Sony BMG test 'sterile burning' copy protection

Sony BMG is testing CDs featuring technology from UK anti-piracy specialist First4Internet, that allows customers to only make a limit number of copies of the CD and doesn't allow copied CDs to be copied again. This concept is known as "sterile burning" and according to Sony BMG, it is vital for their battle against casual CD burning. "The casual piracy, the school-yard piracy, is a huge issue for us," Thomas Hesse said, president of global digital business for Sony BMG. "Two-thirds of all piracy comes from ripping and burning CDs, which is why making the CD a secure format is of the utmost importance."

Titles of upcoming CDs that will carry this technology were not disclosed but since March, Sony BMG has released about 10 titles (which would easily be about 1 million CDs) featuring the new anti-burning technology. First4Internet is not the only partner that will be involved in this effort; other partners are expected to begin trials of sterile burning too. To date, DRM protected music downloads and copy protected CDs have not included any sort of secure burning.

Music purchased from stores like Apple's iTunes can be burned to CDs as unprotected streams, which means it can easily be ripped again after it is burned, and the resulting files will contain absolutely no DRM protection. Under the new solution, tracks would be ripped from a disc Microsoft's Windows Media Audio (WMA) format. If a CD is burned with protected audio, the DRM on the disc prevents it from being burned again. "The secure burning solution is the sensible way forward," First4Internet chief executive officer Mathew Gilliat-Smith said. "Most consumers accept that making a copy for personal use is really what they want it for."

Source:
ABC News

Written by: James Delahunty @ 30 May 2005 7:55

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25 comments

nonoitall

Um, what if the original gets destroyed? Then a person might quite legitimately want to make another backup from their backup. Oh well, it will be cracked. They're just wasting more of the money we give them to try and make our lives harder.

30.5.2005 09:20 #1

Pop_Smith

Yet another million (or so) dollars going down the drain to failing antipiracy efforts. (Think the old anti-piracy tech of a line in the CD) Use a sharpie over this line and volia! This method is no longer used but, it was easily over come.

30.5.2005 09:43 #2

YOBUZZB

How can people with college educations be so dense? For every action there's a re-action; speed---brakes; left---right; encryption---decrytpion. They should take the money spent on their education and postions and buy a clue. There are more of us than there are of them. The difference? We use common sense! The music and movie industry will be brought into the light and be forced to use their brains to perpetuate ingenuity and growth, instead of closing their minds to protect their pockets.

30.5.2005 13:38 #3

great1nig

I agree "For every action there will always be an equal and opposite reaction" Power to the people. At the end of the day it's all about control.Because he who controls the "DATA" controls the world!

30.5.2005 14:50 #4

cueball50

It's a vicious cycle. First4Internet is trying to make a few bucks on copy protection schemes(at least for a little while) until their copy protection method is broken. I'm quite sure some high school kid is working on breaking it as we speak. In the end the people will win.

30.5.2005 15:17 #5

ProphetPX

That whole idea (in the article) is stupid!
don't they understand that if they still let their own program BURN AUDIO to a RAW AUDIO CD (or CD Image mind you), that it can still be ripped again EVEN NOT using their WMA-ripper program? God how dumb. Only an idiot would feel limited to only using the programs that THOSE kind of companies provide!

They only serve to bind down the MORONS who dont know any better! The real people who DO KNOW BETTER WILL NEVER BE LIMITED BY ANY SCHEME, PAST PRESENT OR FUTURE!!!! SONY is a great company with lots of innovation but DRM is a STUPID IDEA and CAN ALWAYS be defeated at the hardware level! HELLO, RADIO SHACK???

geez ... DRM is nothing but a big waste of time and effort. Just leave it open and let us do what we want with OUR OWN COPIES of it. Gee they dont bother harassing people with VCR's anymore, do they? So why are they getting on people with computers???? It all goes back to the Sony-BETAMAX decision and IT CANNOT BE DENIED that if you can record something on a VCR then you should be perfectly able to backup or record ANYTHING YOU WANT using a computer as well! and this applies to ANY MEDIA, whether it belongs as "protected intellectual property" of someone or some corporation, or NOT!!!

God they are so fucking stupid!!!
The Computer is nothing more (in this aspect) than a grand old VCR, just modernized and a hell of a lot more advanced. And they don't like it because they say we can make "perfect digital copies" of the media's content ... well I tell you what...

Until some pirate or hacker can actually start up their own CD or CASSETTE or MULTIMEDIA PRODUCTION FACTORY where they are rolling out the actual PHYSICAL PRODUCT IN PERFECTLY REPLICATED FORM (and that probably will never happen until the invention of the Star Trek REPLICATOR device) ... and until someone can produce a 100% physical counterfeit, then this DRM shit is never going to go ANYWHERE in court!

Because COPYING / BACKUPS, IS NOT COUNTERFEITING!!!
PIRACY is not even counterfeiting neither, because NOBODY ... and I do mean NOBODY ... in their right mind would EVER ATTEMPT REAL COUNTERFEITING (like the BLACK MARKET CRIMINALS DO) which is reproducing the full product, CD media, album art, labels, liner notes, and shrink-wrapped product, all in all! for money ... NOBODY DOES THAT except in the ASIA BLACK MARKETS ... THOSE are the people they should go AFTER, not the people who are simply SHARING things they like as copies GO.

What would they do, if the whole world just broke out in a massive swap-meet in PERSON, and everyone met together in a big conference hall, and brought TONS OF COPIES OF VCR and/or CASSETTE tapes of all the movies and shows they wanted to SHARE with people, and just started spreading / giving-out FREE copies on tape to anyone who wanted one? I bet they wouldn't even bat an eye at that. But 20 years ago they would have, and only now they are SO AFRAID to see people copying on computers because they just can't stand it anymore. Its NOT OUR FAULT that they cannot keep up with the times and that COMPUTERS, MAN'S OWN INVENTION, INHERENTLY PUTS UNLIMITED POWER into the hands of the consumer instead of leaving it all in the hands of the producer.

Thats what they are afraid of. It's all about POWER.
Not just about theft, not just about infringement.
It's a loss of face for them, and a SHAME TO THEM!

It's a shame that they are becoming more powerless and WE are becoming MORE POWERFUL!

They don't want CONSUMERS who own LEGAL COPIES of material, to GAIN the power that they, the producers and corporate interest companies, ARE LOSING!!!

When you copy something with a computer, just as with a VCR, you are only making a DERIVATIVE WORK, a COPY, and one that probably IS NOT 100% AKIN to the original, because most downloadable movies are always DOWNMIXED and re-encoded to DIVX format. And even the ones that are available as FULL FLEDGED DVD ISO's are STILL not a "true copy" in the physical sense, of an original DVD, because for one thing, such a copy is missing the original physical CD plastic medium, the liner notes, the cover artwork, and the money spent!

COPYING ONLY CAUSES DERIVATIVE WORKS, NEVER does it, nor could it ever, EVER, replace the 100% original, as happens in the real world on the black market, and even those are NEVER true "genuine" copies!

These anti-piracy corporations are just shitting themselves ... living in a world of their own delusions of power ... and now they are all waking up to watch all their so-called power almost GONE if not even more fading away ... SO SAD ... its a SHAME TO THEM that they CANNOT HELP IT, and no matter what new scheme they will try, there will ALWAYS, ALWAYS be someone out there who will reverse-engineer it and FIGURE IT OUT and DEFEAT IT ... HELLO, DECSS!

DECSS in 7 lines of PERL code u ignorant corporate fuckers! DECSS spreading like wildfire sang in MP3's all around the whole FREE WORLD!!!

This is America, and we have the 1st Amendment, and that if anything should protect OUR RIGHTS TO COPY AND SHARE anything we like! Anti-copying is CENSORSHIP by restraining the PRIVACY AND PRIVATE RIGHTS of the ordinary citizen, within the context of OUR FOUNDED LIBERTY! We struck that deal in 1776 and now it's 2005 and they don't like us having rights anymore. Well I say, STICK IT TO THE MAN!

FREEDOM OF SPEECH! FREEDOM TO COPY AND SHARE WHAT WE OWN! Sharing is speaking, speaking is sharing, intellectual property is WHAT WE OWN as HUMAN BEINGS and CONSUMERS AS WELL. When we pay money for stuff, we OWN IT TOO. WE BOUGHT INTO A SHARE, and we have our own copy, and I'll be DAMNED if they are going to try and tell us WHAT we "can or cannot" do with it!

EAT SHIT, MICROSOFT, APPLE, FIRST4INTERNET, and SONY BMG! EAT YOUR OWN SHIT!

The Legendary,
--ProphetPX

30.5.2005 15:52 #6

brent1a

I agree.....however if I had the gumption I would come up with a complicated sounding yet equally ridiculous "anti-piracy" system and snag as many big name dollars as possible just like a lot of these companies are doing. Sony, Apple, RIAA, they are all up in a huge tizzy over nothing and if they had any clue whatsoever they would be suing these "anti-piracy" software firms for fraud and not suing 800 JOHN DOES every couple of months.
Tee Hee, Sony VS John Doe's 1-800 now in session! That really makes me want to change my major to business or law.

30.5.2005 19:19 #7

A_Klingon

(Hmmmmmm....) Well ......

I think the Legendary Prophet PX makes a very good point: Unless I'm missing something, why *NOT* just make a simple _Disk Image_ of the original (supposedly) copy-protected cd?

In fact, why not just make (say) a half-dozen disc images of a half-dozen of these (supposedly) copy-protected music cds, and archive the whole works to a .50c blank dvd, fer chrissakes?

(Hmmm? Hmmm?)

Then you can just pop-in your backup dvd and run off (any) selected music cd whenever you feel like it.

I share the Prophet's utter loathing of all end-user DRM. DRM is a cancer, a disease; it's saps all of the joy from life, causes untold grief, and only serves to increase people's unwavering determination to defeat the damn shit.

Semi-Related:

I was really disenchanted, horrified, pissed-off, etc., to learn that DVD copy-protection has finally crawled it's miserable way into Canada. I know that dvd copy-protected discs were being sold in Europe, but only last week it came to my local video-rental store.

The Simpson's Season 5 Box Set. It's a 4-disc set. My computer burner flatly refused to recognize disc #3. (It reads the other discs fine). No, disc # 3 was not damaged in any way. (It was new). It played fine in my other set-top dvd players. But it absolutely would not be recognized by my computer.

I returned the boxed set and rented the same one from a totally different video store.

Same shit. Disc 3 would not be recognized. I <feel like punching someone in the nose>. :-( Never mind about the dvd containing various anti-copying schemes to trip-up your favourite ripper - *this* disc is balls-to-the-wall unrecognizeable!

No really...... has anybody else noticed the same with this particular Simpson's set?

I just bet this was a "test" done by 20th-Century-Fox to see how many complaints they will get, and to see just how much they can get away with.

DRM also sucks when it comes to downloaded music files. I just downloaded (and paid for) three albums in the "PureTracks" wma format. The company promises, "Burn The Music You Want!" (horseshit)

2 of the 3 albums are burnable, and one is definately NOT. On a fourth album, all but ONE of the tracks are burnable! ( What f-----g good is that ??? ) I swear to god, I had to go to a P2P net (WinMX) and download the same track in .mp3 format, (I was *lucky to find it!), then delete the shitty wma file, then *insert* the mp3 file, JUST to complete my album! (This is madness).

It's bad enough that I'm forced to use that godawful Window's Media Player (with shitty Roxio plugin) to burn the friggen wma files, but they are flat out lying about their files' ability to be burned.

I am still waiting for the dummies to get back to me. I'll bet I only get some sort of "kiss-off" reply.

(Sigh........)

What should we do, Prophet?

I vote we line them all up against the wall and start firing !

30.5.2005 20:18 #8

nonoitall

For that Simpson's disc, sue them for discriminating against people without stand-alone DVD players. That would build a much better case than any of their John Doe cases. They aren't going to stop unless some people start slapping them in the faces with some of those lawsuits they've been dishing out like candy against people they can't even identify by name. Turn-about's fair play IMO.

30.5.2005 20:54 #9

aabbccdd

iam sure slysoft WILL have it cracked EVEN before the first CD hits the market.it all boils down to the record companys having to make an effort like there doing something to please the RIAA and the mpaa ,ITS ALL A JOKE LOL.

30.5.2005 21:23 #10

YOBUZZB

Hey Klingon!

Lock & Load...Aim....Fire! No last request will be given.

30.5.2005 23:58 #11

A_Klingon

READY ! ..... AIM ! .... K-A-B-L-O-O-E-Y !!!!!!!!!!!!!

If you have a purposely buggered-up dvd (screwed up table of contents; deliberately introduced errors; false file-size reporting, etc), that's one thing. At least you can deal with these anti-copying schemes one by one. Rippers (and dvd-backup packages) are getting more sophisticated all the time. These measures can be counter-acted.

It's when the <<Entire Disc>> is flat-out unreadable that you have to start worrying.

If you can't even _load_ a god----d dvd into your reader/burner, no dvd playback software on earth (or ripper or backup package) is going to make a hoot of difference.

People have a *right* to view rented and/or purchased discs on their computers, so you are right, nonoitall, 20-th Century Fox *should* be sued (a class-action suit would be nice), for selling/renting unplayable discs, but who's gonna do it? Got any spare lawyers you want to send my way?

I pray to god someone can come up with 7 more lines of Perl code when BluRay hi-def commercial discs finally come out.

31.5.2005 04:50 #12

coldasice

Wow....it's good to see my tax dollars are being used on something so TOTALLY FUCKING USELESS! ANY kind of software that's digitally based can always be referred back to a tool as simple as an pencil. Copy protection has been going on FOREVER. PENCIL LEAD to ERASER. So they come out with a pen. Then they make ink erasers. Then they come out with permanent marker. Then a liquid based eraser comes out that will erase even that. Everything works on that same principal. Action<---> reaction. Piracy is inevitable. They will never come out with anything to change that. There will always be more smarter people working from the outside of the companies then there will be people working from the inside. Why? Because it takes more work to decrypt something that you know nothing about than to encrypt one idea that's explained. And posing a *challenge* won't change that. There are people that THRIVE on breaking copy protection! It's what they live for! This world has more people wanting to crack it than develope it; so it is indeed a wonder why they even are THINKING to try with DRM protection. It's a waste of money!

Do they ACTUALLY think this will make any difference? They're only talking about preventing RIPPING from the actual disc. I know of tons of libraries that lend out commercial CDS. Even if DRM protection runs through, all it takes for someone to like that song enough to check that CD out from their local library, put it in their CD player, run a line from the headphone jack on their boom box into the LINE IN jack in the back of their computer, run ALL AUIDO RECORDER to record the music, use COOL EDIT PRO to dull out any imperfections and to make the song sound EXACTLY like from the CD, use a WAV2MP3 encoder, stick it on WINMX/KAZZA networks and then MILLIONS of people from all around the world will benefit. All because of 1 kid, 1 library, and a bit of technical knowledge. You see, I just broke DRM before it was even released!

Sound is nothing more than vibration and it disapates just as quickly as it comes. RAW sound cannot be encoded because it can't be retained. That's what makes it vulnurable. That's why there isn't a copy protection in the world that will save their PRECIOUS money....um.....I'm audio.

31.5.2005 08:08 #13

plutonash

That funny that in this thread twice the copy-right protection had been breached. "Most consumers accept that making a copy for personal use is really what they want it for." Fuck that! I've I wanted to make 20 copies of that shitty-ass Resident Evil movie I got for my birthday and play fucken catch with them I should be allowed to. Just because bc my girlfriend had bad tase in movie doesnt mean I should give up my rights.

31.5.2005 08:43 #14

punx777

have you guys forgotten that this is the same company that released this new fancy copy protection? BROKEN IN 10 MINUTES!!!

lol the funny part is how stupid they are, i bet that new code cost them hundreds of millions of dollars. They bothered to put it on 'are you there yet' but not 'the boogyman'

and speaking of resident evil 2 being shitty, did anyone notice the plot hole? while they were in the graveyard the people came up out of there graves. how the fuck did that happen? the t-virus reincarnates the dead within minutes. there were hundreds of graves that t-virus victims started popping out of. hmmmmmmmm

31.5.2005 10:34 #15

PHolder

If you don't like what they're doing to audio CD's, then you *REALLY* won't like what they plan to do to HD Video on BDROM's... Go read the specs at:
http://www.aacsla.com/

They have the ability to retroactively disable your content if they believe that it poses a risk to "the system"... which means is you bought a disc yesterday and someone figures out how to pirate it today then you could find you (and everyone else) are unable to play it tomorrow...

31.5.2005 14:42 #16

Mr_Del

I just think it is funny how much is spent for these so called protections and how much is not spent to crack it. Do they not realize it is still Data? I can already think of way to get arround this and I don't have to pay anything for those methods. Whats to stop somebody from makeing the one copy onto thier computer then zipping it all up then P2P it. I can't think of a way to stop that nor do I care.

There are better ways to spend your money Hollywood (including CD makers). No matter what you do it will be cracked in a matter of hours and for millions less than you spent to come up with it. I will say it again. Make things cheaper and all this may stop or at least be far less frequent. Before long you are going to have to prosacute the entire USA to even slow it. But that will be slowed only as long as the entire country is in jail. Here is my fair pricing scheme. $8 for DVD ($3 each aditional in a set) $3 for CD and $4 for VHS (the plastic cost a bit in those.) you go by this or something similar then your sales will increase by volume wich would increase profit. Here is an example to spell it out for you.

3 people want this movie that just came out on DVD. 1 person buys it the other two watch it with him. You made $20 off 3 people viewing your product. you lost $40 in revenue. Grand total of $-20 profit. Arrest the other 2 while your at it. now by my scale they may all 3 buy the disk. So that is $24 you made off 3 people and a total of $24 profit. See that you made $44 more dollars profit by lowering the cost to $8 a disk. Sure you could have gotten $60 at your price if all three purchased. The other didnt and wont and that is why P2P is laughing at you. We would be more enticed to buy than (as you call steal) P2P this stuff if it where cheaper. By the way I just gave you Wal Mart math. Now you know why they became successfull so fast. They dropped greed unlike you. It only cost you .00000055(may be off a little) cents to make 1 CD or DVD. Isnt that profit enough if you sold them a buck a piece?? Greedy Dangle berries.

I wonder if they even read this stuff. Oh well maybe it will begin some kind of revolution or something.

-Del

31.5.2005 15:00 #17

A_Klingon

@pHolder:
Quote:They have the ability to retroactively disable your content if they believe that it poses a risk to "the system"... which means is you bought a disc yesterday and someone figures out how to pirate it today then you could find you (and everyone else) are unable to play it tomorrow...I haven't had a chance to read the 3 .pdf files your link provided, but in the strictest sense, nobody on earth can invalidate/rebuke/disable a retail bought commercial Hollywood disc played on a set top blu-ray hi-def player, either today or tomorrow or retro-actively or ever, no matter how many people have pirated or cracked or uploaded it, and regardless of what any wanna-be copy-protection company (like aacsla) or movie studio try to tell you to the contrary.

(I assume you are referring to blu-ray discs as played on a computer?) Even in that case, no one on planet earth would be able to "disable" my factory-pressed (non-recordable) disc. They might, (for a time anyway) be able to prevent me from *playing* it on my computer, (the Simpson's disc I mentioned above already proves that), but any disc played on a set top (offline; non-computer) player is utterly immune to disabling by any company or any one. Were it not so, commercial blu-ray movies would go down the flusher faster than you can say "thhhhpppppptt"!

People wouldn't stand for it.

@coldasice:

I've done the "analogue, through-the-soundcard" thing not just with protected wma files, but with just about every conceiveable source you can think of, including old, 78-rpm shellac records!

That's not (really) "cracking" the copy-protection or drm cancer. It's just a "workaround".

With protected wma files, I have never been able to get an acceptably-decent-enough quality level, no matter how diligently I've manipulated the input-level. There is always a too-high-level of distortion for me. (Viny records piped through the sound card and saved as wave files, on the other hand, sound simply *wonderful*.)

@Mr. Dell:
Quote:No matter what you do it will be cracked in a matter of hours..."(Noop). :-(

How I wish it were so !!

But to date, no one's been able to truly CRACK current-day, drm-crippled wma files. (Strip out the drm while leaving the original wma file intact).

If they had, this place would be ABUZZ !! :-)

31.5.2005 21:50 #18

nonoitall

What you're saying makes sense - they're just way too greedy. Greed is an extremely powerful thing.

A research study was conducted a few years ago about solving the world's hunger problem. It was discovered that if the U.S. alone reduced the grazing period of their cattle from six weeks to two weeks, the surplus of grain would be enough to feed every hungry person on the planet. Sure, the beef might not have been quite as tender, but to end a major world-wide problem it would definitely be worth it, wouldn't you think?

So, the research group thought they'd ask around and see if enough people would actually accept this idea. They talked to a several restaurant owners around the country and asked them that if it meant ending world hunger, would they be willing to serve this slightly lower quality beef in their restaurants. Any guesses as to what they said? No!

They were afraid they'd lose a few customers. The only thing in their restaurants that would have been affected was the beef - and not by much. They, and others like them could have ended world hunger, but they were afraid of losing a few bucks to picky customers. Isn't this just such a loving and generous system that we live in?

Children are going to bed wondering if they'll wake up in the morning or if they'll starve to death in their sleep (or maybe they hope they'll die in their sleep so they don't have to suffer through any more agony), while other people won't lift a finger for them because they're afraid that they'll only be able to afford a 42-inch plasma TV instead of a 50-inch. It's really, really sick.

I don't think they're going to lower their prices on CDs and DVDs. They're just too greedy and terrified of losing profit that they probably won't lose anyway.

31.5.2005 22:19 #19

Mr_Del

@ A-Kligon. I am not on the MP3 download front much anymore. To me most new bands are crap. Thats because Im and old one. So it may be that something was made for .WMA. One day it will be cracked or just use the mentioned work arround. Is this protection also on some .MP3 files? I know when I was D/L MP3 I stayed away from WMA. Don't know the exact reason. I just did not want it in WMA since it could only be played on Media player. I dont think Nero could put WMA on disc back then either. MP3 was always a sure bet for compatability. So I guess I do remember.

But things like this topic piss me off. It has much to do with what I do choose to download. (Torrents) Yes sounds like different subjects but it is all the same. Let me search for this WMA problem you mention and see if there is a solution out there.

-Del

1.6.2005 08:34 #20

labjr

Check out these articles.

http://www.drmblog.com/

http://www.digitmag.co.uk/news/index.cfm?NewsID=4915

The day that they sell you a computer for 1000+ dollars and tell you what you can and can't save on it is the day I'll throw my computer in the dumpster.

Geez, I wonder who paid off the Intel? I like AMD anyway. Intel is cutting their own throat. Who the hell is going to buy these DRM computers? Nobody !

Republicans like Orrin Hatch have caused all this Digital Rights Management crap. a couple of years ago he was trying to pass a bill requiring hard drive manufacturers to have DRM firmware in the chipsets. Why is it They're all for capitalism and less government involvement in business until they think a corporation feels a little threatened?

There'll still be a way to get around it. There has been from the beginning of time. And the "average citizen" just won't buy the crap. They have no use for an expensive censorship machine.

1.6.2005 19:10 #21

A_Klingon

Hi Dell !

So you're an "old" fellow, eh? ;-)

No older than me I bet. Unless you're going to be 53 (*fifty-freeking-three!* Ugh!) in 8 days from now, then it is *moi* who is the 'old fart'. :-)

I know what you mean by what passes today for "music". I can't listen to 95% of it. I break out in a flaky, itchy skin-rash. I get migrains; elevated blood pressure; leg cramps, ulcers, facial-tics, boils, dandruff and lower-intestinal gas whenever I listen to that lovely, relaxing "Gangsta Rap" s--t! (Gangsta Rap! Ouuuuuu, yummy!) I bet that back in the early 40's, if they had locked German gestapo agents into a room and subjected them to gangsta rap for 12 hours a day, their heads would have exploded and WWII would have ended 3 years sooner!! :-)

Neine! Neine! I can't stand it no more! I'll talk I'll talk! NO more GangstaRap, pleeeeeeeeeze!" <sob!>

They really DO have some older, classic, decent rock/pop albums in the protected (crippled) wma format. If they didn't, I would give them the time of day (music from the 60's, 70's, 80's, 90's....) In truth, I've been able to download full albums in the wma 'PureTracks' format that I haven't heard in years, and are either difficult or *impossible* to find elsewhere.

But I still do the P2P, mp3 download-thing all the time too. (In Canada, p2p/mp3 downloads are 100% legal, at least for now).

BTW, *thank you* for offering to help me find an answer to my (above) problem (not being able to burn a cd from my *paid* downloads).

Much to my surprise they gave me the right solution. I just needed to download & install a Window's Media Player-9 update. (I can burn just fine now).

Lab Junior:
Quote:The day that they sell you a computer for 1000+ dollars and tell you what you can and can't save on it is the day I'll throw my computer in the dumpster...... Who the hell is going to buy these DRM computers? Nobody !Oh my friend, I suggest thee are quite mistaken!

Scrounging, sand-sucking bottom-feeders like micro$oft positively *thrive* on people's unawareness of what DRM is all about. In fact the're counting on it. All the way to the bank.

*WE* know how debilitating, filthy, self-serving, morally-corrupt and unfair DRM is, but a great many (perfectly intelligent) people who buy and use computers are not particulary 'computer-savy', and it is *those* people who micro$oft (and others) are particularly targeting. Unfortunately, it is these honest people who are going to suffer the most when, after they buy a computer in good faith, discover they cannot make the simplest backup of (say) a favourite music cd.

It's not right, but it's big-business. Pretty soon they'll be trying to control how many sheets of toilet-tissue you will be allowed 'per swipe'.

(Ah, well......) -- A_K --

2.6.2005 04:16 #22

Mr_Del

If it became imposible to copy them on a computer then I bet a seperate piece of equipment would come out that could do it.

@A-Kligon. I guess I'm just an old poot then. Reaching the ripe age of 35. I googled "DMA WMV remove" and got many promising results. Seems there is some software out there just for this very issue. Most are free and other want money of course.

Oh yeah one more thing. You can't have CRAP without RAP
Hiphop junk. All that is is one big contest to see who can say the sexiest thing to a girl. But what girl in her right mind would find any of it sexy. You sing in songs they are instant garbage when you start to talk in a song. Man I could go on and on.

-Del

Tag problems

2.6.2005 08:17 #23

ProphetPX

1. Orrin Hatch is an ancient MORMON MUMMY, and he needs to be SHOT! to FINALLY put US out of OUR misery! He has STAGNATED the whole Senate for FAR TOO LONG with his croney ways, old-age paranoia and scare-tactics, doting on corporate moguls with money-lined pockets... For chrissakes! Orrin Hatch is like 82 ?? or older!!! What the FUCKING HELL could he POSSIBLY know about computers, DRM, P2P, or any sort of copy protection? shit back in HIS DAY, Wind-up Victrola's (the 78-speed record players with the air-HORN above them) were all the NEW RAGE! What the FUCK is HE doing suggesting ANYTHING about copy protection?!? Obviously he also knows nothing about human or civil rights neither, based on his voting record against ALL computer users :-(

2. To defeat DRM in WMA and WMV files there is a tool called "UnFuck" that you can Google for. It only works WHILE your license is still valid. So in order to use the "UnFuck" tool (google for "657.zip" - thats the archive it's in), you must do so within the time of your license before it expires, or it will do you no good after that time.

3. To defeat Apple iTunes AAC encoded files, there are programs called PyMusique and HYMN (aka "PlayFair") that you can download and use. Of course we know that DVDs are defeated with DECSS, since "DVD John" first broke the methods (he is also the one responsible for PyMusique as well :-) Also there is a RUMOR that Real Network's Rhapsody Service might actually break iTunes songs' protection, tho i cannot confirm this.

4. Simply recording any audio over an analog line (such as those plugged into the phono line-in jack of your sound-card) are exactly what the other writer said, a "work-around". You can never get totally true digital quality off this kind of "kludge" (which is what it is, a hack/half-ass fix). The only true way to get TOTAL digital quality is over fiber-optic lines, on a true digital connection. However, at the least, connecting SPDF type connectors at both ends of a patch cable, for a somewhat-digital connection, will serve as well.

If you are ripping CD's, ALWAYS use the "Exact Audio Copy" program, in SECURE C1/C2 mode, to get the most error-free RAW AUDIO rips ever possible. And verify your rips with dbPowerAmp's "AccurateRIP" database plugin system, which can also plug-into EAC. And ALWAYS encode your MP3's with your preferred setting using the latest LAME binary executable (if you don't know what any of this means, then it is time to start learning and looking up these terms). MP3-Pro ("MPC"), and Monkey Audio APE format, is better, tho FLAC format (truly loss-less) is best.

I hereby give you the power against ignorance. Use it wisely and REVEL in the rich experiences which you DESERVE with your OWN MEDIA! :-)

And remember, if you ever use any P2P application, be sure you also have 1 of these 2 apps involved and engaged in protecting you: PeerGuardian 2 BETA, or ProtoWall 2.0 (the former preferred, being that the latter is older). And as long as your block-lists are kept up to date (by entering each block list as a URL rather than browsing your system to point a P2B file), then you *should* not ever receive any emails from your ISP about people (fuckin' sneaky evil corporations like BayTSP and Hollywood Interactive) peeking in on YOUR OWN PRIVACY about what you may or may not be uploading or downloading.

peace...

3.6.2005 12:53 #24

ProphetPX

ADDENDUM:

One more thing i almost forgot, along with the UnFuck tool in 657.zip, u can also google a tool called "Free Me" (FreeMe and "UnFuck" are tools that strip the DRM protection out of WMA's and WMV's etc etc. And if memory serves me rightly, per the 657.zip archive name, I believe they are part of, or the same program/archive, just under different names).

:-)

3.6.2005 13:18 #25

AfterDawn: News