So this isn't exactly related to music but it's certainly off topic.
Many of you know that I'm training my dog Lilly for HRD. (human remains detection)
we spent the weekend out in the woods. 730 acres of woods, streams, a lake and fields. We arrived Friday afternoon and received a briefing on some missing campers.... 6 kids of varying ages and 2 with serious medical problems. We set out searching.... trying to determine what direction they might have gone. It was well after midnight before we were recalled to command. We used air scent tracking and trailing dogs to get some idea where they might have gone.
Saturday morning, we were back in the field with hounds. Saturday afternoon it was determined that several of the kids may not have survived the night and my dog (HRD) was sent out to find the body of one of the girls where the hounds had indicated she might have gone. Hounds only track living people.
So, as we were loading into the transport vehicle, it started raining. We searched the area where we were instructed to search and spent a good hour in the rain, poking through briars and thorn bushes and high weeds. We found nothing and called command for further instructions. They expanded our search area to include a section of woods between the ball fields and the clear cut along the stream. Within 5 minutes of moving to the new section we located the missing victim.
It was a good weekend of training. The outcome of the training scenario was that 2 of the kids didn't make it but 4 did. We continued the live tracking into Sunday morning when we had a dry sunny morning. Out of concern for the actual kids who were playing the parts of the survivors, we pulled them from the woods or didn't put them out to start with in the rain. So the dogs that were tracking them were following at least a 24hr old trail that had endured 5 hrs of rain..... amazing dogs.
This is Lilly. This was a photo from last year's SAREX. I rarely get pics of my dog when she's working because I'm too busy watching her for body language changes that tell me she's "in odor" as we call it. It's subtle and if I'm not paying attention it's easily missed. This pic was taken above the lake and in the general area where she made her find this year. Sunday morning, we did some HRD training. 3 small sources in a wooded half acre section. All dry bone.... which is low odor.... humans can't smell anything at all.... Lilly went first so she didn't have any "dog scent" to follow. I put her in the wooded area and she had all 3 bones indicated within 3 minutes or so. She's come a long way. The first find was 15 seconds into the sector. Very quick and very impressive.
We had a team from Georgia (non-K9) come up and participate, and individuals from several other states as well as a number of people from our own team were there. We always train with K9's so it was good to get out and do some man-tracking on foot. Totally different set of skills. Personally, I'll defer to the dogs on that skill.
Last year was a bad year for our team for a number of reasons.... medical and personal for our leadership, but this year we're hoping things go better and we can train more often. My hope is that very soon, perhaps before the summer gets here, Lilly and I will get the chance to take the NASAR K9 HRD Land certification. That lets us become "operational" on our team.
A lot of valuable lessons learned..... gotta have rain proof gear (gloves were the weak link) ..... you won't find a missing person where they are not, you only find them where they are. Not every search finds someone, in fact most don't, and when you do, the results are not always good....and having an HRD dog.... that's how our searches usually end.
But we had fun. Anyway, that's what we did this weekend. Lilly was one happy critter to get back to the house.... just saying.... so was I.
You can find my music at: www.herbhartley.com Add nothing that adds nothing to the music. You can make excuses or you can make progress but not both.
The magic you are looking for is in the work you are avoiding.
Very interesting read. I love dogs and respect what they can do. What you're doing certainly falls under the old cliche "It's a dirty job but someone has to do it". This is the definition of a community service. Sad, but also vital. It's gotta be tough to find a child like that.
Very interesting read. I love dogs and respect what they can do. What you're doing certainly falls under the old cliche "It's a dirty job but someone has to do it". This is the definition of a community service. Sad, but also vital. It's gotta be tough to find a child like that.
Bob
fortunately, the bodies we had to find were training mannequins and not deceased kids. we're certainly a different breed because our discussions over a meal involve such topics as the various stages of human decomposition up to and beyond liquifician... the kind of stuff to which my wife would say " do you mind? we are eating here."
You can find my music at: www.herbhartley.com Add nothing that adds nothing to the music. You can make excuses or you can make progress but not both.
The magic you are looking for is in the work you are avoiding.
Dogs are SO much smarter than people. I see it with mine every day. Just the things she does in her day to day routine. She can't see yet comes to find me to get things she wants but can't reach, like when she hides bones and they fall to a place where her snout won't fit. Police dogs, service dogs, and yours is a cross between those two, just fascinate me.
Excellent. I voted many, many times for Lily in that competition of 2016
BIAB & RB2026 Win.(Audiophile), Windows 10 Professional & Windows 11, Sonar Platinum, Cakewalk by Bandlab, Izotope Prod.Bundle, Roland RD-1000, Synthogy Ivory, Kontakt, Focusrite 18i20, KetronSD2, NS40M Monitors, Pioneer Active Monitors
I placed it in my amazon cart for the next time I order something. We study and discuss those sorts of things all the time. In fact there are several "body farms" around the country, with one being here in western NC run by a university, that allow HRD dog teams to come and train on various occasions. They study human decomp in a variety of settings.... surface, buried, clothed, wrapped in plastic, warm, cold, dry humid... taking scientific readings and recording everything and documenting it for forensic studies. Morbidly fascinating.
You can find my music at: www.herbhartley.com Add nothing that adds nothing to the music. You can make excuses or you can make progress but not both.
The magic you are looking for is in the work you are avoiding.
Excellent. I voted many, many times for Lily in that competition of 2016
I certainly appreciate that. They closed it for law enforcement only, for the last one. I think they had a bunch of K9 SAR teams get in and our team was in the top 10 the entire time. They probably didn't expect that. Since the company sponsoring it sells it's services to law enforcement mostly, they wanted a law enforcement agency to win it.
You can find my music at: www.herbhartley.com Add nothing that adds nothing to the music. You can make excuses or you can make progress but not both.
The magic you are looking for is in the work you are avoiding.
what impresses me about you is that you are very high-functioning in a bunch of different directions. Whatever you set your hand to do, you do it with all your might. It is a rare individual who absorbs information the way you do. This is just one more way in which you have earned my respect.
It's interesting to me that this forum has a number of such people.
what impresses me about you is that you are very high-functioning in a bunch of different directions. Whatever you set your hand to do, you do it with all your might. It is a rare individual who absorbs information the way you do. This is just one more way in which you have earned my respect.
It's interesting to me that this forum has a number of such people.
Now that right there is a high compliment..... thank you
You can find my music at: www.herbhartley.com Add nothing that adds nothing to the music. You can make excuses or you can make progress but not both.
The magic you are looking for is in the work you are avoiding.
I’ve spent only very short stretches of my entire life without a dog and I’m on the porch with our border collie as I type. We love dogs and everything they can do and enjoy reading about their amazing variety of skills.
Thanks for sharing your and Lilly’s story. And cool that she's smiling for the photo
J&B
Our albums and singles are on Spotify, Apple Music, Amazon Music, YouTube Music, Pandora and more. If interested search on Janice Merritt. Thanks! Our Videos are here on our website.
I’ve spent only very short stretches of my entire life without a dog and I’m on the porch with our border collie as I type. We love dogs and everything they can do and enjoy reading about their amazing variety of skills.
Thanks for sharing your and Lilly’s story. And cool that she's smiling for the photo
J&B
several team members have Border Collies. they're amazing dogs.
yeah... Lilly is doing a Mona Lisa kind of smile....
You can find my music at: www.herbhartley.com Add nothing that adds nothing to the music. You can make excuses or you can make progress but not both.
The magic you are looking for is in the work you are avoiding.
My two wonderful pups, coming home from a spa day with the groomer. Charlotte Ann (on the left) is a Black Mouth Cur and Bella Donna (on the right) is Black Mouth Cur/American Bulldog mix.
They are strong and lithe, wonderful around kids, and a joy to have in the family.
Yes, dogs really are amazing.
John
Laptop-HP Omen I7 Win11Pro 32GB 8TB SSD Desktop-ASUS-I7 Win10Pro 32GB 11TB SATA
Band-in-a-Box 2026 Video: The Newly Designed Piano Roll Window
In this video, we explore the updated Piano Roll, complete with a modernized look and exciting new features. You’ll see new filtering options that make it easy to focus on specific note groups, smoother and more intuitive note entry and editing, and enhanced options for zooming, looping, and more.
Band-in-a-Box 2026 Video: AI Stems & Notes - split polyphonic audio into instruments and transcribe
This video demonstrates how to use the new AI-Notes feature together with the AI-Stems splitter, allowing you to select an audio file and have it separated into individual stems while transcribing each one to its own MIDI track. AI-Notes converts polyphonic audio—either full mixes or individual instruments—into MIDI that you can view in notation or play back instantly.
Bonus PAK and 49-PAK for Band-in-a-Box® 2026 for Windows®
With your version 2026 for Windows Pro, MegaPAK, UltraPAK, UltraPAK+, Audiophile Edition or PlusPAK purchase, we'll include a Bonus PAK full of great new Add-ons for FREE! Or upgrade to the 2026 49-PAK for only $49 to receive even more NEW Add-ons including 20 additional RealTracks!
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MIDI Styles Set 92: Look Ma! More MIDI 15: Latin Jazz
MIDI SuperTracks Set 46: Piano & Organ
Instrumental Studies Set 24: Groovin' Blues Soloing
Artist Performance Set 19: Songs with Vocals 9
Playable RealTracks Set 5
RealDrums Stems Set 9: Cool Brushes
SynthMaster Sounds Set 1 (with audio demos)
Android Band-in-a-Box® App (included)
Looking for more great add-ons, then upgrade to the 2026 49-PAK for just $49 and you'll get:
20 Bonus Unreleased RealTracks and RealDrums with 20 RealStyle.
FLAC Files (lossless audio files) for the 20 Bonus Unreleased RealTracks and RealDrums
MIDI Styles Set 93: Look Ma! More MIDI 16: SynthMaster
MIDI SuperTracks Set 47: More SynthMaster
Instrumental Studies 25 - Soul Jazz Guitar Soloing
Artist Performance Set 20: Songs with Vocals 10
RealDrums Stems Set 10: Groovin' Sticks
SynthMaster Sounds & Styles Set 2 (sounds & styles with audio demos)
Join Tobin as he takes you on a tour of the new user interface in Band-in-a-Box® 2026 for Windows®! This modern GUI redesign offers a sleek new look with updated toolbars, refreshed windows, and a smoother workflow. The brand-new side toolbar puts track selection, the MultiPicker Library, and other essential tools right at your fingertips. Plus, our upgraded Multi-View lets you layer multiple windows without overlap, giving you a highly flexible workspace. Many windows—including Tracks, Piano Roll, and more—have been redesigned for improved usability and a cleaner, more intuitive interface, and more!
Introducing XPro Styles PAK 10 – Now Available for Windows Band-in-a-Box 2025 and Higher!
We've just released XPro Styles PAK 10 for Windows & Mac Band-in-a-Box version 2025 (and higher) with 100 brand new RealStyles, plus 28 RealTracks and RealDrums!
Few things are certain in life: death, taxes, and a brand spankin’ new XPro Styles PAK! In this, the 10th edition of our XPro Styles PAK series, we’ve got 100 styles coming your way! We have the classic 25 styles each from the rock & pop, jazz, and country genres, and rounding out this volume's wildcard slot is 25 styles in the Praise & Worship genre! A wide spanning genre, you can find everything from rock, folk, country, and more underneath its umbrella. The included 28 RealTracks and RealDrums can be used with any Band-in-a-Box® 2026 (and higher) package.
Here’s just a small sampling of what you can look forward to in XPro Styles PAK 10: Soft indie folk worship songs, bumpin’ country boogies, gospel praise breaks, hard rockin’ pop, funky disco grooves, smooth Latin jazz pop, bossa nova fusion, western swing, alternative hip-hop, cool country funk, and much more!
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XPro Styles PAKs require Band-in-a-Box® 2025 or higher and are compatible with ANY package, including the Pro, MegaPAK, UltraPAK, UltraPAK+, and Audiophile Edition.
Introducing Xtra Styles PAK 21 – Now Available for Windows Band-in-a-Box 2025 and Higher!
Xtra Styles PAK 21 for Windows & Mac Band-in-a-Box version 2025 (and higher) is here with 200 brand new RealStyles!
We're excited to bring you our latest Xtra Styles PAK installment—the all new Xtra Styles PAK 21 for Band-in-a-Box version 2025 (and higher)!
Rejoice, one and all, for Xtra Styles PAK 21 for Band-in-a-Box® is here! We’re serving up 200 brand spankin’ new styles to delight your musical taste buds! The first three courses are the classics you’ve come to know and love, including offerings from the rock & pop, jazz, and country genres, but, not to be outdone, this year’s fourth course is bro country! A wide ranging genre, you can find everything from hip-hop, uptempo outlaw country, hard hitting rock, funk, and even electronica, all with that familiar bro country flair. The dinner bell has been rung, pickup up Xtra Styles PAK 21 today!
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Note: The Xtra Styles require the UltraPAK, UltraPAK+, or Audiophile Edition of Band-in-a-Box®. (Xtra Styles PAK 21 requires the 2025 or higher UltraPAK, UltraPAK+, or Audiophile Edition. They will not work with the Pro or MegaPAK version because they need the RealTracks from the UltraPAK, UltraPAK+, or Audiophile Edition.
Introducing XPro Styles PAK 10 – Now Available for Mac Band-in-a-Box 2025 and Higher!
We've just released XPro Styles PAK 10 for Mac & Windows Band-in-a-Box version 2025 (and higher) with 100 brand new RealStyles, plus 28 RealTracks and RealDrums!
Few things are certain in life: death, taxes, and a brand spankin’ new XPro Styles PAK! In this, the 10th edition of our XPro Styles PAK series, we’ve got 100 styles coming your way! We have the classic 25 styles each from the rock & pop, jazz, and country genres, and rounding out this volume's wildcard slot is 25 styles in the Praise & Worship genre! A wide spanning genre, you can find everything from rock, folk, country, and more underneath its umbrella. The included 28 RealTracks and RealDrums can be used with any Band-in-a-Box® 2026 (and higher) package.
Here’s just a small sampling of what you can look forward to in XPro Styles PAK 10: Soft indie folk worship songs, bumpin’ country boogies, gospel praise breaks, hard rockin’ pop, funky disco grooves, smooth Latin jazz pop, bossa nova fusion, western swing, alternative hip-hop, cool country funk, and much more!
Special offers until December 31st, 2025!
All the XPro Styles PAKs 1 - 10 are on sale for only $29 ea (Reg. $49 ea), or get them all in the XPro Styles PAK Bundle for only $149 (reg. $299)! Order now!
XPro Styles PAKs require Band-in-a-Box® 2025 or higher and are compatible with ANY package, including the Pro, MegaPAK, UltraPAK, UltraPAK+, and Audiophile Edition.
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