>>> billing?
>>
>> I too would be interested to hear about solutions for billing and
>> keeping track of time on Linux. I do freelance web development and
>> have to record my working hours and send invoices to clients. Right
>> now I just write down my working hours in a plain text file and use an
>> OpenOffice template for invoices.
>>
>> Denis.
> 
> I'm not sure if this is what you're looking for. It needs a LAMP server
> to run, but can then be used from a browser.
> 
> http://bambooinvoice.org/
> 
> 

Rene, all,

What drove my decision of using eGroupWare as the core of our office was basically 2 things, (1) it was an open-source solution, and (2) is was LAMP. I tried all of the groupware packages back in the 2005 timeframe and settled on eGroupWare. All I can say -- is "I guessed right!" The package was just pre 1.0.0 at the time, but it looked and worked better than phpGroupware and the other two at the time.

The bet was that: egw was going to remain actively developed and prevent any interruption in work flow when the project faded away and you were left holding the bag. I cannot say enough good things about Ralf Becker, Lars Kneschke, and the rest that put this package together and have kept it up to date.

For all the packages that try to be a "one stop shop" I usually find that trying to combine all your calendar, address, email, projects, time tracking, knowledge base, etc... just turns into a wholly mess. Egw has done a good job to keep it well put together. The only weak area is the email client they include "felamimail" which is just a simple no frills package with some good integration (email or cc: to your todo list, etc..). But, honestly, if there was one area that was a little light, I would rather it be email, because I don't really care about any bundled package, I'll be using tbird or kmail anyway. The rest of the package is just -- well incredible.

Egw has good time tracking/billing data capture and storage. The limitation is with the printing of invoices, etc.. I have used the project and timesheet print-to-pdf routine for billing directly in cases where billing isn't that extensive or formal. However, it all has to go into quickbooks at the end.

If you are looking for a rock-solid groupware package, give egw a try. I'm still amazed at how much it can do, and I'm even more amazed at what it has the potential to do.


-- 
David C. Rankin, J.D.,P.E.
Rankin Law Firm, PLLC
510 Ochiltree Street
Nacogdoches, Texas 75961
Telephone: (936) 715-9333
Facsimile: (936) 715-9339
www.rankinlawfirm.com