Trial Presentation Blog

ExhibitView - Finally, Presentation Software ANYONE can use!

Charles@VideoResources.com (Charles Perez) — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 16:55:28 -0500

OK- First - a short story: Often times I'll go into a law firm and discuss their upcoming cases and the best way that their exhibits should be displayed. Naturally, I'm hoping to leverage the skills of our presentation department together with our litigation assistance and our presentation rental facilities at VR Legal Resources. Typically, if we're brought in from the beginning, we'll design the presentation around my software program of choice "Visionary" since, in my opinion, it encompasses the best features of CTSummation, Trial Director and Sanction which are all excellent programs in their own right but possess one commonality : a very steep learning curve.

While demonstrating our trial presentation prowess to a large firm here in Orange County I asked if they had ever considered using visual demonstratives other than PowerPoint to simplify their presentation in court. One of the junior partners quipped "we have a program called Trial Director" and then he kind of trailed off. "That's a terrific program" I replied, "how do you like it?" Cold silence followed. Finally, the same junior partner said "Well, we've never used it; we bought it and installed it but no one had the time to figure it out".

Moral of my short story: If you aren't using it, it isn't any good!

Last month I stumbled upon a new program called ExhibitView making bold and brash claims that it was "The most powerful presentation software..allows users to present with ease, using multiple integrated technologies,( yada, yada, yada). In my line of work you hear a lot of this so I watched their 2 minute video intro and downloaded a 30 day demo from their website and proceeded to pick it apart and see what all the ranting was about......

(Oh - Full Disclosure - let me add right here that my opinion is based solely on the trial version of the product.. I have not received any compensation for what I'm about to state.)

Simply put: "WOW!"

You've Gotta Try This!

If your firm has ever balked at using a software presentation program my advice is to go download ExhibitView and try it now. Granted, I have the advantage of working with several different programs in our line of work and I'd have to admit that I'm fairly well versed in the different applications they all have to offer - but - this is probably the easiest program I've ever used. Read the info on their website and see all of its impressive capabilities.

"Learning Curve"? This one is FLAT ; if you can work a word processing program and know the basics of "drag and drop" you're home free.

The program downloads all the tools you need to get started and then actually configures your computer to prepare it for your presentation; it really does support multiple integrated technologies - practically ANY document or image type as well as supporting an arsenal of audio and video formats.

The program is one of the most intuitive programs I've ever used - truly "Idiot Friendly" (and I mean that in a nice way) - I can safely say that you will not be overwhelmed with techno-babble, just concise, easy to understand, simple instructions. (Additionally they (ExhibitView) appears to have fast, online tech support however, I didn't have any issues so I didn't test that part out).

I imported a text synchronized video deposition created with another application (Visionary - but, it could just as well been from YesLaw , Trial Director, etc) and it imported seamlessly into the control pane. From there I discovered that I could easily "edit on the fly" the video if needed.

I then imported a variety of documents (PDFs, Excel Spreadsheets, Word Docs) and found that I could easily enlarge any portion of the document, create annotations (again "on the fly"), highlight and then print them out. The same could be said for JPEGS, GIFS, BMPs or PNGs.

I didn't get the opportunity to see how many documents I could squeeze into a presentation, the most I've accomplished with Visionary is something in the 300,000 range, but I was told that the program could hold as much as a hard drive would allow and I don't see any reason to doubt that claim.

Obviously the other presentation programs all have their places - each has applications which may be similar or unique to a situation and each of them will have their "fans". They all have additional features that you may or may not need and all of the existing programs perform incredibly well - if you use them.

(NOTE: If you're happy and content with your exisitng solution by all means stick to the familiar, every program has its "comfort level" (even PowerPoint!) -but, if you're technically challenged this is worth a try.)

For those of you who are still contemplating wading into the 21st Century but still reluctant to because of some old horror story you heard about some poor attorneys presentation "melting down" in front of the jury and the panic and woe that followed - GET OVER IT!

This is the program you should at least try. If you can't master ExhibitView in 30 minutes give me a call so our firm can create your presentation for you!

To my fellow presenters: keep your eye on this program. In fact, go and download a trial copy and let me know what you think - I believe you'll be quite impressed but I'd like to get your thoughts and comparisons in the next few weeks and maybe revisit the topic.

Is That My Video Deposition on YouTube? Best Practices for Law Firms

Charles@VideoResources.com (Charles Perez) — Thu, 15 Oct 2009 14:21:09 -0500

We perform a variety of legally oriented services her at VR Legal Resources; everything from scanning and Bates Stamping exhibits to preparing and presenting exhibits and demonstratives in court, and, from time to time, we're called upon to videotape a deposition.

We're fortunate to have professional relationships with many of the top law firms in the Los Angeles / Orange County area and a few of these firms handle some of the more popular cases you hear about on television or read about on celebrity web sites.

Being "ringside" during these sometimes intense encounters and watching the verbal jousting that takes place is what keeps me passionate about my career in litigation services, that, and the fact that I'm entrusted with "behind the scenes" information that ethics dictate that I keep confidential.

A few weeks ago I had the good fortune to videotape a young, well known celebrity.

During my initial introduction I always make it clear that "I don't have a dog in this fight" and that I'm simply there to record the event and I try to keep my interaction as friendly and professional as possible.

This particular actor smiled, shook my extended hand and in a joking voice asked "This isn't going to appear on TMZ or YouTube is it?" to which I replied "Of course not!" and then I adjusted his microphone and we got about the business at hand - the video taping of his day-long deposition.

I'm a "Certified Legal Video Specialist" which basically means I'm certified in the proper use of taping such goings on and adhere to a strict code of ethics which dictates the handling of sensitive issues, professionalism, etc,etc.

To date there are 76 NCRA "Standards" (National Court Reporters Association - they oversee us videographers) that I've agreed to abide by.

NCRA Standard # 73 states "The videographer shall preserve the confidentiality of the deposition and take whatever steps necessary to ensure this confidentiality".

Seems pretty straightforward. We don't release our videotapes willy-nilly to just anyone, nor, have we ever been approached to do so and we've never really concerned ourselves with the matter.

Well - right on cue I receive an offer from the Merrill Corporation to download this White Paper entitled : "Is That Me On YouTube? Ground Rules for Access, Use and Sharing of Digital Depositions"

This an eleven page, highly referenced, thoughtfully produced guide authored and compiled by Bruce Wessel and Wayne A. Hill, Jr. designed for any law firm that hasn't established a "Best Practices" policy for the proper handling of depositions. And, apparently for good reason.

Imagine if you're this fellow and you just stumbled onto your video deposition that was taken 2002:

"Can they do this?" you ask... obviously "They" can.. and "They" did. Probably legally too - depending on.... well.......

The White Paper addresses a variety of situations that would allow a deposition (transcript) or a video deposition to be accessed by anyone (yep) based upon local and Federal statutes and is quite the eye-opener for those of us in the "trenches".

Topics covered in the paper include:

Who owns deposition transcripts and video?
Who has the right to access them?
What laws govern their use?
Do protective orders work to protect the witness?

Additionally, let's say the matter never goes to trial but the official transcript is filed with the court, what then?

Download the White Paper, read it thoroughly and and start re-thinking your firms Best Practice procedures for handling, storing and sharing your depositions.

Now, for my part I focused on California law, specifically CCP 2025.570 which is entitled: Furnishing of copies of transcript or recording by deposition officer; Charge; Notice to parties of right to seek protective or; Applicability of section

(a) Notwithstanding subdivision (b) of Section 2025.320, unless the court issues an order to the contrary, a copy of the transcript of the deposition testimony made by, at the direction of, any party, or an audio or video recording of the deposition testimony, if still in the possession of the deposition officer, shall be made available by the deposition officer to any person requesting a copy, on payment of a reasonable charge set by the deposition officer.

(b) If a copy is requested from the deposition officer, the deposition officer shall mail a notice to all parties attending the deposition and to the deponent at the deponent's last known address advising them of all of the following

The copy is being sought
The name of the person requesting the copy
The right to seek a protective order under Section 2025.420

(c) If a protective order is not served on the deposition officer within 30 days of mailing of the notice, the deposition officer shall make the copy available to the person requesting the copy.

So, in hindsight, under the right conditions the young celebrity's video deposition could have made it onto TMZ or YouTube.

So now I know and, so do you.

Creating a "Marketing Habit" for your Practice in 21 Days

Charles@VideoResources.com (Charles Perez) — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 00:56:43 -0500

Well.... this is a bit awkward...

Anyone who follows my sporadic missives on this site is aware that I don't follow a "plan" that looks anywhere near to being a road map for blogging success. That being said, I am pleased to state that this blog has contributed to the growth of our litigation support services as well as the various forensic services we offer.

However.. I still don't follow "a plan", and, consequently the blog topics are very often "hit and miss" as far as being published in a timely manner.

Well, that might be about to change. (Time will tell!)

At the beginning of last month I was approached (along with virtually every other legal blogger in the universe) by Ms. Paula Black of Paula Black and Associates who was about to promote her new marketing guide for law firms entitled "The Little Black Book, a Lawyer's Guide to Creating a Marketing Habit in 21 Days".

I graciously accepted my free review copy and promised to make an effort to write a review of its contents by the June 16th launch date.. which was.. ummm.. about three weeks ago. (Note: I said "make an effort".., oh well.)

The book launched without any support from yours truly and immediately (within about three days or so) shot up to #5 on Amazon's best seller list.

I received a personal "Thank You" in the mail (together with a spiffy little gift) from Paula thanking me for helping make the launch a success which only added to my feeling unworthy and reinforcing my lacking any sense of direction. Along with the gift was what I would describe as an impressive "Branding, Marketing and Promotional" piece for Paula and her firm. If you know anything about my personal background you know that my first fifteen or so professional years were spent working for and around public relations firms and advertising agencies so I was pleasantly surprised at the professional presentation (and impression) that Ms. Black made with the follow-up to me.

Long story short.. I was (literally) shamed into reading her material and am very glad that her "unintentional prompt" (or shove) made me allocate time to read its contents cover to cover.

This excellent guide lays out a specific, easy to follow, no excuses permitted, blueprint for the solo practitioner and the multi-partner law firm alike.

So impressed am I by the ease of implementing the suggestions that my personal plan is to utilize the points within our own litigation support sales team since the message can be equally (and successfully) applied to other legally oriented services besides the intended audience.

A partial list of the info includes topics on:

How to develop your marketing habit in just 21 Days.
The value of nurturing client relationships with small gestures.
Secrets to building a referral base.
How to set marketing goals you can realistically achieve.
Where you need to focus your marketing efforts to get the most impact.
How to make marketing sense of clubs and organizations.
The importance of creating an individual marketing plan.
Pearls of Wisdom from veteran attorneys.
The best way to create and package your marketing materials.
Rules for turning your attorney bio into a marketing tool.
Smart tips for marketing within your firm.
Tips to evaluate and improve your client service.

It's all great stuff and worth a few minutes of your time to explore, especially if you don't have enough time in your day!

So, I'm personally putting the plan into effect and will writing with a lot more regularity in the future! (Or so my current thought process goes - hopefully I'll be back before the 21 days I'm allowing to create my new habits! ).

See you soon(er)!

Can Jurors See and Hear Your Most Important Evidence?

Charles@VideoResources.com (Charles Perez) — Mon, 08 Jun 2009 00:37:37 -0500

I subscribe to several newsletters and feeds in an attempt to keep myself on the "cutting edge" of presentation technology. As such, from time to time I receive a familiar sounding tome that reinforces my thought process as well as my attempt to bring law firms into the 21st Century with affordable presentation solutions.

Such was the case when I received an emailed newsletter from Elliot Wilcox, a practicing attorney who has carved out his own niche in the "Trial Presentation Arena" with a website and support service entitled "Trial Presentation Theatre".

I've purchased most of Elliot's material (Nope-no discount! and this blog entry was MY idea) and have enjoyed his approach immensely and would strongly suggest that, if nothing else, any lawyer faced with today's challenges of prepping for a court presentation should subscribe to Elliot's newsletter. Of course Elliot would prefer you buy his top-notch information package - but - I think he can make the sale on his own - it's that good. (Check out this "about" link for more info).

Anyway -After I received his newsletter I asked Elliot if I could reproduce it here since I felt his message hit the mark and... since I've been too busy to formulate my own musings it bails me out as well!

So - Read, Learn and Enjoy!

..................................................................................................................................................................................

It's not enough to get your exhibits admitted into evidence. You need to make sure that the jury can see and/or hear it, too. This week's article will help you present your evidence to the jury. I hope it helps you during your next trial!

Best wishes for success in your next trial,

Elliott Wilcox
Editor - Trial Tips Newsletter

ABOUT ELLIOTT: Elliott Wilcox has served as the lead trial lawyer in nearly 200 jury trials and more non-jury trials than he can count. He trains hundreds of trial lawyers every year how to improve their courtroom presentation skills, and his trial advocacy articles are read by thousands of trial lawyers in every continent around the world except one. (If you know any lawyers in Antarctica, please send them to www.TrialTheater.com !)

“Can Jurors See and Hear Your Most Important Evidence?”
by Elliott Wilcox

If you try enough cases, you'll eventually get your hands on “It.” “It” is that amazing piece of evidence that makes or breaks your case. “It” takes on many different forms:

The “Are you lying then or are you lying now?” prior inconsistent statement
The “I did it, and I'd do it again!” confession
The video of the “disabled” plaintiff easily lifting 50 lb. bags of mulch or participating in semi-professional wrestling matches
The “smoking gun” email that proves the defendant knew about the potential danger and decided to cover it up rather than recall the product

“It” is that piece of evidence that you can't wait to show to the jury. You won't have “It” in every case, but when you do, it's a wonderful feeling. You know that as soon as you show “It” to the jury, the case will be won.

But hold on just a second. There's something important you should know before you show “It” to the jury.

No matter how damning that prior inconsistent statement may be, it's worthless if the jury can't hear it. Even if your video completely contradicts the plaintiff's claims, it's worthless if the jury can't see it. Some jurors are too embarrassed to admit they can't hear the recording, can't read your exhibit, or can't see your video. You need to be assured that they see and hear “It.” Here's how to do it:

1. How to guarantee that the jury hears every word of your recorded statement. As you start playing the audio recording, cup your hand over your ear and make eye contact with each and every juror. Non-verbally, you're asking them if they can hear the statement. If they can hear it, they'll nod their heads in agreement or give you a “thumbs-up” sign. If they can't hear, they'll give you a non-verbal clue to raise the volume (or maybe even tell you, “Turn it up, I can't hear!”)

Here's an added benefit: Making eye contact with each juror forces you to “check in” with them, so you can evaluate how things are going.

2. How to guarantee that the jury sees your video. Get to the courtroom early and set up your video display. Turn on your video, then climb into the jury box. Sit in every seat in the jury box so you can see what your jurors will see. Do you need to crane your neck to see the video? When you move to the end of each row, does it become difficult to see the video screen? Is the screen too close? Too far? Make any adjustments now, before the jury gets here, so you can be assured that they'll see your evidence.

Once you start playing the video for the jury, you'll want to repeat the step outlined above to ensure that they can hear the recording. While you're making eye contact with each juror, track their sightline. Can they actually see the video? Are they actually looking at it? If not, make any necessary adjustments so they can view your evidence.

3. How to guarantee that the jury reads your exhibit. If you're presenting written exhibits to the jury (such as posters of the jury instructions or blow-ups of contract highlights) you want to make sure the jury actually reads your exhibit. To make sure they have enough time to read it, quietly read through the entire exhibit to yourself twice. You're already familiar with the exhibit, so you're going to read through it faster than your jurors will. After your second read-through, take a moment to make eye contact with every juror. Look at their eye movement. If they're looking at you, they're ready for you to proceed. But if you see they're still reading, don't say anything yet. Wait until everyone has finished reading before you or your witness say anything about the exhibit.

If you've done your homework, you already know how to make “It” admissible. You also know when you should publish “It” for maximum persuasive effect. Now just follow these simple tips, and you'll guarantee that jurors will see and hear your most important evidence.

Elliott Wilcox publishes Trial Tips Newsletter. Sign up today for your free subscription and a copy of his special report: “The Ten Critical Mistakes Trial Lawyers Make (and how to avoid them),” at www.TrialTheater.com

"Twittering" - Social Networking or Mass Distraction?

Charles@VideoResources.com (Charles Perez) — Thu, 12 Mar 2009 09:00:01 -0500

O.K. - so I've officially become a "Twit".

I've had my "Twitter" account for about 9 months now and didn't have a clue as to what to do with it.

Two weeks ago I jumped into the fray and gave the world tacit approval to stalk my every move, read my fleeting thoughts and, more or less, participate in "my daily experience". (Wasn't this what my Blog was supposed to do? And the "LinkedIn"?)

Twitter is the "now experience" on the internetspreading like an uncontrolled virus throughout the world - easy to get but a nasty little number to get rid of.

I had the good people at LexBlog set up my little "Tweet Box" (off to the left there) so that anyone who wished to live vicariously through my experiences could get a glimpse of my inner thoughts and observations - such as they are..raw and unvarnished.

Amazingly, to date, about 50 or so people have chosen to "follow me" in my daily escapades and glean what (little) wisdom I can offer throughout the day. Talk about pressure to perform!

For those of you who don't understand the "Twitter Phenomena" let me just say "You either get it or you don't". I won't even attempt to explain the attraction or fascination the world has with this new form of viral communication; it reminds me things like the "Pet Rock" or CB Radios of yesteryear - a unique experience for many but a puzzle for the rest (the sane world).

My challenge is trying to get a complete thought out in 140 characters (or less) and have it make a modicum of sense. Originally I thought it was 140 WORDS or less.

You have NO IDEA what a challenge this has been for me! I'm not known for brevity... not by a long shot! Especially when I'm trying to be profound. (Note: Twitter is not a vehicle for (my) profound thoughts).

So, please, choose to follow me if you wish (like I don't have enough pressure to produce in my life!) - just click on the "Follow Me" box there on the left, or, check out my current "Tweets" on the "About" page on this site to see if there's anything in my life you'd like to share in. (Test drive my "Tweets" so to speak).

And, if you have an interest in anything to do with presentations, the use of graphics ,audio and video in trial, or eDiscovery I'll try to inform, expound upon and relate.. all in 140 characters or less.

I promise that I'll try not to disappoint and will hopefully enrich your empty day somehow.. all in 140 characters or less.

Oh, and feel free to comment on this site (no limits as to characters!)

"PaperShow" : Write It - Show It (it's really that easy!)

Charles@VideoResources.com (Charles Perez) — Tue, 17 Feb 2009 14:01:31 -0500

I recently had the pleasure of putting a new product called "PaperShow" through its paces to see if it would be a good fit in the trial presentation/court room environment. Papershow is similar in concept to the SMART Airliner wireless slate and eInstruction tablets, but is much less expensive at just $199 for the starter kit.

After trying a variety of configurations I'm more than happy to give it an A+ as far as a presentation tool and I would strongly suggest that anyone seriously involved in court room presentations add this valuable tool to their inventory.

The product is so simple to set up that anyone remotely familiar with presentations should be able to get it up and running withing 5 minutes; those who haven't a clue about presentations will take about 6 minutes - yes, it's that easy!

The "device" itself consists of a USB drive and a special pen and (special) paper that is unique to the system. When you plug in the Bluetooth USB dongle the setup software launches and downloads the latest version of the Papershow software application to the Bluetooth USB dongle which also serves as a Flash drive. The pen is a matching Bluetooth transmitter and the paper has a pattern that allows everything written,drawn, or outlined to be replicated on the computer screen.

Using just the pen a you can draw in different colors, make shapes, erase, and undo by writing on Canson's (the PaperShow maker) specially made "invisible dot" paper (if this sounds familiar, it's the same Anoto technology incorporated into products such as the Logitech io Personal Digital Pen and the newer LiveScribe Pulse Smartpen).

On the right side panel of the A4 interactive paper you have controls to change the width of the pen stroke, change the colors and draw basic lines, arrows, circles and squares. You can also fill the circles and squares with a color and highlight text with the highlighting tool.

You can even erase your writing and objects on the computer with the eraser tool.

You can easily bring up presentations and use the Papershow to make real-time modifications or draw pictures like that UPS Whiteboard commercial guy. To change color and brush size, and to access other functions, you just tap icons in the right margin of the paper.

All the programming is contained in the USB drive so you can carry the program and even saved images with you from computer to computer.

(The current solution only runs on Windows at this time.)

With Papershow, you are physically writing with ink on paper, rather than an electronic tablet, and this is then projected on the screen which creates more of a “magic” effect.

But Wait! There's More......

With the PaperShow program you can also import images or PowerPoint slides and then annotate the slides or diagrams or photos "on the fly" and save them once you've made your notes.

This is accomplished by printing out the images/slides onto special 8 1/2 x 11 inch paper that has a corresponding grid printed on it; your image is printed onto the grid and you now have a guide to work with as make diagrams on it which is replicated on the computer screen (or Plasma screen in the court room).

After annotating a presentation or conducting a whiteboard session, Papershow allows you to save all of the notes as a PDF, and then print or e-mail them to anyone you would like.

Again, the cost is an affordable $199.00 (USD) and the "special paper" needed to make the process work is equally affordable at$19.98 for 200 sheets of printer paper, $19.98 for large, conference-room sized brainstorming pad (size A3) and $12.98 for small brainstorming pad (size A4) .

This is a "Must Have" in your presentation arsenal!

CT Summation : "Litigation Support Boot Camp"

Charles@VideoResources.com (Charles Perez) — Wed, 10 Dec 2008 00:40:45 -0500

We're a busy little crew here at Video Resources (as evidenced by my long overdue blog-sorry!)

When we're not saving lives and reputations we make it a practice to keep up on as many subjects, programs or products which will have a positive impact on our services.

With the goal of being "all things to all clients" I undertook a three day "Power User" course which explored the complexity and versatility of CT Summation, probably the best litigation support program in the known legal universe (for those who know how to tap into its incredible power).

Although CT summation isn't exactly the first choice to use for trial presentation (it lacks many of the robust features of say, Sanction or Visionary) it is probably the best known litigation program in the legal community. Many of our clients rely heavily on CT Summation and it's imperative in "our world" to know how to adapt, capture and present data, regardless of its native format.

So, with my time at a premium, I jumped at the chance to participate in a three day course taught by Henry Alonso , owner of Alonso Consulting & Training. Henry has over 16 years of hands-on experience working with CT Summation and has several years under his belt providing litigation support to a variety of top level law firms - it was a no-brainer of a decision to learn from Henry and well worth the investment.

The course was a non-stop, hands on adventure that allowed me to perform, in a real-time, legal environment; Henry taught us tricks and shortcuts that even many seasoned users of the program aren't aware of ; after 24 hours of immersion into every aspect of the program I and my fellow "Boot Camp Power Users" came away with a solid understanding of just how powerful the program is. (We got a really cool certificate to boot!)

Two weeks later I discovered just how useful this training would be.....

Most of us who work in this techno-arena don't really blink twice when a new computer appears on the scene, or a new program is intruduced into system; it's just a given - it's what we do.

We've been working on an extended lawsuit for the past two years; we've gone through a couple of law firms along the way so it was no surprise to hear that a law firm we were expecting to work with on the matter suddenly (to us anyway) resigned the case leaving their client flailing about to get new representation.

Now - this is a unique situation for us. We're actually presenting the exhibits for BOTH sides (it was their idea) since we had the equipment and there are something in the neighborhood of 50,000 pages of exhibits that we're presenting using the Visionary program. So, here we are, a few days from trial (no continuance) and no documents to present.

The new counsel came into the scene woefully unprepared. No, that's being too kind; they came into this mess like lambs to the slaughter; they're an "old school" lawfirm - they didn't have much use for these new fangled computers and such. They were in WAY over their heads (that's not an exagerration - I've seen the "deer in the headlights" look - this was the deers carcass, it didn't know it had already been hit).

Well - this tale has a happy ending, sort of... (we're still in trial as I type this and probably will still be through 2009). The former counsel supplied the new firm with a brand spanking new laptop with all the exhibits they were planning on using in their presentation- all contained in a program called..drumroll please.. CT Summation!

I quickly donned my CT Summation Power User cape and rubbed my secret CT Summation Power User decoder ring and, summoning up all my willing brain cells was able to ascertain that there were 500 exhibits totalling 36,000 pages in the program. We converted the pages to work with our Visionary program in record time (well, in enough time to show up at trial ready to go!) and were hailed as miracle workers. Okay.. maybe that's an exagerration; but, everyone WAS REAL HAPPY.

So -long story short - the payoff from the course was having the knowledge to not only know where the files/exhibits were stored in the program but also how to safely extricate them all with meta tags and doc ids, etc intact.

Just another day performing the expected miracle for our clients!

(And another job well-billed!)

Collaboration Tools and Technologies-Smart Ways To Work Together

Charles@VideoResources.com (Charles Perez) — Mon, 18 Aug 2008 23:57:52 -0500

The title say it all !

Well, actually the full title is "The Lawyer's Guide To Collaboration Tools and Technologies, Smart Ways To Work Together" by Dennis Kennedy and Tom Mighell, but, you get the picture, right?

Generally I try not ot wander too much away from trial presentation tips but, in this case I've got to comment about a much ballyhooed book that covers almost every aspect of communicating within a lawfirm not only with your peers but with your (all important) vendors as well.

This book is an excellent A to Z treatment of something we all take for granted: Communication with one another.

The authors take a no-nonsense approach to the obvious (and not so obvious) and guide the reader through the mechanics of effectively coordinating not only the workflow in a firm but efficient methods of coordinating that workflow.

From effectively and (more importantly) efficiently using email,to exploring the use of "Wicki's", Blogs and RSS Feeds this is the ideal guidebook for those serious about productivity and workflow communication within the firm and with the firms' (outsourced) vendors.

I feel that the firm that takes the time to invest in this guide and actually take the methods to heart (and actually implement them) will have the advantage of a coherent presentation based on solid information management and execution. Which, in turn, makes the work of your vendors that much easier.

While the "Guide" is loaded with prime examples of effective communication techniques you'll probably only need to adopt a few (depending upon what you currently have in place) to see an overall improvement in your product.

Do yourself a BIG favor and buy the book; it's one of the better investments you'll make for your firm.

"PowerPoint For Court"- Affordable Software for Trial Presentation

Charles@VideoResources.com (Charles Perez) — Wed, 11 Jun 2008 01:33:05 -0500

Due to the nature of our litigation support servces here at Video Resources I've had the opportunity to test out a variety of courtroom presentation software; The two most popular (in constant use) being Adobe Acrobat Professional and Microsoft's PowerPoint.

These two excellent programs embody what I consider the "base" technology for what has developed into today's advanced presentation software like CT Summation, Visionary, Trial Director and Trial Max. The latter named programs have taken the "basics" (again, my interpretation) of these two "core" programs expanding upon their features and delivering the rock 'em, sock 'em, boffo presentations we've all come to love and, (for our clients at least) expect.

As fantastic as each of these advanced presentation programs are they come with a learning curve and, in a couple of cases, a hefty price tag.

So - let's look at the an alternative - something for those firms who don't need to rip through 16,000+ exhibits, photos and videos. (You know who you are).

What about the smaller case that has a few documents, some photos and maybe even a video deposition coupled with a budget that prohibits outsourcing at any cost?

If you're a small firm (or even a paralegal in a moderate firm) I'm sure you've been exposed to and made use of PowerPoint at some time or another. If you've had the opportuniuty to study any of my previous posts you'll also note that in the wrong hands I firmly beleive that the mis-use (or over use) of elements of this program can be a real crowd snoozer.

So - what to do? Here's a terrific, affordable alternative for novice and PowerPoint sage alike: PowerPoint For Court created by award winning graphic design artist Herb Rubinstein.

At just $149.00 PowerPoint for Court isn't a lightweight entry by any means. In Herb Rubinsstein's own words: "Just about everyone is familiar with PowerPoint and it is eminently capable of displaying absolutely anything. So why go out and look for Legal Presentation programs that can cost a lot of money and take hours of valuable time to learn when you already have the perfect software package?

The answer is Don’t!

Using PowerPoint for Court and the software and material found on the Resource CD, you will be on the cutting edge of Courtroom Presentation Technology and will have the winning edge over the opposing side."

Personally, I think this would be $149.00 well spent for any law firm. The whole package comes on one CD and is chock full of useful apps as well as extremely useful advice not only on PowerPoint but also on audio recording, embedding video and courtroom technique.

Herb claims his motivation for creating the program was due to his involvement working with law firms who just didn't grasp the mechanics of PowerPoint or else lacked any expertise (or motivation) in exploiting its true potential.

Check out his web site: www.PowerPointForCourt.com - all the info is there and I'm beginning to sound like an infomercial for the product so I'll let you read up on the particulars for yourself. This is a "must have" for every firm (or at least the poor paralegal tasked with creating the court room presentation).

One final point: I haven't been compensated in any way for this; I enjoy using programs that simplify the argument with clarity and accuracy and anything that will make your presentation a success is my goal!

Pecha Kucha : Only 6 Minutes to make your point!

Charles@VideoResources.com (Charles Perez) — Tue, 08 Apr 2008 01:47:56 -0500

Huh?

It's called "Pecha Kucha" (pronounced peh-chak-cha) . I discovered this globally-accepted presentation phenomenon in a terrific book entitled "PresentationZen - Simple Ideas on Presentation Design and Delivery" by Garr Reynolds.

In the past I've railed on the "Death by Powerpoint" that has unfortunately become the norm in almost all Powerpoint presentations from the classroom to the boardroom to the courtroom.

Pecha Kucha is a simple and challenging practice that I believe will hone your presentation skills and make for a better presentation (and presenter).

In the August 2007 issue of WIRED Magazine this "process" was simplified in an article entitled "Get to the Powerpoint in 20 Slides Then Sit the Hell Down". The concept is almost too simple (which is probably why you've never heard of it):

"pecha-kucha (Japanese for "chatter"), applies a simple set of rules to presentations: exactly 20 slides displayed for 20 seconds each. That's it. Say what you need to say in six minutes and 40 seconds of exquisitely matched words and images and then sit the hell down. The result, in the hands of masters of the form, combines business meeting and poetry slam to transform corporate cliché into surprisingly compelling beat-the-clock performance art. "

So what's this got to do with the courtroom? - Isn't it obvious? Read On!

Honing your message for your jury is probably the biggest challenge any attorney faces today.

If you feel you're pretty proficient in the use of Powerpoint in the court - you know - you're the "go to guy" (or gal) to put the "slides" together - then this can be an ultimate challenge to your talents.

Me, I can't tell a simple story - seriously. (Don't look so surprised!)

Anyone who works with me or around me will vouch for that statement. My stories or explanations go into deep detail; I'm a lot like listening to a Charles Dickens novel - you know, rich in minutae (or manure... depending on the audience).

I'll never be accused as being at a loss for words, but, I've been bested many a time by an attorney who makes me look like a glib simpleton by comparison - I've been awestruck by the speed at which they've been able to get the eyes of jurors to "glaze over" within seconds of launching into their presentation. That takes practice. It must. Somewhere there has to be an unwritten law that dictates that some attorneys (unintentionally) inflict "Brain Freeze" on a jury in the course of an argument.

Powerpoint in the wrong hands is a lethal weapon - it can bore your brains out of your audience and confuse or lose your message. I've seen it - you've seen it. Heck, it's pretty hard NOT to see it.

Try your presentation out on "Fresh Eyes".

Why not work, creatively - either with others or within your organization - to eliminate this menace? Why continue to use the same tired formula when a fresher, simpler approach may be within reach?

Here's an idea:

The creative forces behind the Pecha Kucha concept spawned Pecha Kucha Night in cities around the world.

Their web site,PechuKucha.org, offers this explanation for the monthly event:

Pecha Kucha Night, devised by Astrid Klein and Mark Dytham (Klein Dytham architecture), was conceived in 2003 as a place for young designers to meet, network, and show their work in public.

But as we all know, give a mike to a designer (especially an architect) and you’ll be trapped for hours. The key to Pecha Kucha Night is its patented system for avoiding this fate. Each presenter is allowed 20 images, each shown for 20 seconds each – giving 6 minutes 40 seconds of fame before the next presenter is up. This keeps presentations concise, the interest level up, and gives more people the chance to show.

What? No Pecha Kucha Night in your area?

Why let that stop you from utilizing the simple concept? Hone your skills - streamline your argument - practice with some abstract ideas - practice with your current case.

At the risk of beating an old cliche further into the ground:"Think outside the (blue) box".

Imagine creating a persuasive argument that is easily followed and understood under seven minutes.

What? You can't? Neither can I. But it's worth a try, isn't it? What have you got to lose?

Your Case?

Occam's Razor: When "Simple is Better"

Charles@VideoResources.com (Charles Perez) — Tue, 01 Apr 2008 02:51:56 -0500

Albert Einstein stated a principle in 1933 which is often paraphrased as "Theories should be as simple as possible, but no simpler." Occam's Razor is a similar principle of logic that can be summed up as "All other things being equal, the simplest solution is the best." Then there's the principle more people are probably familiar with: the KISS principle ("Keep It Simple, Stupid").

A better philosophy is, "If it's simple and works well, don't complicate it."

The key here is that it has to "work well."

I've been kept pretty busy the past few months (since October of last year!) with a continuous series of court presentations in and around Southern California, some civil matters, some criminal cases and yet another in Federal Court and haven't given this blog the proper attention it needs.

The overriding message you'll be hearing me preach about for the next several months is how we accomplished success after success by keeping the message simple and to the point no matter how overwhelming the exhibit load.

In the next few "blogs" I'll be playing "catch up" and relating my first hand experiences with the technology and techniques that we've used in each of these presentations as well as insight as to what worked well and how we "uncomplicated the complicated".

Our performance in court is always a continuing "work in progress" since every case presents its own set of challenges; we've had a 90 day run that tested our mettle in many situations and I've lived to tell about it - stay tuned; I'll try to not disappoint!

Video Depositions - The Visual Advantage

Charles@VideoResources.com (Charles Perez) — Fri, 28 Sep 2007 12:15:11 -0500

I recently had the opportunity to attend a CLVS (Certified Legal Video Specialists) seminar in St. Louis. This is an outstanding group of video professionals who are certified in the correct methodology of preserving a deposition into a video format.

If your firm uses depositions for later presentation in court and you're not utilizing video you're missing a powerful tool that can provide a compelling and psychological advantage to your argument.
If you do use video I'd strongly suggest that you use a certified video specialist; they follow strict guidelines and are associated with the NCRA (National Court Reporters Association).

In the past few weeks there have been news reports on the sexual harassment lawsuit involving New York Knicks President and Coach Isiah Thomas.

The deposition of Thomas was videotaped and has been replayed in court (as well as the media) several times.
When is the last time you recall a deposition being "READ" over and over on a news program?
For impact on today's jury you need visuals.
Compare the dry, written transcript of his deposition with the visual dynamics of him actually speaking the words on camera.

I think you'll agree with the old saying that "a picture's worth a thousand words"; in this case the picture AND the transcript is a priceless combination - about 12 million dollars worth.

So - why aren't you utilizing this as a tool in your legal arsenal?
It can't be cost - a Certified Videographer's fees aren't that expensive, so it must be fear of the unknown - and of perceived courtroom catastrophes.
With the right presentation skills and current software you shouldn't be adverse to using new technology.

In the next few blogs I'll review a few of the solutions that can help you overcome any reluctance you might have regarding using 21st century solutions to win your cases.

This week I'll start with YESLAW...So - what is YesLaw?

To quote from their website: " YesVideo provides a service for converting deposition videotapes onto CD, synchronizing them with the transcript, and delivering them with YesLaw software. This software allows attorneys to easily review deposition footage, find key segments, then create and export clips for use in trial presentation programs like Sanction®. Rather than focus on technology, the focus is on making law firms more successful in their use of video."

OK - well, that pretty much sums it up. I could go on for another few paragraphs but I'd be saying essentially, the same thing.

Used on a PC the program allows the viewer to search for pertinent testimony, locate the corresponding video and audio and then save it into a variety of existing software programs, like Sanction, Livenote, and, of course, Powerpoint.

In my opinion this is a great way to bring video into your firm; it's not rocket science and they've created a platform that is easily understood by almost everyone. The YesLaw viewer doesn't take any programming skills on the part of your staff - if they can load a CD they can load a synchronized text video deposition.

How do you get your video into the YesLaw format ?
SIMPLE - almost all Certified Legal Video Specialists have access to the service, just specify it when you set up your next deposition.
If you already have the video and the text in a file format you can go to the YesLaw website and locate an out fit (like Video Resources, Inc.) who will handle the conversion for you.

The conversion fee isn't expensive at all and the overall savings to your firm will outweigh the investment.

Uh Oh! (Don't Panic... but...Oh Nooo!)

Charles@VideoResources.com (Charles Perez) — Wed, 22 Aug 2007 01:13:17 -0500

A quick entry for you kind readers this week.. based on an all too true and all too common fear of technology in the courtroom.

Not long ago we had a client ask us to produce a DVD for a court presentation of an expert witness' deposition; a "No-Brainer" around here at Video Resources, but, this was a new, unexplored frontier for the client. We had been given the orignial taped depo on a Monday (it had been taken on the previous Friday) and we were asked to redact a series of comments that the Defense had objected to prior to viewing by the jury on the following day, Tuesday . Again - this is a "No-Brainer" over here but was viewed as no less than "Black Magic" by our client.

The following morning the client took possession of her precious DVD and headed off to a day of battle at the Central Courthouse here in Orange County, CA. We had taken the time to "QC" the DVD (Quality Control review) before delivery and it had passed muster.

All was good. The Universe was in harmony - life was "in balance".

This was going to be a "first" for our attorney - she wanted to make sure everything ran flawlessly and I had assured her that all she had to do was pop this little disk into the court's DVD player and push the "ON' button - a "No Brainer" indeed.

We got the panicked call just before the jury was about to take a quick break.

SOMETHING WAS WRONG WITH THE DVD! It was playing in black and white rather than billiant color! Oh my God! Oh My God!.. or words to that effect.

Eric, my steadfast sidekick and fellow techno-geek, took the call. I was out tending to something completely unrelated (probably having lunch or something.. hard to tell), and when I returned to the office I was confronted by Eric who calmly announced: "We're Needed.... NOW".

He went on to explain in a very matter-of-fact tone to me of the plight and panic of our floundering attorney. He had assured her we would be right over and for her NOT TO PANIC, "everything would be just fine", probably in the same tone of voice of many an airline pilot who just had all the red warning lights flash on in the cockpit. Reassuring, yet....

We quickly put together a back-up DVD system and amplified sound system - a little overkill,yes, but, hey, it's part of the job (we rent EVERYTHING you could possibly need for a presentation of ANY size) and we included, for good measure, an array of cables and plugs in the event that the culprit may just be a faulty wire. I'm sure with a little more time we could have crammed a 50 inch plasma screen into the mix.

Remember the nerds in grade school and high school who ran the projectors for the class events? Well, some of them grow up and become "Techies" who go about setting up all manner of presentation equipment at courthouses. That's not true. Fact is, ALL of them grow up to be "Techies" of one sort or another.

Maybe "Grow up" is too strong a term. "Evolve" sounds better, doesn't it? - let's use that.

But I digress... Anyway, just like in school days past, we're the bespeckled, albeit balding, "evolved" nerds that rush to the rescue when all things technical go up in smoke. We'd wear capes if we thought we could get away with it.

Eric and I arrived at the courthouse in record time and, had it not been for the Deputy Sheriff's taking an interest in our electronics we probably would have made to the courtroom about 15 minutes sooner than we did. FYI: Sheriff deputies are "closet nerds" - this is a scientific fact. Show them a gadget, especially if you're in a hurry, and they'll insist on knowing:

a) what it is,
b) how do you use it, and
c) where can they get one - cheap?

We made it to the Ninth floor of the Santa Ana Courthouse and eventually found the right courtroom (our attorney neglected to give us the right room number so I was popping my head into a variety of those little observation windows attempting to recognize the back of our attorney's head without drawing undo attention from within the courtroom).

The bailiff spotted me first. He pushed through the double doors of the courtroom, preventing me from signaling our attorney and he escorted me back into the hall. He explained that he could bring the equipment into the hall where we could perform our Black Arts and get the faulty DVD to play correctly.

Problem was... alas, the DVD was missing from the player. (A major obstacle, not uncommon when everything goes awry).

Our attorney came out and announced that the DVD (for whatever reason) was left on the Plaintiff's table - smack dab in front of the jury - and someone needed to quietly go in and retreive it. We unanimously nominated the bailiff who rose to the occasion and disappeared into the courtroom trying to look as unobtrusive as a six foot two bailiff possibly could.

Meanwhile, we did what we nerds do best, we fiddled with every button on the machine that we could. All five of them.

About 15 seconds into the exercise Eric discovered that a cable had been connected to the wrong connector on the back of the DVD player. With a slightly audible chuckle he plugged the cable into the correct receptacle and I gave him an approving pat on the head - he usually gets a cookie - but, we were in public. The cookie would have to wait. Eric frowned.

We inserted the newly recovered DVD, flipped a switch and basked in the warm glow of a color image! Mission accomplished! Another video crisis averted! Life was once again GOOD! We threw our imaginary capes over our shoulders and prepared to pick up the 20 or so tools that fell out of our toolbelts and were scattered about the floor. Eric found a pocket protector that he was sure he had lost. I found a copper penny stuck to some gum on the floor. It was a good day to be alive!

Needless to say, the bailiff was humbled. You see, it was he, the closet nerd, who plugged the cable into the incorrect connector. Our DVD was fine, after all, because it was a "No-Brainer" remember? Eric gave the bailiff a quick lesson on the nomenclature of the courtroom DVD player, carefully explaining all four sockets to him and their proper function. He included a little crib sheet for the deputy to refer to as well. The bailiff was grateful and apologized profusely for having us rush to the courthouse only to switch a little, itty-bitty cable into the correct socket. Then he asked if we knew where he could get a good DVD player - cheap.

The look of relief on our attorneys face was priceless! (Something we live for!) The day was saved, her reputation was intact, and everything was fine - just as Eric had promised! (As if there were ever any doubt of the outcome!)

Now, my point here is to show you that sometimes there is an extremely painfully simple explanation for things going awry, especially if you're out of your element. You are attorneys, or paralegals, and your "focus" once in the courtroom is elsewhere (as it should be), but, folks, much of this is not "Rocket Science". If you can master a Blackberry (or an iPhone) chances are you can handle the "No-Brainers" as well.

When the stuff hits the fan don't panic..if you're using a professional team to create your presentation chances are that all of the big, potential problems have been solved. Take a few deep breathes, stand back and assess the situation; if you're uncomfortable in a high tech environment spend a few bucks to ensure a successful, memorable court presentation. That's why they created nerds - to make you look good!

Don't you owe that to your client?

Digital Audio Recorders - Better than tape? Yes, but...

Charles@VideoResources.com (Charles Perez) — Thu, 19 Jul 2007 00:06:38 -0500

While we're in the "digital mythbusting mode" allow us a moment to tackle digital AUDIO recorders.

Ah, yes, the march of progress. Remember the video rant? Yep, same thing here.

If you're relying on the new state of the art digital audio recorders to record important statements to be possibly used in a trial presentation here are a few tips that will make your life a little easier and your presentation a little smoother:

Unless you’re going at full CD quality, your digital recorder is tossing stuff out to save space. Supposedly your ears will not miss the missing stuff, but our forensic audio equipment sure will. You want your machine to toss out as little as possible, and that means running at the highest "bit rate" you possibly can.

To put it another way, if you are maximizing your recording time, then you are also minimizing your recording quality, and also the amount of help we can be to you. If you need to record for a very long time and have to go to a low bit rate to do it, then it’s time to invest in new equipment with more storage space. As with video, it’s better to get a small amount of useable material than a large amount of junk.

A lot of these portable digital recorders have

bit rate settings that are so low that it’s crazy. We recently received a recording made at such a low rate that the recorder literally threw out the background conversation it was supposed to be capturing, concentrating all its efforts on the louder crying baby it was also picking up. We were still able to improve things a little, but not much.

Ideally you should be recording in either AIFF (Audio Interchange File Format) or uncompressed WMA (Windows Media Audio) format, 44.1 kHz sampling rate or better. (Better is overkill unless you’re recording concerts or something.)

What about stereo vs. mono? Well, for us, stereo is a lot more versatile. If you have a stereo device with a stereo microphone or microphones, then it’s worth it. However, stereo takes up twice as much space (IE double the bitrate) to get equal quality. If you are using a single microphone and it isn’t stereo, then there’s no sense in recording in stereo format – you’ll just be wasting space with redundant data. Also, we prefer a single channel of good mono to two channels of not-so-good stereo, so don't be afraid to use your own ears and your own judgment. Test, test, test!

Coming up next: "A FEW RANDOM TECH NOTES" - the kind of stuff you can quote when you're mingling with a new client and hit an akward moment of silence. Guaranteed to dazzle and amuse!

An Audiophiles Challenge (Can You Hear me now?)

Charles@VideoResources.com (Charles Perez) — Tue, 10 Jul 2007 01:11:49 -0500

So we've explained the pitfalls and challenges of dealing with video images and what works and why.

Now we're going to tackle audio problems and challenges - a subject particularly near and dear to our audio engineer savant Eric Graf:

Yes, we are called Video Resources, but we "do audio" too. If you have an audio recording that needs to be clarified, we’re just the guys that you ought to bring it to. I’d like to tell you what to expect from us, and what you can do to make sure we can give you the results you want.

When dealing with an audio recording that’s hard to understand, the objective is to understand it. It’s not to make the thing a high- fidelity, professional-sounding recording, and usually that’s not possible anyway. Once we get it to where you can understand the conversation, we stop messing with it.

Often we will not be able to snag every word. 60% comprehensible is considered a big improvement over 10%.

If you read my lengthy tome about video, you no doubt remember my rant about the shenanigans on TV shows like CSI. It goes for audio too. To summarize: Much of the “technology” on those shows is more James Bond than LAPD. Do not judge a “real” clarification job by what you hear on those shows. Because frankly, they’re full of it.

What we CAN usually do is reduce background noise, background talking, foreground talking (sometimes), distortion, muffledness, and general unintelligibility. It really depends on a lot of factors.

Sometimes we can work wonders. Occasionally we can't work anything.

But we do have the tools and the expertise to do as much as can be done. Our microcassette player alone retails for $8000, and we often find that it delivers a huge improvement just because it plays so much better than everybody else's microcassette player.

Sometimes we’ll listen to a recording you’ve submitted and say “sorry, we can’t help you.” We like a good challenge, and we like making money while tackling a good challenge, but we aren’t going to waste your time or resources on a lost cause. Here’s how you can help reduce your chances of your cause being lost:

GET US THE ORIGINAL. PLEASE. WE BEG YOU.

You’re probably going to develop a case of déjà vu if you already read the video thing, because the advice is pretty similar. The reasons here are a little different because of the different technology, but overall it’s pretty much the same thing. When you make a copy, you lose quality.

In the case of analog audio, going from tape to tape invariably results in loss of high frequencies and the addition of additional noise. You’re also at the mercy of the copyist, and their ability, or lack thereof, to properly operate the equipment. It’s easier to really screw up audio than it is with video.

There’s also the issue of azimuth adjustment. It’s absolutely vital to the proper reproduction or duplication of any analog audio tape, and if you don’t know what it is, then you’d better just let us handle it. (I’ll be glad to explain it to you, but this would be a REALLY long document if I tried to do it here.)

Digital is a little different. If your audio is an MP3 or a CD, copying the file or the disc itself won’t do any damage whatsoever. Where you get in trouble is when you try to convert it to something other than it was originally. If it was recorded in CD quality, don’t make an MP3 or a WMA of it. When you go from one file type to another, you usually lose some quality that we really need to optimally do our work.

Yeah, we know, sometimes you just can’t get the original to us. OK then, here’s what to keep in mind when making your (shudder) copy:

DON’T copy from microcassette to microcassette. Come to think of it, don’t copy from ANYTHING to microcassette. It’s a low-quality format, and the last thing we need is a second pass through it. Furthermore, most microcassette decks do not have a proper line level input, and if you try to go in through the machine’s microphone jack without attenuation, you’re going to get something absolutely useless that we can't fix (we know because we keep getting asked to). If you have a microcassette to copy, either copy it to full-sized cassette or a CD quality digital file.

DO make a CD-quality audio file (or an actual CD). If you do it right, with decent quality equipment, the quality loss is so minimal that it won’t matter to us. Some caveats: MP3 is NOT CD-quality, no matter what the RIAA’s lawyers say. Many common computer sound cards are not considered “decent-quality equipment.” And if you haven’t adjusted that playback azimuth (which usually involves screwdrivers and removing pieces of your tape deck), you’re losing audio quality that we can’t recover.

Take care of and test your equipment! Does your microcassette make crunching noises while it’s running? STOP USING IT and get it fixed. Do your recordings come out distorted and nasty? Read the cotton pickin’ manual and find out what you’re doing wrong. Do your tapes come out sounding muddy? The machine is probably overdue for an internal cleaning (which means it’s probably also overdue for eating a tape or two). Hand it off to some tech guys and tell them to get scrubbin’.

If you’re using standard-size audio cassettes, be sure you’re using the proper kind for your equipment. There are two types of blank cassette on the market now – Type I and Type II. It’ll be written in teeny type somewhere on the tape box. Type II is more expensive, but it’s mainly for recording music on home stereo systems, and will actually perform noticeably worse in most portable equipment. Type I is the safe choice, and will work great if you buy the quality stuff. Buy only name brands (TDK, Maxell, Sony are good). Try to avoid tape lengths longer than 90 minutes. The 120-minute tapes are trouble-prone and don’t record as well.

Next Blog We'll cover the ups and downs of DIGITAL RECORDERS

The "Digital Quality Myth" (Say it ain't so!)

Charles@VideoResources.com (Charles Perez) — Mon, 02 Jul 2007 01:19:46 -0500

OK - in the previous blogisode my sidekick and ally in presentations Eric Graf exploded many of the make-believe antics that pass for science on those pop cop "CSI" - type soap operas that have the masses convinced that such visual alchemy truly exists.

One of the culprits that I feel has encouraged the feebs who write the CSI tripe is the DVR, or Digital Video Recorder. I've personally witnessed the growth of these machines over the past 5 or 6 years in the surveillance arena and have marveled at the promises made by the manufacturers that hawk them to their unsuspecting customers with the overt promise of the unit being capable of isolating an incident (and any suspect within the incident) and then enlarge said subjects facial features for police identification.

I've had the sad chore of bursting many a security manager's bubble when I point out the REAL limitations of their 32 camera, state of the art, real-time, internet accessable system. I no longer feel the need to let them rest their head on my shoulder anymore while gently rocking them and saying "There, there, it wasn't your fault".

Because, it is their fault. They should know better.

Here's why - Here's Eric's take on what we'll call "The Digital Myth":

DIGITAL IS NOT NECESSARILY BETTER (Regardless of what you've been told)

Actually, I could almost leave out the “necessarily.” There’s this dirty secret about digital video that they don’t tell you. Here it is. Y’ready?

To save space, digital video throws out details of the picture that it doesn’t think you’ll miss.

It’s really obvious on some internet videos, where you’ll see people’s faces disappear into a detail-less blob. Trouble is, nearly all digital video, including DVD, DV tape, TiVO, high-definition broadcast, and (especially) surveillance systems, does the same thing to a certain extent, and it messes up our ability to do some of the cool CSI things we actually can do.

DVDs are particularly bad about this, particularly if you’re using a consumer-grade recorder, and PARTICULARLY if the original source is VHS. VHS has a lot of extraneous "noise" in the picture, and extraneous noise tends to confuse DVD recorders into throwing out more of the important details than they ordinarily would.

Going from analog to digital also has some hazards not directly related to the nature of digital. For instance, every consumer grade DVD recorder we have ever tested, without exception, records the video black level incorrectly. It’s a long story as to why (and if you feel you MUST hear it, you can email me), but the point is that it’s a problem for us, and there’s not a darn thing you can do about it without professional video equipment. (Side note . . . many DV recorders and computer video cards do the same thing.) It’s best to send us the original, and if there are DVDs to be made, let us make them.

Copying digitally (through Firewire) from DV tape to DVD usually goes better, but there’s still quality loss, especially in the color information, because DVD ditches a lot more of the detail info than DV tape does.

YOUR SHINY NEW DIGITAL SURVEILLANCE RECORDER (It's not what you thought it was)

OK, if you have one of these newfangled gizmos, pay very close attention!

Guess how they manage to get a month’s worth of video onto a single hard drive?

That’s right. They toss out everything, even the kitchen sink. And they record the picture at a horrible resolution setting that guarantees that anything smaller than a Peterbilt won’t be recognizable.

If you have your digital device set to record at the maximum time setting, you might as well not waste your electricity. You will not get ANYTHING useful. Period. End of story. We have a lot of would-be clients who learned this the hard way. And sadly, most of the salespeople who handle these things don’t bother telling you this, figuring that you’ll assume (incorrectly) that somebody like us will be able to bail you out when the need arises.

Change those settings now!

Go for the shortest time period and the highest quality you can possibly get away with. Use your own eyeballs and your own common sense. As already discussed, video does not enlarge well, so if you can’t see it on your screen, there’s a good chance we won’t be able see it on ours either.

If you have everything maxed out and still can’t see stuff, consider rethinking the position and coverage of the cameras. Yes, you might miss something if you’re zoomed in too tight, but you’ll miss EVERYTHING if you’re zoomed out too wide. A teeny little blurry picture of a teeny little blurry guy stealing your Bentley isn’t going to help you or the cops or us or the Bentley. If you’re worried about the Bentley, then zoom in on the Bentley! Let the Yugo parked next to it fend for itself.

Stay Tuned.. Our next blogisode will have you questioning everything you believed you knew about AUDIO!

Video Enhancement (You can't display what you can't see)

Charles@VideoResources.com (Charles Perez) — Tue, 26 Jun 2007 00:02:39 -0500

O.K. - forget I used the phrase "video ehancement" in the title. The proper (correct) phrase is "video clarification", but, thanks to all the "pop, quasi-realistic, CSI-Miami, CSI-Las Vegas, CSI-Ad Nauseum garbage" on television I figured you'd recognize the term "Enhancement" since that's the misnomer these fact-challenged programs lead you to believe companies (and underfunded police agencies) are capable of doing. (We'll discuss the sub-par "acting" of David Caruso at a later date).

For the next few "blogisodes" I'm turning over the site to my able bodied wing nut right hand man and audio/video engineer extraordinare Eric Graf (who works with me at Video Resources, Inc. in the Video/Audio Forensics lab) to explain as simply as possible the why's and wherefore's of video and audio clarification and why it's important for you to know what will and, more importantly, what will not work for you.

Here's Eric's Video Clarification Blog: (Enjoy!)

The following is a list of random factoids about video. Hopefully there will be pearls of wisdom herein that will help us better serve you when you get some of that all-important footage that needs enhancing (oops! I mean clarification).. Warning: I tend to overuse parentheses (but I’m trying to improve).

First of all, you know those TV shows like CSI where they take grainy, blurry, little bitty digital video and enhance it until you can read the serial number on the bad guy’s cellphone as he throws it across the pitch-black parking lot?

Guess what ?. . . That’s fake. (GASP!) (Take a few moments to catch your breath and then continue reading once your vision returns to normal.. I know - it's a shock.)

Those shows are no more a reflection of real CSI science than James Bond is. The writers who come up with stuff like that just need some convenient way for the good guys to crack the case, so they make up something silly that they think most viewers will buy. And most viewers do. Please don’t be one of them.

Video doesn’t work like that. We wish it did.

RESOLUTION - THE CRUX OF THE PROBLEM (well, one of the many problem cruxes)

OK - Here's the basic formula for understanding how video images are displayed on your TV screen/monitor: Standard definition video has very specific limits in resolution: 720 pixels wide by 486 pixels high. Well, actually, it’s more like 243 pixels high in practice, but that’s getting on a technical tangent, so let’s not go there. Anyway, that’s much lower than even the most inexpensive analog still camera.

What that means is, once something in the frame gets smaller than a certain number of pixels, then that’s it. PERIOD. You aren’t going to be able to see what it is. The best supercomputer in the world can’t take a solid block of color (which is what a pixel is) and figure out what details within the block made the block come out the solid color it did.

That’s the main reason most of the CSI TV stuff is bogus. It ignores the resolution issue. We can certainly take a video picture and make things on it bigger. But they won’t be sharper, or easier to see or read, because video resolution "is what it is".

Bigger will just mean blurrier, and if you get too big, you won’t even be able to tell what you’re looking at anymore. Things that are too small just can’t be sharpened or enhanced from a video source.

You know MORE that the writers at CSI!

COPIES AND WHY WE HATE 'EM

Analog video degrades every time you copy it.... A lot. Often enough so that whatever we’re supposed to be seeing can’t be seen anymore. (Digital Video, when copied correctly, doesn't degrade at all.)

Now, we all know that most VHS-based surveillance equipment is poorly maintained and the tapes are reused until they get holes worn in the tape. It can often be difficult to get the fool things to play back properly.

Here’s the deal: Here at VR, we’re GOOD at getting the fool things to play back properly. In fact, we have a warehouse full of equipment to do just that. I can’t tell you how many times we’ve received tapes that wouldn’t play in any VCR in the building except for ONE. (There’s this one beat up old Philips deck that I’ve rescued from imminent dumpsterization three times here at VR, and now guard with my life. It’s ugly, dirty, a little sticky, and not of much general use, but it does an amazing job with certain multiplex timelapse tapes.)

In extreme cases, we’ve been known to go inside one of our decks and deliberately misadjust it to match a particularly screwy tape.

But if you give us a copy, then we’re stuck with whatever happened playback-wise when the copy was made. Did the copyist forget to set the tracking? Was there a problem with the signal level going from one machine to another? Did they run it at the wrong speed and accidentally cut off 2/3 of the content? We’ve seen all these things, and we can’t fix them if they’re “burned in” (ie, recorded) into the copy. And even if they did get everything exactly right, it’s still a copy, with degraded quality.

And oh yes, on the topic of multiplexed tapes . . . you know, the ones that record lots of full-screen cameras really fast so that they show in a jumbled flicker? Please don’t have anyone demultiplex them for us. Reread the part on “copies” and you’ll see why.

What’s that? You say you’re going to copy your tape onto a DVD? Just as bad, I’m afraid. Possibly even worse!
Catch my next post and I'll tell you why........

Tickle Me Elmo? (Well..Not Quite!)

Charles@VideoResources.com (Charles Perez) — Tue, 05 Jun 2007 01:26:57 -0500

Well, it happened again this week and I just feel it's my duty to educate those overworked, underpaid legal assistants and paralegals who make this call to us with aprehension and slight embarassement in their voice: " Do you have an Elmo we can rent?"

By the tone in their voice I know they have this image of the world famous Sesame Street® character firmly lodged in their mind's eye........ then there's that moment of silence after they've asked (which I'll admit I relish!) where I imagine them wincing - waiting for my laughter... that I answer with all the casualness of a fast food hamburger jockey asking if you want to "super size" your order: "Yes, we have an Elmo, do you need a projector and screen with that too?"

Needless to say there is a great sense of relief from the caller at this point that they haven't been the butt of some inside office joke.

I then explain that this is a presentation tool and has nothing to do with the TV character. This always elicits an embarassed giggle from the caller who I then recount the numerous times I've had to "introduce them to ELMO", the visual presentation device!"

So - here's the scoop on "our ELMO" - the one we recommend for trial or litigation purposes: (NOTE: there exist a veritable glut of "Elmo's" that are available for a variety purposes. Visit the ELMO web site and you'll get an idea of all the applications these little guys are designed to handle).

Now, back to our Elmo: Our little guy works much like those old overhead projectors that many of us grew up with years ago, the ones that had a powerful lightsource that projected "cels", or transparancies on the wall or onto a screen, made a lot of noise and caused temporary blindess to the operator.

The ELMO we provide has a video camera that captures a flat document or, better yet, a three-dimensional object and projects it via a projector or through a connection to a video screen, LCD or plasma, for group viewing and is virtually quiet and heat-free during operation.

The ELMO has two different "cool" (as in temperature cool) light sources for two different applications: 1) overhead lighting, offset at 45 degrees, will evenly illuminate a written document or three dimensional object and, 2) transmitted light from the base will allow you to project transparencies.

But wait.. there's more! (It slices, it dices... whoa.. that's a different product..maybe later)

Once the document has been placed within ELMO's view you can zoom into a specific line (or word) on the document or a particular reference point on an object.

Additional inputs and outputs allow the presenter to interface with a computer with images, say from a PowerPoint presentation or a Visionary presentation and merge the images seamlessly to the projector.

If you're faced with presenting three dimensional exhibits or written documents to a group this is the the tool to use. It sets up in about 10 seconds and takes about 15 seconds to master the controls.

That's it! No more mystery!

The next time you're asked to locate an "ELMO" you can smile with self confidence and look your boss in the eye and ask : "Do we need a projector or screen with that order?"

Using Demonstrative Exhibits - 101

Charles@VideoResources.com (Charles Perez) — Wed, 21 Mar 2007 01:43:44 -0500

I was preparing to dazzle you with a primer on the use of demonstrative exhibits in your presentation when I discovered an excellent article in the Georgia Injury Lawyer Blog written by Richard W. Hendrix of the law firm Finch McCranie, LLP in Atlanta, Georgia.

The article is entitled "Closing Arguments: Trial Techniques for Serious Injury Cases" and attorney Hendrix covers a variety of well reasoned points.

But - since my focus is on graphic or visual presentation in the courtroom I was impressed by his paragraph covering the USE DEMONSTRATIVES AND TRIAL EXHIBITS wherin Mr. Hendrix states:

"Every good trial lawyer knows that a jury remembers best that which they both hear and see" which has been my mantra for the past several weeks. (Good to see that others are in agreement!)

He goes on to say: "Accordingly, demonstrative exhibits should always be used during closing argument. Sometimes demonstrative exhibits are necessary in order to emphasize a point about liability. Sometimes they are used to emphasize principles of law.
Effective demonstratives can also be used to discuss damages. A good closing argument might use demonstratives in all of these areas. In short, a well prepared demonstrative exhibit will assist counsel in making his point while at the same time assisting the jury in remembering it.
Of course, in addition to using demonstrative exhibits, actual trial exhibits should be shown to the jury just as a demonstrative exhibit would be shown. If a particular exhibit is important, the exhibit should be referred to by number and shown to the jury and its importance to the case should be discussed. An actual trial exhibit (blown up) can be used as a demonstrative exhibit in this fashion where counsel uses the exhibit to demonstrate to the jury why it is that the evidence supports his client’s contentions on any contested issue in the case. "

To sum up - think visual when you're preparing your presentation - design for clarity.

My favorite statement by Mr.Hendix is actually his opening line for the article: "You must close your summation with confidence and with an ending appropriate to the tone of the case that will have the desired impact. Once you have concluded, sit down with an air of confidence that you have clearly won your case."

Gotta love it!

Verbal Graphics & Visual Graphics - Honing Your Inner Storyteller

Charles@VideoResources.com (Charles Perez) — Tue, 13 Mar 2007 18:31:26 -0500

I love my job!

I get to meet attorneys who have to perform “stand up” on a regular basis to an audience whose approval they seek with material that is about as exciting as a wet newspaper.

Tough crowds - boring topics. Yet still they show up for appearance after appearance before a captive group of poorly paid and sometimes angry critics - many of whom are striving to look interested in the schtick the attorney's hawking.

When I’m consulted to prepare a presentation for a first- time client I begin by stressing that we need to play to the lowest common denominator in our "audience". The facts need to “speak for themselves in short order"; it’s like telling a joke – if you have to explain it, you’ve lost any impact as well as the impression you were striving for.

Good litigators are where they are because they possess the gift of verbal presentation – they are storytellers by necessity. I create the graphic extension to their story, but I’m careful not to become the story. Their story must “flow” naturally – the graphic must “feel" like it “belongs to the story.”

Our company has the ability to create stunning visuals, flashy titles and mind-boggling animations. Our clients’ eyes beam at the simplest effect – like they’re watching “Star Wars” for the first time.

Luckily, common sense prevails as I reign in the cowboys and we simplify, simplify, simplify the message until we’re left with ”just the facts ma’am.”

Just because we can create it doesn’t mean it’s going to work; by this I mean it’s too easy to overwhelm the message with the medium. You don’t want your audience to be dazzled with the mechanics of the presentation and completely overlook the message.

So, let me offer a few basic pointers for you first-timers dealing with projected images:

1. Hone your message to complement your visual(s) . Your graphic should make a statement that needs a minimum of explanation - it may be necessary to build your images as you speak, if so, try to make an even, yet noticeable transition between views.

2. Practice your delivery in front of a 7th or 8th grader. Do they understand your message? Seriously, if they can't figure out what your saying why would you expect a juror to grasp your message?

3. Set up your presentation quickly and quietly. We typically set up right before the trial begins or during a break. We’ve got the process down to about 10-12 minutes. Everything is done at a matter-of-fact pace with very little conversation. The key, I think, is to make the presentation look as much like an “everyday event” as possible.

4. Before launching into your spellbinding visual presentation, practice a little NLP (Neuro Linguistic Programming). Explain to the "audience" what you’re going to present – prepare their minds for the presentation - briefly explain the purpose of the image(s) you’re about to present. (Set the stage). Don’t make a big production about it – remember, this is an extension of your story – the illustrated part.

5. Keep the graphics conservative. I can’t stress this enough. You’re not going for an Academy Award – you’re trying to make a point.

6. Don’t read your screen to the "audience" – they can do that for themselves. Instead qualify why this graphic is important – reinforce the message with “Triggers”; short phrases that relate to the graphic so it creates a memorable impact.

7. Present to your "audience", not to the screen. Make the story flow. Be sure to practice with your presenter so that the story remains seamless and natural.

8. Don’t be a “drama queen.” (You know who you are.) Let the TV lawyers do that.

9. Respect your audience. Speak to them, not at them. You'll know you're in trouble when they start squirming and looking at their watches. (Glazed expressions are another sure-fire hint).

10. Keep the graphic that makes your point up as long as possible – let the visual reinforce the verbal - you’ve now associated an image with a verbal description - remember - give it a name, a “trigger” or "anchor" that will bring that graphic to mind the next time you need to refer to the subject.

11. Don’t overload the "audience" with images or data. Tell your story with simple images – simple but to the point. Let them absorb the information in bite sizes (or chunks) rather than big gulps.

11. Finally - if you're new at this and your message is every bit as effective on a white board, be safe - go with the white board. Continue honing your storytelling skill until the story becomes (literally) unimaginable, then - that's your cue to give me a call!