Strong crypto in new business on net

[L. Todd Masco]

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Hey, y'all.  I'm not sure how well this will be received on Cypherpunks,
 but it seems like it's appropriate, given the discussions of e$ and
 the use of encryption for fun and profit (this being the latter).

I recently quit my job on Wall Street (well, Broad Street) to go into
 the business of selling electronic forms of books (to start with,
 Voyager on the Macs (it's a toolkit that produces HyperCard stacks))
 and other forms of information.  We haven't made any money yet, but
 we're hoping (I'm the programmer/ part sys-admin).

What we (I)'ve done is this:  I took RIPEM (yes, we've licensed with 
 Jim Bidzos), and ripped out the key management stuff, replacing it
 with a keypair for the masses (just because RIPEM likes the sender's
 private key to be used to encrypt -- no security is expected here) and
 our public key hardcoded in. The user ftp's a binary for their
 platform (*) from bb.com and runs the client -- they answer the
 questions (credit card info, what items they want on what platforms),
 and the client encrypts, finds sendmail, and fires the mail off.  On
 platforms such as the Amiga, Mac, and PC where there isn't a standard
 e-mail interface, we'll just generate the crypto and let the user cut
 and paste it into their MUA.

(*) we're not distributing source at the moment.  It's simply too easy
 to spoof with the source.

Anyway, this is the announcement.  If anybody gets their nose out of
 joint about it, I sincerely apologize, and ask you not to blame my
 partners -- and I'll only do this one time. We're going on-line in earnest
 in the near future, but I got my partners to agree to let y'all take an
 early look, not entirely as an ad, but partially to show a willingness to
 work with y'all towards shaping a real information economy on the net. 
 Comments can go to me (cactus at bb.com) or to comments at bb.com. Flames should
 just go to me.

Oh, enclosed is our PGP 2.6 public key: we soon plan to take orders 
 encrypted with PGP -- as soon as we clear up the legalities (how does
 one license IDEA for commercial use?  Just buy ViaCrypt's PGP?).  We
 haven't decided whether we'll accept non-encrypted orders yet.

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Thanks,
- --
L. Todd Masco                   |  Bibliobytes books on computer, available on
cactus at bibliob.slip.netcom.com  |   any UNIX host with e-mail: mail info at bb.com

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Have you ever bought a book from thousands of miles away -- and had it in
your computer immediately?

Forget "You will" -- YOU CAN.

And the company that can bring them to you is BiblioBytes.

Hi, I'm Glenn Hauman.  I'm the publisher of BiblioBytes, and I'm proud to
welcome you into our world.  Here at BiblioBytes we hope to offer you the
best and most complete selection of books available on the Internet, which
you can buy and read instantly -- right now -- without needing any extra
equipment or time for your credit card to clear.

You understand what we're doing here -- you've been on the net, you don't
need AT&T commercials to explain it to you.  We've built an encrypted
financial exchange system, so you can purchase material safely over the
Internet.

We're using it to sell you electronic versions of books instantly.  
Any time.  Any place that Internet-based email can travel. No matter.

Thank you for asking about us.  I hope that this letter explains everything
you want to know -- but if you need more information, please send e-mail to
info at bb.com.

Thanks for checking us out! 
 --Glenn Hauman, Publisher, BiblioBytes, 7/1/94

**********************************************************
*                  INSIDE THIS DOCUMENT                  *
********************************************************** 

 1) WHAT ARE WE PUBLISHING?
 2) HOW DOES IT WORK?
 3) HOW DO YOU GET THESE BOOKS?
 4) WHAT FILE FORMATS DO WE OFFER?
 5) HOW DO YOU GET YOUR BOOKS DISTRIBUTED THROUGH BIBLIOBYTES?
 6) HOW DO YOU GET REVIEW COPIES?
 7) BIBLIOBYTES AND YOU

********************************************************** 

1) WHAT ARE WE PUBLISHING?

You name a genre -- mystery, SF, romance, fantasy, erotica, 
classics -- we've got something in it, if not this week, then soon.  
As of this writing (6/30/94) we have the rights to over one thousand 
titles, and we're trying to get as many of them online as quickly 
as possible.

Obviously, a catalog list that long is way beyond the scope of this letter.
To get our most current list, send e-mail to catalog at bb.com.  
To subscribe to our mailing list of catalog updates 
(as well as other BiblioBytes information) send e-mail to bb-stuff at bb.com.


2) HOW DOES IT WORK?

Pretty easily, actually.  Use our custom encryptors to send e-mail including
your order and credit card number to us.  We will then send your files direct
to you and charge your credit card.  

That's it.  No special hardware needed, no waiting for an account to be set
up, no joining additional computer networks to get your books.

Our encryptors use the RSAREF library with a 1024 bit key to provide the best
protection for your credit card information.  Current encryptor platforms
supported are:

  Sun 2
  Sun 3
  SPARC (SunOS 4 and Solaris 2)
  VAX/Ultrix 4.2
  MIPS Ultrix 4.3
  HP-UX 9.01
  OSF/1 AXP
  Amiga NetBSD
  Next (68k and x86 "fat binaries")

Other UNIX platforms on request -- send mail to platforms at bb.com.
Macintosh/PowerMac, DOS, Windows, and Amiga-DOS platforms in development.  
Release dates TBA.

You can get our encryptors via anonymous ftp from bb.com:/pub/orderbook or
e-mail to client at bb.com with the platform in the body.  Instructions are in
the same directory with the encryptors.


3) HOW DO YOU GET THESE BOOKS?

Just follow the instructions in the encryptors to send your name, address,
credit card information, and catalog codes in an encrypted e-mail message.

If you'd like to see a free sample, send e-mail to freebie at bb.com with the
catalog code in the body.


4) WHAT FILE FORMATS DO WE OFFER?

We have books in a wide variety of formats -- Voyager Expanded Books for the
Macintosh (and soon for Windows), ASCII, RTF, and others, depending on the
requirements of the book.  However, we're open to suggestions -- if there's a
particular format you'd like us to support, send e-mail to comments at bb.com.


5) HOW DO YOU GET BIBLIOBYTES TO DISTRIBUTE YOUR BOOKS?

Get our Writer's Guidelines by sending e-mail to guidelines at bb.com,
or look in "bb.com:/pub/info".
Details and a sample contract info are provided.


6) I WOULD LIKE TO REVIEW YOUR BOOKS FOR THE PRESS.  
   HOW DO I GET REVIEW COPIES?

Review copies are available upon request to the press and to list
administrators and moderators.  Please send your credentials to
critics at bb.com.

Of course, previews are available on most of our books by sending e-mail to
freebies at bb.com with the catalog code in the e-mail body.


7) BIBLIOBYTES AND YOU

Unlike some online entities, we want your feedback.  We can't do it without
you.  So let us know: What titles do you want to see? What topics? What
authors? What file formats? What type of Internet connections -- Web, Gopher,
FTP? What computers? How can we let you know about our products better? Would
you like to see weekly columns? Would you pay in advance for a discount on
books?

The main basis of our growth will be your word-of-mouth.  Please let other
people know about us.  Spreading the word is a real service to others and the
best support you could give us.  The second-best support is to take a minute
and let us know what you think of us.  As usual, send to comments at bb.com.


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