Snap Shot: Hugh Crisp

VITALS: M.A., Law: Oxford University, 1979.

CURRENT POST: English solicitor and French advocat. Partner, Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer, based in London. Current focus: Knowledge management, training, recruitment. Past focus: Mergers and acquisitions: 1989-90 and Paris 1991-97.

CAREER BREAK: Director, Financial Times, 1988. A great chance to work, as a client, not even as in-house counsel. This was the year that the Financial Times acquired leading financial newspapers in France, Spain and Canada.

FIRM TECHNOLOGY: International offices (30) linked by wide area network (WAN). We use Microsoft Windows 95/98/NT 4.0; Microsoft Exchange 5.5; Office 2000, Microsoft Site Server 3; and Microsoft IIS 4.0.

Most attorneys have Hewlett Packard laptop computers.

LAPTOP: Hewlett Packard Omnibook 900.

DESKTOP: None.

PRINTER: Hewlett Packard LaserJet 4.

HOME OFFICE: HP Omnibook 900, HP LaserJet 6L printer.

PDA: Palm V.

SECURITY BLANKET: Palm V.

APPOINTMENT I NEVER MISS: My German lesson. (We merged with leading German firm, Bruckhaus, on Aug. 1, to form Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer.)

PAGER: None.

CELL PHONE: Ericsson GF788.

FAVORITE NON-TECH MAGAZINES: The Spectator. Fortune. The New Yorker.

FAVORITE U.S. TV SHOW: Frazier.

CARS: 1995 Subaru Legacy, color: mud (blue underneath). 1995 BMW 320i Break, color: black.

LAST BOOKS READ: Blur, by Stan Davis and Christopher Meyer. Tis, by Frank McCourt. The New, New Thing, by Michael Lewis. Birdsong, by Sebastian Faulks.

WATCH: Swatch.

MOST IMPORTANT TECH TREND: Web-enabled knowledge management.

FAVORITE LAPTOP BOOKMARKS: www.ft.com (international news update) www.courchevel.com (snow reports!) www.oufc.co.uk (Oxford United football club -- only for long-suffering supporters.)

WHERE WOULD WE FIND YOU ON A SATURDAY AFTERNOON? Watching one or more sons play one or more sports, usually in the rain.

VACATIONS: Skiing or seaside in France.

FAVORITE QUOTE: "The reasonable man adapts himself to the world. The unreasonable one persists in trying to adapt the world to himself. Therefore all progress depends on the unreasonable man."

-- George Bernard Shaw.