Scrubbing of Metadata for Office 2003 and Office 2007 Excel Documents

Hi All,

Scrubbing of metadata is nothing but removal of the document properties like metadata of the particular document(Document properties and personal information stored within the document). In this instance, I would like to share with you all regarding scrubbing of metadata for microsoft excel documents (Office 2003 and Office 2007).

Please find the below steps to perform scrubbing of metadata for office 2007 Microsoft excel documents:

• Open the respective microsoft excel document.
• Go to File menu –> Info tab -> Check for Issues tab -> Inspect Document.
• A Document Inspector window pops up and select the document for selected content like “Document Properities and Personal Information.”
• Click on Inspect button.
• Upon clicking the Inspect button, Document Inspector inspects for appropriate data that needs to be scrubbed.
• Once the inspection has been complete, you will see an option for “Remove all” under the selected content of “Document Properties and Personal Information.”
• Click on “Remove all.”
• Click on “Close” button in the Document Inspector window.
• Save the document.
• To verify, just right click on the selected document, select properties option and you can see blank data in the metadata fields.

Please find the below steps to perform scrubbing of metadata for office 2003 Microsoft excel documents:

• Open the respective microsoft excel document.
• Go to File menu –> Properities tab -> Inspect Document.
• A Document Inspector window pops up and select the document for selected content like “Document Properities and Personal Information.”
• Click on Inspect button.
• Upon clicking the Inspect button, Document Inspector inspects for appropriate data that needs to be scrubbed.
• Once the inspection has been complete, you will see an option for “Remove all” under the selected content of “Document Properties and Personal Information.”
• Click on “Remove all.”
• Click on “Close” button in the Document Inspector window.
• Save the document.
• To verify, just right click on the selected document, select properties option and you can see blank data in the metadata fields.

Scrubbing of PDFs

Hi All,

Most of us are unaware of the term, scrubbing of Metadata.  Scrubbing of metadata is nothing but removal of the document properties like metadata of the particular document (Author, Date Last modified, Date Created etc.)

Please find the below steps to perform scrubbing of PDFs:

1. Open the respective PDF document.
2. Go to Edit – Preferences.
3. Select Documents section under Categories.
4. Select the option of Examine document when closing document option under Examine Document section.
5. Click on OK.
6. Once we have the pop up of Examine Document, check the appropriate data that needs to be scrubbed.
7. Click on Remove all checked items.
8. Once, we have the confirmation window which indicates that scrubbing is done. Click on OK.
9. Save the document.
10. To verify, just right click on the selected document, select properties option and you can see blank data in the metadata fields.

Tips to Write Blog Posts

One of the key valuable to blogging success is providing exceptional content. Go after these below tips to make sure your blog posts not only get read but make people to expect more from you.

1. Opt for the appropriate tone of the Blog

Each Blog has a target audience it has been written for. Before you begin writing blog posts, survey who’s your primary and secondary audiences will be. Who wants to read your blog and why? Are they receiving professional information and debate or fun? Be familiar with not only your goals for your blog but also your addressee’s expectations for it. Then make a decision on what tone would be most apt for your blog, and inscribe consistently in that tone and style.

2. Be Open

Blogs that are written in direct voice and truly show who the writer is are often the most popular. Consider the fact; Community that grows around the blog is the key component for blog’s success. If you represent yourself and content truly and openly, reader loyalty will undeniably raise.

3. Don’t Just List Links

Blogging is time-taking, and sometimes it will be very tempting to just list links to other online content for your readers to follow. Make sure not to fall into that trap. Readers do not follow a breadcrumb trail to find something interesting topics to read. In fact, they might like where you have lead them more than your blog. Instead, give readers a reason not to leave your blog by providing links with your own summary and opinion about the content of those links. Remember, a link without context is an easy way to lose readers rather than retaining them.

4. Provide Attribution

Do not risk being indicted of violating copyrights, breach of copyright or stealing content from another blog or website.  If you found information on another blog or website that you want to discuss on your blog make sure to provide a link back to the original source.

5. Write in Short and Precise

The visual appeal of your blog’s content can be just as important as the content itself. Write your blog posts in short paragraphs to provide visual relief from a text weighty web page. Most readers will skim a blog post or web page before deciding to read it in its entirety. Text heavy web pages and blog posts can be overwhelming to readers while pages with a lot of white space are easier to skim and more likely to keep readers on the page.

Why do Projects Fail? & How to avoid Project Failures?

Learning How to Avoid Project Failure:

We can probably all think of projects that have “failed” – perhaps processes got worse rather than better, maybe they were canceled because of cost overruns, or perhaps systems were launched with fundamental errors.

How do you know when – and why – a project has failed? In many cases, the reason for failure is obvious. However, the definition of failure isn’t always clear: one project with a significant delay might be described as a failure; yet another, with a similar delay, might be seen as a stunning success.

Definition of Project Failure:

A project is considered a failure when it has not delivered what was required, in line with expectations. Therefore, in order to succeed, a project must deliver to cost, to quality, and on time; and it must deliver the benefits presented in the business case.

The requirements for success are clear and absolute – right? Unfortunately, it’s not that simple. Because the second part of our definition of success is that the project must be delivered “in line with expectations.”

If key stakeholders agreed that a project had to exceed its initial budget, the project may still be considered a success. Likewise, if a project delivered everything that was in the detailed project designs, it may still be considered a failure if it didn’t include vital elements that the key stakeholders needed. This doesn’t seem fair, but project success and failure isn’t just about the facts, nor is it simply about what was delivered. It’s also, crucially, about how the project is perceived.

Reasons for Project Failure:

Here are some of the main reasons why projects fail:

The wrong business requirements have been addressed:

If your project is set up to deliver the “wrong thing,” it may be considered a failure even if everything is delivered on time, within budget, and to the required quality. This seems harsh. But if your project doesn’t deliver what the organization really needs, this will inevitably negatively affect how it’s perceived. This is why it’s so important to conduct a thorough business requirements analysis.

It’s not possible to deliver the business case:

If your business case can’t be delivered, then you have an impossible task. To make things worse, after the business case is approved, delivery of other things then becomes dependent on your project. This makes changing your project’s deadlines, budgets and expectations more difficult.

For example, once you’ve promised to deliver a new airport baggage management system, airlines may schedule additional flights for shortly after the system’s launch, so that they can take advantage of the new capacity. If the baggage system doesn’t work, or if it has major problems during testing, it may be hard to convince senior managers to allow the project to be delayed, because they will have to give up promised increased revenue. When you write your business case, make sure you think through the project requirements in detail, and identify what’s needed to ensure that you can deliver those requirements.

Don’t just list assumptions – make sure you explore them thoroughly. Review other, similar projects, so that you don’t forget any major items. If you’re delivering a new system, review your hardware and interface requirements. If you have major risks, include sufficient contingency resources (people, budget, and time) to manage those risks appropriately. Remember that implementing change is hard!

Be realistic, and be ready to have some difficult conversations. For instance, your CEO may be disappointed that he can’t have what he wants before the year end, or key users may say that they really need a fully featured product at the end of phase one. However, it will be a lot harder to have these conversations at a future date, when your project is in trouble!

In many cases, business case documentation is written before a project manager is assigned. If you’re the incoming project manager, make sure you don’t simply accept these documents as they are!

You’re responsible for delivering the project, so be sure to review the business case. Validate assumptions, and identify any gaps or areas that need more detail. If difficult conversations are needed, have them now. Once deadlines, requirements, and budgets are set, expectations are much more difficult to change!

Implementation Is Poor:

If you deliver your project competently, you’ll avoid poor implementation – right? Unfortunately, it’s not that clear. Delivery can be complex. You need to manage risks, issues, and scope; manage your team; and communicate with stakeholders. Delivering change is hard, and not everything is in your control. Therefore, being competent isn’t enough for good implementation, but it’s a good start! There are a lot of tools available to help you.

Making Timely Decisions – If the project is clearly not going to be able to deliver the revised requirements, don’t ignore this. The sooner you communicate this, and the sooner you make a decision about the project’s future, the better.

Considering Smaller Projects: – It’s more difficult to change direction in a large cruise ship than in a tugboat. So, think about whether a proposed project’s scope and delivery timeline are appropriate within your business environment. Delivering projects in smaller pieces is not always appropriate, but it’s worth considering.

Managing Expectations: – Just because you cancel a project does not automatically mean that the project is considered a failure. This depends on many factors, including how you manage the involvement of key project stakeholders in the decision-making process.

Key Points:

For a project to be successful, it’s not enough simply to manage your project competently, and deliver a good quality product. To avoid failure, make sure you have identified the right business requirements, created an achievable business case, put strong project governance into place, managed a high-quality implementation, focused on benefits, and monitored your changing environment.

Above all, be sure to manage the expectations, so that they stay supportive. After all, these are the people who will declare your project to be successful – or otherwise.

Tips to save interactive PDF file with all data typed into form by Adobe Reader

Inorder to save the data filled in an interactive PDF form, which is protected, we need to follow the below steps:

1. Open the PDF using Adobe Standard 8 Professional.
2. Go to Advanced menu, and click on “Enable the user rights in Adobe Reader”
3. Save the PDF and close.
4. Open the saved PDF in Adobe Reader9 or higher versions, and then fill the data in the respective fields in Form.
5. Save the PDF, you can save the data filled in PDF on to your hard disk and send it as attachment or as an email as required.

Any different solutions from the above would be highly appreciated.

Commonly Used File Types in Litigation Management

TXT File: A text file holds just the text information without retaining the format. Most basic file types can be opened with any text editor or word processor. TXT files are used to import data into most databases from another database, spreadsheet or electronic discovery.

CSV File: A CSV file is commonly expressed as a ‘Comma Delimited File’ or a ‘Character Separated File’. The second description is more accurate since any character including the comma, can be used to define each piece of data.  CSV files are used to import data into most databases from another database, spreadsheet or electronic discovery.  You would use this file instead of .edii file but would also need a .dii file to get the images into the database.

DCB, INI, KEY, LAYOUT, NDX, TAG, TEX, TRK Files: All these files are related to Concordance database and we need  Concordance to open any of these related files.

LFP File: The .LFP file indicates the documents were prepared using IPRO software.  Many of the service departments use this application.  The benefit is that IPro has a free utility that will convert the .lfp file to a variety of formats in particular, a .dii , OPT,  and DAT file.

OPT File: The OPT file is a Concordance load file that can be converted using IPRO’s  iConverter++ to create a load file that will work in almost any litigation support software tool.

DAT File: A DAT file is really nothing different than a .CSV file.  It is important to identify the fields of data that are being delivered within the .dat file so that you can match them to a field in your database or create new one.  It also has delimiters that should have been requested on the front end.  If not, you should be able to make adjustments at the “setup” before the import.  You can also do a full global search and replace to get the data imported but sometimes that can become exasperating.  A .dat file only loads the text and does not load images.

Dii File: The Dii file (document image information) is the load file which is a proprietary Summation file and is used to batch load images, OCR, and objective coding into the database. The Dii file instructs Summation on the unitization of the documents in the database as it would otherwise appear in a file cabinet with appropriate page breaks.  You can also use a Dii file to load images without OCR or objective coding.

eDii File: The eDii file (electronic document image information) is the load file which is a proprietary Summation file and is used to batch load images and data extracted from native files.  The eDii file instructs Summation on the unitization of the documents in the database it would otherwise appear in a file cabinet with appropriate page breaks in addition to loading data into fields such as TO, FROM, E-MAIL DATE, SUBJECT, BODY, etc

Control List (.lst):  A control list is an ASCII text file that contains the data necessary to link OCR documents to database records.

SBF File: A file format propriety to Summation and is used to bundle documents and/or transcripts which can be imported or exported electronically.  SBF files delivered from a court reporter are a bundle of both the transcript and deposition exhibits and even the video if applicable.  However, an .sbf file delivered from opposing counsel would be a bundle of documents that can be dropped right into the Case Explorer tree and subsequently merged into the Core Database.

Introduction to Concordance Discovery Software

Concordance Discovery Software is used to organize and manage massive volumes of litigation data and OCR text.  The software can handle over 33 million records per database and allows up to 250 customizable fields per record.  We can easily import, search and organize email and other e-discovery documents quickly and accurately. It makes easy to identify and analyze critical information regarding a particular case.

The various features of Concordance Discovery Software are:

• Concordance technology allows us to be associated with satellite offices, co-counsel, expert witnesses and clients on e-discovery documents in real time.
• A single search box lets us search the full text of hundreds of thousands of documents in up to 128 litigation databases simultaneously.  It allows us to search by a word, phrase, spreadsheets, memos, prior testimony and diagrams.
• We can perform Boolean, vague, Wild Card and even relational and conceptual searches. Exclusive integration with EverQuest’s Cognition offers the ability to search on the meaning of words and find conceptually similar matches, for more appropriate discovery.
• We can modify the screens to meet our specific needs by choosing the fields we want to display hiding other fields.
• We can use Concordance Image software to promptly highlight confidential portions of case documents and redact them prior to delivery. We can also insert comments to get attention to key issues among other team members.

What is Electronic Data Discovery?

Electronic data discovery refers to any process in which electronic data is sought, located, secured, and searched with the intent of using it as evidence in a civil or criminal legal case. E-discovery can be carried out offline on a particular computer or it can be done in a network. Court-ordered or government sanctioned hacking for the purpose of obtaining critical evidence is also a type of e-discovery.

The nature of digital data makes it extremely well-suited to investigation. For one thing, digital data can be electronically searched with ease, whereas paper documents must be scrutinized manually. Furthermore, digital data is difficult or impossible to completely destroy, particularly if it gets into a network. This is because the data appears on multiple hard drives and because digital files, even if deleted, can be undeleted. In fact, the only reliable way to destroy a computer file is to physically destroy every hard drive where the file has been stored.

In the process of electronic discovery, data of all types can serve as evidence. This can include text, images, calendar files, databases, spreadsheets, audio files, animation, Web sites and computer programs. Even malware such as viruses, Trojans and spyware can be secured and investigated. Email can be an especially valuable source of evidence in civil or criminal litigation, because people are often less careful in these exchanges than in hard copy correspondence such as written memos and postal letters.

Computer forensics, also called cyberforensics, is a specialized form of e-discovery in which an investigation is carried out on the contents of the hard drive of a specific computer. After physically isolating the computer, investigators make a digital copy of the hard drive. Then the original computer is locked in a secure facility to maintain its pristine condition. All investigation is done on the digital copy.

E-discovery is an evolving field that goes far beyond mere technology. It gives rise to multiple legal, constitutional, political, security and personal privacy issues, many of which have yet to be resolved.