From: Dale Thorn <dthorn@gte.net>
Date: Mon, 11 Nov 1996 07:09:56 -0800 (PST)
To: Murray Hayes <mhayes@infomatch.com>
Subject: Re: Sifting data; looking for "strong crypto"
In-Reply-To: <199611110903.BAA07962@infomatch.com>
Message-ID: <32873C02.73A@gte.net>
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain


Murray Hayes wrote:
> As far as bit patterns go, is executable code random?

Bit patterns will vary *widely* in executable code.  Some executable
code will contain patterns that will probably be instantly recognizable
to persons who know what to look for.

If you have the right statistics software and know how to use it, you
could evaluate some of those executables, but what it would tell you
would depend on your interpretive ability.

I have a question (or suggestion):

If you have access to a full-screen browser, which can fill the entire
screen with text (i.e., you can eliminate any status lines, etc.), why
not do some bit dumps into an ASCII file that contains just "1"'s and
"0"'s, and then view the file by holding down the down-arrow or page-
down key (assuming a fast enough cursor speed)?

The file would look something like this:  10101110000010101101000101101
but would fill the entire screen, and by scrolling through it, it seems
you would notice any obvious bit patterns.

Just a thought....