Beyond Google: The DeeperQI seminar

For most people, Google has become the go-to source for finding information on the Internet. The search giant indexes billions of web pages and accounts for more  than two thirds of all Internet searches in the U.S. And for many users, Google delivers the cat videos or football scores that they're seeking. So do other popular services like Yahoo! and Bing. But how can researchers and investigators find obscure or sensitive information that might be buried deeper in the Web?

If February, I teamed with Constance Ard to help answer that question. We delivered a 90-minute presentation at Velocity Indiana, a business accelerator in Jeffersonville, Ind. The session was part of Open Office Hours, a monthly program sponsored by Richard Meadows.

Constance is a trained researcher and law librarian. I am a former reporter, editor and webmaster at The Courier-Journal. We work with ArnoldIT and Stephen E. Arnold, a consultant and author who has written extensively about Google and search technology. Their program is based on a series of seminars that was presented twice last fall to more than 500 security and law enforcement professionals.

The presentation included tips and tricks to get around Google's filters, profiles of free and low-cost online databases, and resources to get unfiltered worldwide news. And we used real-world examples to illustrate how different tools can be used to find relationships among businesses and persons of interest.

Here's a four-minute video drawn from our presentation. For more information, visit DeeperQI.com.

By: Ric Manning On 2/25/2014

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Return of the Nazi-killers

Castle Wolfenstein, the computer game that revolutionized the gaming industry by getting us hooked on first-person shooters, is coming back with a new look and a new environment. And it's bringing Nazis. Lots and lots of Nazis.

In fact, in Wolfenstein: The New Order, the Nazis are in charge. They won World War II with the help of technologically advanced war machine. Now it's 1960 and the Americans and their allies are preparing to launch a last-ditch counter-offensive across Europe.

The game is scheduled to be available for the Xbox One, PlayStation 4, Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and PC on May 24 in North America. Bethesda Softworks is taking advanced orders. Anyone who signs up early gets access to a beta version of the next incarnation of another shooter classic: DOOM.

By: Ric Manning On 2/19/2014

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New smart appliances can think, plan and talk

A refrigerator that reads your text messages, a WiFi-enabled slow cooker and a barbecue grill that hears your instructions. They were all on display at last month's International CES, along with a host of other new tech-savvy appliances.

Household appliances are the next group of products that will be plugging into the Internet to help consumers save energy and improve their lifestyle. One example is HomeChat, a feature that LG is building into many of its new products.

HomeChat uses text messaging to let users communicate with their appliances. For example, you could tell your robotic vacuum cleaner to tidy up the living room before you arrive home from work. Or you might inform your refrigerator that you're leaving for the weekend so it could switch to power-saving mode.

Check out that new connected Crock-Pot and more appliances my latest column at MyWell-Being.com.

By: Ric Manning On 2/11/2014

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Optrix outfits iPhones for surf or snow

I have a few videos from family vacations at the beach and the ski slopes - but not many. I was always afraid I would drop or damage my camcorder or cell phone. But now that I have a PhotoX case from Optrix, sand, snow and water are no longer a threat.

The PhotoX is a clear, waterproof case that fits an iPhone 5 or 5th generation iPod Touch. The case has a soft membrane front so you can swipe and click when the phone is sealed inside.

The backside has a threaded connection that accepts a tiny lens. It also has a mounting bracket for one of the many accessories that Optrix sells. They include suction cup and handlebar bike mounts, a tripod connector and a monopod.

Optrix even sells a chest strap, presumably for skydiving, snowboarding or kayaking. That sounds a lot more practical than my approach: skiing downhill while holding my Sony Handycam up to my face.

The PhotoX cost about $100 at Optrix.com. It comes with a flat lens and a macro. A step up is the PhotoProX, which costs $150 and comes with two additional lenses, a fisheye and a telephone.

I wanted to illustrate the PhotoX by shooting a beach video, but as you can see from the clip below, the surf wasn't up.

 

By: Ric Manning On 2/06/2014

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