A follow up to the post Formats – Standard or Modified
Out of pure curiosity, I thought it would be interesting to take a snapshot of disks and identify what category they came in.
You may remember the graphic below from the original post….
Where do your exports sit?
It explained that if manufacturers make too many modifications, the integrity of the evidence and the ability to interrogate it correctly, suffers.
I have reviewed 238 individual Evidential Exports.
Standard Format in a Standard Container = 40
Standard Format in a Modified Container = 72
Modified Format in a Standard Container = 22
Modified Format in a Modified Container = 104
Although not a thoroughly scientific study, I think it highlights some interesting points.
Only 40 were types that could be played and investigated easily and fully with little technical knowledge.
72 were also easily investigated but only by trained personnel with the ability to identify the video enclosed in the Modified Container.
The lowest number, 22, made up types that had a Modified Format in a Standard Container. These are deceptive as most people may believe that they should play in standard software but because of the Modified format, they fail.
The majority of video incidents, 104, cannot easily be investigated. Without the correct player, and supplied with the right tools and the right information, they are time consuming and complicated.
So, how can this information help Manufacturers, re-branders and installers?
If they want the footage that their equipment records, to be easily played, understood and verifiable, they must stop making modifications without supplying the necessary tools to deal with it. If they do not want to bother with the expense of doing so, its very simple – stay with standards!
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