Napster or Hacker.

[baffled]

My father is a napster lover and careful to follow the rules,got rid of music he was told to .Yesterday he went out and left napster running because he didn't want to cut anyone off,when he got home his library of 1600 files was ruined. Has he been ,napstered,virused or hacked do you think.Any Thought would be great,his music now plays as though in fast forward and with a sound as though someone were tapping on a table with a finger.

[hallam2003]

Well, firt of all, i think you need to look up the TRUE definition of a HACKER - I believe you mean CRACKER. There's a few threads about that on here somewhere. And about your father's problem, i donno, i odn't see how a whole think like that could be ruined from a *CRACKER* A virus maybe, but I don't see why it would only destroy one folder or one file extention. Make sure to shut down the system completely, then check it again. Try a different player than the ussual. Possibly the play-back function of the player is messed up. wait a min, i just now read the last line. Check to see if it's just one MP3's, play a CD and download a MIDI file and play it too. Shut down youi computer too, maybe a sound card error, though it sounds kinda weird for sound card. Again, Try a different play, Like *winamp*, or *liquid audio* i think. Might be some setting messed up or something. This has nothing to do with napster i'm sure, unless your using the default napster MP3 player. Anyone else agree?


Hallam

[baffled]

Thanks for the reply.You are right,the possibilities are endless,he did try another player and he did a reboot,I am going to his place tomorrow to see if there is anything that would be obvious to me.Very disappointed he is ,he has gotten so many compliments on his files a lot of big band stuff Artie Shaw ,Benny Goodman and Gene Kruppa,all stuff he got on napster and he has the albums sitting on a shelf behind where his puter is.Some of them not even opened,has had them for over 40 years in some cases.What is the name of that outfit that does the spot checks on napster for illegal sharing,would they be able to do something like this to him.Thanks again for your thoughts.
He has gotten notices to delete some files that were considered illegal ,he deleted them but I wonder if maybe their equipment may show stuff that he wouldn't know about or how to get rid of,hope you can get my meaning .

[This message has been edited by baffled (edited 12-29-2000).]

[Sixpac]

He should download and install Zone Alarm.... get it here from
http://www.zonelabs.com

its free!

Also get a good virus scanner. Not Norton NO NO NO NO NO... get Panda AV or get McAfee!

Both will help alot.

Also check out http://www.grc.com this site is very good about the problems with having your computer on the Internet.

[socalgal]

Sorry to hear this, baffled.

Never heard of this one. I'm sorry I don't have any suggestions except to check his security, and perhaps change the folder that's accessed for uploads, and/or make a renamed folder for the songs downloaded and copy them there. And show him how to back up his drive, or at least the files he doesn't want to lose.

Check thoroughly for a virii and trojans. Hope it's something simpler, like Hallam said.

Maybe look around here, it's a Napster (http://forum.napster.com/) forum.

Good luck, baffled, and keep us posted.

[Fudge]

Whaddya mean by "ruined"? As in gone? They're there, but won't play? Just curious, as I have never heard of this ever happening to anyone before as a result of leaving Napster running. You might wanna tell him to stop being so nice and when he's done with Napster, turn it off. If they don't get the song off him, they'll get it off someone else.

By the way Hallam...a "cracker" is someone who takes copyrighted software and makes it usable to the public without them having to pay for it or register it with the respective company. A "hacker" is someone who gets into systems uninvited.
How do I know this? I have 3 friends who are "crackers" and it really burns their *** when you call them "hackers". Crackers make expensive software available to those who can't afford it (IE: $3500 canadian for Autocad!!), while hackers are malicious, bored individuals, who just like to annoy people.

[This message has been edited by Fudge (edited 12-30-2000).]

[hallam2003]

Fudge - look at the last line of the original post to see the sound problem.

And I would have to disagree on you slightly with you last statement. I don't want to start a fight, but you friends aren't true crackers then. Crackers are the one that get into system uninvited, and then cause trouble, while they may make illegal copies of software too, just a a side hobbie. Hacker will and do get into systems, but do it for fun and for learning, and the best ones tell the amin of the system where and how to fix their new found secuirty breach. Some "hackers" don't even do this, I believe that the true meaning of a hacker is someone that knows a lot about technology, but then shares that knowledge with others. I believe that most people have been confused by the media. When ever something happens, it's those **** hacker kids.

Hallam

[jad1097]

I have found newsgroups to be the best way to get mp3's.

FYI http://www.webster.com
Main Entry: hack·er
Pronunciation: 'ha-k&r
Function: noun
Date: 14th century
1 : one that hacks
2 : a person who is inexperienced or unskilled at a particular activity <a tennis hacker>
[b]3 : an expert at programming and solving problems with a computer
4 : a person who illegally gains access to and sometimes tampers with information in a computer system [b]


Main Entry: crack·er
Pronunciation: 'kra-k&r
Function: noun
Date: 15th century
1 chiefly dialect : a bragging liar : BOASTER
2 : something that makes a cracking or snapping noise: as a : FIRECRACKER b : the snapping end of a whiplash : SNAPPER c : a paper holder for a party favor that pops when the ends are pulled sharply
3 plural : NUTCRACKER
4 : a dry thin crispy baked bread product that may be leavened or unleavened
5 a usually disparaging : a poor usually Southern white b capitalized : a native or resident of Florida or Georgia -- used as a nickname
6 : the equipment in which cracking (as of petroleum) is carried out

http://whatis.techtarget.com/WhatIs_Definition_Page/0,4152,211852,00.html
cracker

A cracker is someone who breaks into someone else's computer system, often on a network; bypasses passwords or licenses in computer programs; or in other ways intentionally breaches computer security. A cracker can be doing this for profit, maliciously, for some altruistic purpose or cause, or because the challenge is there. Some breaking-and-entering has been done ostensibly to point out weaknesses in a site's security system.
The term "cracker" is not to be confused with "hacker". Hackers generally deplore cracking. However, as Eric Raymond, compiler of The New Hacker's Dictionary notes, some journalists ascribe break-ins to "hackers."

A classic story of the tracking down of a cracker on the Internet who was breaking into U.S. military and other computers is told in Clifford Stoll's The Cuckoo's Egg.


http://whatis.techtarget.com/WhatIs_Definition_Page/0,4152,212220,00.html
hacker

Hacker is a term used by some to mean "a clever programmer" and by others, especially journalists or their editors, to mean "someone who tries to break into computer systems."
1) Eric Raymond, compiler of The New Hacker's Dictionary, defines a hacker as a clever programmer. A "good hack" is a clever solution to a programming problem and "hacking" is the act of doing it. Raymond lists five possible characteristics that qualify one as a hacker, which we paraphrase here:

A person who enjoys learning details of a programming language or system
A person who enjoys actually doing the programming rather than just theorizing about it
A person capable of appreciating someone else's hacking
A person who picks up programming quickly
A person who is an expert at a particular programming language or system, as in "UNIX hacker"
Raymond deprecates the use of this term for someone who attempts to crack someone else's system or otherwise uses programming or expert knowledge to act maliciously. He prefers the term cracker for this meaning.
2) Journalists or their editors almost universally use hacker to mean someone who attempts to break into computer systems. Typically, this kind of hacker would be a proficient programmer or engineer with sufficient technical knowledge to understand the weak points in a security system. For more on this usage, see cracker.

[zskillz]

does he use napster to play his mp3s as well? Does he use winamp. I remeber one time when I used a different program to listen to an mp3 for some reason. When I went back to winamp, the settings were all screwed up. It might be worth your time to make sure that it's not just something as simple as messed up settings.
-Z

[Fudge]

Hallam...I ain't lookin to start a fight by no means, I guess I was just stating my opinion on the subject. My buddies still consider themselves "crackers" as they make and distribute "cracks" for software. But who knows, I can't do either (hacking OR cracking) without using a program someone, alot smarter than me, made. LOL
Oh well....this topic is done anyways.
BTW...as a side note, it sounds like the player was on "repeat", and the MP3 was pooched. Meaning when you played it, all it made was a tap sound, but since it was on "repeat", it sounded like a tapping finger. It's happened to me before. I know this doesn't help you (cause you found it) but I just wanted to point that out.

[baffled]

The problem was an update,he updated to the latest version of napster and that was the culprit.I dumped it and reinstalled the previous version and problem solved.Thanks every one .

[AuraEdge]

The same thing happened to my friend..all her MP3's are playing in fast forward all of a sudden.
Thing is, she didnt even know Beta 8 was out..shes on Beta 7.
Ill look into it, but I just yelled out GET WINAMP instead.

[socalgal]

Glad you found the resolution, baffled! http://sysopt.earthweb.com/forum/smile.gif

[By-tor & the Snow Dog]

So baffled, was he using the napster default player? Was that the problem with the playback. See, I always like to try the latest versions, and I use Ultra Player, so if it's just the player section that's for ****, well then I'll try the next version.

Have a great New Year!

By-Tor