“PyMusique is back in effect. That is, at least until the engineers over at Apple figure out another way to block the software,” Peter Rojas reports for Engadget. “Apple broke PyMusique over the weekend, [but] DVD Jon, one of PyMusique’s creators, wasn’t about to let that stand, and so today hit back with an update for PyMusique that works around the block on non-iTunes 4.7 connections to the iTunes Music Store.”
Full article with more details at Engadget here.
MacDailyNews Take: ‘Round and ’round she goes, where she’ll stop, nobody knows! According to the programmers, the updated version of PyMusique will only be available for Linux and, unlike the previous versions, there will not be a Windows version.
Related MacDailyNews articles:
The day the PyMusique died; Apple kills DVD Jon’s iTunes Music Store hack – March 21, 2005
‘PyMusique’ lets users buy songs without DRM from Apple’s iTunes Music Store– March 18, 2005
Some people just don’t know when to quit…first post.
Every good company needs to be challenged… we all no what happens when computer software is just accepted… and there is a lot from windows i don’t like.
awesome. just hire this kid.
Note: Apple won’t lose a cent over this, but the labels will demand stronger restrictions.
was that the point of the hack? No.. the point was to…be able to do more with the music you purchased..
but.. of course..Apple wil have to put more restrictions in there, until these geeks go away.
Bottoms Up.. the geeks are getting a taste of irony.
PS. Uh.. some people are saying apple should port iTunes to linux.. nah.. not gonna happen.. Apple is not going to legitimize Linux like that..
The point of the hack?
… why climb the mountain?
I think you’ll find the answer….
It’s interesting that WIndoze has not been hacked in this way – could it be that it being such a small target that it isn’t worth going after by DVD Jon?
Magic Word -> europe – pretty obvious MDN….
The silly thing is, you can do this anyway without PyMusique. Just buy all of your music through iTunes, which has a superior interface, and download one of many utilities that removes the AAC protection from the files. You lose zero quality, and get exactly thre same result.
I agree with Carl. Apple should put this guy to work form them, instead of against them.
Something tells me Jon is no 1-trick pony. He probably had the “resurrected” solution in the pipeline knowing full well Apple’s move.
This is one interesting chess game…
If Apple was smart they’d go work with him, or put DRM server side and end this stupid game.
The point was to access iTMS from more platforms than just OS X and Winblows. Good call Carl. Hire this guy to write iTunes for Linux.
Apple has built OS X on a bunch of open source apps and technologies and “DVD Jon” is a LINUX-only guy. He knows what he is doing. He has a strong background in DRM technology and probably has a pretty good background in BSD UNIX.
The people on the project claim that they were not trying to “hack” iTunes and FairPlay- just gain LINUX access to iTMS and iPod support. I have said before that Apple should release LINUX client software for Quicktime and iTunes- this is something that was going to happen sooner or later.
Mr. Jobs- stop trying to act like Ballmer and Gates and get your guys working on LINUX Quicktime and iTunes software. I do not advocate their methods, but their motives I understand.
Apple’s lawyers are undoubtly trying to figuring out who and when to sue over this. Perhaps the news outlets for reporting this story and informing the public?
Magic Word – Students – as in “We’ll go after ’em too.”
“they were not trying to “hack” iTunes and FairPlay- just gain LINUX access to iTMS and iPod support…”
That’s BS and you know it. “DVD Jon” got his name because he’s always attempting to skirt DRM on something. If all they wanted to do was access iTMS from Linux then they would have just done that and not built a feature in that removes the DRM. What pisses me off is that this will hurt law abiding people who realize that Apple’s very liberal DRM is not a problem, like most of us here, in two ways. First, the record companies are going to get pissed eventually and this type of defiance could cause them to make the DRM even more restrictive, or just pull the plug on the whole thing. Second, this idiot is forcing Apple to spend precious resources on blocking each of his latest tricks, which makes products more expensive and pulls talented people and money away from making the products better. I’d like to meet “DVD Jon” so I could bloody his nose.
I see legal action from Apple coming soon to a Theatre near Jon.
Also another block posted by Apple by the end of the week.
The simple solution for all of this is:
Apple should create a version of iTunes for Linux!
I think that’s what he’s trying to convey.
If you go to his blog and read about it, DVD Jon only wanted to make iTunes work on Linux. After he was done. it could easily be ported to other platforms (even mobile phones). The “hack” allowed him to “Purchase” his music on his machine and only after he was in there poking around, did he realize that it was so easy to by-pass the DRM. Apple doesn’t/didn’t encode any of the songs with their DRM until it goes through iTunes.
Anyways, even with the hack, you still have to “Buy” the music.
I’m not advocating what he did, but it seems like Apple could have taken a few steps to do things on the server end instead of the client (iTunes) end.
Apple should create a version of iTunes for Linux!
—
why.. they have Ltunes, the ultimate in crappy low-budget iTunes ripoffs..
seriously.. you expect Apple, in an OS fight, to legitimize Linux with the introduction of iTunes of Linux?
What is this, Trick or Treat? Please.. can we have iTunes, or we’ll hack your servers?
Pricks.
lenzcap.. reward this behaviour?.. great idea
Amen Mike, people don’t seem to realize this is a business.
“All DVD Jon ever wanted was to…blah blah blah”
You have got to be kidding right? This is the real world and not preschool where you have to bring enough for the entire class.
Apple is trying to expand its OSX user base. I know iTunes does wonders for selling iPods, but in the end this is a zero sum game and Apple wants all of these people to become OSX users (which in turn brings more software firms and developers to the mac, which is certainly good for us). How does porting this to Linux, an admittedly small and already platform (OS) aware bunch of people fit into Apple’s long-term strategy? Unlike Microsoft users, Linux user are already well well-aware of the advantages/disadvantages of the various platforms, namely OSX relative to XP, and have subsequently made their choice, i.e. Linux. It seems to me that now the unfortunately oft-revered DVD Jon is trying to have his cake and eat it too. You cannot make your choice and then bitch about the available software. Apple is neither obligated nor benefits from a Linux version of iTunes. Quit the childish hyperbole (e.g. “Mr. Jobs- stop trying to act like Ballmer and Gates”) and be glad that statements such as this aren’t even close to being reality.
Whilst I understand his actions may be frustrating, and even annoying to commerical comapnies, you have to admitt this DVD Jon is pretty damned talented with programming.
Of course he uses it to play a game with corporations, but in the end he is also improving the software targeted, as corporations targeted, have to fix their weaknesses.
Lets face it, the STORY here is not teh work around DRM, as someone mentioned this has been done by others. The STORY here is that this guy is once agin involved.
Good luck to the company that can convince this guy to work FOR them. But I doubt that is what he’ll ever do. He is just to good at exposing their weaknesses.
Survival of the fittest. Laws of nature that apply to many areas. DVD Jon is akin to an infection (viral OR bacterial). If you’re immune, you don’t even feel it. If you’re fit & healthy you hardly feel it, and recover quickly (for eg Apple in this case – and in this case DVD Jon, like an infections has a MUTATED form to test you again). If you are weak and unhealthy you get VERY sick, and just may just die.
I’d NEVER use his software, but I admire his skill, and I understand why he does what he does – give him a target, he will try and beat it – just make sure you better his efforts, he’ll come back at you, and teh cycle of “life” continues and all in the world is good.
It isn’t EVIL/GOOD or RIGHT/WRONG (just like the flu isn’t evil or good, or a lion that eats a weak gazelle is evil or right) – it is just the way it is.
This is ridiculous. All that DVD Jon will end up doing is frustrating the record companies.
They will think that music downloads will never work as a business model, because no matter how many restrictions you put into your system they’ll be a spotty geek somewhere that’ll get around it.
They’ll then pull their support ending all legitimate downloads of music and we’re back where we started with overpriced CD’s and everybody downloading illegally.
The iTMS is the best chance that we’ve got in terms of being ‘fair’ to the customer, artiste and distributor. You can argue that one of these three ought to get more money, rights etc, but the iTMS is the best solution in the business. DVD Jon should be ashamed of himself for jeopardising this.
Apple – employ this guy, and give him a fat paycheck to shut him up, or get someone to take him out, and I don’t mean to the movies.
Keep Apple chasing their tails! Funny … the kid from Norway kicking Apple around like a hapless, clueless whimp.
Love it. Hope to see others do it, and hope to see these sites constantly on to them about secrets.
Fed up with Jobs and his brown nosing crowd. Next …. exploits will breech the Mac walls!
Take it up the sphincter!
This guy needs to go to jail OR Steve Jobs needs to offer him a job at Apple!
Porting Itunes to Linux would make linux a viable OS alternative to OS X and therefore Apple colud lose market share.
IT AINT GONNA HAPPEN GUYS!
Not on Steve Jobs life is Apple ever gonna port itunes to linux – and DVD Jon knows this too!.
Excellent news, Apple should be ashamed of themselves – the fix they imposed just locked out legitimate iTMS customers using older versions of iTunes.
If it were M$ that was imposing DRM on its customers you would all be up in arms about it – but because it is Apple all is forgiven. Personally I do no see why linux users should be able to buy songs also.
I dont think Apple will have any sucess with the legal route this time – finally something to put the bullies in their place.
If Apple is intelligent they will bring out iTMS for Linux pronto! Wasnt the Apple strategy always to compete with the “illegals” not try to stop them?
What some of you need to know is that the “liberal” DRM restrictions in Apples AAC-format is actually more restrictive than Norwegian copyright rules, which is allowing an unlimited number of reproductions for personal/non-commercial use. Therefore Apple is actually denying Norwegian citizens their obvious rights (the restrictions for coping DVDs also does this, thereby his original DVD-hack).
On the other side, we haven´t got ITMS in Norway yet, so I guess that is a thin excuse. But we´ll get it, and my point is that Apple operates outside US, and therefore they need to respect other countries rules too. Just like the DVD-makers.
Magic word: Again (reason obvious)
“Keal hem”
Why don’t these “kids” do something productive for a change.
Big F-ing deal. We just broke iTunes DRM. The world at large could care less. Just burn a damn CD and you broke the DRM.
Use your damn talents to benefit the computing community. Wake up and quit wasting that talent on meaning less chores. Maybe they just don’t have the intelligence to accomplish that.
Chumps: You don´t know what you are talking about. Jon made a way to purchase music from ITMS on a Linux. He didn´t care to build a DRM system for Linux, that´s all.
MW: Hours, as in what Jon has too much of.
Some of you are just plain dumbasses. NO WAY Apple should reward miscreant behavior and hire this little joke of a dork. This guy should be in jail. What he’s doing is no more admirable than vandalism.
DRM is a bad thing? You’ve got to be kidding! Too many of you feel a little too “entitled”. Pull your heads out of your butts and start willingly participating in an economy that relies on mechanisms like DRM to make sure people providing the product (music) get paid a fair price. Here’s a fact worth considering – for 99% of you, with the exception of only those who have actually written and composed a song of your own – NO SONG YOU HAVE EVER HEARD IN YOUR LIFE HAS EVER BELONGED TO YOU TO DO WITH WHAT YOU WILL. Not one. Not even Happy Birthday. You have only been licensed to use it in various ways and levels.
Chumps, if you were a Linux user, you wouldn’t think this was so meaningless. I use both, and yes I think Apple is completely wrong in not making Quicktime or iTunes available on Linux. And don’t get me started about Open Office. Apple should be putting developers on this project right now to make a native version of it. But no, don’t want to upset Microsoft. So they write something that is basically useless outside of the Apple environment.
Eplekjekk quote –
What some of you need to know is that the “liberal” DRM restrictions in Apples AAC-format is actually more restrictive than Norwegian copyright rules, which is allowing an unlimited number of reproductions for personal/non-commercial use. Therefore Apple is actually denying Norwegian citizens their obvious rights
A few points
Apple does not own AAC they own the DRM wrapper called Fairplay.
The rules that a persons that signs up to buy music from Apple states that I can burn as many copies as I want (changing the playlist every 5 or 10). Also, I can put my songs on as many iPods as I want. I can put the protected song on as many computers as I want (the catch is that the files can only be made playable on 5 computers at a time).
I think that these 3 rules comply with Norwegian copyright rules in that they “… allowing an unlimited number of reproductions for personal/non-commercial use.”
And as a last point Norwegian citizens rights are not obvious to everyone.
Breaking a company’s code is wrong and illegal. No semantics will get you around that. Apple chooses to not enter the Linux realm. That’s their choice – not yours or anyone else’s to make. You want to use their products, buy a Mac. Hack it – expect legal consequences.
These “kids” are wasting their intelligence which is sorely needed. Maybe one day they’ll wake up and be productive or maybe they’ll just end up in jail.
What a waste.
I that dimwit DVD Jon wants a version of iTunes for the Linux, he is going about it in wrong way and at the same time fscking it up for the rest of us.
I understand not liking DRM and rebeling against it; but don’t fsking act like all high an mighty by thinking that what he [DVD Jon] is doing is right.
I hope that mofo gets hit by lighting or something that will keep him away from using computer.
If you honestly think that releasing iTunes for Linux is going to make the earth-shattering difference between legitimate and not, you have all been drinking the Kool-aid way too long.
It’s a good program, but there are exactly ZERO people out there thinking “man, I would totally switch to linux if only it had that one program I need — ITUNES.” That same number of people are also thinking, “I know I assembled, compiled, configured and tweaked my linux installation again and again until I got it just the way I like it, stable, reliable, and complete, but OSX has iTunes. So screw this!”
Head check in 3.. 2.. 1..
My take-DRM is Bullsh*t, but is a fact of life. In my lifetime I have seen the greedy RIAA members sell the same stuff on LP, 8-track, Cassette, CD, miniDisc and now digital download. On the video side they are going to do the same thing, reselling the same content over and over.
I have no problem buying a product at a fair price but these clowns want to get rich without delivering anything new. DMCA is also a truckload of political payoffs to the RIAA and MPAA.
As to iTunes and LINUX, you would think that Mac users would have a little sympathy as Microsoft has done their best to marginalize the Mac platform for longer than some of you can remember. LINUX users and Mac users should be natural allies- a great deal of what you like about Mac OS X and Apple apps comes from the same open-source projects. Doubt me? If you are reading this with Safari, click on the Help menu and select Acknowledgments.
The Apple webkit that is part of Mail, Safari and iTunes (on the Mac) comes from KDE. Talk about ingratitude. Apple OWES the open source community a great deal and porting iTunes and QuickTime to LINUX is the right thing to do.
How many of the people here that are stomping and yelling about how wrong this program (not really a hack) is have every benn on a P2P network and downloaded ANYTHING. How many have overused a Free Preview App? Calm down, this is not Mass Theft (a la Napster) this is purchasing music on more platforms, making more money for these RIAA losers, with just a plus of no DRM. man
Agree with many posters above. Apple should port QuickTime (and iTunes) to at least one Linux architecture. Saying they shouldn’t as they would lose marketshare is like saying they should stop the Windows versions for the same reason.
Another thing worth remembering is that news organisations such as the BBC stream their content on RealPlayer rather than QuickTime because RealPlayer is available for Linux/Solaris/AIX etc. Apple could take more of Real’s customer base by doing a port, and if it stops the record companies trying to meddle with the DRM restrictions, bonus.
Eplekjekk:
What YOU don’t realise is that the strict DRM guidelines were laid down by the record companies and NOT Apple.
If Apple didn’t comply with the record label strict rules there would have been no itunes music store – period.
Believe me, the record labels could have insisted that the DRM be water tight – no copying what-so-ever!!!
Just my $0.02, but the fact that PyMusique is being “billed” as the “fair” interface for the iTMS indicates to me that this was not just an attempt to put an iTMS client on Linux as most people seem to want to excuse this as. It may have started that way, but that “fair” bit indicates to me that once they found a way to stick it to “the Man” they took it – “fair use” being the term most usually associated with people objecting to the provisions of DRM schemes.
MW – “those”, as in “It’s those people again…”
Apple would make a whole lot more friends in the open source community if it issued both QuickTime and iTunes for Linux. It’s not as big a market as Windows users, but it is a growing segment.
I don’t know if Apple sees Linux as a threat, but certainly, making free apps available to Linux could only draw more developers to Mac OS X, once some of these guys caught the “ease-of-use, beautiful to look at” bug from actually USING Apple’s software.
These Internet punks should be put to jail. The government is too slow to update the law to prevent this kind of criminal act by hackers. What is wrong with purchasing music legally on the Internet? Why must these hackers try to make it free for everybody? Are they trying to be heroes? Imagine if you run a doughnut shop trying to make a living, there come these punks breaks in to your shop and open the door for looters to rob the shop; is this a criminal act or what? The government should go after these thugs and prosecutes them especially we all know who they are. They are from PyMusique !
One word: http://www.downhillbattle.org/itunes
Seriously Down Hill Battle’s arguments make me laugh.
“Its to expensive” So are macs but really I decide if i think something is over priced right.
“Lossy means loss” No sh!t I knew going into iTunes that what I buy is compressed so this is stupid.
“But I don’t really care about compression” Yup
“If you build a shiny new house on a landfill it still stinks” Yup it still stinks, but Big picture it makes it easier for an artist to go it alone since one of the biggest things a studio can offer is distribution. With iTunes that is negated since Britney is on the same virtual shelf with Ani (My money is on Ani).
“Nothing changed” Huh? Come again? The whole thing changed. See remarks on the landfill argument.
“If Apple honestly believes that the iTunes system is fair for artists, we challenge them to display the artist’s cut next to each song and let their customers decide” Seriously I don’t want to see that. I don’t want to see the percentage of the money I drop on a Big Mac that goes to the person running the register. IF you are getting a raw deal go out and get a better one. If you can’t find one you like do it yourself and make it happen.
“Keeping progress at bay” Still with the landfill argument.
“Love not guilt” I wonder if I can start doing this with more stuff I want to walk into a car dealership and take a car and then a week later mail them a check for how much I think it is worth. I can’t even believe they wrote this one.
“A grown up who understands basic economics”
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You gotta always be impressed by people that need to qualify their understanding of something.
Actually if you DID understand economics you would undertsand that:
1) Employing this guy is not against anything economic theory would suggest. DVD Jon has programming skills, a set of skills valuable to a business like Apple, and so in terms of economics, if an agent has something of value to you, it is worth trading with that agent in some way (eg paying them a wage)!!!
2) Economics is about resources and their allocation. DRM is an attempt by those that have the resources (i.e. the intellectual property) to protect their resources from use by people that haven’t compenstated them for use of their resources. It is EXTREMELY natural and CORRECT in economic terms for DRM to be used.
3) Economics is about resources and their allocation. For those that don’t have resources that they want, they have a number of choices, they can agree to pay those that have for them, they can negotiate a LOWER price, or they can (if they have the power) TAKE the resources from those that have them. As long as they have the power and can withstand the resistance from the current owner they can do it. If they TAKE the resources, and a MORE powerful group (eg the LAW) takes the side of the original owner, then they may face consequences – FAIR enough. BUT in economic terms TAKING resources is a valid way to appropriate them, you just have to face the consequences. In DVD Jon’s case the consequences so far haven’t detered his efforts to TAKE resources he wants.
I DO NOT condone the use of DVD Jon’s software. I personally am in an ECONOMIC position to be able to pay the current owners their fees for use. I ALSO feel that DVD Jon should face consequences if he takes what he wants and the LAW has the POWER to protect the original owners. BUT in the end if the law can’t touch him, and the owners can’t resist him taking what they is theirs, then he wins – THAT IS ECONOMICS
I also think that in terms of ECONOMICS if he has skills of value to a business, just because his previous use of his skills didn’t benefit that business, that doesn’t proclude that business from hiring him, otherwise (taking that line of thought to a LOGICAL conclusion) a business should NEVER hire highly skilled people from competitors, as those peeople PREVIOUSLY used their skills against that business! THAT would be “dumbass” behaviour in terms of ECONOMICS.
Just my 2 cents!
PS – I don’t claim to know anything about economics – everything I wrote above may be utter crap – FINE, as I ain’t trying to suggest I know more about anything than anyone else – it’s just my OPINION – and as they say, like assholes – everyone has one!
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