Any (legal) way to bypass the cd requirement?

[mrollers]

I'm not sure where exactly this post would belong - I didnt see any "general help" forum, so please feel free to move this if its in the wrong place.

 

I just bought one of the Sony UX180P Micro PC's and would love to use Animation Master with it. The Animation Master software requires for the CD to be in the tray while it starts, but the UX180P does not have any sort of CD/DVD Drive included (and the optional one sells for $399 and (I believe) requires it be plugged into a power outlet, eliminating the advantage of a mobile PC.

 

I'm not talking about bypassing the protection or anything illegal, but just looking for a general way of running the software without using the CD (possibly a way of verifying the software through the internet, through a cd key, or even if theres a way to use a USB Drive to verify it - if any of these are possible). Any help would be appreciated -- I'd love to take the software along with me.

[luckbat]

You can buy a USB dongle to substitute for the CD. Contact Hash directly for this.

[Rodney]

I went the dongle route a few years back. I liked it.

Eventually I just went back to the CD.

 

Flashing the dongle was one degree more difficult than just downloading and installing updates.

Not difficult... just different. I find I prefer the CD. The dongle is a good alternative.

For those with Netrender/renderfarms the dongle is an obvious choice.

 

As most systems have a CD and DVD drive now that makes things easier.

[MMZ_TimeLord]

Shame on you Reb... ANY bypassing of the CD Protection is ILLEGAL.

 

If you have an external drive to mount the CD on to start A:M you can run it then remove the drive and A:M will continue making your mobile PC mobile again.

 

If A:M crashes, you would have to have the CD again to start it.

 

I went the Dongle route years ago when all they had was the parallel port dongle... I REALLY like the USB dongle for it's ease of use.

 

Rodney does make a valid point with the flashing of the dongle. For some users this is more technical than they want to fiddle with. For me it's simple, so it's not noticable. Contact Hash, Inc. if you want more info on the dongle.

 

Good luck!

[Rodney]

(I'm watching this topic with an eye to close it)

I think everyone has covered the options pretty well.

 

'Bypassing' the CD's security system implies illegality so consider your options well.

[steve392]

I put an extra cd rom on ,so I just keep the cd in all the time

[Gorf]

I think it's less illegal for you guys in the US than it is for us in the UK.

 

You've got a pretty handy "fair use" concept rolling around your legal system which is useful in situations such as this. You buy the licence to use the software, so you should use it as you see fit...

 

If there's a way to use a product you've bought legitimately in a way that suits you, then I don't see why you can consider it "illegal". "Unlawful" is how we refer to IP theft here, meaning that the copyright holder, not the police, is responsible for bringing a case to court. Only we're not talking about IP theft - we're talking about copy protection. Most companies, Hash included (as far as I'm aware), do not advertise that the CD is needed to start the program up.

 

Don't get me wrong, Hash have every right to protect themselves from IP thieves. However, I think there are other issues that should perhaps be considered here. For example, I mentioned some time ago that it was possible to bypass the CD requirement. Steve asked me to explain how I did it, which I did, in a PM. It's only now, two full versions later, that this method has finally failed me.

 

This means that when I get my regular "Error:" message in the modelling window when working on a complex model, I have to wait until (for example) a DVD has stopped burning and the optical drive is available before I can close and reopen A:M to get the display back.

 

OK, so I can get a netrender dongle to allow me to re-start A:M after a problem stops work; or wait 30 mins or so (it never errors near the end of a burn )? Sorry - but in my opinion, I shouldn't be paying extra (and that includes buying a "permanent" extrnal optical drive for A:M) just so that when something goes wrong that's not of my doing, I can get the thing running again quickly.

[martin]

Unless you're an Intellectual Property (IP) lawyer, Gareth, please keep your legal opinion to yourself. U.K. IP laws are hardly different from U.S. IP laws, and both countries are members of WIPO (World Intellectual Property Organization). In your defense, in the U.S., circumventing copy protection is a federal offense and can result in jail time. The laws in the U.K. aren't quite that restrictive but "software licenses" have plenty of supporting case law that restricts "fair use" copying in the case of copy protection. You already get A:M at a ridiculously low price, you should be more than willing to pay for the convenience of a dongle.

[pwknox]

Gorf,

 

I don't have a lot of sympathy for you. I agree with steve392. The last three computers I have owned have all been built with a extra CD-ROM just for AM. I include it on the list of components when I am ordering my parts. My current "AM CD-ROM" is a piece of junk that cost me $12.95 (free shipping). I open this CD-ROM with fear and trepidation every year to stick the newest AM CD in there. I am never sure that it is going to open properly after a year of inaction. I figure that the added cost is a small price to pay for having quick access to a great piece of software. Life is full of compromises; this is an insignificant one in my opinion.

 

Phil

[Rodney]

Gotta learn to trust my instinct and lock threads like this down.

It'll save everyone a lot of time and frustration.

 

There are an infinite number of ways to do things wrong.

As it is there are three ways that I can think of to do it right.

 

1) Use the CD in the CDRom Drive

2) Update to a dongle

3) Purchase Netrender (which comes with a dongle).

 

Number 1 is self explanatory.

For 2 and 3 you should contact Hash Inc directly.

 

Martin you can always unlock this topic as you feel the need.

Thanks for everyones input.

Edited August 21, 2006 by Rodney

[martin]

For Gareth's benefit, I decided to research the WIPO treaty concerning "copy protection."

 

In the U.S. this is controlled by the "Digital Millennium Copyright Act" (DMCA), Title 17 Section 1201. "No person shall circumvent a technological measure that effectively controls access to a protected work." It goes on at length to plug almost all loop holes, including "fair use."

 

As this applies to the U.K., see Cyberlaw 2nd Ed., Bellia, Berman, Post, page 285, "The DMCA's anti-circumvention and anti-trafficking provisions were ostensibly intended to bring the U.S. into compliance with the 1996 WIPO Treaty, which requires contracting parties to 'provide adequate legal protection and effective legal remedies against the circumvention of effective technological measures that are used by authors in connection with the exercise of their rights' under international copyright agreements. WIPO Treaty, Apr. 12, 1997, art. 11, S. Treaty Doc. No. 105-17 (1997)."