Despite much enthusiasm for Mac OS X 10.4 (aka “Tiger”), even the 10.4.1 release hasn’t persuaded me that the time is right for dancing in the streets. The Mac help and fix-it sites continue to be littered with complaints of bugs and incompatibilities. I suppose I’ll wait for 10.4.2 or 10.4.3. At this stage both Mystic and Trinity are running fine with 10.3.9, and unless something dramatic happens I need to see some solid benefit before I jump up.
And what’s good for the goose is good for the gander: I don’t recommend anyone move to 10.4 yet either. Of course, if you’ve already done so I’d love to hear about your experiences with it.
If you buy a lot of your music at the iTunes Music Store (and I’m over $100 spent at this point), you may have discovered that Apple uses a Digital Rights Management (DRM) system called FairPlay to keep you from doing whatever it is you want with the songs you’ve purchased. For example, many third-party stereo components only work with non-DRM AAC and MP3 files. Don’t get me started on the iPod-based restrictions.
Enter JHymn. Set a couple of preferences, and -bang- you can strip the DRM off your iTunes Store-bought music. How legal is the use of JHymn? It’s a violation of the terms of the iTunes End User License Agreement, that’s for sure. And though case law is not settled, it may be a violation of the onerous Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA). I’m no lawyer, so if you’ve got serious concerns about the legality of JHymn you’re probably right to have them. In other words, don’t be looking to blame me when the FBI shows up at your door.