Apple DMCAs iPodHash Project

TRS-80 writes "Apple has sent a DMCA takedown notice to the IpodHash project, claiming it circumvents their FairPlay DRM scheme. Some background: Apple first added a hash to the iTunesDB file in 6th-gen iPods, but it was quickly reverse-engineered. They changed it with the release of iPhone 2.0 and a project was started to reverse the new hash, but wasn't successful yet. My guess is Apple used the same algorithm as FairPlay for the new hash, so Apple could use the DMCA to prevent competing apps like Songbird and Banshee from talking to iPods/iPhones. BTW, don't tell Apple, but the project uses a wiki, so the old page versions from before the takedown are still there."

Comments

Take 'em down boys

[JBG667]

http://www.omm.com/sanfrancisco/

BTW, the lawyer's name is Ramage - quite appropriate in my opinion.

tr.v., rammed, ramÂming, rams.

      1. To strike or drive against with a heavy impact; butt: rammed the door with a sledgehammer until it broke open.
      2. To force or press into place.
      3. To cram; stuff: rammed the clothes into the suitcase.
      4. To force passage or acceptance of: rammed the project through the city council despite local opposition.

Re:Not for long

[Anonymous Coward]

No, odds are that apple won't even be able to submit the dmca to anyone since the wiki's host will be down before long.

Thank you Apple

[1053r]

I've been considering buying a non-iPod for my next Mp3 player, but wasn't sure. Now Apple has done the nice thing for me and solidified my decision -- Any suggestions on what my next non-evil Mp3 player should be?

Re:Microsoft and Apple

[Anonymous Coward]

There is a subtle difference between the approach taken by Apple as compared to Microsoft. Sort of like the difference between a womanizer and a rapist.

When Apple's customers get used, they are at least convinced it's what they wanted.

Re:Microsoft and Apple

[Cajun Hell]

And how are Microsoft and Apple different again?

Microsoft's lawyers are way lazier, that's the difference.

Re:Nissan

[ActionDesignStudios]

Wow, dude. You're like, a total badass. Fight the power!

Re:Microsoft and Apple

[NuclearKangaroo]

We give Apple a pass because where Microsoft just screws us, Apple cuddles with us before it leaves.

Re:All the more reason not to buy an ipod/phone

[Anonymous Coward]

It is the same plug, but the pinout is different. It was a few years ago when my wife wanted a music player, and someone had plugged in a Sansa to an iPod accessory on the demo table at Best Buy. Fried the screen on the Sansa if I remember right.

My memory is a bit fuzzy. Can someone else verify this?

Yes, ... my name is Chuck... I work at Best Buy. One hot summer day in 2005, some dufus walked in to my store and plugged in a Sansa to an iPod accessory on MY demo table. It fried the screen.
I remember it well. In fact, it came out of MY pay... I'm getting closer to tracking you down now that you've posted on Slashdot!

Re:All the more reason not to buy an ipod/phone

[prockcore]

Did it download the Intersect into your brain, Chuck?

Re:All the more reason not to buy an ipod/phone

[CODiNE]

So I check out rockbox after reading your post. I find this in their FAQ

But I want a gap between my songs. Is there a way to turn off gapless?

No. As explained above, for all codecs which support gapless and for LAME-encoded MP3s, Rockbox plays back your songs the way they were intended by the mastering engineer to be heard. If the mastering engineer did not include a gap at the end of a file, Rockbox does not add one.

If the transition between tracks is too abrupt for your liking, you have two options. First, you can turn on the Crossfade feature so that songs fade smoothly into one another. Second, you can create a short file containing several seconds of silence and insert that file in your playlists or in the directories where you want a gap.

Wow... that takes me back to the comments on iTunes replacements and how open source projects treat the requests of end users. Fun.