From: Lucky Green <shamrock@netcom.com>
Date: Mon, 30 Dec 1996 12:06:07 -0800 (PST)
To: Hal Finney <cypherpunks@toad.com
Subject: Re: New crypto regulations
Message-ID: <3.0.32.19961230120642.006ac9ec@netcom13.netcom.com>
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain


At 09:57 AM 12/30/96 -0800, Hal Finney wrote:
>The regs, as Lucky pointed out, do hint at restrictions on OCR fonts in
>the future.  However this is obviously doomed since as OCR technology
>advances the distinction between OCR and non-OCR fonts will vanish.
>I imagine that a special purpose character recognition engine could be
>built to work on any known, monospaced font, as is typically used for
>source code.

It seems to me that the authors of the regulations have come to the same
conclusion. Which is why the ban on scannable text is not in the current
version of the regs. But the regulators want to see scannable source banned
that much is clear. At the same time, they do not want to run up against
the wide ranging protections printed speech enjoys.

I expect the solution ultimately employed to use a method similar to what
is currently used in color copiers and digital audio mastering equipment.
Normal color copiers will copy just about all colors except the particular
shade of green used in US currency. Consumer digital audio recording
equipment makes use of copy protection features. Only hideously expensive
"professional" equipment has the copy protection turned off.

We might see something similar for printed source and OCR programs. Printed
source will have to be printed in a specific font. A font that OCR programs
are required to not recognize. OCR programs that do recognize this specific
font will of course be export controlled.



-- Lucky Green <mailto:shamrock@netcom.com> PGP encrypted mail preferred
   Make your mark in the history of mathematics. Use the spare cycles of
   your PC/PPC/UNIX box to help find a new prime.
   http://www.mersenne.org/prime.htm