TL;DR: The opinions and ideas expressed here are those of the author(s), unless otherwise noted. The primary author of site content is R. Brent Ostrum. Information on this site or in the blog section has been provided “AS IS” with no warranties, and usage by anyone confers absolutely no rights.
For information about the site privacy policy, please click here.
Regarding blog posts, I (Brent Ostrum) make every effort to provide accurate information, honest analysis, and a balanced perspective. You will see lots of references and footnotes in blog posts as and where they apply to the discussion. Please use discretion, however, before taking any decisions based on the information from this site or blog. While I try to cover topics in a reasonably thorough manner, I cannot guarantee a truly thorough exploration of some topics (and do not pretend to have done so); particularly when it comes to subtleties or nuances in interpretation or meaning. Forensic science is a complex area that is changing all the time, and forensic document examination may be one of the most complex domains of any you may encounter.
Be aware that I will not compensate you in any way whatsoever if you (or anyone else) suffer any loss, inconvenience, or damage because of, or while, making use of the information provided on this site. If you want my professional opinion on any matter, including topics discussed on this site, please contact me to discuss the matter further.
Unless indicated in the text, the information provided on this site DOES NOT reflect the official thoughts, position, policies, standards, methods, intentions, plans, strategies or beliefs of my employer (past or present, including the Canada Border Services Agency, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, or generally the Government of Canada), the Canadian Society of Forensic Science, or any other agency, body or organization with which I am or have been associated. For example, although I have been a guest with the QD sub-committee within OSAC and involved in various other NIST activities, the views expressed here (to the extent that any are expressed) are mine alone. They are not those of any organization, group, entity or agency. They are not necessarily shared by anyone within (or outside) of NIST, OSAC, any specific SAC, any OSAC Task Group, any OSAC Resource Committee, the Government of Canada, the Canada Border Services Agency, etc., etc.
Edits and Changes
As one might expect, an individual’s thoughts and opinions may change over time. In fact, it’s unavoidable. I (Brent Ostrum) consider it to be a necessary consequence of having an open mind and a willingness to improve and expand one’s knowledge of the world. Thus, individual posts in the blog represent only a quasi-permanent snapshot in time. They are a manifestation of my thoughts and opinions at the time of posting. As a result anything expressed in “out-of-date” posts may not the same, nor even remotely similar, to what I believe today. I reserve the right to update old or out-dated posts as I see fit and may do so without explicitly announcing, stating, indicating or marking corrections made in this manner (as a rule, though, changes are likely to be mentioned as an edit in the post).
Ultimately, I reserve the right to edit, restrict or delete any information, post, or comment without providing further explanation or a reason for the change.
Legal Advice — Not from me
I (Brent Ostrum) am not a lawyer and I do not provide legal advice of any kind whatsoever. If you need legal advice, please contact the lawyer of your choice but, whatever else you may do, please do not act upon any of my comments or take them to be legal advice. They are not!
Comments
Comments relating to blog posts or other information on the site are welcome. Discussion, argument, and debate are welcomed. Feel free to challenge the author(s) and to disagree, or agree. Each page/post has a comments section for that purpose (or you may send a message via the Contact Page). However, at all times please keep things civil and respectful. Also, if there is a question you have that is not already addressed on the site, please use the contact page to send an email. Always happy to help if possible.
Citations
Finally, if you wish to quote information from the site please provide a link-back and/or properly reference the website. An acceptable format for citation would be, for example:
[Author name, usually R. Brent Ostrum]. “[Specific page title].” Available online at https://rbostrum.ca/[insert relevant page reference] (Accessed on: [date downloaded] ).Thanks very much.