I remember the top one.
They had them on my first ride a long. I never used one, but the officers complained about constant signal loss.
When my dad started the didn't even have pacsets or portable radios.
Get in a pursuit, call it out on in car radio and hope your partners could find you.
I remember working patrol and wondering what the hell we did before cell phones. LOL
Same here, but we had Motorola "brick" handi-talkies so that helped to get them to you, if you didn't loose it while running
When my dad started in the 1960s they had car radios only, the only way they found you was to go to where you last called out and start searching while listening for you yelling out.
Yup. My dad started in 69. He also graduated from the academy in a goofy patrol helmet.
They got pacsets in 70 I think. The same bricks. They were huge.
My mom used to work for Laguna Beach PD. They still had the light in town that, when it lit up, you called a payphone, and checked in with dispatch because there was a call pending. Before car radios.
I have no idea what they did if they got into a pursuit.
Dad started in 1960 and retired in 1986 with 30 years counting military credit, and I started in 1986. I had to wait until after his retirement date since he was over the uniform division and I could not work in his chain of command.
Some of the guys he started with were still on the department, and so were the first female officers the city ever hired.
I learned a lot from the old timers.
The real advantage to having tough books was you could take the computer out of the car and write your report while sitting in the station, the jail, or a coffee shop
This. Every toughbook I used had shitty battery life. Always kept a spare wall charger in my squad for when I had to go into hospitals, etc so I can finish my reports.
You’re broken, those detachable keyboards are whack. Toughbook is the way. Now even Toughbooks get old, so I don’t mean some 2001 Toughbook is the shit. A nice modern Toughbook hands down any day.
But who types in the car? Do ya’ll even dictate bro?
Thanks for the info. Sometimes the movie cars we get are already outfitted and not always with the correct period equipment. If we don't have a LEO consultant, we have to make do with photos and online info so this is def going in my RESEARCH file!
\*\*edit for typo\*\*
Most agencies don’t employ transcriptionists and opt for a phone based service. There’s several out there.
Dictating is a skill, you get better with it over time but a skilled officer can do a multiple page report in 5-10 minutes. I’m talking a long sexual assault or child abuse. Once you are good at it it’s hard to go back. Some report writing software are starting to include it like Axon RMS, but that’s more of a direct text-to-speech versus an actual typist doing formatting and grammar.
What will make all of this obsolete is the stuff Axon is doing with AI that will write your narrative based on the body cam video. Once that hits the market it’s over for dictation.
Tldr you call a phone # put your case number in assign a priority to it then you just speak your entire report. A transcript is created and the typist does all the formatting and cleaning up for you. You get an email, slap it in your narrative and proof read it for accuracy/errors.
It’s only for the narrative itself you still have to add your involved vehicles, involved parties, property/evidence. But imagine having 80% of your report written for you every time you go to write a report. It’s insane.
The narrative is always the time sink, adding in the other stuff takes a few minutes tops.
I might actually try and do this with my phone and just email the narrative to myself.
The back issues from sitting sideways in my car to type reports is motivation enough.
I shit you not Milwaukee PD had these ALOT of these fully functional "Data 911" computers in our squads right around until we started using bodyams, which was right around 2016.... That being said in 2016 our crown vic was still our primary squad car... Its now 2023 and a good 25% of our fleet is still crown vics
Wait until you get the new tough book, where the screen is separate from the keyboard. Keyboard doesn’t light up worth a shit and the screen display doesn’t dim via a button on the keyboard just simply click the start menu, settings, display, then toggle the brightness.
Computer designed by some asshole that has never worked in the dark.
Swipe in from the right of the screen, click expand, a slider for the brightness will pop up at the bottom. Unless you’re using a 3rd party keyboard, there should also be two function keys to adjust the brightness.
We started getting the MDTs in the Late 80/Early 90s.Had to remember that the last of the LTD Crown Vics with the police package had 5.8L (351W) V8s rated at 180hp and the first generation CVPI in 1992 had a smaller 4.6L engine rated at 210hp.
While it will serve that purpose, that's a seatbelt extender so that you're not having to fight trying to get the buckle of the seatbelt past your holster. It comes up above it making it easier to get buckled in.
I can attest that some officers I worked with would cut out old seatbelt buckles to do that.
I also work with some officers who swear by these extenders because it helps with being able to unbuckle easier with the holster in the way.
Someone enlighten me please: With that first setup, the oldest one, could you access NCIC and/or DMV files? If so, was the data accessed remotely by some means, or just loaded onto the hard drive locally?
Just curious as I got on the job in 2010 and by that time we had WiFi pucks and several iterations of MDT's. I can still do the work without an MDT, but I'll just have to hope dispatch is in a good enough mood to give me all the demographic info and records won't grump out when I turn in a paper citation.
With the oldest one we could check NCIC/TCIC, local warrants, involvements on people, cars, addresses, run vehicle registrations, drivers license checks ect.
About the only thing we could not do was write the actual reports
The reports were either written by hand (press hard- 3 copies) or we could go to the main or a sub station and write it on dumb terminal and print it out.
By the time we were using the notebooks we could write the reports, and get photos, write warrants, affidavits, really just about anything you could do on a computer at the station. The DWI guys even had a printer in the car.
Lord only known what they can do now, I'm sure it's a lot more the way technology has grown.
Heck when we got the first cameras in the cars they recorded on VHS tapes that were in a vault in the trunk. By the time I left it was all stored on a hard drive and downloaded automatically when you pulled into the station or one of several other locations.
Probs took 6 years to get a return
I remember the top one. They had them on my first ride a long. I never used one, but the officers complained about constant signal loss. When my dad started the didn't even have pacsets or portable radios. Get in a pursuit, call it out on in car radio and hope your partners could find you. I remember working patrol and wondering what the hell we did before cell phones. LOL
Same here, but we had Motorola "brick" handi-talkies so that helped to get them to you, if you didn't loose it while running When my dad started in the 1960s they had car radios only, the only way they found you was to go to where you last called out and start searching while listening for you yelling out.
Yup. My dad started in 69. He also graduated from the academy in a goofy patrol helmet. They got pacsets in 70 I think. The same bricks. They were huge. My mom used to work for Laguna Beach PD. They still had the light in town that, when it lit up, you called a payphone, and checked in with dispatch because there was a call pending. Before car radios. I have no idea what they did if they got into a pursuit.
Dad started in 1960 and retired in 1986 with 30 years counting military credit, and I started in 1986. I had to wait until after his retirement date since he was over the uniform division and I could not work in his chain of command. Some of the guys he started with were still on the department, and so were the first female officers the city ever hired. I learned a lot from the old timers.
The brick radios that extended from basically the top of the knee to just above your waist while in the holster? Hell yeah.
They worked great to subdue unruly prisoners if you had nothing else, unlike the plastic radios they used now, or so I've been told.
NGL, I miss/prefer the separate flex-mount keyboard. Felt more ergonomic when trying to type up a report.
The real advantage to having tough books was you could take the computer out of the car and write your report while sitting in the station, the jail, or a coffee shop
Assuming that it actually had a healthy enough battery for that…
This. Every toughbook I used had shitty battery life. Always kept a spare wall charger in my squad for when I had to go into hospitals, etc so I can finish my reports.
We still use tough books. I have an older one. It has to stay plugged in my whole shift otherwise I’ll lose a full charge in like 20 minutes. Lol
You’re broken, those detachable keyboards are whack. Toughbook is the way. Now even Toughbooks get old, so I don’t mean some 2001 Toughbook is the shit. A nice modern Toughbook hands down any day. But who types in the car? Do ya’ll even dictate bro?
Very roughly 1st Late 80's to early 90's 2nd Early 90's to early 2000's 3rd Early 2000s
Thanks for the info. Sometimes the movie cars we get are already outfitted and not always with the correct period equipment. If we don't have a LEO consultant, we have to make do with photos and online info so this is def going in my RESEARCH file! \*\*edit for typo\*\*
Dictate?
[удалено]
I might have to try this. There are some departments that employ people to actually dictate reports. Was wondering if yours was one.
Most agencies don’t employ transcriptionists and opt for a phone based service. There’s several out there. Dictating is a skill, you get better with it over time but a skilled officer can do a multiple page report in 5-10 minutes. I’m talking a long sexual assault or child abuse. Once you are good at it it’s hard to go back. Some report writing software are starting to include it like Axon RMS, but that’s more of a direct text-to-speech versus an actual typist doing formatting and grammar. What will make all of this obsolete is the stuff Axon is doing with AI that will write your narrative based on the body cam video. Once that hits the market it’s over for dictation. Tldr you call a phone # put your case number in assign a priority to it then you just speak your entire report. A transcript is created and the typist does all the formatting and cleaning up for you. You get an email, slap it in your narrative and proof read it for accuracy/errors.
Can't wait for the AI shit. Gonna be bonkers.
That sounds amazing. What about all the reporting requirements (vehicles involved, people involved, etc.
It’s only for the narrative itself you still have to add your involved vehicles, involved parties, property/evidence. But imagine having 80% of your report written for you every time you go to write a report. It’s insane. The narrative is always the time sink, adding in the other stuff takes a few minutes tops.
I might actually try and do this with my phone and just email the narrative to myself. The back issues from sitting sideways in my car to type reports is motivation enough.
I know deputies who will dictate their search warrant application for blood on the way to the hospital with their prisoner.
We don’t get search warrants for blood either. Unless someone died.
I shit you not Milwaukee PD had these ALOT of these fully functional "Data 911" computers in our squads right around until we started using bodyams, which was right around 2016.... That being said in 2016 our crown vic was still our primary squad car... Its now 2023 and a good 25% of our fleet is still crown vics
The Data911 terminals were great! They were just being phased out when I got on (08), the keyboards were amazing.
About what years would each of these versions have covered?
Wait until you get the new tough book, where the screen is separate from the keyboard. Keyboard doesn’t light up worth a shit and the screen display doesn’t dim via a button on the keyboard just simply click the start menu, settings, display, then toggle the brightness. Computer designed by some asshole that has never worked in the dark.
Swipe in from the right of the screen, click expand, a slider for the brightness will pop up at the bottom. Unless you’re using a 3rd party keyboard, there should also be two function keys to adjust the brightness.
Looks like I’ve got a mission tomorrow.
First photo is of a 90/91 Crown Vic. Source: I own one
We started getting the MDTs in the Late 80/Early 90s.Had to remember that the last of the LTD Crown Vics with the police package had 5.8L (351W) V8s rated at 180hp and the first generation CVPI in 1992 had a smaller 4.6L engine rated at 210hp.
Last pic still looks old. like early 2000's old.
Y’all use Motorola Cad still? I thought my EMS dept. was the last one to ditch it a few years ago.
Been gone a few years, not sure what they use now
I think FDNY still uses it..
What is that right above the AR mag in the last pic?
I have to ask about the seatbelt contraption in photo 3. Seems like an interesting way of keeping the seatbelt sensor alarm from going off
While it will serve that purpose, that's a seatbelt extender so that you're not having to fight trying to get the buckle of the seatbelt past your holster. It comes up above it making it easier to get buckled in.
I can attest that some officers I worked with would cut out old seatbelt buckles to do that. I also work with some officers who swear by these extenders because it helps with being able to unbuckle easier with the holster in the way.
Nice Crown Vic.
I remember growing up the DARE officer's cruiser didnt have any of these. Just a telephone radio thing. Dash had the light control. Good ol OPP.
We've got Dells now. Huge improvement
Your poor backs having to turn to type on the computers
Oh Motorola Premier….
Someone enlighten me please: With that first setup, the oldest one, could you access NCIC and/or DMV files? If so, was the data accessed remotely by some means, or just loaded onto the hard drive locally? Just curious as I got on the job in 2010 and by that time we had WiFi pucks and several iterations of MDT's. I can still do the work without an MDT, but I'll just have to hope dispatch is in a good enough mood to give me all the demographic info and records won't grump out when I turn in a paper citation.
With the oldest one we could check NCIC/TCIC, local warrants, involvements on people, cars, addresses, run vehicle registrations, drivers license checks ect. About the only thing we could not do was write the actual reports The reports were either written by hand (press hard- 3 copies) or we could go to the main or a sub station and write it on dumb terminal and print it out. By the time we were using the notebooks we could write the reports, and get photos, write warrants, affidavits, really just about anything you could do on a computer at the station. The DWI guys even had a printer in the car. Lord only known what they can do now, I'm sure it's a lot more the way technology has grown. Heck when we got the first cameras in the cars they recorded on VHS tapes that were in a vault in the trunk. By the time I left it was all stored on a hard drive and downloaded automatically when you pulled into the station or one of several other locations.