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Subject: Re: Fruit 2.2 and copy protection of Chess Programs

Author: Uri Blass

Date: 13:15:26 10/29/05

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On October 29, 2005 at 14:55:50, David Mitchell wrote:

>On October 29, 2005 at 09:34:54, P L Patodia wrote:
>
>>On October 29, 2005 at 07:19:41, David Mitchell wrote:
>>
>>>On October 29, 2005 at 03:37:52, Uri Blass wrote:
>>>
>>>>On October 29, 2005 at 03:09:15, P L Patodia wrote:
>>>>
>>>>>On October 29, 2005 at 00:52:36, Uri Blass wrote:
>>>>>
>>>>>>On October 29, 2005 at 00:00:54, P L Patodia wrote:
>>>>>>
>>>>>>>On October 28, 2005 at 18:21:37, Jake Sisko wrote:
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> Is Fruit 2.2 copy protection scheme the trend of the Future? I hear that there
>>>>>>>>is not one cracked version of the program. Perhaps Other companies will adopt
>>>>>>>>the same practices of Fruit to ensure that programmers actually get paid for
>>>>>>>>there work? Seems like a good ideal to me!
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>There are many programmers who understand machine code like we do C, C++ etc.
>>>>>>>For them, it is only the question of finding which part of the code is checking
>>>>>>>the hardware details and then making necessary changes to overcome protection.
>>>>>>
>>>>>>The main problem is that they can get the code.
>>>>>>Is it theoretically impossible to have an exe file that does not allow people to
>>>>>>see the machine code?
>>>>>>
>>>>>>Note that I understand nothing about machine code and I even do not know how to
>>>>>>get machine code from an exe file.
>>>>>>
>>>>>>Uri
>>>>>
>>>>>The exe file is nothing but the machine code. That is how the computer is able
>>>>>to execute it.
>>>>>
>>>>>P L Patodia
>>>>
>>>>The question is if it is not possible to have an exe file as some encryption of
>>>>the machine code when only the machine knows to translate it to machine code
>>>>that is hidden from the user or alternatively have computers with secret machine
>>>>code so programmers will simply be unable to understand the machine code.
>>>>
>>>>Note that I still do not know how to get the machine code from the exe file
>>>>even if it is an exe file of a program that I write and saying that the exe is
>>>>the machine code does not help(I do not try to crack other programs and I was
>>>>only curious to see the machine code of Movei).
>>>>
>>>>I can open exe file by notepead if I rename the file not to have .exe but I
>>>>doubt if the chars that I see inside what I get(when part of them are not
>>>>recognized by me) are machine code.
>>>>I do not know machine code so I do not know.
>>>>
>>>>Maybe it is better not to talk about it too much in order not to help more
>>>>crackers.
>>>>
>>>>Uri
>>>
>>>Trust me Uri, at the level we're talking about it, we will NOT be helping any
>>>crackers do anything. <grin>
>>>
>>>If you want to see an exe file, you need to d/l one of the many "file viewer"
>>>programs, that will show you the full file, not just the text characters and
>>>garbage, that notepad will show you.
>>>
>>>Having some program that needs "secret" machine code to handle an encrypted exe
>>>file is a great way to wreck havoc with lots of computers, and irritate the
>>>*crap* out of most, if not nearly all, users. Bad idea all around.
>>>
>>>The thing to keep in mind is that the company/programmer might want to have his
>>>program security absolutely secure, forever, but that just can't be done in an
>>>economical and reasonable manner. All that they really need is enough security
>>>to prevent/hold back copying for a period - say 5 years. By that time, Fruit
>>>will have moved on, and current sales will not be hugely impacted by grey market
>>>copying of a 5 year old program. Plus, if they can reasonably do it, they can
>>>still prosecute them and try to receive some $$$ from damages. Hard to do in a
>>>foreign country, though!
>>>
>>>Naturally, Fruit will want to change it's type of encryption from time to time,
>>>so if someone does break (and it will happen, eventually), their encryption for
>>>one version, they still will have to start all over from scratch to work on
>>>cracking the next year's program.
>>>
>>>Dave
>>
>>As Mr. Uri said, we should not discuss much about protection because it may help
>>the crackers which will be very bad. I am having very high regards for Mr. Uri
>>(I have read many of his messages and he has created 75 move games for a
>> puzzle)
>>so I respect his ideas.
>
>Then you should also respect what he says: he says he knows very little about
>encryption, and I assure you that is EXACTLY the case.

I said only
"Note that I understand nothing about machine code"

I did not say that I know very little about encryption.

I know that there are encryption methods that make it hard for people who do not
know the key to understand meesages and I remember based on what I studied some
years ago that they are based on the idea that it is easy to have functions when
people who know f^-1 can calculate f easily but people who know f cannot
calculate the opposite function f^-1.

In this case f can be public function and people who know f can encrypt A by
sending message f(A) when nobody will be able to understand what they sent
except single person who know f^-1 and made f public.

Uri



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