nisms like SafeDisc and
SecuROM on their game CDs
to prevent consumers from
making copies of the discs.
The legal answer is trickier:
Although you’re well within
your rights as a consumer
to make archival or backup
copies of your games for
personal use, the Digital
Millennium Copyright Act
does not make allowances
for bypassing copy protec-
tion to do so.
Given the nature of disc
protection, the only way you
can make a backup is to cre-
ate an image of the CD with
an application that allows for
data positioning measure-
ment. This replicates the vari-
ous copy-protection technolo-
gies involved in the original
disc’s creation. From there,
you have to use a disc emula-
tion application to mount your
image alongside a concealing
application that hides this very
act of disc mounting from the
protection mechanisms. And
that’s where you break the law.Disappearing DVD
In your June 2008 issue,
Frank Buttell mentioned a
problem with a disappear-
ing hard drive. I have also
had that problem with Vista
Ultimate, except my disap-
pearing drive was my DVD
+/- RW with LightScribe. I am
dual-booting with XP Pro x64
edition and Vista Ultimate
(32 bit). The drive is fine in
XP, but in Vista, it will ran-
domly disappear. A restartor sometimes a disconnect
and reconnect of the SATA
cable will solve the prob-
lem. So something must be
up. What’s going on?
—Joshua ParnellYou may be running into
a problem that Microsoft
resolved with a recent
hotfix. The issue pertains
to Windows Vista when
Adaptive Host Controller
Interface mode is enabled.
Because you have a P35-
based board, there’s a good
chance that AHCI mode with
Vista is the culprit. Microsoft
says the problem does not
occur if the SATA support is
set to “compatible.” You can
read more about the hotfix at
http://tinyurl.com/6kumhj.
The only catch is that you
can’t actually download
the hotfix there. If you are
having this problem, you
must request the patch from
Microsoft via a link at the top
of the page.SUBMIT YOUR QUESTION Are flames shooting out of the back of your rig? First,
grab a fire extinguisher and douse the flames. Once the pyrotechnic display has
fizzled, email the doctor at [email protected] for advice on how to solve
your technological woes.EVERYTHING WAS GREAT
UNTIL I UPGRADED MY
MACHINE TO VISTA.I can’t agree more with the Doctor regarding his advice to Michael Collins (June
2008) on a TiVo as the best option to extend your DVRing capabilities, especially
for transferring recorded programs to a computer. The TiVoToGo feature is great.
However, the Doctor’s advice regarding the FireWire ports of most cable DVRs is,
as Dwight Schrute would say, “False!”
As to Michael’s question regarding legal issues, there are no implications. Just
as the DVI and HDMI ports are protected with HDCP, the FireWire ports are protected
with 5C DTCP encryption. Programs that are supposed to be copy protected are en-
crypted and cannot be captured with a computer, though the copy-protected content
varies by market. One needs a D-VHS deck for authorized copying of such programs.
The FCC has mandated that cable DVRs must have the FireWire ports enabled.
While many channels are encrypted, basic cable channels are not to be encrypted.
If you fi nd you can’t capture a basic-tier channel (including local HDTV channels),
call your cable company to complain; then lodge a complaint with your local cable
franchise authority (usually listed on your monthly bill). –K E V I N O N K E NSECOND OPINIONDVR Video over FireWire