Author Archives: bredemarket

Marketing and writing services.

Is Your Identity/Biometric Firm Too Busy Putting Out Fires to Install a Sprinkler System?

It’s the classic case of paralysis by overwhelmedness. (Not officially a word, but bear with me here.)

Your identity/biometric firm needs experienced product marketing contract help because you are drowning in work. But because you’re drowning in work you can’t take the time to set up that contract.

Bredemarket can help you contract with Bredemarket.

Now there are certain things that Bredemarket can’t do. Well, Bredemarket could do them, but you (understandably) won’t let me.

  • I can’t create my own contract with you. Actually I can, and I have with some clients, but your company probably requires that I use your contract, which I don’t have.
  • I can’t enroll myself as a vendor in your purchasing system. Trust me, that would be dangerous. Hmm…net 5 terms at $1,000 per hour?
  • I can’t onboard myself into your other internal systems. If I could, that would be a major security flaw.

But there are things that I can do to make your life easier when you onboard Bredemarket as a contractor/vendor…especially if you are an identity/biometric firm.

  • You don’t have to explain to me what a bifurcation or ridge ending are. I’ve been working with fingerprints since 1994 and know these things.
  • You don’t have to teach me how to spell NIST. While the 1985 interchange standard was before my time, I’m familiar with every ANSI/NIST standard since 1993 to the present day.
  • You don’t have to explain to me what a “factor” and a “modality” are. Heck, I wrote the book on factors and modalities.
  • You don’t have to create a briefing book. Just let me ask the questions and we’ll figure out the scope together.

So I can meet your partway. Then we’ll realize our mutual goal of making your products prominent and making the competitive products look weak.

So let’s talk and move the process forward.

Oh, and the title of this post was suggested by Google Gemini. AI is only a tool, but sometimes it’s a very effective tool. Sometimes.

The Difference Between Localization and Nationalization

I am (mostly) not a programmer, but I’ve been exposed to materials developed for programmers, including materials from a company then known as Apple Computer.

Macintosh programming was new

The Macintosh was new at the time, and there was a learning curve for programmers who were used to character-based interfaces such as MS-DOS. In fact, some programmers were derided for putting DOS-like designs on the Mac platform.

Including Microsoft. Early versions of Microsoft Word used dot commands and other non-Mac interfaces, so we switched to another word processor (FullWrite Professional) which featured a true graphic interface. Unfortunately it was EXTREMELY slow, so we switched back to Word, dot commands and all.

But Apple Computer’s approach to development wasn’t just limited to the look and feel.

The resource fork

Pre-Mac, programmers would create code to compile into a single executable. Then if they needed, say, a French version, they would edit the code, take the English bits out, and put the French bits in.

But files in the original Macintosh File System had two parts: a data fork, and a resource fork. You could edit the resource fork without touching the data fork.

Which meant that it was a lot easier to create that French version of a program.

“Because all the pictures and text were stored separately in a resource fork, it could be used to allow a non-programmer to translate an application for a foreign market, a process called internationalization and localization.”

Localization

Or to create any version of a program.

Because of the ease of the process, software developers were not restricted to providing a single software version per country. Residents of Belgium, Canada, China, South Africa, and Switzerland could each receive software in their own local language. And the French Canadian version differed from the Swiss French version. (Or it should have differed.)

Software users received software just for them. And everybody won.

Sadly, this post is not localized, which is why non-U.S. readers are being bombarded with zeds.

Factor This Into Your Budget

Proving Humanity: The Six Factors of Identity Verification and Authentication.

Was your bank account hacked? Your tax return? Your health records?

How do banks, government agencies, and medical facilities protect your personally identifiable information (PII) from fraudsters?

By different methods, called FACTORS.

Understand these factors, how they work, and how they protect you.

Proving Humanity: The Six Factors of Identity Verification and Authentication

Planning is Overrated. Ask Guns N’ Roses.

You know that I make a big deal about the step before content draft creation where Bredemarket asks questions and creates the plan. But sometimes that isn’t necessary.

Some music managers insist on a pre-programmed planning session to truly engage the target audience.

As American Songwriter notes, Guns N’ Roses didn’t put up with all that.

“I was f—ing around with this stupid little riff,” Slash recalled to Q Magazine in 2005, via a Guns N’ Roses fan archive. “Axl said, Hold the f—ing phones! That’s amazing!”

And that finger exercise, a guitar version of a Bach invention, was the birth of “Sweet Child O Mine.” The band continued to develop the riff into a complete song.

Or almost complete. Producer Spencer Proffer thought the song needed a breakdown at the end.

According to Slash’s autobiography, written with Anthony Bozza in 2007, Axl Rose listened to the demos on a loop, then started muttering “where do we go?” to himself, thinking things over.

And you know what happened next.

Sweet Child O Mine.

Remain open to sudden inspiration.

Light? Yes.

The picture accompanying this post was taken in a medical facility in Palm Desert, California.

For purposes of this post, ignore the “creative” punctuation and capitalization.

I want to concentrate on the word “light.”

If I were creating this sign, I would have chosen the word “soft,” as in “Keep your conversations in soft tones.” Concentrating on the volume.

Then again, people in medical waiting rooms may be stressed. It’s critically important that the patients, caregivers, and others are NOT stressed (to the extent possible).

And that won’t happen when the conversations are…heavy.

“I hurt.”

“I hope these chemo treatments are successful. The hassle of chemo isn’t worth it if the cancer comes back.”

“My insurance is a mess, and so many things aren’t covered. Insurance isn’t worth it.”

“At least you have insurance. I can’t afford it, and can’t afford to pay for this visit.”

So I guess the sign writer was correct. If you are in a medical waiting room, keep your conversations in LIGHT tones to reduce the stress on everyone else.

Now about that-Capitalization…

KYP (Know Your Publisher): Flattery Will Get You Everywhere

Jobseekers and independent contractors are ideal targets for fraud, but they’re not the only ones.

As Phyllis Chesler notes, writers are also prey to the fraudsters.

“[T]he most extensive scam imaginable was launched against me and against many other writers….

“Two women (or two men? Political prisoners in China–or Nigeria? Or even in Iran?) emailed me. Each impersonated a real editor and a real literary agent. This began on April 23rd and continued on through April 27th or April 28th. They appropriated the name of Marilyn Kreztner at Blackstone Publishing and Caitlin Mahony at William Morris Endeavor….

“Please understand: Given the realities of publishing, most writers are a desperate lot. And oh-so-vulnerable to flattery. If a publishing person praises our work–we melt. We glow. Writers specialize in Big Dreams.”

And despite some lingering suspicions, Chesler sent some of her work to both people. But before she could send $700 for an editorial consultant to “improve” her work, Chesler had already contacted the real Blackstone Publishing and the real Wiolliam Morris Endeavor and confirmed that these were not the real Kreztner or Mahony.

If you’re a writer, you must check the site Chesler recommended, Writer Beware. It include a detailed post about this sort of scam, including examples of the scammer communications.

Reminder: while I write books, mine aren’t sold by publishing houses. Visit my Gumroad site to purchase my ebook, “Proving Humanity: The Six Factors of Identity Verification and Authentication.”

Four pages from "Proving Humanity: The Six Factors of Identity Verification and Authentication" by John E. Bredehoft, Bredemarket. Click on the image to purchase.

Chain of Custody Failures Can Destroy Your Legal Case

DNA evidence is well-validated. But if you think DNA is the perfect evidence to present at trial, think again. It may not be.

Yes, DNA evidence is scientifically based and can be presented in court under certain circumstances.

But as Forensic’s Blog points out, two issues may derail the use of DNA and other forensic evidence.

Chain of Custody

What is the “chain of custody”?

It is the DOCUMENTED trail of every person who accessed (“touched, moved, or stored”) a piece of evidence. The documentation is chronological and ideally logged in real time, not hours after the fact.

What could go wrong?

Let’s say that at 1:23 pm, Diana placed a piece of evidence in a locker and locked the locker. Then at 3:53 pm, Denis went to the locker, which was unlocked, and removed the evidence from the locker. Defense attorneys will have a field day with that, and may pressure the judge to state that the evidence is inadmissible because of possible tampering by an unidentified person.

Cross-Contamination

Closely related to the chain of custody is the possibility of cross-contamination. In the case of DNA, this happens when DNA from a crime scene is mixed with another person’s DNA.

I’ve told the story of the mystery female criminal whose DNA was found at crime scenes in three different countries over a decade. The only problem was that the woman’s DNA was found on the burned body of a MAN. Eventually the authorities figured out that the woman worked in a packing center specializing in medical supplies…and that her DNA had contaminated the medical supplies and ended up in the crime scene samples.

How to Minimize Errors

Forensic’s Blog suggests several ways to avoid chain of custody issues and cross-contamination. These include established and enforced procedures for handling, packaging, and labeling data; separating tasks; and establishing zones of exclusion at crime scenes.

In addition to establishment and enforcement, education is essential. (Sorrye.) Not only for the forensic professionals gathering the evidence, but for everyone who deals with the evidence…including biometric vendors and their customers.

If you need assistance in creating educational content for proper evidence handling, Bredemarket can help. Talk to me.

Bredemarket: Services, Process, and Pricing.