24-Hour Drive-Thru: Elcomsoft Vs. Adobe, The Sequel. I think this is one of those occasions where a good loud outcry about the inadequacies of Adobe’s DRM technology may yet prompt them to come up with a better product, enabling librarians like Jenny and consumers like us to be able to check out eBooks through our libraries.
And yet, of course, discussing the problem is potentially a DMCA violation, because we’re discussing how to circumvent encryption technology. Never mind our intent: to help consumers. From 24-Hour Drive-Thru’s article:
When consumer publications like Consumer Reports test locks, the most important thing they do is try to break in. They send locksmiths to go to work on the locks, they get out the boltcutters on padlocks, and report which ones are broken into most easily and which ones do the best to stand up under attack. Nobody thinks there’s anything sinister about that—everybody can see the practical value. And yet when you try to do the same thing for computer technology, you’re a criminal.
Indeed, this very Weblog entry may well be a felony under the DMCA. I’ll let you know what day to watch out for me on “Cops.”