Free DME & DFIR Resources

Headed out the door shortly to head to Sacramento for the 100th IAI International Educational Conference. I'll be there at booth #126 representing Ocean Systems. If you'll be in Sacramento this week, stop by and see us!

Wow, who'd a thunk it. We're officially 400 strong..."and groooowing"! That would've been hilarious if you could hear me sing it. Well, maybe not. Anywho, a big thank you to everyone for their support and participation in the Media-Geek community so far!

A small investment of time and knowledge from a great many, typically far exceeds the value of a large investment of time and knowledge from a select few; some of you have already helped to prove that point here. On behalf of myself and all of the other members who have benefited from your contributions to our community, thank you! (I know, you would've preferred cash. No need to write in and tell me.)

Our all-new downloads area is LIVE and accepting uploads!  Registered members can upload files up to 100MB in size, and the new upload form will list all files the member has uploaded.  The files from our previous download library are still accessible via our Wiki and site search, but we've created all new sections and categories to make it easier to browse the new download library and did not import the old files into those listings.  When members log-in they'll also now find the 10 newest uploads listed on the community home page.

Speaking of the community home page, we've also added comments and "likes" to our community and user activity streams!  Now, similar to other social networking sites, you can comment on member wall posts, easily share URLs, and let members know you "like" their status or wall post.  Log in today to check out these and other new features.  -LC

I recently cut the cable TV cord with the assistance of the Tablo 4-Tuner OTA DVR, so I thought I'd share a few thoughts on it.

Over The Air (OTA) HDTV

First I'll point out that I don't watch a lot of TV, maybe a few hours a week; however, my family does, and likes to keep up with several TV shows. We've always been cable TV subscribers, both with Time Warner back on the East coast, and Comcast out here on the West coast. We've used the DVR hardware and services from each since they began offering the option(s).

(Credit: Lexar Media) Lexar announced a 1000X-rated CompactFlash memory card line today that the company guarantees can keep pace with professional-quality video recording.

Full story:
http://m.cnet.com/ces2012/Article.rbml?nid=57353184

Hitachi is not the first storage vendor to bring a 3TB drive to market. However, it is the first to introduce an internal 3TB drive reliable enough for hardcore business use.

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This position is located in the Department of Forensic Sciences (DFS). The mission of the DFS is to provide high-quality, timely, accurate, and reliable forensic sciences services using best practices and best available technology, focusing on unbiased science and transparency, to enhance public safety and health.

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A peer recently shared this article, as he is one of the co-authors, and I personally feel it contains vital fundamental information for those who testify as Forensic Experts.  Hope you find it helpful.

"The following material was revised from an original article, “Survival Checklist for Medical Experts,” written by Deputy District Attorney Michele McKay-McCoy, Solano County District Attorney’s Office. With her permission, it was revised for forensic experts by Deputy District Attorney Michael S. Groch, San Diego County District Attorney’s Office, and Deputy Attorney General Robert M. Morgester, California Department of Justice."

Survival Checklist for Forensic Experts (PDF) 

LEVA will be providing their Forensic Imaging Techniques course May 27th - 29th, 2009 at the LEVA DME Lab, which is located at the University of Indianapolis. Visit the LEVA training schedule for the latest on all of the LEVA's course offerings.

A couple weeks ago I was up in Vancouver to teach Ocean Systems’ DVR Assessment & Video Recovery training course, which was hosted by the Vancouver Police Department. Many thanks to our host agency and students, as it was another great week of training and information sharing. Next week I’ll be in Miami to provide a free seminar on Digital Video Evidence on Monday morning, followed by our 3-day DVR Recovery training course which will run Tuesday through Thursday.

We recently purchased a new cellular phone for our eight-year-old son. The phone allows him to make or receive calls only from a defined list of telephone numbers, which we enter into it, and provides emergency 911 access. A few months ago, a friend of his from school came over and she had a new LG Migo "kid-friendly" cellular phone from Verizon Wireless. Once we saw the LG Migo, we knew we'd be getting him a cellular phone long before we had initially planned. While the Migo is a neat device, we ended up going with the Firefly, which uses Cingular's network.

The Firefly can be used as a pre-paid device, or you can subscribe to a monthly service plan. As with nearly all pre-paid services, the per minute rates are a little outrageous ($.25/min.), but since we anticipate minimal usage, we should be alright for the immediate future. The fact of the matter is this was an impulse purchase, and we may eventually change to the LG Migo and Verizon Wireless anyway.

Samsung Semiconductor Monday introduced a handful of new hard disks and optical drives, including a 3.5-inch desktop PC drive which it bills as the world’s fastest Blu-ray drive on the market.

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What's the best way to deter a thief? Ruin the spoils, of course. Verizon, AT&T, T-Mobile and Sprint have agreed to a broad outline that will culminate in the creation of a central database for stolen cellphones. The goal? To block lifted units from functioning on US shores. Over the next six months, each firm will build out its own stolen device database for integration into a larger, central database, said a Wall Street Journal source, with regional carriers joining the effort over the following two years.

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