Mac software developer James Speth republishes iCommune software

[wessman]

Music-swapping software makes comeback
By Ian Fried, Staff Writer, CNET News.com
April 15, 2003, 5:16 PM PT
http://news.com.com/2100-1027-997039.html

If at first you get a cease-and-desist letter, try again.
That was the approach of Mac software developer James Speth, who was determined to create a program that would allow users of Apple's iTunes jukebox software to share their music over a network.

In January, Apple Computer ordered Speth to stop distributing his iCommune software, saying that he had improperly co-opted Apple software intended only to allow hardware such as MP3 players to connect to iTunes. Speth took the original program off of his Web site, but pledged to rewrite the program without Apple's code.

Now, nearly three months later, Speth says he has accomplished his goal, posting online what he says is a program that does the same thing as the original--allows people to share their music libraries within iTunes--only this time without appropriating Apple's code.

An Apple representative did not immediately have a comment on the new version.

Even if Speth is able to steer clear of Apple's lawyers, he might incur the wrath of the recording industry, given that the new version allows songs to be downloaded onto a user's hard drive, rather than just played as a streaming music file.

"There's undoubtedly some potential problems with the RIAA (Recording Industry Association of America)," Speth said. However, he noted that with iCommune there is no central server that stores the locations of available music, and that the software is open-source, making it difficult to stop the software from proliferating. As for his own liability, Speth hopes the fact that he is not making any money on the effort will keep him out of hot water.

In a case of unusual timing, the re-emergence of iCommune comes amid speculation that Apple may make a bid to buy the largest of the world's top recording labels, Vivendi's Universal Music Group.

Speth's program, which was posted Monday on open-source site Sourceforge allows Mac owners to share their iTunes playlists--and the music files associated with them--over a standard network.

Those who want to make their music available can use iCommune to create a link that can be shared with those who they want to be able to access their playlists. The music then can be made to appear as a playlist within iTunes or can be downloaded using a separate download program.

Speth said he accomplished this by using a combination of little-known features in iTunes along with code written in AppleScript, the Mac's built-in scripting language.

Next, Speth said, he'd like to incorporate Apple's open-source Rendezvous technology, which could allow iCommune to automatically discover other users over a network. He also hopes that others will collaborate on the venture, now that he has placed the software code into the open-source community.

Speth first started working on iCommune in April 2002 as a way to have his iTunes library talk to a Linux-based machine that was connected to his stereo. In the fall, he started working on a broader release that he finished just in time for January's Macworld Conference & Expo. Rewriting the program to exclude Apple's proprietary code took the better part of three months, he said.

As for what prompts him to keep working on it, Speth says it's just a feature he wants himself and others to have. Apple's legal maneuverings served as added inspiration.

"With the new version I was highly motivated by not wanting to let Apple have the last word," Speth said. "I'm just trying to make a neat little addition to their system, as I see it."

Related News:

Developer to revive iTunes file-sharing January 28, 2003
http://news.com.com/2100-1040-982441.html

Apple silences iTunes P2P software January 17, 2003
http://news.com.com/2100-1040-981147.html

Get this story's "Big Picture"
http://news.com.com/2104-1027-997039.html

Copyright ©1995-2003 CNET Networks, Inc. All rights reserved.

[isus]

SWEET!

[Theinfamousone]

On a less positive note, I found this at CNET too.

Navy disciplines students for downloading


By John Borland
Staff Writer, CNET News.com
April 15, 2003, 2:26 PM PT


The United States Naval Academy has disciplined 85 students accused of illegally downloading music, in one of the most public rebukes yet to campus file-swapping.
The punishments stopped short of the most extreme possibilities for Naval midshipmen, as Academy students are called. A spokesman for the school said that no students had been expelled or suspended, but that they had been appropriately disciplined.

"This was about holding the next generation of our nation's combat leadership accountable for their actions," said Commander Bill Spann, the Academy's spokesman. "This was an important lesson to learn, particularly given their age. They were told on numerous occasions that this was an inappropriate use of government resources."




The Academy's confiscation of student computers last year was one of the most well-publicized moments in a growing campaign against file-swapping on school campuses. Other colleges have warned their students about the dangers of copyright infringement or imposed strict bandwidth-monitoring tools, but few have imposed direct punishments for trading songs or videos online.

The Recording Industry Association of America turned up the heat earlier this month, however. The trade group sued four students at three universities, primarily for running tools on their personal computers that allowed other people to search the campus networks for MP3s and other files. The RIAA called the search tools "mini-Napsters," although critics of the action noted that several of the tools functioned more like a traditional Web search engine than a file-swapping service.

The lawsuits, filed without first contacting the students involved, angered officials at some of the universities.

"Had you followed the previous methods established in notification of a violation, we would have shut off the student and not allowed the problem to grow to the size and scope that it is today," Michigan Tech President Curtis Tompkins wrote in a letter to the RIAA following the lawsuits, one of which targeted a student at his school. "We would have expected the courtesy of being notified early and allowing us to take action by following established procedures, instead of allowing it to get to the point of lawsuits and publicity."

The Naval Academy investigation began in November, when the administration seized computers belonging to 92 students. Seven of those were not disciplined. Spann declined to comment on specific punishments, but said disciplinary actions for the others could range from demerits and loss of leave to extra duties and restrictions on campus activities.

All of the Academy students were given back their computers, and at no time did they lose access to their network files or campus computing facilities, Spann said.

Spann declined to comment on whether any of the students had run their own network search tools, or on whether the Navy was actively monitoring students' use of the network. He said any future violations would be dealt with according to the school's policies.

The RIAA welcomed the disciplinary actions.

"When colleges and universities enforce their own policies against copyright infringement occurring on their campuses, it is often a wake-up call to those unaware of the serious consequences involved in engaging in this type of illegal activity," a spokeswoman said. "We absolutely applaud those (institutions) who take such theft seriously."

http://news.com.com/2100-1025-996990.html?tag=lh