more on Apple's iPod code 'cracked'

[David Farber <dave () farber net>]

Begin forwarded message:

From: Dan Shoop <shoop () iwiring net>
Date: October 25, 2006 5:51:38 PM EDT
To: dave () farber net, ip () v2 listbox com
Subject: Re: [IP] Apple's iPod code 'cracked'

At 9:28 AM -0400 10/24/06, David Farber wrote:
> Begin forwarded message:
>
> Jon Lech Johansen, affectionately known as DVD Jon, garnered  
> worldwide fame and notoriety when, at the age of 15, he cracked the  
> encryption scheme used by DVD. This allowed for DVDs to be copied  
> and played back on any device.
>
> Now Johansen claims he's mastered the inner workings of the iPod  
> and its FairPlay encryption technology, allowing him to remove many  
> of the restrictions Apple places on its users.
>
> http://www.smh.com.au/news/digital-music/apples-ipoditunes-code- 
> cracked/2006/10/24/1161455702584.html

This article incorrectly states that music downloaded from iTunes  
can't be played on non-Apple MP3 players. Apple's downloaded tunes  
are encoded in AAC format, which itself isn't playable on most MP3  
players. (If it were, and if the players supported the FairPlay DRM  
system then they could play them directly too.) To play them on  
players w/o such features simply first burn the tracks to CD and then  
follow the procedure you'd normally use for loading CD music onto  
your non-Apple MP3 player.

Likewise the article is incorrect that iTunes and the iPod somehow  
prevents other markets for MP3 tracks. The iPod will happily play any  
other MP3s from other vendors. What it won't play is tracks recorded  
in closed DRMs, which should be seen as a good thing. Fairplay is a  
much more open system for DRMs.

What DVD Jon should be unhappy about instead is that other parties  
use closed and highly restrictive DRM schemes that prevent them those  
tracks from playing anywhere that those closed DRM mechanisms are  
utilized. Then again they also don't let you own the music you've  
bought either ;)
--

-dhan

------------------------------------------------------------------------
Dan Shoop                                                   AIM: iWiring
Systems & Networks Architect                      http://www.ustsvs.com/
shoop () iwiring net                                http://www.iwiring.net/
1-714-363-1174

"The wise man doesn't give the right answers, he poses the right
questions." -- Claude Levi-Strauss

------------------------------------------------------------------------

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