Piracy has always been an issue for commercial software. Accordingly, programmers have made it a priority to protect their products. Oftentimes, various forms of digital rights management systems are utilized to encrypt the data and make it more difficult for hackers and the general public to copy and distribute. Unfortunately, DRM can always be cracked by any hacker with sufficient skill and persistence.
Fortunately, there was another way to combat piracy. Rather than just lock up the software’s code from a digital front, it’s just as possible to protect it physically as well. One of the most common ways to accomplish this was to use a handy piece of technology known as the dongle.
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One may ask: “What is that?” Simply put, it’s a hardware device that comes packaged with its affiliated software application that can only be verified if the object is properly plugged into the computer. In order to work properly, a distinct processor needs to be a component of the object itself, and proper drivers need to be installed onto the computer to communicate with the device’s software. In this way, dongles prove to be effective anti-piracy measures because not only are they hard to replicate, but it makes distributing the associated program to the masses nearly impossible.
The earliest known dongle was used in 1980 for the program WORDCRAFT. Invented in the United Kingdom by a man named Graham Heggie, it was a simple device measuring a total of two cubic inches which transferred data via a set of pins while plugged into a cassette port. The term for the object came about as a result of its appearance to seemingly “dangle” from the back of the computer. Nevertheless, it was deemed a success by WORDCRAFT’s distributor, Dataview Ltd., which would then go on to further develop the device.
Dongles would evolve over time. From their humble cassette origins, they would later go on to run on parallel ports produced by Centronics Data Computer Corporation, compatible for both the 9-pin and 25-pin ports. Dongles were common on many computers of the time, including the ACT Apricot, the DEC Rainbow 100 and Sirius Systems Technology’s Victor 9000. Eventually, dongles would have more complicated processors incorporated into them to allow for more rapid communication with the computer, from microprocessors to the universal asynchronous receiver/transmitter. Dongles would later adopt the interface of the USB as its format became increasingly more popular over the years.
Nowadays, they have been losing ground as a means to protect software. Despite their effectiveness, they’re not impossible for a skilled hacker to get around. Furthermore, as both computers and software have grown to become more complex than ever, making a physical device just isn’t cost effective anymore. Needing to plug a physical object into a computer just to use a program is also widely considered a hassle to consumers. Simply put, with things like client/server technology and software activation out on the market, there are far more economical and convenient ways for a company to protect its digital merchandise.
Ruben CorboThis is a guest article by Ruben Corbo, a writer for the website Broadband Expert where you can find internet service providers in your area and compare prices on different deals for your wireless internet necessities with a mobile internet dongle or a SIM only card.
Labels : Dongle, Software | | 21:55
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