[Dtb-talk] NLS Digital Happenings Speech

[Peter Donahue]

Hello again Greg and listers,

    Perhaps this is one reason why Congress is reluctant to appropriate
funds for the digital talking book conversion program. Why should we ask the
taxpayers to fund the creation of an encryption  system which will be
cracked shortly after DTBS become available to NLS patrons? I'm all for
urging them to give NLS the needed appropriations for the DTB conversion
provided that these books can be played on all players capable of handling
DTBS.

Peter Donahue


----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Greg Kearney" <gkearney at gmail.com>
To: "Discussion of Digital Talking Books" <dtb-talk at nfbnet.org>
Sent: Saturday, April 28, 2007 9:49 AM
Subject: Re: [Dtb-talk] NLS Digital Happenings Speech


I have been working with Apple on Daisy playback integrated into the
MacOS and in iPod. There are some issues that will have to be
addressed for the playback of NLS books. As I understand it it comes
down to this:

NLS books will be encrypted, both the SIML files and the audio
itself. Because the players will only be issued to NLS patrons they
will be able to decrypt the books. The problem with computers is they
will have to be able to detect that the user of the computer is
somehow an "authorized" NLS patron as opposed to to just a general
user. There are several ways to do this. The NLS could issue a key
file to patrons who request it. this is how the RFBD system is done.
This keyfile could be placed at the root level of the filesystem and
could even expire every year or so. Software could ask for an NLS
password and then check against a database of NLS users on the net.
Books could use some sort of public/private key system like PGP to
verify the user.

All this said as the author of DTBmaker for Macintosh which does not
make encrypted books and never will,  I think the whole business of
encrypting books is a fool's errand. It inconveniences the honest and
does nothing to deter the criminal. I am willing to wager that within
6 months of wide release there will be a means of breaking the
encryption on NLS books. As a result many thousands of dollars of
development funds will have be wasted.

Further it seems to be a solution looking for a problem. In all the
years that we have had four track tapes which are simple to copy has
there ever been wide speared duplication of NLS books? The reasoning
has always been that you needed a special tape player to play NLS
tapes but those players are widely sold and can be found on ebay even
NLS issued one:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=270114582419

Also anyone with good recording equipmetn could make a normal speed
copy playable on any tape player. Finally while the NLS is spending
time and effort encrypting books the publishers themselves are
releasing those same book on CD in unencrypted format. I have been
able to take these recording and produce Daisy recording will but
small effort. If the publishers themselves don't care about
encryption why should the NLS bother with it?

Greg Kearney
On Apr 27, 2007, at 21:42 , David Andrews wrote:

> I believe that NLS has no plans to do a software player, whether or
> not third parties do one is unknown to me.
>
> Dave
>
> At 07:29 PM 4/27/2007, you wrote:
>> Hello Dan and listers,
>>
>>    Are they going to develop a software player for those who don't
>> have the
>> NLS player when it's made available? It only makes sense to me for
>> them to
>> do so.
>>
>> Peter Donahue
>>
>>
>> ----- Original Message -----
>> From: <DanFlasar at aol.com>
>> To: <dtb-talk at nfbnet.org>
>> Sent: Friday, April 27, 2007 6:11 PM
>> Subject: Re: [Dtb-talk] NLS Digital Happenings Speech
>>
>>
>> The download project will not be usable by most patrons because
>> you won't
>> be
>> able to play the downloaded books until you get a player.     As I
>> currently
>> understand it - there will be 200 players available for home  testing
>> sometime
>> early in 2008.  By the end of that year, there will be  5000
>> production
>> players sent to the various libraries (avg 100/library).   These
>> will be
>> distributed according to the state library affiliate.
>>     The digital download site is already up and  running for the
>> pilot
>> program (we have modified Victor Readers) but it won't be  useful
>> until you
>> can
>> play the books.
>>       I hope this helps.
>> Dan F
>>
>>
>>
>> ************************************** See what's free at
>> http://www.aol.com.
>>
>>
>>
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