Encyclopedia of Computer Science and Technology

legal software 273Development and TrendsThe idea of small, portable personal computers goes backto the Dynabook concept developed at Xerox PARC in the1970s (see also Kay, Alan). The first “portable” computerswere often more aptly described as “luggable,” having morethe form factor of a suitcase than that of today’s laptops.Nevertheless, the first commercially successful portablecomputers, the Osborne 1 (1981) and the Compaq Portable(1983), began to show the feasibility of portable computing.(At the other end of the size spectrum, the successfulRadio Shack TRS-80 Model 100 established the utility ofthe notebook-sized computer.) In the 1980s true laptopsfrom companies such as Zenith and Toshiba with the familiarclamshell design emerged, running PC-compatible MS-DOS and, later, Windows applications. (Apple entered themarket with the Macintosh Portable in 1989, followed bythe PowerBook series, introduced in 1991.)Most improvements in laptops in the 1990s and beyondhave been incremental (more storage, sharper displays,more efficient batteries, and so on). Wireless (see Bluetoothand wireless and mobile computing) connectivityis now standard. Laptop development has bifurcatedsomewhat, with higher-end machines rivaling desktops formedia, gaming, and other applications, while notebooksoften become lighter, sometimes forgoing optical and evenhard drives in favor of network connectivity and flash memorystorage. Specially “ruggedized” laptops are used by themilitary on battlefields and in other harsh environments.Meanwhile, PDAs and smart phones capable of e-mail, Webbrowsing, and light data entry offer an alternative to laptopsfor people who are on the road frequently.Further ReadingGookin, Dan. Laptops for Dummies. 2nd ed. Hoboken, N.J.: Wiley,2006.Laptop Magazine. Available online. URL: http://www.laptopmag.com/index.htm. Accessed September 26, 2007.Laptops [resources and reviews]. Available online. URL: http://reviews.cnet.com/laptops.html. Accessed September 26, 2007.Miller, Michael. Your First Notebook PC. Indianapolis: Que, 2008.Sandler, Corey. Upgrading & Fixing Laptops for Dummies. Indianapolis:Wiley, 2006.Wilson, James E. Vintage Laptop Computers: First Decade, 1980–89.Denver, Colo.: Outskirts Press, 2006.law enforcement and computersBesides his superb reasoning skills, perhaps Sherlock Holmes’smost important asset was his extensive collection ofnotes that provided a cross-referenced index to London’scriminal underworld. Today computer applications havegiven law enforcers investigative, forensic, communication,tactical, and management tools that Holmes and his rivalsin the old Scotland Yard could not have imagined.For the officer on the street, the ability to obtain autolicense, stolen vehicle, or outstanding warrant information innear real-time provides a much better picture of the potentialrisk in making stops or arrests. Other “tactical” technologyincludes new devices for homing in on gunshots and thegrowing use of remote-controlled robots for bomb disposaland hostage negotiations (see robotics). A more controversialarea is the use of CCTV (closed-circuit TV) surveillancecameras in public places, advocated as a crime deterrent butraising concerns about privacy and intrusive social control.If a criminal case is opened, a variety of software applicationscome into play. These include case managementprograms for keeping track of evidence and witness interviews.Evidence must be properly logged at all times tomaintain a legally defensible chain of custody against accusationsof tampering.The investigation of a crime involves many computerizedforensic aids. Besides automated matching offingerprints and, increasingly other physical data (see biometrics),records can also be searched to detect patternssuch as crimes with related modus operandi (MOs). Theability to access information from other jurisdictions andto interface federal, state, and local agencies is also veryimportant, particularly for cases involving organized crime,interstate fugitives, and terrorism.Since data stored on computers is an increasingly prevalentform of evidence, law enforcement specialists must alsoemploy tools to recover data that may have been partiallyerased or encrypted by suspects (see computer forensics).Computers can be more active instruments of crime (seecomputer crime and security). Such traditional tools aswiretapping must be adapted to new forms of communicationsuch as e-mail while addressing concerns about civilliberties and privacy (see privacy in the digital age).High-level planning for law enforcement budgets andpriorities requires access to detailed crime statistics. At thenational level, the Justice Department’s Bureau of JusticeStatistics is a definitive information source. Law enforcers,like other professionals, increasingly use Web sites,chat areas, and e-mail lists to discuss computer-related lawenforcement issues with colleagues.Law enforcement agencies also use the same “bread andbutter” software needed by any substantial organization,including word processing, spreadsheet, payroll, and otheraccounting programs.Further ReadingBoba, Rachel. Crime Analysis and Crime Mapping. Thousand Oaks,Calif.: Sage Publications, 2005.Chu, James. Law Enforcement Information Technology: A Managerial,Operational, and Practitioner Guide. Grand Rapids, Mich.:CRC Press, 2001.Foster, Raymond E. Police Technology. Upper Saddle River, N.J.:Prentice Hall, 2004.Goold, Benjamin J. CCTV and Policing: Public Area Surveillance andPolice Practices in Britain. New York: Oxford University Press,2004.Gottschalk, Petter. Knowledge Management Systems in Law Enforcement:Technologies and Techniques. Hershey, Pa.: Idea GroupPublishing, 2006.Pattvina, April, ed. Information Technology and the Criminal JusticeSystem. Thousand Oaks, Calif.: Sage Publications, 2004.legal softwareModern law offices rely heavily on software to managecases and records, to perform legal research, and to prepare