Live data from Hacker News

Detecting Currency in Photoshop

cl.cam.ac.uk

11–20 of 23 posts

Re: Detecting Currency in Photoshop

#11

When this feature was first added to photoshop it caused a noticable delay when opening files or pasting content from outside photoshop. It was possible to disable the check by removing a DLL from photoshop and get the speed back to normal. Somehow I don't think this feature has done much to discourage serious counterfitters, it's just annoyed legitimate users, especially as there are pefectly legal ways in which an…

This magical currency detection is in a single DLL? Why hasn't it already been reverse engineered?

Re: Detecting Currency in Photoshop

#12

When this feature was first added to photoshop it caused a noticable delay when opening files or pasting content from outside photoshop. It was possible to disable the check by removing a DLL from photoshop and get the speed back to normal. Somehow I don't think this feature has done much to discourage serious counterfitters, it's just annoyed legitimate users, especially as there are pefectly legal ways in which an…

> When this feature was first added to photoshop

Do you know what release that was ? Perhaps this cranky old copy of PS-5 I use is free of that enhancement.

Re: Detecting Currency in Photoshop

#13

When this feature was first added to photoshop it caused a noticable delay when opening files or pasting content from outside photoshop. It was possible to disable the check by removing a DLL from photoshop and get the speed back to normal. Somehow I don't think this feature has done much to discourage serious counterfitters, it's just annoyed legitimate users, especially as there are pefectly legal ways in which an…

> When this feature was first added to photoshop Do you know what release that was ? Perhaps this cranky old copy of PS-5 I use is free of that enhancement .

It was added in the first "CS" version.. Photoshop 5 is, unencumbered.

Re: Detecting Currency in Photoshop

#14
post #3

Is this really a prevalent feature these days? I must be completely out of the loop. That must be the most useless "feature" I've ever heard of. What possible reason is there for doing this?!

> What possible reason is there for doing this?!

You might try reading the first sentence of the article.

Re: Detecting Currency in Photoshop

#17
As we add increasing amounts of software and microchips into the world around us, are we setting ourselves up for a future in which 1-in-a-million false positives / negatives end up happening in various systems several times a day?

Sorry, this microwave cannot heat this product, the explosive-density-detector has triggered the security block

(Now that I think about it, this mirrors my real world computing experience right now - endlessly pestered by false matches and ineffective checks. File downloads blocked by mime type, by browser, by file extension, file opening blocked by extension, program install blocked by UAC, program running blocked by inaccessible internet, file copy blocked by "unspecified security flaw"...)

Re: Detecting Currency in Photoshop

#18
post #16
post #7

Coming soon to the GIMP. And Krita. And... ?

Wow, somebody was not amused. No clue why...

Both are GPLd programs, most likely with copyright ownership spread across large numbers of contributors in many countries. The GPL says you can't distribute the program unless you include the complete source code. To legally distribute a version of a GPLd image manipulation program with a closed-source currency detection module in it, you would need to get every person who holds copyright in that program to agree - probably an impossible task given many probably feel strongly against this kind of restriction. Alternatively, it might be possible to get a law passed to exempt distributors from that terms of the license - but that would only apply in one country, and it would also need to override the 'freedom or death' term of the GPL.

Even if there was a Free / Open Source currency detection engine, I doubt it would be included in the projects unless it became a legal requirement.

Re: Detecting Currency in Photoshop

#19
post #14
post #3

Is this really a prevalent feature these days? I must be completely out of the loop. That must be the most useless "feature" I've ever heard of. What possible reason is there for doing this?!

> What possible reason is there for doing this?! You might try reading the first sentence of the article.

Has it been edited? In the version at the time of writing this comment, it says that they 'will not process the images', but it doesn't say why not.

Re: Detecting Currency in Photoshop

#20
post #8
post #3

Is this really a prevalent feature these days? I must be completely out of the loop. That must be the most useless "feature" I've ever heard of. What possible reason is there for doing this?!

I understand why this might make an uneducated politician happy. What I don't understand is the incentive for Adobe to do it. Was there ever a danger of restrictions on image editing software?

Just a guess: maybe they have a contract to supply software to one or more governments, and either a term is that they have to do it, or they don't want to upset the government and lose the contract.
Post reply on HN