OBcrypto: in one of the Java papers I saw a refrence to use of RSA signitures to allow browser users to say things like "I trust Sun (or Tim May) to write applets that use Foo not to harm me". It wasn't in the public release of HotJava because of licencing constrints. Any speculation on whether Netscape will (eventually) support that feature?
If this is the case, my big hope is that Netscape doesn't limit /this/ trust system to a pre-approved set of corporate entities I'll (as a private individual) have to pay $300 for if I want my apps to do anything more than bounce faces around a user's screen. A model allowing multiple entities to put a stamp of approval (possibly with some sort of hash/checksum to match an app in question against an approval certificate) /would/ make things easier for the user, though, allowing them to set up a set of blanket rules instead of pausing and pondering a particular programmer's trustworthiness every new site he visits... a la Tim's Dirt Cheap Java Security Approval Company. Please don't nail me on semantics; I use all above terms loosely. -- Jay Campbell - Regional Operations Manager -=-=-=-=-=-=- Sense Networking (Santa Cruz Node) edge@got.net "Shoot the Fruit Loop" "On the Information Superhighway, I'm the guy behind you in this morning's traffic jam leaning on his horn."