...but I'm gonna ask it anyway! (Sorry if it's a bit long). Why do I need to decrypt the VOBs etc. from a DVD just to burn it on to another (blank) disk? The way I see it (naively, perhaps) is that if I have a bought disk, and want to make a backup in case the kids scratch it (or Blockbuster want it back), I copy the contents verbatim onto my HD, then copy those files again verbatim (in the same order if necessary) to a blank media disk, and let the DVD Player take care of de-crypting the data - it's what it's good at... An analogy: If I have a Fench novel, I can scan the pages, (optionally OCR'ing them to get the ascii-bytes which made the pages, it makes no never-mind) to create an 'image' of the pages, save said images on my HD, then print those images (which might be pages of ascii) onto paper, staple them together, and hand a Frenchman (sorry, Frenchperson) a perfectly serviceable working copy of the original novel. All this is done without de-crypting (i.e. translating) the 'data' (words/sentences) into plain (English) - there simply was no need as I was never going to read the stuff. Likewise, copying the DVD 'data' just to make another identical disk doesn't require that the PC 'understand' the data - data is just a stream of 0s and 1s whatever - an encrypted file is just as unreadable (or readable) as an un-encrypted one - 0s and 1s are always 0s and 1s... I just know I'm gonna got shot shot down for this, but hey, I'm a newbie (that's my excuse) and anyway, healthy debate is good for the mind ;-) I'll just sit back now and watch the fireworks!
Well the simple answer is the DVD has copyright protection well toprotect the companies copyright material. Remember when you purchase a disc you do not obtain the right to it, just the right to use it. Now im not sure how the law is in the U.S, but here in the U.K there is no such thing allowed as a backup, some people will argue this but they are wrong. So basically in the U.K you are not allowed to make a backup as this is illegal.
If only life and reality were so simple. maven is correct - there is a little process called encrytion that copywrite owners often choose to use to protect their material and try to prevent unauthorized reproduction (ala Microsoft). As such, to circumvent these protections you will require programs that decrypt the encrypted material - technically illegal but real. You can play with your 1 and 0's as long as you like but without appropriate decrytion software, you a'int going to go nowhere. Simple theory - shot down by reality - like we should all love each other.
Thanks for your replies, and I understand the reasons for encryption, but I don't think that the question has yet been answered... In order to make a copy of a DVD (legal or otherwise) it seems necessary to de-crypt the blocks of video before burning them onto another DVD. I'm simply asking why can't those encrypted blocks be written onto a blank disc? Surely the DVD player would de-crypt them just as it would the original?
Yes the player decrypt the movie, but it is not going to copy or record. The software that comes with PCs, DVD ROMs, etc will not allow copyies, it is aganist the law.
Well you dont have the keys to decrypt the data, that is where programs like DVD decrypter come in. So therefore windows could not just copy the data. Are you at all familiar with PC game protection, as if you are you will know that you can copy a disc but it wont work.
Well no as again you need to use specific software that can rip encypted data from the disc or apply the key to unencrypt it.
DVD Decrypter does not change the data. It simple bypasses the DSS encrytpion. Similar to bypassing a password on a password protected file. The data is not altered.
