They had to do no such thing. When Jobs returned to Apple he negotiated a new deal with MS. This to stop the numerous lawsuites between them (Quicktime vs wmf being the biggest). This was the 150 Million non voting shares deal. A part of that deal was access to the microsoft source code. The deal was for 10 years, it has since lapsed. But the information on the file format hasn’t really changed the last couple of years, and thats why they can read and write MS files.

The only thing that is clear to me when reading the article you linked is that the format of the iTunes database on the iPod has changed.

While it *looks* like it might be a cryptographic signature, that has not yet been confirmed.

Have you attempted to contact Apple for comment?

Seems like that would be the reasonable thing to do before publishing a scathing artcle based on an unconfirmed claim on a blog as well read as yours is…

certainly felt that way with my g3 after 8.1. it just got worse and worse until i had to switch to debian by the time OSX came out..

Obviously out tech will never ship loaded on iPods as it does with iRiver, Cowan, and soon Coby, but we’ve always felt that giving the owner of an iPod the choice to use myPodder, iTunes, or both (they do work together) was a good thing. After all, the podcast content is free. I guess Apple has a different point of view.

Russell S. Holliman
Founder, CEO
Podcast Ready, Inc.
russell@podcastready.com

That’s all just business, of course. Microsoft and the other guys all do that too, BUT….

Apple hides behind Jobs’ smiling face, and come off looking like friendly hipsters in the process to everyone in general. At least nobody generally has any false visions of decency when it comes to Microsoft.

Rather than whining, I am shocked the Linux community isn’t elated by this new piece of counterculture cred, as well as something else to crack in order to open a tenth of its features, claim success, and say the other stuff is just for idiots anyway.

Having said all that: what is with this hardon you have for painting Apple as public enemy #1 lately? With all the hoopla about them charging an extra 99¢ to convert an iTunes song into a ringtone, I don’t see anyone pointing out that this is still cheaper than every other carrier’s ringtones … or that theirs is the only direct-to-handset download service that doesn’t charge a premium per track over their regular internet download rates. And what about the line in the sand they’ve drawn on video download pricing?

To be sure, Apple is a business and not a charity. But among tech firms of their size and influence I can’t think of any whose policies are more consumer-friendly.

Looking around the web it indeed looks like more than just the format of the iTunes database was changed. Certainly we appreciate accuracy in BB’s postings but we also enjoy hearing the latest developments quickly. There is a trade-off in how quickly something can be reported and how much time can be spent researching it. I think the editors here do an excellent job maintaining this balance.

However, in one instance that I can think of, Cory has spent an unusual amount of time researching a promised post, namely his much anticipated and long-overdue treatise on switching to Ubuntu.

Of course it works with Linux.

http://www.rockbox.org

And I’m with Woolie. I do a Linux install at least once a year to see if it’s usable yet. It’s not, unless all you do is browse the web, read email, and type in Open Office (okay, okay, or host THE INTERNET).

The last time I found that it was still a mess (video drivers–Not too keen on a 19″ monitor running at 640×480), I got a Mac. It works. In a world where the other options are Vista and Linux, that’s unfortunately saying a lot.

Note that loading RockBox doesn’t wipe out the original firmware; you can run it either way any time. Also, when you do load it, be sure to start by switching to a different “theme”. You’ll need to download and install it. I suggest using “Sansa e200″, at least to start with.

Kyle, I think a Mac suits you well. Your Linux problems are most certainly due to IO errors.

—> rockbox.org (the one i use)
—> ipodlinux.org (another one more geeky-linux-like)

So I’d guess it is the byproduct of DRM, but not anything specifically malicious against non-iTunes users. Apple doesn’t have any business need to maintain DB formats; they just have to make sure their software works with their hardware.

Getting an iPod to work under Ubuntu requires:

1. Plugging the iPod in

2. Opening Amarok, the music player

3. Clicking “Synch.”

But by all means, don’t let facts interfere with your dismissal of other peoples’ concerns.

Any alternative to the iPod would have to….
• be compatible with the wide variety of accessories and options available to iPod owners
• play mp3s as well as high-quality files
• be compatible with Mac, Linux, and PCs equally
• and most importantly, be able to access the world’s largest music store, iTunes.

That ideal gadget doesn’t exist yet, I don’t believe.

@Dave
I think Cory is only a few months overdue on that post. ;)

And of course, as others said, there are valid reasons to have a db checksum. Apple doesn’t provide a public API, much less is obligated to document internal implementation details. Regardless, it’ll be reversed in a few days.

Anyway, linux linux yeah yeah. I wish I had back all the time I’ve spent fighting with Linux machines over the past decade… before I gave up on Desktop Linux and just got a Mac.

I mean, I served my time in RMS’s army. But I guess nowadays I’ll buy a locked device if the quality is good enough.. it just becomes a line in a comparison matrix. I can always switch if something really fundamentally better comes along. Would Apple push their luck to that point? Who knows. Maybe if no one makes devices that are competitive enough.

Between that and the new arms race on cryptography for managing your OWN legally purchased content, I’ve decided to forgo Ipods entirely.

As an earlier poster noted, http://www.anythingbutipod.com/ is a great site. They’re a bit biased towards the Iriver and Cowon brands but it’s not hard to see why – the sound quality from them is incredible compared to ipods – especially the new ipod “classic”s.

I’m going with the Cowon D2 for four main reasons:

it’s kept the mass storage mode of operation unlike the newest apple ipods

it supports an incredible number of audio and video codecs – including FLAC and Ogg

it has incredible battery life that will allow me to use it well past the usual lifetime of lithium batteries

it allows you to use 8 GB memory cards to extend the internal storage – effectively allowing for an infinite extention of storage if you want to have dedicated cards for different purposes.

Enough about my choice – go check the above site out and pick your own ipod replacement. Enjoy freedom for a change!

Chris

There’s a lot riding on 3rd parties being able to build sync utilities. It’s going to be very interesting watching to see if this is easy or hard over the next few weeks.