Converting .SPL to PDF
Hey guys this is my first post. I had to complete some basics to be able to post here phewww!
Ok Here is my problem. I purchased an etext book for my Database class it is protected by Oracle's Sealed PDF, which requires a license to be uploaded thru their servers. Once opened using only IE, it embeds itself into IE and you can not save it, take a pic or print to file. However they will let you print on paper.
I have read around and only vulnerability is when the spdf sends the print job to the printer which lets to capture a .SPL file thru (windoze/system32/spool/printers). Now my question is, is there anyway to convert .SPL to pdf. ( someone on this forum had said that Microsoft onenote supports native printing option which lets you save the print job as a pdf to your computer. I have tried that and i believe Oracle has already found out about that.
Anyone with any ideas ? im not trying to print it out and make profit or anything. License for this etext expires in 6 months and i would have to pay additional $60 to be able to access the book again ( which is not fair, that blows donkey balls) not to mention you need online access and you can only open it up on two diffirent computers. Freakin nazis! :(
http://pages.interlog.com/~tcharron/wgetwin.html
That should solve your problem…just wget the file…If it's just a pdf file, they can't really protect it from being downloaded since when you visit it, you are downloading it!
An SPL file contains raw data that has been sent to the printer (in PCL or Postscript format). There may be a way to get the PDF out of the SPL file but, really, why don't we just try the easy solution? You want to get the doc to print to the SPL, then convert to a PDF… when, really, you could just print to a PDF in the first place.
http://sourceforge.net/projects/pdfcreator/
hacker2k wrote: That should solve your problem…just wget the file…If it's just a pdf file, they can't really protect it from being downloaded since when you visit it, you are downloading it! Incorrect. Read up on HTTP response codes (particularly 403) and password-protected directories.
Zephyr_Pure wrote: An SPL file contains raw data that has been sent to the printer (in PCL or Postscript format). There may be a way to get the PDF out of the SPL file but, really, why don't we just try the easy solution? You want to get the doc to print to the SPL, then convert to a PDF… when, really, you could just print to a PDF in the first place.
http://sourceforge.net/projects/pdfcreator/
[quote]hacker2k wrote: That should solve your problem…just wget the file…If it's just a pdf file, they can't really protect it from being downloaded since when you visit it, you are downloading it! Incorrect. Read up on HTTP response codes (particularly 403) and password-protected directories.[/quote]
I tried and no luck, it detects virtual printers that are able to print to file. Either way PDFcreator doesnt support .SPL file which is a flash shockwave object.
Anyone using Linux in here ? There is a workaround in Linux but i dont have linux installed on my computer. Maybe someone will be willing to help me out.
squirrelss wrote: I tried and no luck, it detects virtual printers that are able to print to file. Either way PDFcreator doesnt support .SPL file which is a flash shockwave object.
The SPL extension is used for more than 1 type of file. One is a Shockwave Flash object… but the one that applies to your situation is a Raw Print Format.
What PDF reader are you using? Have you tried an alternative like FoxIt?
I just installed it on my other pc 32bit to be able to run foxit. Looks like it doesnt restrict on which files it will convert into PDF however i tried to convert a bitmap file into pdf and its taking years.
Does it take long time to convert, application didnt hang or anything. I got a feeling it will have a hardtime trying to convert a 60mb .SPL file.
edit: Fox it doesnt convert mostly anything but Word documents.
Any ideas on how to open .SPL file ?
Zephyr_Pure wrote: An SPL file contains raw data that has been sent to the printer (in PCL or Postscript format). There may be a way to get the PDF out of the SPL file but, really, why don't we just try the easy solution? You want to get the doc to print to the SPL, then convert to a PDF… when, really, you could just print to a PDF in the first place.
http://sourceforge.net/projects/pdfcreator/
[quote]hacker2k wrote: That should solve your problem…just wget the file…If it's just a pdf file, they can't really protect it from being downloaded since when you visit it, you are downloading it! Incorrect. Read up on HTTP response codes (particularly 403) and password-protected directories.[/quote]
Okay, yeah, maybe I mis-spoke. I meant, unless you have to enter a username and a password (if they're using .htaccess and .htpasswd) when you go the the file, they aren't protecting it. I'm assuming that he doesnt.
You cant treat this file as PDF it doesnt open or cant be viewed via any pdf creator, reader ect. This thing is a diffirent breed of animal.
SealedMedia software integrates with existing business systems to deliver protection of valuable digital information. It enables complete control over who can use sensitive information and when. The originator can change rights to access and use a document even after it’s been delivered including revoking access
squirrelss wrote: I just installed it on my other pc 32bit to be able to run foxit. Looks like it doesnt restrict on which files it will convert into PDF however i tried to convert a bitmap file into pdf and its taking years. Does it take long time to convert, application didnt hang or anything. I got a feeling it will have a hardtime trying to convert a 60mb .SPL file. edit: Fox it doesnt convert mostly anything but Word documents.
FoxIt is NOT a converter program. It is a PDF viewer… which is pretty irrelevant considering the bit of information that you just gave. More on that bullshit later.
Any ideas on how to open .SPL file ? It's like you don't even hardly read the posts I've already made. Oh, well, your loss.
squirrelss wrote: You cant treat this file as PDF it doesnt open or cant be viewed via any pdf creator, reader ect. [quote]squirrelss wrote: Ok Here is my problem. I purchased an etext book for my Database class it is protected by Oracle's Sealed PDF, which requires a license to be uploaded thru their servers. Didn't feel it was necessary to mention that at the beginning? What a load of crap… figure it out on your own.
thanks for your half assed help anyways. Even though its called Sealed PDF, you cant open it up using pdf viewers. Foxit does convert files into pdf. Seems like just word files tho. Any PDF viewer requires a file extention to be obviously .pdf .. so im not sure why the hell you told me to try foxit when i told you i cant view spdf using pdf viewer.
Anyone with mature mentality and willing to help a brother out ?
squirrelss wrote: thanks for your half assed help anyways. Even though its called Sealed PDF, you cant open it up using pdf viewers. Foxit does convert files into pdf. Seems like just word files tho. Any PDF viewer requires a file extention to be obviously .pdf .. so im not sure why the hell you told me to try foxit when i told you i cant view spdf using pdf viewer.
Anyone with mature mentality and willing to help a brother out ?
Re-read what I wrote before you post. If you expect real help, I'd suggest not bashing the people that actually attempt to help you with your halfway-explained issue, asswipe. Good luck.
Re-read what I wrote before you post. If you expect real help, I'd suggest not bashing the people that actually attempt to help you with your halfway-explained issue, asswipe. Good luck.
Once opened using only IE, it embeds itself into IE and you can not save it, take a pic or print to file. However they will let you print on paper.
Did you even read this or thought maybe someone might have already tried a weakass pdf reader. SPDF doesnt even let you copy text off of it. NON. no pictures, no print to file, no view it in anything else but IE with a license. Sorry to come off rude but you are blaming me for not reading when you are no better at all. Anways, seems like you are trying to fullful your ego more than trying to help. Whats with the name callings ?
squirrelss wrote: Sorry to come off rude but you are blaming me for not reading when you are no better at all. Anways, seems like you are trying to fullful your ego more than trying to help. Whats with the name callings ? I'm blaming you for not explaining your issue fully and saving time in the first place. Good luck on the help.
korg wrote: So you want help in stealing this in other words, But your being an ass to zephyr for trying to help. Hmm, I agree with zephyr good luck getting help from any of us that know how to do it.
PS: Don't Fuckin' use "WINDOZE" as a joke you look like an ass.
I already paid $60 for it, if you have enough knowledge to work around this and you call me a stealer your a freaking hypocrite for doing what you do.
Let me break it down to you. I paid $60 for this etext, i cant view it on any other computer, i cant save it, i cant see the files offline, i cant see it at school. If you hacking for any freaking reason, i believe i have a pretty good one here.
about the windoze, im a stranger to the computer scene. Im just a regularass user who uses his computer to finish school. My bad if i looked like an ass ?
squirrelss babbled:
I already paid $60 for it, if you have enough knowledge to work around this and you call me a stealer your a freaking hypocrite for doing what you do.
First off you don't know what I do, What I can do, or what I will do. I'm not a hypocrite, I would have never have paid $60 for it to start.If you want to answer your question there are many ways to achieve your goal, Look for them, It right in your face if you think how it gets displayed. No spoonfeeding, Your new here and you already started off on the wrong foot. Help yourself… Then Maybe we can help you.
korg wrote:
[quote]squirrelss babbled:
I already paid $60 for it, if you have enough knowledge to work around this and you call me a stealer your a freaking hypocrite for doing what you do.
First off you don't know what I do, What I can do, or what I will do. I'm not a hypocrite, I would have never have paid $60 for it to start.If you want to answer your question there are many ways to achieve your goal, Look for them, It right in your face if you think how it gets displayed. No spoonfeeding, Your new here and you already started off on the wrong foot. Help yourself… Then Maybe we can help you. [/quote]
i already searched for answers, thats why i came here for help. When you take your car to a mechanic, he doesnt tell you to go learn how to fix a transmission before he can fix your motor.
You dont know my situation, you might not have paid $60 for it but i had to, my other option was to pay $100 for a hardcopy or steal it from schools bookstore. I dont care if i got off on the wrong foot. Seems like some immature people here name calling and shit instead of trying to help a noob.
squirrelss Is pissing me off!:
i already searched for answers, thats why i came here for help. When you take your car to a mechanic, he doesnt tell you to go learn how to fix a transmission before he can fix your motor.
No you came here looking for someone to do something for you for nothing. When you bring your car to a shop you "PAY" them. We are not here to do your dirty work. I learned everything I know on my own, Now get your lazy fucking ass out of the forums and find the way.
PS: Don't post your E-mail in your profile. It could be bad for you.
squirrelss wrote: I already paid $60 for it, if you have enough knowledge to work around this and you call me a stealer your a freaking hypocrite for doing what you do.
Having the knowledge doesn't directly imply that we use it in the way you're seeking to. Anyways, I would've gone ahead and paid the $100 for the normal copy of the book so as to actually own it. Hell, I already did that with my 4 years of college, so you're not getting any sympathy.
about the windoze, im a stranger to the computer scene. Im just a regularass user who uses his computer to finish school. My bad if i looked like an ass ? Oh, now it's your bad for looking like an ass… when you can't blame me directly for your behavior? You have a lot to learn.
squirrelss wrote: When you take your car to a mechanic, he doesnt tell you to go learn how to fix a transmission before he can fix your motor.
When you take your car to a mechanic, you're paying him to solve your problem. We work for free. Keep that in mind next time.
You dont know my situation, you might not have paid $60 for it but i had to, my other option was to pay $100 for a hardcopy or steal it from schools bookstore. I dont care if i got off on the wrong foot. Seems like some immature people here name calling and shit instead of trying to help a noob. Oh, yeah, because your situation is SO much different from every other broke-ass college kid. Nice finish, btw… I like the fact that you decided to repeat what already failed to get positive results. And I have the ego problems?
Just step away from the thread and think about this… if this solution is so important to you, you'll figure out how to approach it correctly. Why do I keep helping you even though you've been an ass? Everyone can learn.
man honestly mechanic was just an example. forums are for people helping eachother. Im pretty knowledge on cars but i dont bash on noobs trying to learn or asking stupid questions. I understand that you might feel im just looking for someone to fix this for me. If you feel that way simply dont reply to the thread.
You straight told me to fuck off because i dont know what im talking about. Im looking for help, and also i thought this would keep you guys entertained for a bit because it seemed like someone might have wanted to crack it.
To korg: i will give you my hotmail password if you want, you want to look at some spam mail ? I use that to sign up on forums. U aint scaring nothing. Resetting my password to the forums and stuff. You got time to play around dont you.
and honestly let just leave it at that, im sorry if i offended anyone even though i didnt say anything about you zep until you started raising hell about me. So this aint a social lounge. If u dont want to help .. keep on moving.
squirrelss wrote: man honestly mechanic was just an example. forums are for people helping eachother. Im pretty knowledge on cars but i dont bash on noobs trying to learn or asking stupid questions. I understand that you might feel im just looking for someone to fix this for me. If you feel that way simply dont reply to the thread.
You straight told me to fuck off because i dont know what im talking about. Im looking for help, and also i thought this would keep you guys entertained for a bit because it seemed like someone might have wanted to crack it.
To korg: i will give you my hotmail password if you want, you want to look at some spam mail ? I use that to sign up on forums. U aint scaring nothing. Resetting my password to the forums and stuff. You got time to play around dont you.
and honestly let just leave it at that, im sorry if i offended anyone even though i didnt say anything about you zep until you started raising hell about me. So this aint a social lounge. If u dont want to help .. keep on moving.
He flamed you because you came/come off as one who just expected the answer spoon fed to them. Over here, we would call that type of person a "script-kiddy", and believe me, SK's catch hell around these parts. You also did not fully express your plight until way in the thread which only adds to your dilemma. In addition, you just got into it with the wrong people. Zephyr and korg are two of the most likely people to help you in your situation,
[EDIT]How do you access it? What protocol do you use and what is the URL you are trying to access?My proposition is to fetch the content from that site and then load it to yours where it can be manipulated accordingly.
hacker_jacob wrote: I hope Korg Fuck's you up. You messed with the wrong guy. I know.
fuck korg, get off his nuts already. He came in here and without even thinking about it twice started backing up who he knows first. You are just another suck up and obviously with a name like hacker_jacob cant be taken seriously.
Just lock this thread if there is any admins moderating this part of the site. I ll send them an email to delete my account.
You calling me a script kiddie when I didnt ask anyone to find a fix and hand it to me. When i said im a stranger to computer scene i didnt mean i'm illiterate. I stated once and i will state it once again, my question was if there was any way to convert .SPL to pdf. i didnt ask anyone to do this for me. I didnt make myself clear and next thing you know veterans of the forum started flaming the noob.
I know how this works. I have 6k+ posts on alot of the forums i hang out at and noobs get bashed first when they dont know how to ask a question properly. But i see alot of immature people here who cant even take any criticism.
fucking lock this thread already ….
squirrelss wrote:
fuck korg
That is so sweet, I love making new friends.
PS:If you guy's want to say hello his E-mail is gceker@hotmail.com.
korg wrote: [quote]squirrelss wrote:
fuck korg
That is so sweet, I love making new friends.
PS:If you guy's want to say hello his E-mail is gceker@hotmail.com.[/quote]
I thought the best you could do was resetting my password to HBH now you posting it up my email here ? grow up. You just a wannabe, cuz if you werent i wouldnt be able to access my hotmail account right now. Matter of fact, if you trying to pass as a hacker here, i will give you my IP, fuck with that. Lets see how much you know. Lil punk.
i wasnt going to come back and flare things up but your childish act deserves an asnwer.
hey, check this out. It took like 5 minutes. #1: SSslow (screen name) #2 goztepe2002 (screen name) #3 http://s27.photobucket.com/albums/c161/goztepe2002/?start=0 #4 http://www.youtube.com/user/goztepe2002 #5 http://www.houston-imports.com/forums/member.php?u=4638
You really are a complete douche bag.
maug wrote: hey, check this out. It took like 5 minutes. #1: SSslow (screen name) #2 goztepe2002 (screen name) #3 http://s27.photobucket.com/albums/c161/goztepe2002/?start=0 #4 http://www.youtube.com/user/goztepe2002 #5 http://www.houston-imports.com/forums/member.php?u=4638
You really are a complete douche bag.
that really took 5 min ? your googling skills must be off the chain.
Just in case you didnt get that, anyone can look up someone's email address on google you must be new to all this.
Pwnzall sorry i missed that but dont worry about it. Someone from here helped me out and we can finally get the pdf out of the SPL file however text is all messed up. I kinda lost interest in it since all these douchebags want to do is flame.
It's nice to know they can teach retards to use the internet, Now if we can teach them how to spell that would be great. I agree with zephyr just get out of the forums, You've made a big enough ass out of yourself already. Oh, and I don't want or need your hotmail account, Don't want to see what gay porn updates you get. Lil punk, Grow-up.
I'm not really sure where I should start. I had to re-read the OP's post several times trying to see why everyone reacted the way they did to him. I still do not understand. He mentioned that it was a document that is sealed via Oracle's sealer. He mentioned that in order to open it an online license exchange is required. He mentioned that he searched online and the only way to get a permanent unencrypted easily accessible representation of the data is by sending a print job to the printer and pulling the printer spool file while it was being queued onto the printer. He got the spool file.. had searched some more.. and is asking for any ideas anyone has on what approach he could take.
I'm surprised that in a community which incessantly preaches that Google is an ideal source of information and should be consulted when one has questions that none of you took the time to actually find out a little about the DRM Oracle uses on sealed documents.
The author's replies were more in-depth than most people realize. One of his earlier posts was that that the DRM software detects when trying to print to virtual printers and doesn't allow it.
People began suggesting other PDF readers like FoxIt (forget about the fact that he even mentioned that a proprietary DRM was used and that a license exchange is required to open the document [=> encryption]). To open files other than pdf and fdf formats in FoxIt the PDFCreator add-on needs to be installed. "This add-on installs a virtual printer onto your system. You can use this printer to convert any printable documents to PDF files" (quote from the software)
What's also surprising is that in a community that claims to be in a subculture whose backbone is the pursuit of knowledge and the maintenance of freedom of information no one saw this as an interesting real-life challenge or was concerned about the restrictions put on a book he payed for. (I wondered how they could block a screen capture the way they did.. they would overwrite the clipboard when anything was copied to it (that's how they got their image data in place of the sealed document). What's also interesting is that doing a per-pixel desktop capture yielded a white space wherever the sealed document was and doing a per-pixel capture on the specified window would yield only about a portion of the document revealed)
Don't get me wrong.. I don't consider myself a "hacker" nor am I zealous about the freedom of information or OSS. I actually welcome restrictions and DRM because they're really fun to break. I just find the way many of you reacted to be hypocritical.
I originally contacted him and began helping him because I was interested in trying to break this. I continued helping him (after my curiosity died down) because he is admittedly a newbie when it comes to intimate stuff about computers who took it upon himself to research in depth about an interesting computer problem just so he could hold onto information (a book) he paid for. While the rest of you ended up -imo- trying to fulfill an ego trip by banding together, making subtle threats, making direct threats, and ridiculing his (not so (relevant)?) personal life.
It reminded me of why I hate 'gangstas' (mostly groups of minorities grouping together to appear strong). You guys use psychological tactics to prey on people, like trying to get them to fear you because you can 'hack' them. You guys can't attack effectively on your own. You guys can't attack much more effectively while in groups.
(8) And if you don't know, now you know, nigga.(8)
I realize that some of you reacted better than others. I chose to not mention names nor directly reply to people's posts because that would've taken much more time. I decided to reply to the HBH community as a whole and make comments about observations I've made…
He didn't ask to be spoon-fed information. He researched his topic (which is inherent to the actual topic title where he asks how to convert from SPL to PDF as opposed to just bypassing the DRM in general). He asked for ideas.
You can't both have the cake and turn your cheek away. The OP was being successful at not accepting help. He pushed everyone away who tried to help.
We do not prey on people. We help them. OP wanted help, but everyone who tried to help, he pushed away.
Also; you shouldn't judge Zephyr_Pure by his annoyance with stupidity. If you realize just how long and how much he visits HBH, you'd see things differently. Voting 'poor' on a content-wise great article? And you question our integrity?
OP is just another guy who doesn't know how to deal with getting help.
Chinchilla, that was a touching speech but, really, there are only a few things that need be said here:
First, when we go to answer a question, we shouldn't have to research every concept that an OP introduces. This is not paid help and, if you chose to research Oracle's Sealed PDF technology to understand it, good for you. I don't take the time to research something that will prove of no future use to me. The OP should've taken the bit of extra time it would've taken to specify that it was not a PDF at all and any relevant information about the technology.
Re-read the initial post… he mentions the name of the DRM method, but he does not specify that it is not a PDF format. Following that, it should be understandable that stating that the document can only be opened in IE would not be interpreted with the meaning that it should be. That was the source of my frustration in attempting to help the OP and, following his retort (which was more fueled by his perception of my frustration than it was the source of it), I saw no further reason to help.
Finally, let's address this supposed moral obligation where the poster is attempting to defeat DRM on school books that he had to purchase. As initially stated by the OP, he had the option to buy a "full version" of the book in which he wouldn't have this problem. He chose to spend less money and get the limited version… but, it's not even his choice that is important here. You state it as if we are supposed to respect the fact that he spent the money while pursuing schooling… when, in fact, a number of us have been through college and paid $100+ for each of our books.
You can judge this community however you like and on whatever grounds you like, but it will not change how it operates. Plenty of people find assistance here because they give enough information upfront to have their problem solved. If it didn't work, the community wouldn't have as much cohesion as it does.
So, you just continue to believe that the OP's failed attempt at getting help defines the community. The rest of us will continue to do as we have done for much longer than most of you have been here… and help people as best as we can and as much as they deserve.
We won't even begin to address the dangerous moral ground that cracking the DRM on an educational institution's "ebook" would surely put us on. Nor will I believe as mentioned above that people would rate my articles based upon forum responses… since that would be ignorant if it were the case. People always get the benefit of the doubt here.
Chinchilla3k wrote: He mentioned that it was a document that is sealed via Oracle's sealer. He mentioned that in order to open it an online license exchange is required. He mentioned that he searched online and the only way to get a permanent unencrypted easily accessible representation of the data is by sending a print job to the printer and pulling the printer spool file while it was being queued onto the printer. He got the spool file.. had searched some more.. and is asking for any ideas anyone has on what approach he could take.
If he had written this, he would've received a great deal more help than he did. Re-read his initial post, then read this again.
I didn't want to mention names in the previous post I made. In the end I tried to make it clear that individuals reacted differently than the generalization I made about the community. In the end you had been polite and you didn't make subtle threats nor were you a complete asshole. Why I chose not to separate you from my observation about the community in this thread was your choice of words in one of the later posts you made "..We're tired of you complaining".. in the midst of all the threats it made you appear un-neutral in the dispute.
Zephyr_Pure wrote: [quote]Chinchilla3k wrote: (1)He mentioned that it was a document that is sealed via Oracle's sealer. (2)He mentioned that in order to open it an online license exchange is required. (3)He mentioned that he searched online and the only way to get a permanent unencrypted easily accessible representation of the data is by sending a print job to the printer and pulling the printer spool file while it was being queued onto the printer. (4)He got the spool file.. had searched some more.. and is asking for any ideas anyone has on what approach he could take.
If he had written this, he would've received a great deal more help than he did. Re-read his initial post, then read this again.[/quote]
I got all that from the OP's initial post when I read it… I added numbers to link what I understood from what he said and what he really said. I think the only stretch was the "had searched some more" after getting the SPL file. I assumed that based on him taking the time to initially do the research about the DRM.
**OP wrote: ** … it is (1)protected by Oracle's Sealed PDF, which (2)requires a license to be uploaded thru their servers. Once opened using only IE, it embeds itself into IE and you can not save it, take a pic or print to file. However they will let you print on paper.
(3)I have read around and only vulnerability is when the spdf sends the print job to the printer which lets to capture a .SPL file thru (windoze/system32/spool/printers). Now my question is, (4)is there anyway to convert .SPL to pdf.
(4)Anyone with any ideas ?
Zephyr_Pure wrote: We won't even begin to address the dangerous moral ground that cracking the DRM on an educational institution's "ebook" would surely put us on.
You are absolutely right about that.. but then it's interesting that attempts at helping were originally made.
I don't like mentioning this but since it was brought up.. I have been here since the beginning.. I was probably one of the first 100 members (if not less) to this website. My actual handle is Chinchilla.. I use alternatives like this one when I can't use Chinchilla. You can see an older account Chinchilla2k and the date of the last visit on that account. Prior to that I had the handle Chinchilla (not the currently registered one) around the time the site came out and Mr.Cheese was advertising it on hts site and IRC… that first account had been banned and apparently subsequently deleted from the db. (since someone who isn't me managed to reregister chinchilla)
I come on a lot more often than I contribute and have done so for a long time. My opinion of this community is not based solely on this thread but all the things I observed while arbitrarily coming on to this website for all that time.
My rating of your article wasn't based on your posts in this thread. I will make comments about your article in the comment section of your article.
Chinchilla3k wrote: Why I chose not to separate you from my observation about the community in this thread was your choice of words in one of the later posts you made "..We're tired of you complaining".. in the midst of all the threats it made you appear un-neutral in the dispute.
I am not a moderator, but I do have a sense for when fights should come to an end and normal forum activity should continue. I spoke the way I did because it did not entreat a response from the OP and it would calm the masses… both of which would leave the thread to die.
Chinchilla3k wrote: I got all that from the OP's initial post when I read it.
Then I may not have read deep enough into it. It happens.
Zephyr_Pure wrote: We won't even begin to address the dangerous moral ground that cracking the DRM on an educational institution's "ebook" would surely put us on.
Chinchilla3k wrote: You are absolutely right about that.. but then it's interesting that attempts at helping were originally made.
To be completely honest, I didn't read the original target of the question. I skim through posts and pick out the relevant parts to compose a solution because, ultimately, I run through a lot of posts in my free time (which is scarce). It wasn't until your mention of how deserving he was of the cracked DRM that I noticed and responded. Help is help, just as hacking is hacking… it's only illegal if you do something illegal with it.
Chinchilla3k wrote: I don't like mentioning this but since it was brought up.. I have been here since the beginning..
I come on a lot more often than I contribute and have done so for a long time. My opinion of this community is not based solely on this thread but all the things I observed while arbitrarily coming on to this website for all that time.
That statement wasn't directed at you specifically; as is the trend in this thread now, it was directed at the community. So many people feel that we are unnecessarily harsh but, really, that is how we were motivated to progress and contribute as part of the community. That is also how people tend to be when they are underappreciated. Is anyone forcing us to post constructively or negatively at any given time? Nope… we do it because we believe in an ideal. That statement is the only thing I will not argue / discuss any further with anyone.
Chinchilla3k wrote: My rating of your article wasn't based on your posts in this thread. I will make comments about your article in the comment section of your article. Thank you. They were the most detailed comments so far.