Libraries! Partial Solution to PGP Windows Wars and Source Code
[There's been a major flame war on pgp-users about the lack of Win3.1 support, and more than a few cypherpunks have asked about source.] PGP has always had a policy of making the source code available; it was one of the big things that let us trust it. PGP has also been available under a variety of platforms, whether written/ported by Phil and associates, or ported by others. Recently, PGP Inc. has come out with several major systems, including - PGP 3.0 and 3.0.1 pre-alpha code, including libraries, which have been published in book form and on the net. For portability and compatibility, the most important things are the algorithms and file formats used. - PGP 5.0 with fancy user interface for Win32 only. I'm assuming that PGP 5.0 is written using the PGP 3.0.1 libraries* - if they've got any sense, they've used the same libraries with at most some bug fixes and/or simple new features that they can put out as a point release, and limited the Win32-related stuff to GUIs, interfaces to other Windows programs, and similar non-portable stuff, some of which can be bullied into working on DOS or Win16 and some of which is too much trouble to crowbar in. If so, then *you* can do your own GUI work on Win16, MacOS 6, and OS/360, and be sure of interoperability with Fancy New PGP. In particular, the user-friendliness front-end programs like pgpclip and Private Idaho can use the libraries instead of having to pop up DOS subsystems to run. (PI was very nice with ViaCrypt 2.7.1, which let everything run as communicating Windows programs.) Using the libraries also helps us trust the security - it doesn't mean the GUIware doesn't also send a copy of your passphrase to aldrich@nsavax.us, but it does let you build interoperable code you can trust, and it makes it easier to verify that at least the basic crypto routines are solid. [* Perhaps I'm naive, and I must confess to not finishing all 4 volumes of code, but I'd _hope_ they did the right thing...] # Thanks; Bill # Bill Stewart, +1-415-442-2215 stewarts@ix.netcom.com # You can get PGP outside the US at ftp.ox.ac.uk/pub/crypto/pgp # (If this is a mailing list or news, please Cc: me on replies. Thanks.)
-----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE----- At 12:33 AM 5/30/97 -0700, Bill Stewart wrote:
- PGP 5.0 with fancy user interface for Win32 only.
Note that 4.5 is Win/32 only but 5.0 is also available for (the latest) Macintosh OS. [So "latest" that Tim May can't run it.] DCF -----BEGIN PGP SIGNATURE----- Version: 5.0 beta Charset: noconv iQCVAwUBM46z9YVO4r4sgSPhAQGpYgQAhim1CSTGzPu1y9A2f5fgITNLa3g1uZGh nwxemQJ08cwQQJYMjZfXIbXZO9QrhIByryT5d94fzvxo9vr9K8OuukKSf6drVX+b pHPI0wsrV4zv7tTt1b2Gsf+P8h0haY+tTb/tu7F+hCGvvXO1B2bpYM1slTdWuznh 5ZK4Xyud/pk= =E6ZL -----END PGP SIGNATURE-----
-----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE----- At 08:15 AM 5/30/97 -0700, Tim May wrote:
Newsflash: With the prodding and help of Vinnie M., I took a day last week and installed the latest versions of all of my major applications. I successfully ran the installation on my bootleg copy of PGP 5.0 (obtained from my friendly spy), but have not yet spent time integrating it with Eudora Pro 3.1, which I understand is possible.
(Please: No helpful suggestions. All of the information I need to do this is apparently contained in the docs...I just haven taken the time off from doing other things to do this.)
No helpful suggestion here but I wanted to point out that in both instances after I installed PGPMail 4.5 in January and PGP for Personal Privacy 5.0 last week, I found that the cute little radio buttons had been automagically installed in my copy of Eudora Pro 3.0 (they also work with the freeware Lite version of 3.0). They do not appear on the frames of the general program "window" because encryption/decryption cannot be used there but if you open a message window to create a message or to read a message, there the little buttons are. I am using WIN95 of course. If the Mac is not as user friendly, I think that's too bad. Look on the message window frames. Maybe the buttons are there. I've been frantically signing and encrypting ever since January. I want PGP Inc. to release PGP Disk for WIN95 (it's out for the MAC). I need a disk encryptor that can work with WIN32. I have even been able to browbeat friends and family into installing the new PGP versions. There's a lot to be said for on-click encryption (or no click in the case of 5.0 since you can set signing or encryption or both to be the default condition for Eudora. Hit <Queue> of <Send> and PGP pops up and does its thing. DCF -----BEGIN PGP SIGNATURE----- Version: 5.0 beta Charset: noconv iQCVAwUBM484aYVO4r4sgSPhAQGqmQP/frXBvfTA8dkPqFBd2ZXyYNtrqH1IdGTZ mUM3x69DLgYo1bgPtTrv8j6+LSS2L+UmYLoFKLjWzKWMzA/hXk+aDasZoK773mXj OqOS3ZlgX8ciM587g1odTIdbotmjeECz2wyAsZ/detiKshP9sd/xxbyluT+I8/z+ ootLaCTPrEo= =8v85 -----END PGP SIGNATURE-----
-----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE----- In <3.0.1.32.19970530003356.00756ee0@popd.ix.netcom.com>, on 05/30/97 at 12:33 AM, Bill Stewart <stewarts@ix.netcom.com> said:
- PGP 3.0 and 3.0.1 pre-alpha code, including libraries, which have been published in book form and on the net. For portability and compatibility, the most important things are the algorithms and file formats used.
Hi Bill, Could you point me to a location where 3.0 code is available on the net? I would be very intrested in this. Also have you heard any word on the release of source code for PGP Phone? I know that the MIT download site mentioned that this would be made available but I have yet to see anything (not intrested in the GUI stuff but would like to see the crytpo & data compression algorithims). Thanks, - -- - --------------------------------------------------------------- William H. Geiger III http://www.amaranth.com/~whgiii Geiger Consulting Cooking With Warp 4.0 Author of E-Secure - PGP Front End for MR/2 Ice PGP & MR/2 the only way for secure e-mail. OS/2 PGP 2.6.3a at: http://www.amaranth.com/~whgiii/pgpmr2.html - --------------------------------------------------------------- Tag-O-Matic: Turn your 486 into a Gameboy: Type WIN at C:\> -----BEGIN PGP SIGNATURE----- Version: 2.6.3a Charset: cp850 Comment: Registered_User_E-Secure_v1.1b1_ES000000 iQCVAwUBM47UU49Co1n+aLhhAQGxegQArqfIYFL975P4obAnLhJHlKfD4LETVQaR 7uToPOeB85akzKV9Q5Ut+E6sjzrnKFlujBrkRt7jZYXd9mPXty5wSVioxoNDuUQM qrtRvCvjlW0R/ikoVMAW6NVU+k0JohmGR1l6uRI0ZBdRD347Ll4yQrwiAGe6165B O0VlxRUwgUY= =28u/ -----END PGP SIGNATURE-----
At 4:03 AM -0700 5/30/97, frissell@panix.com wrote:
At 12:33 AM 5/30/97 -0700, Bill Stewart wrote:
- PGP 5.0 with fancy user interface for Win32 only.
Note that 4.5 is Win/32 only but 5.0 is also available for (the latest) Macintosh OS. [So "latest" that Tim May can't run it.] ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Newsflash: With the prodding and help of Vinnie M., I took a day last week and installed the latest versions of all of my major applications. I successfully ran the installation on my bootleg copy of PGP 5.0 (obtained from my friendly spy), but have not yet spent time integrating it with Eudora Pro 3.1, which I understand is possible. (Please: No helpful suggestions. All of the information I need to do this is apparently contained in the docs...I just haven taken the time off from doing other things to do this.) For those who know and care: System 7.5.3, MT Newwatcher 2.3.1, Eudora Pro 3.1, Netscape Navigator Gold 3.01, and various UUdecoders, helper apps, etc. To again paraphrase my .sig: "There's something wrong when it takes a day or more to upgrade apps to be compatible and there's no visible productivity improvement." Actually, I used to follow the Macintosh technical stuff more closely. I read "MacWorld" and "MacUser" cover to cover every month, I sometimes read "Mac Technical Journal" and other technical sources, I messed around with ResEdit, had a couple of volumes of "Inside Macintosh," had C and C++ avialable, and all that stuff. Upgrading from one version of a system to another was not too stressful. However, in the last several years, probably echoing the path many of you have taken, my focus has shifted to a more "platform-agnostic" path, centered on the Net and Web and on writing messages and participating in Net virtual communities (like Cypherpunks). I just want my main Internet apps to keep working as they have, and don't much care about Apple's stuff like "CyberDog" and PowerQuickToolsPro, or whatever. Sadly, the Mac OS is now very bloated, and I no longer have the time or interest to read the details and upgrade the many apps to the minor rev levels needed to ensure compatibility. (So sue me.) Once a "constellation" of apps is running smoothly, I am reluctant to change any of them unless the benefits are very clear. (And I could see no significant changes in going from System 7.1.3 to 7.5.3...the Mac OS is of course still missing basic OS features such as multitasking and memory protection.) Vinnie M. tells me I should do the upgrade to System 7.6...I think I'll pass on this for now. --Tim May There's something wrong when I'm a felon under an increasing number of laws. Only one response to the key grabbers is warranted: "Death to Tyrants!" ---------:---------:---------:---------:---------:---------:---------:---- Timothy C. May | Crypto Anarchy: encryption, digital money, tcmay@got.net 408-728-0152 | anonymous networks, digital pseudonyms, zero W.A.S.T.E.: Corralitos, CA | knowledge, reputations, information markets, Higher Power: 2^1398269 | black markets, collapse of governments. "National borders aren't even speed bumps on the information superhighway."
On Fri, May 30, 1997 at 08:15:24AM -0700, Tim May wrote: [...]
Vinnie M. tells me I should do the upgrade to System 7.6...I think I'll pass on this for now.
--Tim May
You should upgrade to Linux. -- Kent Crispin "No reason to get excited", kent@songbird.com the thief he kindly spoke... PGP fingerprint: B1 8B 72 ED 55 21 5E 44 61 F4 58 0F 72 10 65 55 http://songbird.com/kent/pgp_key.html
participants (6)
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Bill Stewart -
Duncan Frissell -
frissell＠panix.com
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Kent Crispin -
Tim May -
William H. Geiger III